The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Canada after a hiatus of 4 years. In 2019, former UFC interim lightweight champ, Justin Gaethje headlined the last Canadian fight card in Vancouver, British Columbia opposite Donald Cerrone. But that is set to end this weekend at UFC 289 as the event will be held in Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
As the fight fans already know, “The Lioness” Amanda Nunes is all set to defend the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship in the main event of the upcoming PPV. Nunes is coming off a hard-fought win against the former champ Julianna Pena. While the UFC 289 main event was supposed to feature the trilogy bout between Pena and Nunes, Irene Aladana was named the replacement after Pena pulled out.
NUNES vs ALDANA! #UFC289 is LIVE TOMORROW on @ESPNPlus PPV pic.twitter.com/PhKjiHxL3c
— danawhite (@danawhite) June 9, 2023
Aldana is currently on a two-fight win streak, which saw her beat Macy Chiasson and Yana Santos respectively. While she is a massive underdog, fans have seen Nunes getting beat when none expected her to. While the PPV sales for this event are not expected to be high, hardcore MMA fans are still excited about the prospect of watching Nunes grace the Octagon once more.
UFC 289: Full fight card
Other than the championship main event, fans will also be treated to a spectacular lightweight co-main event. Former interim lightweight champ Charles Oliveira will fight Beneil Dariush for a chance at a title shot in the near future. While Oliveira is coming off a loss to the current champ Islam Makhachev at UFC 280, Dariush is on an 8-fight win streak. So it will certainly be a great fight. However, there are plenty of other amazing bouts on the card.
Oliveira and Dariush are ready to bring the intensity to #UFC289 😤 pic.twitter.com/xOBDEcgqjj
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 9, 2023
UFC 289: Main Card
Amanda Nunes vs Irene Aldana (UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship)
Charles Oliveira vs Beneil Dariush
Mike Malott vs Adam Fugitt
Dan Ige vs Nate Landwehr
Marc-Andre Barriault vs Eryk Anders
UFC 289: Prelims
Nassourdine Imavov vs Chirs Curtis
Miranda Maverick v Jasmine Jasudavicius
Aiemann Zahabi vs Qileng Aori
Kyle Nelson vs Blake Bilder
UFC 289: Early Prelims
David Dvorak vs Steve Erceg
Diana Belbita vs Maria Oliveira
UFC 289 Streaming details
UFC is traveling abroad once more for a major PPV once more in 2023. The year kicked off with UFC 283 in Brazil, followed by UFC 284 in Australia. UFC 286 also took place overseas as the welterweight champ Leon Edwards defeated Kamaru Usman in his home country England. And, just like any other overseas PPV, fans can expect Joe Rogan to miss this PPV event as well. So how can the fans catch the fight? Let’s find out
In the USA: American fans can catch the fights on June 10 on ESPN+ PPV. The regular ESPN+ customers will need to pay a sum of $79.99 and new customers can purchase the PPV for a bundle price of $124.98. It includes the PPV and a year-long subscription to the service. As for the prelims, fans can enjoy the fights on UFC’s own streaming service, UFC Fight Pass. The event goes live from 10 pm ET/7 pm PT. But the main event starts from 12:15 am ET/9:15 pm PT.
In the UK: British MMA fans will get to enjoy the event on June 11 on Sunday. The difference in the date is due to the timezone. For UK fans, the main card goes live at 3 am BST, and the main event goes live at approximately 5:15 am BT. They can catch the PPV live on BT Sports.
In Australia: Australia has a passionate MMA fan base and they will also have to tune in on June 11, for the timezone difference as well. In Australia, the main card goes live at 12 pm AEST and the headliner will take place from 2:15 pm AEST onwards. Aussie fans have various options for watching the PPV such as Kayo Sports, Fetch TV, or buying the PPV directly from UFC Fight Pass.
Verbal jabs to prep for Saturday. 🗣🎤 #UFC289 | @UFC_CA pic.twitter.com/qbvZAyB6OI
— Rogers Arena (@RogersArena) June 9, 2023
In Canada: Canada is the venue for the upcoming UFC 289. So Canadian fans in Vancouver can watch the fights live inside the Rodgers Arena. However, fans who can not attend the event can buy the PPV from UFC Fight Pass or watch it on BELL, Videotron, Telus, Eastlink, etc.