UFC 268
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mixed martial arts promotion |
| Founded | November 12, 1993 |
| Founder | Art Davie, Rorion Gracie |
| Headquarters | Las Vegas, Nevada , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Dana White (President) |
| Products | Mixed martial arts events |
| Owner | Endeavor Group Holdings |
| Website | www |
UFC 268: Usman vs. Covington 2 was a mixed martial arts competition organized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on November 6, 2021, hosted at Madison Square Garden in New York City, United States.
Background
The headline bout featured a rematch for the UFC Welterweight Championship between reigning titleholder Kamaru Usman and former interim champion Colby Covington. Their initial encounter at UFC 245 concluded with Usman retaining his belt through a TKO in the fifth round. Although Vicente Luque was designated as a backup fighter, he failed to make weight and therefore was not eligible to compete for the championship.
In the co-main event, a rematch took place for the UFC Women's Strawweight Championship involving two-time titleholder Rose Namajunas and ex-champion Zhang Weili. Namajunas had previously defeated Zhang via first-round knockout at UFC 261.
A women's bantamweight contest between former featherweight champion Germaine de Randamie and Irene Aldana was planned but subsequently canceled due to an injury sustained by de Randamie.
A middleweight matchup featuring former Strikeforce and UFC titleholder Luke Rockhold against Sean Strickland was scheduled; however, Rockhold withdrew because of a herniated disc.
Phil Hawes and Chris Curtis, whose fight had been postponed earlier, finally faced off at this event.
The featherweight bout originally set between Melsik Baghdasaryan and T.J. Laramie changed after Laramie pulled out owing to an MRSA infection. Newcomer Bruno Souza stepped in as a replacement but failed to make weight, resulting in a 20% deduction from his fight purse.
In the light heavyweight division, Aleksa Camur withdrew due to injury and was replaced by Dustin Jacoby, who fought against John Allan.
During the weigh-ins, C.J. Vergara exceeded the flyweight limit by 1.4 pounds, leading to the bout proceeding at catchweight with a 20% fine imposed on him, awarded to his opponent Ode' Osbourne.
Bonus awards
Monetary bonuses of $50,000 were awarded as follows:
- Fight of the Night: Justin Gaethje vs. Michael Chandler
- Performance of the Night: Marlon Vera, Alex Pereira, Bobby Green, and Chris Barnett
Aftermath
Fans voted this event as the recipient of the UFC Honors 2021 Event of the Year award.