UFC 304
| Industry | Mixed martial arts promotion |
|---|---|
| Founded | November 12, 1993 |
| Headquarters | Las Vegas , United States |
| Products | Mixed martial arts events |
| Website | www |
UFC 304: Edwards vs. Muhammad 2 represented a mixed martial arts spectacle organized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship, taking place on July 27, 2024, at the Co-op Live venue located in Manchester, England.
Background
This event marked the fifth occasion the UFC hosted a card in Manchester, with the last one being UFC 204 back in October 2016. Although held in the UK, the schedule adhered to Pacific Daylight Time (PDT), resulting in preliminary bouts commencing at 23:00 BST and the main card starting at 03:00 BST, aligning with traditional UFC pay-per-view timings (19:00 PDT). This timing arrangement drew considerable disapproval from both fans and fighters who favored earlier local start times.
The main event showcased a UFC Welterweight Championship clash featuring reigning champion Leon Edwards defending his title against challenger Belal Muhammad. Their previous meeting occurred at UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs. Muhammad in March 2021, which concluded as a no contest due to an accidental eye poke incident.
Serving as co-main event was an interim UFC Heavyweight Championship matchup between titleholder Tom Aspinall and challenger Curtis Blaydes. Their earlier fight in July 2022 ended with Blaydes victorious after Aspinall sustained a knee injury early in that contest.
Other significant bouts included a middleweight fight originally planned between Christian Leroy Duncan and Robert Bryczek. Bryczek withdrew and was replaced by former LFA Middleweight Champion Gregory Rodrigues.
In the women’s strawweight division, an injury forced Ravena Oliveira out of her scheduled bout against Shauna Bannon. Oliveira’s spot was filled by promotional newcomer Alice Ardelean.
Within bantamweight competition, Ramon Taveras pulled out of his fight against Caolán Loughran due to injury. Although Hecher Sosa was initially announced as his replacement, he did not compete; ultimately, Jake Hadley stepped in to face Loughran. Hadley failed to make weight by half a pound, resulting in a catchweight contest and a 20% fine of his purse awarded to Loughran.
Shortly before the event, the UFC increased its fight night bonuses from $50,000 to $100,000 per award.
Results
{{MMAevent bout |Women's Strawweight |Shauna Bannon |def. |Alice Ardelean |Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 30–27) |}
Bonus awards
The following competitors were recognized with bonuses:
- Fight of the Night: No bonus granted.
- Performance of the Night ($200,000): Paddy Pimblett
- Performance of the Night ($100,000): Tom Aspinall and Mick Parkin