UFC Fight Night: Benavidez vs. Figueiredo
| Company type | Mixed martial arts event |
|---|---|
| Industry | Sports entertainment |
| Founded | February 29, 2020 |
| Headquarters | Norfolk, Virginia , United States |
Area served | United States |
UFC Fight Night: Benavidez vs. Figueiredo—also identified as UFC Fight Night 169 and UFC on ESPN+ 27—was a mixed martial arts competition organized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on February 29, 2020, at Chartway Arena in Norfolk, Virginia, USA.
Background
This event represented the UFC’s second visit to Norfolk, following their previous appearance at UFC Fight Night: Poirier vs. Pettis in November 2017.
The main event showcased a contest for the vacant UFC Flyweight Championship between former title contender Joseph Benavidez and Deiveson Figueiredo. This matchup arose after reigning flyweight champion and multi-division titleholder Henry Cejudo vacated the belt in December 2019 to concentrate on competing at bantamweight.
A welterweight clash originally set between Alex Oliveira and Mickey Gall was removed from the lineup due to undisclosed circumstances.
A featherweight bout featuring Chas Skelly and Grant Dawson, initially planned for UFC 246 but postponed because of Dawson’s withdrawal, was rescheduled. Subsequently, Skelly withdrew with an injury and was replaced by promotional debutant Darrick Minner.
Another featherweight fight that had been scheduled between Steven Peterson and Aalon Cruz experienced a change when Peterson withdrew for unspecified reasons, leading to newcomer Spike Carlyle stepping in.
The featherweight matchup between Mike Davis and Giga Chikadze was canceled following Davis’ injury withdrawal; Chikadze was later reassigned to face Jamall Emmers at UFC 248.
In lightweight competition, Luis Peña was matched against Steve Garcia after the original opponent, Alexander Muñoz, pulled out due to injury.
During the weigh-ins, Figueiredo failed to make the flyweight limit by 2.5 pounds, rendering him ineligible to win the title. Consequently, he was penalized with a fine amounting to 30% of his fight purse, which was awarded to Benavidez. The fight proceeded at catchweight with Benavidez remaining eligible for the championship. Additionally, Dawson missed weight by 3.5 pounds for his featherweight bout and received a similar penalty; his contest also continued at catchweight.
Bonus awards
Monetary bonuses of $50,000 were granted as follows:
- Fight of the Night: Kyler Phillips vs. Gabriel Silva
- Performance of the Night: Megan Anderson and Jordan Griffin
Reported payout
The total disclosed fighter compensation reported to the Virginia Department of Professional & Occupational Regulation amounted to $945,000. This figure includes base salaries and win bonuses but excludes sponsorship earnings and discretionary UFC bonuses:
- Deiveson Figueiredo: $105,000 (including $50,000 win bonus) defeated Joseph Benavidez: $195,000 ^
- Felicia Spencer: $34,000 (including $17,000 win bonus) defeated Zarah Fairn: $10,000
- Magomed Ankalaev: $66,000 (including $33,000 win bonus) defeated Ion Cuțelaba: $33,000
- Megan Anderson: $80,000 (including $40,000 win bonus) defeated Norma Dumont Viana: $10,000
- Grant Dawson: $23,800 (including $14,000 win bonus) defeated Darrick Minner: $14,200 >
- Kyler Phillips: $20,000 (including $10,000 win bonus) defeated Gabriel Silva: $10,000
- Brendan Allen: $24,000 (including $12,000 win bonus) defeated Tom Breese: $10,000
- Marcin Tybura: $136,000 (including $68,000 win bonus) defeated Sergey Spivak: $14,000
- Luis Peña: $48,000 (including $24,000 win bonus) defeated Steve Garcia: $10,000
- Jordan Griffin: $24,000 (including $12,000 win bonus) defeated T.J. Brown: $10,000
- Spike Carlyle: $20,000 (including $10,000 win bonus) defeated Aalon Cruz: $10,000
- Sean Brady: $24,000 (including $12,000 win bonus) defeated Ismail Naurdiev: $16,000
^ Deiveson Figueiredo was fined 30% of his purse ($45,000) for missing weight; this amount was awarded to Joseph Benavidez.
> Grant Dawson also incurred a 30% fine ($4,200) due to missing weight; these funds were given to Darrick Minner.