UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gaziev
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mixed martial arts promotion |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Founder | Art Davie, Rorion Gracie |
| Headquarters | Las Vegas, Nevada , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Dana White (President) |
| Products | MMA events and promotions |
| Website | www |
UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gaziev—also identified as UFC Fight Night 238, UFC on ESPN+ 96, and UFC Vegas 87—was a mixed martial arts competition organized by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on March 2, 2024. This event was held at the UFC Apex facility located in Enterprise, Nevada, within the Las Vegas metropolitan region.
Background
Initially, this event was intended to mark the promotion's first appearance in Saudi Arabia. However, it was postponed when local promoters aimed to assemble a card with greater star power. UFC President Dana White explained that the delay stemmed from scheduling conflicts rather than any deficiencies in the fight lineup. The Saudi Arabian event was subsequently rescheduled for June 22 at Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena to attract premier fighters. As a result, the fights originally planned for March 2 were instead conducted at UFC Apex.
The headline bout featured a heavyweight clash between Jairzinho Rozenstruik and Shamil Gaziev. Additionally, a flyweight contest between Matt Schnell and Steve Erceg, which had been arranged for UFC 295 but postponed due to Schnell’s withdrawal, was rebooked for this card.
A women's strawweight matchup involving Josefine Lindgren Knutsson and Julia Polastri was canceled following an injury to Knutsson; Polastri was subsequently paired with Stephanie Luciano at another event.
A featherweight fight scheduled between Mohammad Yahya and Brendon Marotte was called off because of Marotte’s injury.
In bantamweight competition, Vinicius Oliveira faced Bernardo Sopaj, who stepped in on short notice after Yanis Ghemmouri withdrew due to injury.
The bantamweight bout between Raul Rosas Jr. and Ricky Turcios was removed shortly before the event for undisclosed reasons; this fight had been rescheduled from an earlier card after Rosas Jr. fell ill.
A lightweight contest initially booked between Joel Álvarez and Ľudovít Klein saw Álvarez replaced by AJ Cunningham for undisclosed reasons.
Bonus awards
The following athletes were awarded $50,000 bonuses:
- Fight of the Night: Vinicius Oliveira vs. Bernardo Sopaj
- Performance of the Night: Steve Erceg and Vinicius Oliveira