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Home , Brad Riddell, Derek Brunson, Gregor Gillespie, Kevin Holland, Sam Alvey, Song Kenan

EXCITING MIDDLEWEIGHT CONTENDERS (#7) AND (#10) BATTLE AT UFC® APEX

Las Vegas – UFC® continues its run of events at UFC APEX with a thrilling contenders’ bout that will see No. 7 ranked Derek Brunson look to stop the momentum of rising No. 10 Kevin Holland. In a fascinating co-main event, No. 15 ranked contender returns against surging former kickboxer .

UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: BRUNSON vs. HOLLAND will take place Saturday, March 20 at UFC APEX in . The main card will air live at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT on ESPN and will also be simulcast in English and Spanish on ESPN+. ESPN Deportes will also air the main event joining in progress at 11 p.m. ET. The prelims will kick off on ESPN+ and ESPN2 at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT.

Perennial contender Brunson (21-7, fighting out of Wilmington, N.C.) is coming off one of his most impressive performances to date, handing highly touted Edmen Shahbazyan his first professional loss in August via TKO. A NCAA Division II wrestler with KO power, Brunson has also earned KO wins over , and . Brunson now has his sights set on securing his fourth consecutive victory by turning back yet another rising contender.

Holland (21-5, fighting out of Fort Worth, Texas) hopes to continue the momentum of his historic 2020 campaign, which saw him become the first middleweight in UFC history to win five bouts inside a calendar year. A talented striker and grappler, Holland has netted spectacular KO wins against Jacare Souza, Charlie Ontiveros and Joaquin Buckley. Holland is now driven to pick up his sixth victory in a row to continue his ascent up the 185-pound ladder.

Gillespie (13-1, fighting out of , N.Y.) aims to remind fans he’s among the top lightweights in the world when he makes his first Octagon appearance since late 2019. A 2007 NCAA Division I champion, Gillespie’s crushing ground game has been on full display in stoppage victories against Yancy Medeiros, Vinc Pichel and Andrew Holbrook. Gillespie now looks for an emphatic return by becoming the first fighter to defeat Riddell in UFC.

Riddell (9-1, fighting out of , by way of , New Zealand) has wasted little time since joining the world’s premiere MMA organization in 2019. A member of New Zealand’s famed City , Riddell has earned impressive wins against Alex da Silva, Magomed Mustafaev and . Riddell now hopes to keep his momentum going with another show-stealing performance to crack the lightweight top 15.

Additional bouts on the card include:

Hard-hitting heavyweights collide whenTai Tuivasa (11-3, fighting out of Western , NSW, ) faces Don’Tale Mayes (8-4, fighting out of Louisville, Ken.) ’s Contender Series contract winner Adrian Yanez (12-3, fighting out of , Texas) aims to deliver another spectacular KO when he facesGustavo Lopez (12-5, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev.) in a bantamweight bout (15-5, fighting out of , ) faces (16-8, fighting out of Sacramento, Calif.) in a clash of entertaining strikers Dana White’s Contender Series signee Cheyanne Buys (5-1, fighting out of , Texas) takes on fellow newcomer Montserrat Ruiz (9-1, fighting out of El Paso, Texas) in a women’s strawweight bout Women’s bantamweight contenders battle when No. 9 Marion Reneau (9-6-1, fighting out of Visalia, Calif.) takes on No. 11 Macy Chiasson (7-1, fighting out of Dallas, Texas) Streaking lightweights meet whenLeonardo Santos (18-4-1, fighting out of Campos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) goes for another impressive finish against Grant Dawson (16-1, fighting out of Lee’s Summit, Mo.) (13-2, fighting out of Houston, Texas) squares off with Roman Dolidze (8-0, fighting out of Batumi, Georgia) in an intriguing middleweight bout Montel Jackson (9-2, fighting out of , Wisc.) meets newcomer Jesse Strader (5-1, fighting out of Lancaster, Calif.) in a battle of bantamweight prospects No. 15 ranked women’s bantamweight contenderJulia Avila (8-2, fighting out of Oklahoma City, Okla.) looks to defend her spot in the rankings againstJulija Stoliarenko (9-5-1, fighting out of Kaunas, Lithuania) Bruno Silva (10-5-2 1NC, fighting out of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil by way of Piracicaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil) hopes to return to the win column when he takes on Dana White’s Contender Series veteran JP Buys (9-2, fighting out of Dallas, Texas by way of Brakpan, Gauteng, South Africa) at flyweight Johnny Eduardo (28-12, fighting out of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil) faces Anthony Birchak (16-7, fighting out of Tucson, Ariz.) in an exciting bantamweight contest

For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.

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About UFC® UFC® is the world’s premier mixed organization (MMA), with more than 625 million fans and 142 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to approximately 900M TV households across more than 175 territories. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 70 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC was acquired in 2016 by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, along with strategic investors Silver Lake Partners and KKR. UFC is headquartered in Las Vegas, . For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok: @UFC.

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