Fight Facts: UFC 289 ‘Nunes vs. Aldana’

Fight Facts is a breakdown of all of the interesting information and Octagon oddities on every card, with some puns, references and portmanteaus to keep things fun. These deep stat dives delve into the numbers, providing historical context and telling the stories behind those numbers.

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TOTAL NUMBER OF UFC FIGHTS: 7,175
TOTAL NUMBER OF UFC EVENTS: 650

The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to the Great White North for the first time in years with a show that will leave people talking for some time. Canadian fighters exceeded expectations by winning out the night, scoring their fair share of upsets along the way. UFC 289 featured the dramatic conclusion of the “Lioness” era, a reminder of the greatness of a former champ and an athlete that just cannot seem to avoid headbutts lately.

Seemed Like Canada Day: Not counting adopted Canadian Diana Belbita, all five fighters from Canada emerged victorious against their foreign adversaries: Mike Malott, Marc-Andre Barriault, Jasmine Jasudavicius, Aiemann Zahabi and Kyle Nelson. It is the first UFC event since UFC Fight Night 89 in Ottawa in 2016 where Canadians claimed at least five wins.

Easy Championship Work: Across five one-sided rounds, Amanda Nunes outworked Irene Aldana en route to a decision win. Following her victory, the two-division champ vacated her belts and retired, ending her UFC run with 11 wins in title fights – the most of any female fighter by far and the fourth-most in company history tied with Anderson Silva.

Greatest Female Fighter Ever, No Debate: “The Lioness” said farewell after notching her 16th win under the UFC banner. This sits her on top of the leaderboard, breaking a tie with Jessica Andrade for the most of any woman to set foot in the UFC cage.

The Nunes Books: As a UFC women’s bantamweight fighter, Nunes celebrates the most victories (13), second-most appearances (15), most finishes (eight), most knockouts (six), most championship wins (eight), longest win streak (nine), most knockdowns (six) and many more accolades.

Surpassing an Olympian: Nunes landed six takedowns as she dismantled Aldana. At the 135-pound division, the Brazilian’s total now sits at 32, which passes Sara McMann (27) for the most in the history of the weight class.

No Better Way to Go Out: In what may be her final professional fight, Nunes set a personal best of 142 significant strikes landed. On two prior occasions, she had eclipsed the century mark, against Raquel Pennington and Felicia Spencer, with both capping off at exactly 124.

Incomparable: Laying waste to Beneil Dariush in the first round, Charles Oliveira secured finish no. 20 as a UFC competitor. This extends his own record for the most in the company, with Jim Miller the next closest with 17.

And He Is in His Prime: While recording his 20th stoppage, he has an additional two decision victories on his UFC ledger. Oliveira’s 22 total wins move him into a fourth-place tie with Demian Maia for the most in company history.

They Each Hold One Finish Over One Another: The former lightweight champ has procured 14 stoppages at 155 pounds, putting him one shy of Miller. He does hold one more submission (10) than Miller.

It’s What Do Bronx Do: After his drubbing of Dariush, “Do Bronx” earned a “Performance of the Night” check. His 19 passes Donald Cerrone for sole possession of the most of any UFC fighter.

Mr. Performance: Of Oliveira’s 19 bonus awards over the years, 13 of those have come via POTN. This is far and away the most of anyone to enter the Octagon, with no other claiming more than seven.

His Home and Native Land: Malott tapped Adam Fugitt with a guillotine choke to end the night perfect for Canadians. He also kept his finish rate perfect at 100% in victory, with 10 stoppages across 10 wins.

Hawaiian Punches Not Enough: After three rounds of action, Dan Ige had his hand raised against Nate Landwehr. The victorious decision served as the Hawaiian’s first in over three years, when he topped Edson Barboza by a razor-close split verdict.

Power Bar Did Not Drain: Middleweights Barriault and Anders needed the full 15 minutes to handle their business, with the Canadian getting the nod at the end. It marked the first time in five fights for “Power Bar” that he had heard the final bell, dating back to 2021.

Magnet for Headbutts: An accidental clash of heads forced a no contest ruling for Nassourdine Imavov and Chris Curtis. Three of the last five no contests inside the Octagon have come from incidental headbutts, and before then, the last situation of that type came back at UFC Fight Night 100 between Darren Stewart and Francimar Barroso in 2016.

French Exploitation: Before the fight was waved off, Imavov landed three takedowns against “The Action Man” in Round 1. They serve as the only takedowns Curtis has surrendered after seven trips to the Octagon. Before this match, UFC fighters were a combined 0-35 against Curtis.

Canadian Wrestling Beat American Wrestling: Niagara Top Team talent Jasudavicius defeated the favored Miranda Maverick by decision. She has gone the distance in seven straight fights, win or lose, accounting for her full UFC tenure and then some.

Coming into His Own: In only 64 seconds, Zahabi belted Qileng Aori with punches to record the win. The 35-year-old, with six appearances after six years on the UFC roster, improved his finish rate to a clean 80%.

A Hat Made of Medicine: For the first time since 2016, Nelson ended up winning a fight at the hands of the judges by overcoming Blake Bilder. This last occurred for him against Jonathan Brookins at a Canadian event called “Medicine Hat” back in October 2016.

Canada Claimed Her: At the conclusion of the match, Belbita ended up prevailing over Maria Oliveira via unanimous decision. “The Warrior Princess” has gone the distance in four of her five UFC outings to date.

Never Say Never Again: Coming into UFC 289, Fugitt had never been submitted (12 fights), Aori had never been knocked out (33 fights) and Bilder had never been defeated (nine fights).

I’ll Never Fall in Line: Malott remains the lone fighter in organizational history to walk out to Sum 41. His three Octagon appearances have all been accompanied by “Fat Lip,” and they have all resulted in stoppage wins.

She Must Have Watched Joker: Switching her walkout tune to “Rock and Roll (Part 2)” by Gary Glitter, Jasudavicius picked up a win over Maverick. As the second fighter in recorded UFC history to use that track or artist, she lifted its win percentage to .750.