The UFC will finally make its return to Miami for the first time in two decades for the rematch between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya for the middleweight championship at the Miami-Dade arena on April 8, the company announced Saturday.
UFC 287, which will also feature Miami star Jorge Masvidal battling Florida-based welterweight Gilbert Burns in the co-main event, will air live on pay-per-view.
The first and only UFC event to take place in Miami went down in April 2003, with Matt Hughes defending his 170-pound title in the main event against Sean Sherk.
“Poatan” and “The Last Stylebender” will rematch five months after the Brazilian came back to win the 185-pound title via fifth-round knockout in New York, going 3-0 against Adesanya in MMA and kickboxing.
Burns has been campaigning for this matchup for many months, and finally gets it shortly after a first-round win over Neil Magny in his native Brazil. Masvidal, on the other hand, is in desperate need for a win after dropping his last three to Kamaru Usman (twice) and Colby Covington.
The card currently includes Kevin Holland vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio, Kelvin Gastelum vs. Chris Curtis, Michael Chiesa vs. Li Jingliang, and Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Christian Rodriguez.