In the United States, per an extension of its new rights agreements with ESPN through 2025, ESPN+ became the exclusive distributor of UFC pay-per-views for residential customers beginning at UFC 236: viewers must have an active ESPN+ subscription in order to purchase and stream PPV events, and they can no longer be purchased through other outlets (such as television providers). At the same time, the price of the PPV was lowered from $64.99 to $59.99, and a promotional offer was launched allowing new subscribers to purchase a bundle of the PPV and a one-year subscription to ESPN+ for $20 more.[4][5]
A bantamweight bout between Boston Salmon and Khalid Taha was initially scheduled for The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters Finale. However, the pairing was removed from the card for undisclosed reasons and instead took place at this event.[9]
Paige VanZant was briefly linked to a match-up with Poliana Botelho at the event.[10] However, just days after the pairing was leaked, VanZant announced that she would not be competing on the card due to a fractured right arm.[11] VanZant was replaced by Lauren Mueller.[12]
The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses:[14]
Fight of the Night: Dustin Poirier vs. Max Holloway and Kelvin Gastelum vs. Israel Adesanya
Performance of the Night: No bonus awarded.
Reported payout
The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission. It does not include sponsor money and also does not include the UFC's traditional "fight night" bonuses. The total disclosed payroll for the event was $1,972,000.[15]
Dustin Poirier: $250,000 (no win bonus) def. Max Holloway: $350,000
Israel Adesanya: $350,000 (no win bonus) def. Kelvin Gastelum: $150,000