Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is headed back to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, this weekend (Sat., Oct. 11, 2025) for its first Fight Night event in the city in nearly a decade. In the main event of UFC Rio, former Lightweight champion Charles Oliveira collides with No. 8-ranked contender Mateusz Gamrot in what promises to be a grappler’s delight.
Rio has long been the beating heart of Brazilian MMA. The UFC has visited the city 12 times, more than any other location in the country — and 11 of those events were pay-per-view (PPV) cards. Excluding this weekend’s return, there’s been only one UFC Fight Night in Rio’s history. Do you remember which one?
Let’s rewind to what went down that night nearly ten years ago.
In the main event, two-time title challenger Demian Maia dominated Ryan LaFlare over five rounds. It was classic Maia — relentless grappling, heavy top control, and suffocating jiu-jitsu. To be fair, the fifth round was rough, as Maia completely gassed, but by then the fight was all but over. The performance wasn’t flashy, but it was vintage Maia.
If you’re curious, a few grainy clips of his takedowns are still floating around on YouTube.
In the co-main event, Erick Silva (remember him?) took on Josh Koscheck (who took the fight on short notice) and tapped him in the first round with a guillotine choke.
The rest of the main card featured some memorable moments — and future legends. Amanda Nunes, still early in her career and coming off her first UFC loss, blasted Shayna Baszler with brutal leg kicks for a first-round TKO. Gilbert Burns submitted Alex Oliveira in his third Octagon appearance, and Godofredo Pepey pulled off a wild flying triangle choke against Andre Fili that remains one of the slickest finishes in Rio history.
The only other super notable fight on the card was the night’s biggest controversy, which was Leandro Silva vs. Drew Dober.
In Round 2, Dober escaped a guillotine and landed on top, only for referee Eduardo Herdy to suddenly stop the fight, mistakenly thinking Dober was unconscious. The bizarre call sparked outrage — and the result was later overturned to a no-contest. (watch it here).
On paper, UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. LaFlare wasn’t the deepest card, but it delivered plenty of action and chaos — the kind of unpredictable energy that Brazilian crowds live for. If history repeats itself, this weekend’s UFC Rio could bring that same wild, violent magic back to the “Cidade Maravilhosa.”
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Rio fight card, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET, before the main card start time at 7 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).
To checkout the latest and greatest UFC Rio: “Oliveira vs. Gamrot” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.
