It’s been a while since the UFC held an event in Philly.

You’d have to go way back to 2011, when Rashad Evans fought Tito Ortiz at UFC 133 in front of 11,500 fans at the Wells Fargo Center. Vitor Belfort, Chad Mendes, Alex Gustafsson, and Rory MacDonald were also on the card. The only prior event in Philly was UFC 101, which featured a main event of B.J. Penn vs. Kenny Florian.

Dana White is bringing his promotion back to Philadelphia on March 30th for a “Fight Night” that will air on ESPN.

So far only two bouts have been announced, which are:

  • Women’s Strawweight: Michelle Waterson vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
  • Women’s Strawweight: Alexa Grasso vs. Marina Rodriguez

Waterson vs. Kowalkiewicz is a good get. Karolina is a former title challenger while Waterson has won two straight fights. Both are popular with fans. Grasso is 10-2 but has lost two of three fights since signing with UFC while Rodriguez is a product of White’s Contender Series.

Philly native Eddie Alvarez is no longer with the promotion, so you won’t see him on March 30th, but Ridley High School grad Paul Felder has not fought since July of 2018 and would be a good candidate to appear on this card. The most recent UFC event to take place in our region was last year’s Fight Night in Atlantic City between Kevin Lee and Edson Barboza.

Edit: My bad. Felder is fighting James Vick in February: