The Real Winners and Losers From UFC Fight Night 230
There had not been a ton of chatter about the UFC Fight Night 230 card that went down Saturday in the promotion's Apex facility in Las Vegas.
That's due partly to the fact that it competed for attention with Saturday's hectic Misfits boxing show in the United Kingdom, but also because it's a little lacklustre on paper.
If last week's Apex card taught us anything, though, it's that these under-the-radar fight nights often provide great entertainment.
In the main event, former lightweight contender Edson Barboza faced another potentially tough test at featherweight, taking on rising star Sodiq Yusuff. Both guys are top-15 talent.
The co-main event also featured two Top 15 fighters, as ranked flyweights Jennifer Maia and Viviane Araujo collided.
Earlier on the main card, bantamweight contender Adrian Yanez looked to rebound from the first loss of his career opposite fellow Top 15 fighter Jonathan Martinez.
Former welterweight contender Michel Pereira also appeared on the card. After an embarrassing scale fail in his last attempt at making the welterweight limit, the fan favourite striker moved up to middleweight to take on TUF veteran Andre Petroski.
Scroll on for the real winners of this low-profile afternoon card in Las Vegas.
Loser: Starting with a Finish
1 of 7
Only the most hardcore fans tune in for the early portions of these low-profile shows at the UFC Apex. A lot of times, they're rewarded for tuning in early with wild finishes in the first few bouts of the night.
Unfortunately, that was not the case this time around, as the first three fights of the night all ended by decision, with Emily Ducote defeating Ashley Yoder at strawweight, Chris Gutierrez outworking Alatengheili at men's bantamweight, and Melissa Dixon beating Irina Alekseeva at in the women's bantamweight division.
They weren't bad fights. Ducote opened some nasty cuts on Yoder's eye brow. Gutierrez mangled Alatengheili's leg with kicks. Dixon ragdolled the "Russian Ronda" Alekseeva. There were things to like about each of the first three fights of the night, but on a card like this, it's nice to get things rolling with a flashy knockout or slick submission, and this time, we weren't so lucky.
Thankfully, Terrance McKinney fights next, and he hasn't been to a decision in 20 pro fights...
Winner: Excitement Guaranteed
2 of 7
As we covered on the last slide, UFC Fight Night 230 kicked off with three straight decisions, which is not exactly what fight fans want when they tune in.
Thankfully, Terrance McKinney was involved in the fourth fight of the night, and he is the closest thing you'll find to guaranteed excitement in MMA.
He lived up to that reputation on Saturday.
He had never been to a decision in the 20 fights leading up to Saturday's card in Las Vegas, and he kept that streak alive on the card, knocking Brendon Marotte out with a knee in just 20 seconds.
McKinney has been hot and cold in the UFC, Going 5-3 since joining the promotion's roster. It remains to be seen if he'll ever be a champion—particularly in a jam-packed division like lightweight—but there is no question that he is must-see TV.
Winner: Doing Damage
3 of 7
Darren "The Damage" Elkins was back in action Saturday in Las Vegas, and as is so often the case, the fan favourite featherweight veteran put on a show.
Elkins, 39, was taking on the 33-year-old TJ Brown, and despite being the much older fighter in the cage, quickly began to have success with his wrestling, and when the takedowns started to materialize, he did not relent.
By the time the hard-nosed veteran locked up a rear-naked choke in the third round, he had completed five of eight takedown attempts, and racked up over eight minutes of control time, per UFCStats.com. Even if the finish didn't materialize, the decision likely would have been his.
It was the kind of performance we don't typically expect from fighters closing in on 40 years old, but precisely the kind of gritty performance Elkins is known for.
At the height of his career, Elkins got quite close to the featherweight title, but was deprived of the chance to fight for gold by a few key losses. At this point, there's no question that his days as a contender are over, but in Vegas, he proved once again that even in the twilight of his career, he's plenty capable of doing serious damage in the cage.
Winner: Greener Pastures
4 of 7
Fan favourite Brazilian striker Michel Pereira started this year on a serious hot streak at welterweight, with five-straight wins in the division. That streak was enough to earn him a fight with two-time former title challenger Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, and if he had won that fight, he would probably have only been a win or two away from a title shot.
Unfortunately, Pereira missed weight for his fight with Thompson so severely that the fight was scrapped, and the Brazilian was effectively banished from the welterweight division by the UFC.
He made his anticipated debut as a middleweight on Saturday, taking on former Ultimate Fighter talent Andre Petroski, and made one heck of a statement, knocking his rival out in just 66 seconds.
It would be premature to call Pereira a title contender at 185 pounds, as Petroski was unranked heading into the fight, and was relatively inexperienced against high level foes. That being said, this was a good test for the Brazilian's middleweight debut, and he passed it with flying colours. He's also just 30 years old, so he's got plenty of time to work his way up the ladder.
"Welcome to the middleweight division," commentator Michael Bisping said after the fight.
Loser: Legs
5 of 7
It was not a good night for legs in the Apex.
In the second bout of the night, rising American bantamweight Chris Gutierrez kicked his opponent Alatengheili's leg with such fervor and frequency that before long, the Chinese fighter was sporting a golf ball-sized contusion on the side of his thigh.
Alatengheili survived to the final bell despite the state of his leg, but later on the card, Adrian Yanez suffered an even worse fate.
Yanez, who was very recently considered a serious threat to the bantamweight title, was back in action against fellow top-15 bantamweight Jonathan Martinez. It was Yanez's chance to rebound from a brutal stoppage loss to Rob Font, and the oddsmakers gave him a decent shot of doing it.
In the end, however, he found himself on the receiving end of one of the most brutal leg kick attacks we've seen in the Octagon recently, eating dozens of strikes to the leg en route to a second-round stop due to leg kicks.
"That was the game plan," a victorious Martinez told commentator Michael Bisping after the win. "He's a really good boxer so I knew I had to take his legs, and after that, his hands wouldn't be that dangerous."
Hopefully, Alatengheili and Yanez are able to walk it off and get back in there soon.
Winner: Fighting Back from the Brink
6 of 7
Edson Barboza was very, very close to losing his fight with Sodiq Yusuff in the first round. He was badly hurt by the Nigerian-American, and was probably one or two clean shots away from referee Herb Dean waving the fight off.
Yet in a miraculous display of toughness, the 37-year-old Brazilian not only survived that early scare, but went on two win rounds two, three, four and five on every scorecard with his world-class striking.
"I'm really feeling it," the bloodied Brazilian said after his stunning, come-from-behind decision victory. "I had a good recovery and came back stronger."
While Barboza failed to finish Yusuff, he very nearly did so in round three, stumbling his Nigerian-American foe with a lightning-quick wheel kick—the same strike he knocked Terry Etim with way back in 2012.
Yusuff, flaunting plenty of his own toughness, survived that scare, but it was incredible to see Barboza surge back to a near knockout after nearly being stopped himself in the first round.
"He's one of the best in the world and he never gave up, like me in the first round," Barboza said in his post-fight interview with commentator Michael Bisping, giving his rival props.
With the win, Barboza has now won two-straight, having knocked out another upstart in Billy Quarantillo in his last fight. Time will tell if the former lightweight contender can pull of a late-career title run at featherweight, but there is no denying he still has the chops to beat most fighters in the weight class—even if he takes a beating early on.
UFC Fight Night 230 Fight Card
7 of 7
Main Card
Edson Barboza def. Sodiq Yusuff via UD (49-46, 48-46, 48-46)
Viviane Araujo def. Jennifer Maia via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Jonathan Martinez def. Adrian Yanez via TKO (leg kicks) - Round 2, 2:26
Michel Pereira def. Andre Petroski via TKO (punches) - Round 1, 1:06
Christian Rodriguez def. Cameron Saaiman via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Prelims
Darren Elkins def. T.J. Brown via submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 3, 2:23
Tainara Lisboa def. Ravena Oliveira via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Terrance McKinney def. Brendon Marotte via TKO (knee and punches) - Round 1, 0:20
Melissa Dixon def. Irina Alekseeva via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Chris Gutierrez def. Alatengheili via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Emily Ducote def. Ashley Yoder via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
.png?w=600 "Who Will Panthers Take at No. 9 ? 🤔")
