UFC on ESPN 20 Results: Michael Chiesa Beats Neil Magny Via Unanimous Decision

Michael Chiesa took down Neil Magny by unanimous decision in the main event of UFC on ESPN 20 on Wednesday.

The UFC's second fight card of the new year closed with a bout between two fighters who were looking to make an impression. Chiesa and Magny sit eighth and ninth, respectively, in the UFC's rankings of the welterweight division.

Beyond the result, Chiesa's performance will help his stock rise. He won't immediately get a title shot but positions himself for a much bigger showcase down the line.

All three judges scored the fight 49-46, and the stats were one-sided in Chiesa's favor. He landed 93 total strikes and 24 significant strikes compared to 52 and 12, respectively, for Magny. The 33-year-old also succeeded in taking the action to the mat with four takedowns.

Chiesa came out with a clear plan. Even though he was going up against a good grappler, he wanted to outwrestle Magny and deny him any opportunity to build up a head of steam, and he executed the strategy to perfection.

Magny did well to stave off a knockout or TKO, but he was constantly on the defensive, which left him unable to bridge the gap on the judges' scorecards.

By the time the fifth round arrived, it was clear Magny needed a knockout or submission to come away the victor. Even then, he was unable to do much against Chiesa's guard. His three-fight winning streak drew to a close in lackluster fashion.

Chiesa moved to the welterweight class ahead of his December 2018 fight with Carlos Condit at UFC 232. He's 4-0 since then, rising through the division and earning the right to face off with a top contender to see how high his ceiling is.

The UFC kicked off 2021 with its first-ever card on ABC, a show headlined by Max Holloway's victory over Calvin Kattar, on Jan. 16. It opened a series of three events at Fight Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The run culminates with Conor McGregor's return Saturday at UFC 257.

Here are the full results from Wednesday:

Main Card

• Michael Chiesa def. Neil Magny via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)
• Warlley Alves def. Mounir Lazzez via TKO at 2:35 of Round 1
• Ike Villanueva def. Vinicius Moreira via KO at 0:39 of Round 2
• Viviane Araujo def. Roxanne Modafferi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
• Matt Schnell def. Tyson Nam via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Lerone Murphy def. Douglas Silva de Andrade via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Omari Akhmedov def. Tom Breese via submission (triangle choke) at 1:41 of Round 2

Prelims

• Ricky Simon def. Gaetano Pirrello via submission (triangle choke) at 4:00 of Round 2
• Su Mudaerji def. Zarrukh Adashev via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Dalcha Lungiambula def. Markus Perez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Francisco Figueiredo def. Jerome Rivera via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)
• Mike Davis def. Mason Jones via unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)
• Umar Nurmagomedov def. Sergey Morozov via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:39 of Round 2
• Manon Fiorot def. Victoria Leonardo via TKO at 4:08 of Round 2