UFC Fight Night: Costa vs Vettori Results

It was a wild week that saw Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event move from 185 pounds to 205 pounds after Paulo Costa came into Las Vegas overweight and asking for a catchweight, but it ended with a memorable five-rounder at the APEX, with Marvin Vettori winning a unanimous decision over the Brazilian.

Scores were 48-46 across the board for No.5-ranked middleweight Vettori, who improves to 18-5-1. The No.2-ranked fighter at 185 pounds, Costa, falls to 13-2.

After a brief pre-fight skirmish in the Octagon, the fighters got down to business officially, with Costa landing a couple thudding leg kicks. Vettori took them well and marched forward, prompting Costa to clinch briefly in an effort to reset. Once he did, Costa kept the bombs coming, but he didn’t move the Italian, who was working his own shots in, upping the ante with a combination that caught Costa. With two minutes to go, Costa looked winded already, and Vettori coolly kept pressing until the horn sounded.

Hard kicks to the body kept coming from Costa as round two began, and when he moved a kick to the head, he got Vettori in trouble briefly, forcing him on the defensive. And though it seemed like Costa caught a second wind, he was taken down easily by Vettori with two minutes to go. The fight didn’t stay there long, and once standing, an eye poke from Costa brought a brief halt to the action and prompted Jason Herzog to take a point. When the fight resumed, Vettori did good work against the fence while Costa tried repeatedly to end matters with his right kick to the head.

Costa tried to mix up his attack in the third, getting Vettori to the mat with less than two minutes to go. But a guillotine choke attempt that came up empty allowed Vettori to get the top position and control the fight there for the final minute of the frame.

The back-and-forth exchanges continued in round four, neither fighter willing to back down from the other, leading to plenty of compelling action. And though Costa kept digging to the body, it was Vettori landing the more telling blows upstairs.

Both fighters came out throwing bombs to open the final round, and Costa finally looked like he was breaking Vettori down with body shots. The Italian responded with a clinch, buying himself some time before getting back to business. Costa didn’t stray from his attack, and Vettori looked for a takedown, only to get turned away. What followed in the late stages were two fighters calling on the last ounce of gas in their tanks to keep fighting, and they did just that until the horn.

Official result – Marvin Vettori def. Paulo Costa via unanimous decision (48-46, 48-46, 48-46)

A furious late charge from lightweight veteran Ricky Glenn allowed him to salvage a three-round draw with up and comer Grant Dawson in the UFC Fight Night co-main event.

Scores were 29-28 Dawson and 28-28 twice.

Dawson (17-1-1) had a dominant first round as he put Glenn (22-6-2) on the canvas and kept him there, working his strikes and looking for a submission. Glenn showed his veteran experience as he kept out of serious danger, but it was a clear round for Dawson.

Glenn fought off Dawson’s first couple takedown attempts in round two, but in the second minute, he was grounded again, and with the Iowan unable to escape, Dawson logged another round.

Glenn’s takedown defense was on point in the final round, allowing him to get into the top position with a last-ditch effort to turn things around. And though Glenn emptied the tank with strikes and a submission attempt, Dawson made it to the final horn.

Official result – Grant Dawson DRAW 3 Ricky Glenn (29-28, 28-28, 28-28)

In a bantamweight bout, Jessica Rose-Clark won a three-round unanimous decision over Joselyne Edwards.

Scores were 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 for Clark, now 11-6, 1 NC. Edwards falls to 10-4.

It took less than 30 seconds for Clark to get the fight to the mat, and she kept Edwards grounded until two minutes remained, when referee Keith Peterson restarted the stalled action. Edwards was able to reverse Clark’s next takedown attempt, and she bulled the Aussie into the fence, landing some knees before a brief standup period in which she landed a couple shots. It was Clark ending the frame with another takedown, though.

The next two rounds were mirror images of each other, with Clark getting the fight to the mat and largely keeping it there while doing enough to avoid a referee restart.

Official result – Jessica-Rose Clark def. Joselyne Edwards via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Surging featherweight veteran Alex Caceres won his fifth fight in a row, surviving some dicey moments to submit SeungWoo Choi in the second round.

The fight began with some quality back-and-forth on the feet, but Choi surged into the lead with a right hand that dropped Caceres to the mat. Choi went in for the finish, but as Caceres rose, he was caught with an illegal knee, bringing a momentary stop to the action and costing Choi a point from referee Jason Herzog. Once the action resumed, Choi’s right hand was back on target, with another near knockdown taking place just before the horn.

The second round was being waged on the feet, with Choi still showing off the power that was keeping him in the lead, but out of nowhere, Caceres locked up with his foe, took his back while they stood, and sunk in the rear naked choke that forced a tap out at 3:31 of round two.

Official result – Alex Caceres def. SeungWoo Choi via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:31 of the second round.

Despite a third-round point deduction, Francisco Trinaldo was able to secure a three-round split decision win over Dwight Grant in their welterweight bout.

29-27, 29-27 and 27-29 for Trinaldo, now 27-8. Grant falls to 11-4.

Grant did a good job of using his range to keep Trinaldo from getting into an offensive rhythm through much of the first round, but late in the frame, Trinaldo landed with a couple left hands that got Grant’s attention.

Grant returned the favor in the second minute of round two when a right hand sent Trinaldo down to the canvas. The Brazilian took a couple more hard shots on the mat, but he shook them off and got back to his feet, where he continued to stalk the counterpunching Grant. With less than two minutes to go, Trinaldo locked up with his foe and looked for the takedown but came up empty, settling for some cage control.

The early part of round three was marred by a low shot and an eye poke from Trinaldo, with the eye poke earning the Brazilian a point deduction. Once action resumed, Trinaldo got a takedown and he kept the fight grounded until the final horn.

Official result – Francisco Trinaldo def. Dwight Grant via split decision (29-27, 29-27, 27-29)

Light heavyweight prospect Nicolae Negumereanu moved to 11-1 as a pro with a first-round TKO of Ike Villanueva.

After Villanueva avoided an early takedown attempt from Negumereanu, the two began slugging it out at close range, with a shot behind the ear putting the Texan on the mat. A series of strikes followed, some to the back of the head, with referee Mike Beltran stepping in to stop the fight 1:18 into the first round.

Official result – Nicolae Negumereanu def. Ike Villanueva via TKO (strikes) at 1:18 of the first round

Gregory Rodrigues and Junyong Park slugged it out in their middleweight bout, with Brazil’s “Robocop” emerging victorious by second-round knockout.

After some standup action to start the contest, Rodrigues took the fight into his world just past the midway point, and he controlled the action on the ground for the rest of the frame. Park came out firing for round two, though, and he rocked Rodrigues several times before the Brazilian found refuge on the mat. Once the two stood, Park again landed with both hands, prompting a throw by Rodrigues, but as the fighters got back to their feet, the slugfest resumed, Park holding the edge before Rodrigues roared back, hurt “The Iron Turtle” and forced referee Keith Peterson to stop the fight. The time of the finish was 3:13 of the second round.

Rodrigues moves to 11-3 with the win. Park falls to 13-5.

Official result – Gregory Rodrigues def. Junyong Park via KO at 3:13 of the second round

Taking the fight against top prospect Mason Jones on less than a week’s notice, Ugandan newcomer David Onama impressed for three rounds, but it was “The Dragon” earning the victory via unanimous decision in an exciting lightweight bout.

Scores were 29-28 across the board for Jones, now 10-2, 1 NC. Onama, the first native of Uganda to fight in the UFC, falls to 8-1.

There was no feeling-out process between the 155-pounders, with Jones getting right in Onama’s face and the newcomer firing right back. Jones did rattle his foe a couple times with his strikes before doing good work on the ground, but by the end of the frame, Onama was on his feet and tagging Jones, marking up the Welshman’s face.

After some back-and-forth exchanges on the feet to start round two, Jones put the fight on the mat, but midway through, it was back to the feet, where Onama landed some more hard shots. An illegal knee by Jones forced a brief stop to the action, and then it was back into the pocket, neither fighter willing to take a backwards step. Jones dragged Onama to the mat in the final minute, capping off another frantic frame.

Onama stung Jones in the first minute of round three, leading to another takedown by the Welshman, and this time he got into the full mount. With 1:46 the gritty Onama got back to his feet, only to be taken down again. And while Onama got in some more shots before the horn, it was Jones’ night on the scorecards.

Official result – Mason Jones def. David Onama via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Strawweight prospect Tabatha Ricci was impressive in picking up her first Octagon win via unanimous decision over UFC newcomer Maria Oliveira.

The judges saw it 30-27 across the board for Ricci, now 6-1. Oliveira falls to 12-5.

Ricci came out fast in an effort to end the fight early, but Oliveira weathered the storm and eventually worked her way into the bout, only to be put in a precarious position on the mat early in the second round. Again, the resilient Oliveira survived, but by the end of the round she was in a 2-0 hole, likely needing a finish to get the win. And while she did press early in the final frame for that finish, it wasn’t to be, as Ricci dominated the round once more to wrap up the victory.

Official result – Tabatha Ricci def. Maria Oliveira via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

In a middleweight bout, Jamie Pickett earned his first UFC win with a three-round unanimous decision over Laureano Staropoli.

Scores were 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for Pickett, now 12-6. Staropoli falls to 9-5.

In round one, Staropoli did some good work in the clinch against the fence, but it was Pickett closing the frame strong when he had room to strike. The Argentina native went right back to the clinch to start the second stanza, but it was Pickett scrambling his way into a controlling position as he got Staropoli’s back. Staropoli got out of immediate danger, but Pickett kept the dominant position for a spell. Once separated, Staropoli rocked his foe with a left hand before going into the clinch, but he wasn’t able to pull away in that round or the third, which maintained its grueling pace, broken only by a late exchange by both men.

Official result – Jamie Pickett def. Laureano Staropoli via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

England’s Jai Herbert was on target throughout his lightweight bout with Khama Worthy, making it no surprise that he ended the matchup in the first round.

Herbert looked smooth on his feet from the start, landing hard and seemingly effortless kicks. Worthy fired back, but midway through the round, Herbert’s sniper-like shots rattled the Pittsburgh native, and after a barrage of shots on the ground, referee Chris Tognoni stopped the fight at 2:47 of the opening round.

Herbert moves to 11-3 with the win. Worthy moves to 16-9.

Official result – Jai Herbert def. Khama Worthy via TKO (strikes) at 2:47 of the first round

Flyweight prospect Jeff Molina said he wanted “clean kills” after a back-and-forth Fight of the Night battle in his debut, and he got it, stopping Brazilian newcomer Daniel da Silva in the second round.

Da Silva (11-2) went on the attack immediately, using his kicks to set up his grappling game, which was just as aggressive as he sought a submission. But as the two went to the canvas, Molina (10-2) scrambled free and into the top position, where he landed some strikes before another submission attempt by da Silva. Molina fired off more punches from the top before an armbar put him in danger again. Fighting free, the strikes from “El Hefe” continued, allowing him to end the round in style.

Early in round two, a right hand by Molina floored da Silva, and after a barrage of unanswered strikes, referee Keith Peterson halted the fight at the :46 mark.

Official result – Jeff Molina def. Daniel da Silva via TKO (strikes) at :46 of the second round

Strawweight veteran Randa Markos earned her first win since October 2019, snapping a four-fight losing streak with a three-round unanimous decision over Livinha Souza.

Scores were 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for Markos, now 11-12-1. Souza falls to 14-4.

Markos went after the takedown early in the fight, but Souza remained upright and got the fight to the mat, where she took over, landing hard shots and nearly sinking in a rear naked choke. Markos got free and back to her feet with a minute left, landing a hard elbow and a knee before Souza pulled guard in the closing seconds of the frame.

The fight went back to the mat in the opening minute of round two, Markos looking for a neck crank from the bottom position, but when that didn’t prove fruitful, Souza was back on top for a spell until Markos reversed position and controlled the rest of the round.

Markos had a striking blitz early in round three that put Souza against the fence and in trouble, but the Brazilian stopped the bleeding with a throw to the mat. The positive position didn’t last long for Souza, though, as Markos reversed and kept her advantage until the final horn sounded.

Official result – Randa Markos def. Livinha Souza via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

In the bantamweight opener, Jonathan Martinez pounded out a hard-fought unanimous decision over Octagon newcomer Zviad Lazishvili.

Scores were 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 for Martinez, now 14-4. Lazishvili, who replaced Aaron Phillips on short notice, falls to 13-1.

Lazishvili wasn’t able to get the fight to the mat in the first round, despite a concerted effort to do so, but he wasn’t out of his depth on his feet, fighting on fairly even terms with Martinez, even getting the Coloradan’s attention with some flush blows.

The second stanza remained a nip and tuck affair, Martinez landing the harder blows while Lazishvili was busier, but in the third, Martinez pulled ahead and stayed there, bloodying and bruising his foe with crisp strikes en route to the decision victory.

Official result – Jonathan Martinez def. Zviad Lazishvili via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)