Submitted by: Eric Marcotte
The UFC returned to the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California for the first time since 2016 on Saturday. The card was headlined by a fight between women’s bantamweight contenders Germaine de Randamie and Aspen Ladd, a fight which would likely determine the next challenger for Amanda Nunes in the 135 division. The night also marked the return of UFC Hall of Famer, Urijah Faber, who had last fought on the aforementioned Sacramento card in 2016. A scheduled lightweight bout between Beneil Dariush and Drakkar Klose was canceled earlier this week due to an injury to Dariush.
Brendan Fitzgerald called the event alongside Michael Bisping. Performance bonuses were awarded to Urijah Faber, Josh Emmett, Andre Fili, and Jonathon Martinez. The reported attendance for the event was 10,306 and had a gate of $938,734.17.
QUICK RESULTS:
*Benito Lopez def. Vincent Morales by unanimous decision (29-28 all)
*Brianna Van Buren def. Livinha Souza by unanimous decision (30-27 all)
*Jonathan Martinez def. Pingyuan Liu by KO at 3:54 of Round 3
*Ryan Hall def. Darren Elkins by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
*Juliana Pena def. Nicco Montaño by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27)
*Andre Fili def. Sheymon Moraes by TKO at 3:07 of Round 1
*John Allan def. Mike Rodriguez by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)}
*Marvin Vettori def. Cezar Ferreira by unanimous decision (30-27 all)
*Karl Roberson def. Wellington Turman by split decision (29-29, 29-28, 28-29)
*Josh Emmett def. Mirsad Bektic by TKO at 4:25 of Round 1
*Urijah Faber def. Ricky Simon by TKO at 0:46 of Round 1
*Germaine de Randamie def. Aspen Ladd by TKO at 0:16 of Round 1
BENITO LOPEZ (9-1, 155.5) VS VINCE MORALES (9-3, 136) – BANTAMWEIGHT
As noted by Michael Bisping, Lopez is the first of six Team Alpha Male fighters on this card.
Lopez started the fight throwing a number of low kicks that appeared to do some significant damage to Morales right leg. The majority of the round was all Lopez, but with about a minute to go in the first Morales landed a huge right hand that dropped Lopez. Lopez managed to recover and made it out of the round. In the second, Morales was able to burst forward and land short combinations and big rights at a higher rate then he was able to in the first, while Lopez continued throwing the leg kick. Into the third round, Morales continued to find success whenever he pressured forward and utilized his superior boxing, and I scored this fight 29-28 Morales.
WINNER: Benito Lopez by unanimous decision (29-28 all)
Lopez landed nearly 40 heavy low kicks throughout the fight that the judges took into account on the scorecards. This was a close fight, and Lopez moves to 2-1 in the UFC.
BRIANNA VAN BUREN (8-2, 115) VS LIVINHA SOUZA (13-1, 116) – STRAWWEIGHT
Souza was originally scheduled to fight Cynthia Calvillo, but an injury removed Calvillo from the contest. Van Buren was the Invicta strawweight champion and made her UFC debut here on short notice.
Van Buren pressured Souza against the cage early and fought aggressively in the first round, landing big strikes and forced Souza to fight defensively. There was a moment towards the end of the first where Souza was told to stand up by referee Jason Herzog and Van Buren shoved Souza back down. Van Buren continued to swarm Souza with heavy barrages of strikes and was comfortably up on the scorecards going into the final round. In the third Souza managed to take Van Buren down, but Van Buren ended up in dominant position, showing off some impressive grappling ability. I scored this fight 30-27 Van Buren.
WINNER: Brianna Van Buren by unanimous decision (30-27 all)
This was a very good first impression for Brianna Van Buren. She dominated the fight on the feet. In her post-fight interview, she asked for a top ten opponent on the San Francisco card in October.
PINGYUAN LIU (13-5, 136) VS JONATHAN MARTINEZ (10-2, 136) – BANTAMWEIGHT
For the vast majority of the first round, the fighters were hesitant, feeling each other out. Pingyuan landed right hook followed by a flurry of blows that led to a wild exchange of strikes, including a number of heavy knees by Martinez that led to a hectic end to the round. The second round was extremely uneventful, and both men started the third with a bit more aggression. Michael Bisping continuously criticized Martinez’s inability to cut the cage. Just as the crowd began to voice their displeasure in the third, Martinez connected with a knee up to the middle that knocked Pingyuan unconscious.
WINNER: Jonathan Martinez by KO at 3:54 of Round 3
This was not an entertaining fight, with both fighters being very tentative for the majority of the contest, but it ended with a spectacular knockout by Martinez late in the final round. Martinez improved to 2-1 in the UFC.
DARREN ELKINS (13-5, 136) VS RYAN HALL (10-2, 136) – FEATHERWEIGHT
Ryan Hall incorporated a lot of his trademark techniques in the first round, trying to trick Elkins into going to the ground with him, and showed off an improved kickboxing game, landing some hard kicks early. Hall threw a perfect spinning back kick that dropped Elkins and rushed in for a guillotine, but Elkins managed to make it back to his feet and into the second round. Hall stumbled and dropped Elkins three times in the second with the same straight right hand. The third was the best round for Elkins, who avoided the wild strikes of Hall and constantly moved forward. Whenever Hall got uncomfortable, he would drop to the ground or simply turn his back and run away from Elkins, much to the crowd’s disapproval. I scored this fight 29-28 Hall.
WINNER: Ryan Hall by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Ryan Hall looked incredible here. He had Elkins hurt badly on the feet no less than 4 times. He reminded me a bit of Fabricio Werdum here in the sense that he felt free to throw high-risk strikes because he had no fear of going to the ground. Hall will likely be ranked after this fight, and it will be interesting to see him against the next level of competition.
JULIANNA PENA (8-3, 135.5) VS NICCO MONTANO (4-2, 135.5) – BANTAMWEIGHT
This fight marked Pena’s return to the octagon, with her first fight since January of 2017, as well as Montaño’s first fight since becoming the inaugural women’s flyweight champion in December of 2017 (later stripped due to injury). Montaño was originally scheduled to fight Sara McMann on this card, but McMann was forced to withdraw due to injury and Juliana Pena stepped in to replace her.
Montaño’s wrestling was the story of the first, controlling Pena and seamlessly transitioning into dominant positions at will. Aside from a brief armbar attempt by Pena, this round was all Montaño. The second round looked started similar to the first, with Montaño controlling the grappling exchanges. About halfway through the round, Pena turned it around, taking Montaño to the ground, hunting for the D’arce choke before raining down strikes on Montaño for the remainder of the round, opening cuts above her eyes. Towards the start of the third, Pena caught a kick from Montaño and brought her back to the ground. She spent the majority of the round in dominant position, although Montaño had brief moments of success, landing a pair of takedowns herself. Nonetheless, I scored this 29-28 Pena.
WINNER: Juliana Pena by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27)
Pena was ranked highly in the division prior to her absence, and I imagine this win will throw her right back into the top 5. Montaño looked impressive in the first, and I would not close the book on her finding success in the division either in the future.
ANDRE FILI (19-6, 145.5) VS SHEYMON MORAES (11-3, 146) – FEATHERWEIGHT
Moraes took the center of the octagon and the two felt each other out early. Moraes threw a kick and Fili responded with a straight right and an immediate head kick that hurt Morares badly. Not long after, he landed a right hook that floored Moraes and Fili finished the fight with strikes on the ground.
WINNER: Andre Fili by KO at 3:07 of Round 1
Sacramento loved Fili, and this was exactly the performance he needed to keep his name relevant in the division. Fili now has back to back wins, and this was his first finish since 2015.
MIKE RODRIGUEZ (10-3, 204.5) VS JOHN ALLAN (15-5, 203) – LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Gian Villante was initially scheduled to face Rodriguez here but pulled out last week due to injury.
Both men were swinging hard early, with Rodriguez pressuring Allan towards the cage, and Allan swinging hard, punishing Rodriguez when he got too reckless. Allan secured the takedown and ended up looking for a guillotine, but Rodriguez escaped and they returned to the feet.
Rodriguez was aggressive in the second and seemed to rock Allan with a left hook. Allan managed to recover by taking Rodriguez down momentarily, and landing a clean knee when they returned to the clinch. Allan attempted to take Rodriguez down again, but Rodriguez ended up on top. Allan attempted another guillotine, but Rodriguez defended it well and they went to the final round. Towards the beginning of the round Rodriguez connected with a knee to the groin of Allan which appeared to do a considerable amount of damage. When the action resumed Rodriguez threw a number of leg kicks while Allan responded with a barrage of hooks. Allan took the back of Rodriguez on the feet and brought him to the ground. Rodriguez worked his way back up and both men hunted down a finish, landing huge strikes, including a flying knee from Rodriguez, but Allan brought him back to the ground and ended the fight in the dominant position.
This was a close fight, but Allan was able to take Rodriguez down at will and appeared to get the better of some of those wild exchanges. I scored the contest 29-28 Allan.
WINNER: John Allan by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Allan was the biggest underdog on this card, but you wouldn’t know it from watching his performance here. This was Allan’s first fight in the UFC, and he showed potential here, with proficiency on the feet against a dangerous striker, as well as showcasing his grappling ability.
CEZAR FERREIRA (13-7, 185.5) VS MARVIN VETTORI (12-4-1, 185.5) – MIDDLEWEIGHT
Vettori’s last fight was a split decision loss to current interim middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in April of 2018.
In the opening seconds of the fight, Ferreira poked Vettori in the eye and referee Herb Dean gave him a hard warning. Vettori was very aggressive out the gate, and Ferreira slowed him down with some well-timed calf kicks. With a minute left in the first Vettori took Ferreira to the ground and landed some heavy elbows to secure the round. Vettori started the second round strong, and the pace in which he kept was very impressive. He never let up, landed the bigger strikes and secured a takedown, easily winning the second. The third round was closer, with Ferreira showing more aggression trying to secure a finish, but I thought Vettori took this round and won the fight 30-27.
WINNER: Marvin Vettori by unanimous decision (30-27 all)
Vettori called out Paulo Costa in his post-fight interview. He looked very impressive here and is certainly a prospect to watch out for in this division. I would not be surprised in the slightest if he gets a ranked opponent next, if not Paulo Costa.
KARL ROBERSON (7-2, 185.5) VS WELLINGTON TURMAN (13-3, 185) – MIDDLEWEIGHT
The two fighters almost immediately met in the middle and started throwing heavy shots. Just outside of the first minute Turman took Roberson to the ground, and Roberson landed in Turman’s guard. Turman went for an armbar, and Roberson picked him up and slammed him to the ground to escape it. Roberson spent the rest of the round in dominant position and landed some hard strikes. Roberson started the second strongly, with some strong boxing as well as a kick to the body of Turman. The majority of this round was spent in a stalemate against the cage until Turman managed to bring the fight to the ground. He took the back of Roberson and worked hard for a rear-naked choke, but Roberson reversed the position and spent the remainder of the round on top. In the third round, Turman worked his way into a rear-naked choke once more, and it looked to be fully sunken in, but Roberson exploded and shook Turman free, escaping the submission. Once again, Roberson ended the round in dominant position and landed a couple of big strikes to end the fight. I thought Turman narrowly won the second round along with the third and scored the fight 29-28 in his favor.
WINNER: Karl Roberson by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
At this point in the night, it had been a decision-heavy card and the crowd seemed like they were starting to feel it. Roberson showed improvements to his ground game here against a skilled opponent on the mat.
JOSH EMMETT (14-2, 146) VS MIRSAD BEKTIC (13-1, 145) – FEATHERWEIGHT
Big reaction for Josh Emmett walking out. He went into this fight coming off a vicious knockout of Michael Johnson earlier this year.
Huge “Emmett” chants to start the fight. Both men throw some wild shots in the first, just narrowly missing one another. Emmett dropped Bektic with a powerful left jab and followed it up with some vicious strikes on the ground, forcing referee Jason Herzog to stop the fight.
WINNER: Josh Emmett by TKO at 4:25 of Round 1
The crowd loved Emmett, who trains out of Team Alpha Male, and they reacted accordingly when the fight was stopped. Emmett is now 4-1 in the UFC at featherweight and has proven himself to be a dangerous fighter. He feels like he has some momentum right now, and he should defiantly be looking at a top ten fighter next.
URIJAH FABER (34-10, 135.5) VS RICKY SIMON (13-1, 134.5) – BANTAMWEIGHT
There are not many entrances in this sport that are as iconic as Urijah Faber walking out to California Love, and his hometown of Sacramento gave the now 40-year-old Faber a hero’s reception. Faber’s last fight was a decision victory over Brad Pickett in December of 2016. Simon came into this fight riding an impressive 8 fight win streak.
Simon started aggressively, and Faber dropped him with a strong right hand and immediately jumped on him, quickly stopping the fight with strikes. This crowd exploded.
WINNER: Urijah Faber by TKO at 0:46 of Round 1
This marked the quickest win of Faber’s career. Urijah Faber called out Henry Cejudo and put over his teammate Song Yadong in his post-fight interview. Things could not have gone any better for Faber then they went here and this will undoubtedly be the talk of the night.
GERMAINE de RANDAMIE (8-3, 136) VS ASPEN LADD (8-0, 135) – BANTAMWEIGHT
The winner of this fight was likely to get the next title opportunity against champion Amanda Nunes at 135. There was a considerable amount of attention given to Aspen Ladd’s weigh in on Friday, in which she was shaking and looked physically unwell on the scale. Ultimately, Ladd made the weight and was cleared to compete.
Less than 20 seconds into the fight de Randamie landed a straight right hand that dropped Ladd and referee Herb Dean stopped the fight.
WINNER: Germaine de Randamie by TKO at 0:16 of Round 1
This is sure to be a controversial stoppage, as Ladd appeared to be cognisant and prepared to defend herself on the ground as Herb Dean stopped it. Ladd appeared disappointed at the stoppage, and the crowd was unhappy. Early stoppage or not, this was a statement win for de Randamie. This tied Ronda Rousey’s stoppage of Alexis Davis for the quickest knockout in UFC women’s bantamweight history.
