UFC Fight Night Results: Rafael Fiziev injured in loss to Mateusz Gamrot
On Saturday evening, the UFC held a Fight Night event from the Apex Facility in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card was headlined by a bout in the lightweight division, with the sixth-ranked Rafael Fiziev attempting to defend his place in the rankings against the seventh-ranked Mateusz Gamrot. Gamrot made his UFC debut in October of 2020, dropping a split decision to Guram Kutateladze, but has since rebounded to win five of his next six fights in the promotion, defeating the likes of Jalin Turner, Diego Ferreira, and Arman Tsarukyan to establish himself as a contender in the division. Fiziev debuted in the UFC a year prior to Gamrot, compiling an impressive 6-2 record in the promotion, while quickly earning a reputation as one of the division’s most exciting fighters. Fiziev was the more talented striker, but the clear edge in grappling belonged to Gamrot, making for an interesting clash of styles between the two rising lightweight contenders. In the co-main event, Dan Ige faced Bryce Mitchell, as Ige looked to take Mitchell’s place in the division’s top ten.
Brendan Fitzgerald provided commentary for this card alongside Dominick Cruz and Michael Bisping. Performance of the Night bonuses were awarded to Marina Rodriguez and Charles Jourdain. Fight of the Night bonuses went out to Tim Means and Andre Fialho.
QUICK RESULTS:
PRELIMINARY CARD:
- Montserrat Rendon def. Tamires Vidal by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
- Mizuki def. Hannah Goldy by unanimous decision (29-28 all)
- Mohammed Usman def. Jake Collier by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Cody Brundage def. Jacob Malkoun by DQ at 4:15 of Round 1
- Tim Means def. Andre Fialho by TKO at 1:15 of Round 3
- Miles Johns def. Dan Argueta by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
MAIN CARD:
- Charles Jourdain def. Ricardo Ramos by guillotine choke at 3:12 of Round 1
- Bryan Battle def. A.J. Fletcher by rear naked choke at 4:32 of Round 2
- Marina Rodriguez def. Michelle Waterson-Gomez by TKO at 2:42 of Round 2
- Bryce Mitchell def. Dan Ige by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Mateusz Gamrot def. Rafael Fiziev by TKO at 2:03 of Round 2
MONTSERRAT RENDON (5-0, 126) VS TAMIRES VIDAL (7-1, 126) – FLYWEIGHT
Vidal began the fight with a number of leg kicks, and she attempted to counter Rendon on her way in with straight right hands. Rendon and Vidal were content to trade hands, with the fighters seemingly landing at a fairly even rate, until Vidal opted to start hunting for a takedown. Rendon defended the attempt, pushing Vidal against the cage, until Vidal created separation, landing a right hand after the break. Vidal chased after a single leg late in the round but was unable to take Rendon down. 10-9 Vidal.
Rendon caught a leg kick from Vidal at the start of the second round and took the fight to the ground. Vidal immediately started hunting for a heel hook but was unable to lock it in, and Rendon returned to her feet. Vidal continued to attack the lead leg of Rendon, landing a number of hard right hands as well, but eventually, Rendon caught another kick from Vidal, and once again, took the fight to the ground. Rendon controlled the action from top position until time expired in what was a fairly close round. 20-18 Vidal.
Rendon seemed to have a good read on Vidal’s timing by this final round, and she was doing a good job of avoiding Vidal’s leg kicks before responding with her own offense, typically short combinations to the head of her opponent. Rendon caught Vidal with a solid right hook as Vidal stepped in at one point, which was one of her better strikes of the fight, and she began to press forward, eventually tripping Vidal to the ground after grabbing another leg kick. Much like the previous round, Rendon was able to maintain top position for the remainder of the round, not doing much damage, but she successfully kept Vidal from improving her position as well. 29-28 Vidal.
WINNER: Montserrat Rendon by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
The first and third rounds were fairly decisive for Vidal and Rendon respectively, so this bout came down to what was a very competitive second round. Rendon outlanded Vidal throughout the round and had the edge in terms of control time, but it could be argued that Vidal did more damage with her leg kicks and right hands in the second round, which is why I scored the round in her favor. Still, most scored the bout for Rendon, and her arm was raised in the end, with the one dissenting scorecard actually belonging to former fighter, Chris Leben. This fight marked Rendon’s UFC debut, and her sixth consecutive win by decision.
MIZUKI (14-6, 115.5) VS HANNAH GOLDY (6-3, 115.5) – STRAWWEIGHT
The fighters wrestled in the clinch early, with Mizuki seemingly getting the better of the positioning. After about three minutes, the fighters separated and exchanged quick strikes. Mizuki wrapped Goldy back up in the clinch in the rounds final minute, where Mizuki landed numerous knees to the body, which perhaps earned her what was a fairly uneventful round. 10-9 Mizuki.
Mizuki caught Goldy with a right hand on her way in at the start of the second round, before defending a takedown attempt. Mizuki tripped Goldy to the ground, where she was unable to pass Goldy’s guard, which led to Goldy scrambling to her feet. The fighters wrestled in the clinch against the cage, until Goldy took Mizuki back to the ground, but was unable to do much with the position before Mizuki returned to her feet. An unsuccessful takedown attempt from Goldy in the round’s final seconds resulted in Mizuki taking top position. 19-19.
The fighters traded right hands to begin the final round. Goldy opted to bring the fight into the clinch yet again, but the fighters broke apart quickly this time, when Mizuki landed a strong left hand. Goldy started chasing after a takedown, but was unable to get Mizuki back down, and the fighter grappled to somewhat of a stalemate in the clinch. Mizuki landed a number of solid body shots in the final seconds of the fight. 29-28 Mizuki.
WINNER: Mizuki by unanimous decision (29-28 all)
A considerable portion of this fight was spent wrestling in the clinch, where neither fighter held a considerable advantage. Whenever the fighters separated, Mizuki appeared to have a slight advantage on the feet, mixing up her strikes well, but Goldy was able to land these quick right hands that were keeping Mizuki from getting too comfortable. As the fight progressed, Mizuki began to find more success by attacking the body, but Goldy was consistently able to trap her in the clinch, preventing Mizuki from really building her combinations. Still, Mizuki was just a step ahead of Goldy throughout the vast majority of the bout and comfortably won this fight on the scorecards. Prior to this fight, Mizuki had been inactive for three years due to a knee injury, so this marked her return to the octagon after an extended absence, and she is now 2-1 in the promotion.
MOHAMMED USMAN (9-2, 237) VS JAKE COLLIER (13-9, 256.5) – HEAVYWEIGHT
Usman began the fight with a jab, and Collier responded with a strong leg kick. A left hand from Collier wobbled Usman, and Usman began to desperately shoot for a takedown as a result. Collier defended Usman’s attempts to take the fight to the ground and wrestled him up against the cage. It did not take long before the fighters broke apart, and Usman seemed to have recovered completely by this point, as he started working his jab to the head and body of Collier. A knee from Collier caught Usman in the jaw, but he ate the shot well and responded with a right hand. Collier pressed forward, striking in combination, which led to success but also allowed Usman to counter. Collier ended the round strongly, keeping Usman on the backfoot as he pressured forward. 10-9 Collier.
The fighters exchanged powerful hooks at the start of round two. Collier wrapped Usman up in the clinch, but a nasty eye poke sent Collier crumbling to the ground. The doctor was brought in to check on Collier, but it was determined that he could continue fighting, and the fight resumed. Usman found success working his jab as the round progressed, mixing in the occasional shot to the chest of Collier as well. Collier responded with some heavier combinations but was spending much more time stationary than he had been prior to the eye poke. Collier was cut open beneath his right eye and beside his left eye by the end of the round, but notably, the blood did not appear to be leaking into his eyes. 19-19.
Usman shot for a takedown in the third round, and while Collier was initially able to defend the attempt, Usman eventually just opted to lift Collier into the air before throwing him down to the ground in impressive fashion. Usman moved into half guard, where he controlled Collier on the ground for the remainder of the round, throwing down the occasional ground-and-pound strike to ensure that the fighters would not be stood up. 29-28 Usman.
Winner: Mohammed Usman by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Collier held the advantage early in the bout, overwhelming Usman with his onslaught of offense, but Collier tired as the fight wore on, and they started fighting at Usman’s desired pace by the second round. Usman did a good job of working his jab to do significant damage, and he narrowly won the second round on the feet before utilizing his wrestling to win the third round in a rather one-sided fashion. I thought that this was one of Usman’s better performances in the promotion, overcoming the early adversity to showcase his skills in the fights later rounds, but there are still clear holes in his game defensively that will be exploited by the division’s ranked fighters. Usman improved to 3-0 in the UFC as a result of this win.
JACOB MALKOUN (7-2, 186) VS CODY BRUNDAGE (8-5, 185) – MIDDLEWEIGHT
It did not take long for Malkoun to grab a hold of a single leg, taking the fight to the ground, but Brundage is a strong wrestler in his own right and did a good job of reversing the positioning to make it back to his feet. After roughly a minute and a half of high-paced wrestling from both fighters, Malkoun settled into a dominant position on Brundage’s back. Malkoun landed numerous right hands from this position, and Brundage was having a tough time improving his own positioning, taking quite a few shots with Malkoun on his back. Eventually, an elbow to the back of the head resulted in the fighters being separated, and the doctor being brought in to check on Brundage. Eventually, it was determined that Brundage could not continue fighting, and the fight was waived.
Winner: Cody Brundage by DQ at 4:15 of Round 1
Malkoun was dominating this fight, but the rules exist for a reason, and it is the fighter’s job to be aware of these rules even in the heat of the moment. The elbow that resulted in Malkoun’s disqualification was quite egregious, and while this is sure to be a controversial decision by referee Mark Smith, I believe that he made the right call here to disqualify Malkoun. Malkoun was a sizeable favorite going into this fight, and he proved that he was the better fighter here despite the disqualification, so I do not expect the UFC to run this fight back, and imagine that Malkoun will move up the middleweight ladder here despite taking home the loss. Brundage is now 3-4 in the UFC as a result of this win, snapping a three-fight streak of losses.
TIM MEANS (32-15-1, 1 NC, 171) VS ANDRE FIALHO (16-7, 1 NC, 171) – WELTERWEIGHT
Just over a minute into the fight, a perfectly timed knee from Means caught Fialho flush in the chin, sending him to the ground. Means followed him to the ground as he attempted to finish the fight, but Fialho fought his way back to his feet, and Fialho went on the attack as he attempted to get even with Means, landing numerous heavy hooks and uppercuts. Means slowed Fialho down by trapping him in the clinch, landing another hard knee in the process, but Fialho was able to break away, and the fighters reset. Means pressured forward throughout the round’s final minute, ending the round strongly.
Means attacked the body of Fialho from distance with a number of creative kicks, before landing a left hand and a front kick. Means started pressing forward, thinking that Fialho was hurt, but Fialho went on the attack when Means finally closed the distance, seemingly hurting Means with some heavy hooks. Means wrapped Fialho up in the clinch to relieve the pressure, and eventually caught Fialho with a strong combination of hooks and knees, backing Fialho up once more. Fialho took the fight to the ground with a minute left in the round, but he lost his position, and Means took top position, where he threw down ground and pound until the round reached its end.
Means slapped Fialho with a head kick to start the fight’s final round, and he started pressuring forward once more, attacking the body with strikes before rocking Fialho with a straight left hand. Means realized Fialho was hurt, and caught him with yet another knee to the head, before dropping him with a lengthy combination of hooks, securing the third-round finish.
WINNER: Tim Means by TKO at 1:15 of Round 3
This was a fun fight and the clear highlight of the preliminary card. Means was the more skillful striker and had Fialho hurt numerous times throughout the bout, but Fialho kept things interesting because whenever he really committed to his attacks and flurried forward, he was hurting Means. Fialho’s aggressive flurries of hooks and uppercuts overwhelmed Means, but they were also fatiguing Fialho quickly, and whenever Means survived one of these bursts of offense, he would go right back on the attack, picking Fialho apart from the outside before moving in with damaging combinations and heavy knees. It was a strong finish for Means as well, catching Fialho with a long-varied combination of strikes to finally put Fialho away. This marked Means ’50th professional fight, and he snapped a three-fight streak of losses as a result of this win.
DAN ARGUETA (9-1, 1 NC, 136) VS MILES JOHNS (13-2, 136) – BANTAMWEIGHT
Argueta climbed up the back of Johns just over a minute into the fight, where he started to look for a rear naked choke. Eventually, Johns fell to his back, where he was able to turn into Argueta before returning to his feet, separating with over two minutes remaining in the round. A straight right hand from Johns appeared to hurt Argueta, and Johns was certainly getting the better of the exchanges on the feet, which led to Argueta wrapping Johns back up in the clinch, before jumping for a guillotine. Johns easily escaped the submission attempt, and the fight returned to the feet before the horn sounded. 10-9 Argueta.
Johns shot for a takedown early in the second round, and Argueta once again jumped for an unsuccessful guillotine in response. Argueta worked his way back to his feet and landed a huge knee to the head of John, but failed to capitalize on the moment, instead opting to reset in the center of the cage. Johns recovered, and much like the previous round, he appeared to have the advantage in terms of speed and power whenever the fighters traded strikes, but this time, Argueta secured a takedown of his own in quick fashion, taking top position with over two minutes to work. Johns wasted little time before escaping to his feet, but was unable to escape from Argueta, who held him against the cage for a considerable portion of the round. When the fighters finally separated, Johns tagged Argueta with a number of heavy shots, and Argueta reacted poorly to each one, but Johns did not get overly aggressive and was taken down one last time before time expired in the round. 19-19.
Johns tagged Argueta with a lengthy combination of punches to start the fight’s final round. Argueta continued to press forward despite the damage done by Johns, but he was having trouble finding offensive success, often being countered on his way in. The pressure from Argueta was making Johns uncomfortable, which eventually resulted in him shooting for a takedown, but the fight ultimately remained on the feet, where Johns continued to clip Argueta on his way in. Argueta jumped for one last guillotine choke, but he was unsuccessful once more, and the fight went the distance. 29-28 Johns.
WINNER: Miles Johns by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Argueta fought at a remarkable pace, but his pressure did not often lead to success, as Johns countered strongly throughout the bout’s entirety, regularly getting the better of the striking exchanges. Johns seemed to be hurting Argueta every time in which he landed, and Argueta was never really able to find consistent offensive success, despite pressuring forward and fighting at his pace for fifteen minutes. To Argueta’s credit, he was quite close to finishing the fight in the opening round with the standing rear naked choke, but Johns did a good job of surviving the position and rebounded strongly to win the rest of the fight. Johns improved to 5-2 in the UFC as a result of this win.
RICARDO RAMOS (16-4, 146) VS CHARLES JOURDAIN (14-6-1, 145.5) – FEATHERWEIGHT
Ann early combination from Jourdain resulted in Ramos taking the fight to the ground, taking top position after avoiding an unsuccessful guillotine attempt from Jourdain. Ramos seemed to be looking for a Von Flue choke, but could not catch Jourdain, and the fighters eventually scrambled back to their feet. Ramos immediately shot for another takedown, and once again, Jourdain countered with a guillotine choke, but this time, the choke was locked in tight, forcing Ramos to submit.
WINNER: Charles Jourdain by guillotine choke at 3:12 of Round 1
It did not take long for Ramos to get the fight to the ground, and while he did a good job of avoiding Jourdain’s initial guillotine choke attempt, he was not so lucky on the second attempt just moments later. Ramos is a good striker, and it was surprising to see him chase after takedowns with such desperation early in the fight, but Jourdain has been beaten on the ground before, and one would certainly have given Ramos the grappling edge going into the fight, so it was not an entirely unreasonable gameplan. After Jourdain’s win, he called out Cub Swanson, stating that he would like to fight the former featherweight contender in Toronto.
BRYAN BATTLE (9-2, 171) VS A.J. FLETCHER (10-2, 170.5) – WELTERWEIGHT
Fletcher focused his attack in on the body of Battle in the fights opening minute, as Battle responded with body shots of his own, throwing out numerous teep kick to the midsection. The teep kicks from Battle were keeping Fletcher from closing the distance, resulting in very little successful offensive activity outside of those body shots from either man. Fletcher had to get creative to find his target, throwing double lead hooks as well as the occasional calf kick. Fletcher shot for a takedown in the round’s final minute, and while Battle defended the attempt, an elbow from Fletcher on the break dropped Battle momentarily, which was enough to win him the round.
Fletcher brought Battle back into the clinch at the start of round two, pressing him against the cage. Battle reversed the positioning, landing some short knees to the body of Fletcher. Battle took the fight to the ground after avoiding a guillotine attempt from Fletcher, where he controlled the fight from half guard for a considerable portion of the round. With time running out in the round, Battle worked his way to the back of Fletcher, where he quickly locked in a rear naked choke, forcing Fletcher to submit.
WINNER: Bryan Battle by rear naked choke at 4:32 of Round 2
Fletcher initially had trouble closing the distance against Battle on the feet, repeatedly getting caught by Battle’s teep kicks to the body, but as the first round progressed, Fletcher turned things around, eventually dropping Battle in the round’s final minute. Fletcher tried to build on that momentum in the second round, but Battle did well in the grappling department, taking top position on the ground before finishing the fight with a rear naked choke. Battle is now 5-1 in the UFC following this win, and he has proven himself to be a dangerous fighter on the ground as well as on the feet, with two knockdowns and two submissions throughout his six fights in the promotion.
MARINA RODRIGUEZ (16-3-2, 116) VS MICHELLE WATERSON-GOMEZ (18-11, 115.5) – STRAWWEIGHT
Rodriguez and Waterson-Gomez fought previously in May of 2021, a fight that Rodriguez won by unanimous decision.
Waterson-Gomez immediately took the fight to the ground, where she began to work from the guard of Rodriguez. Rodriguez was able to make her way back to the feet, where the fighters traded knees to the body in the clinch before Waterson-Gomez shot for another takedown. Rodriguez defended the attempt, and unleashed on Waterson-Gomez with a number of brutal knees and elbows to the head. Waterson-Gomez did her best to escape from Rodriguez’s clinch, but she was taking an insane amount of damage here, and it was not long before she was just covered in blood from a brutal cut that Rodriguez opened up above the right eyebrow of Waterson-Gomez. There were numerous times in which it felt as though the bout was just a second away from being stopped, as Rodriguez landed elbow after elbow and knee after knee, but Waterson-Gomez did just enough to keep the fight from getting stopped, and when the doctor was brought in to check on her cuts, it was determined that Waterson-Gomez could continue fighting.
It was not long before the fight went back to the clinch in the second round, where Rodriguez dropped Waterson-Gomez momentarily with a knee to the chest. Waterson-Gomez picked herself back up, but Rodriguez continued to pour it on, and the next time Waterson-Gomez went down, Rodriguez followed her to the ground. Rodriguez began to throw down ground and pound strikes, and the fight was quickly stopped.
WINNER: Marina Rodriguez by TKO at 2:42 of Round 2
The first fight between these two was very competitive, but this was an absolute massacre. Waterson-Gomez was able to secure a takedown in the opening seconds of the fight, but it was not long before Rodriguez returned to her feet, and from this point onwards, Rodriguez just annihilated Waterson-Gomez in the clinch, tagging her with countless cutting elbows and brutal knees. It was as one-sided of a win as you will see in the sport, and this was Rodriguez’s best performance to date in the UFC. After two consecutive losses, this was a much-needed win for Rodriguez, and she made the most of her post-fight interview, calling out Tatiana Suarez, which is a fight that would move her back into title contention, were she to become the first fighter to defeat Suarez.
BRYCE MITCHELL (15-1, 146) VS DAN IGE (17-6, 146) – FEATHERWEIGHT
Mitchell landed a right hand before taking Ige down with a single leg, but Ige did a good job of keeping upright as he went down, and easily took top position before returning to his feet. Mitchell was successful on his next takedown attempt, but Ige was able to pick himself up quickly along the fence. Mitchell was relentless with his takedown attempts, and eventually, he tripped Ige down in the center of the cage with less than a minute to work, and he ended the round in top position. 10-9 Mitchell.
Ige tagged Mitchell with a right hand at the start of the second round, but Mitchell responded with an immediate takedown attempt to close the distance. The earlier right hand from Ige opened up a cut near the right eye of Mitchell, and that eye quickly swelled shut, forcing referee Mark Smith to bring the doctor in to check on Mitchell. It was determined that Mitchell could continue, and Mitchell eventually took Ige back down, where he began to work from Ige’s back. Mitchell nearly flattened Ige out before Ige rolled to his back, and Mitchell attempted to lock in an arm triangle but was unable to secure the submission before time expired, in what was a very close round. 19-19.
Mitchell wasted little time in bringing Ige back to the ground, taking Ige’s back with a triangle, despite Ige being partially in Mitchell’s guard. Ige eventually escaped to his feet, but could not create any separation from Mitchell, who continued to climb up Ige’s back as they wrestled against the cage. Eventually, Mitchell opted to just pick Ige up before dumping him down to the ground, and while Ige kept himself safe, he was unable to mount any offence in this round. Ige ended the round in top position, but I did not think he did enough to win this round. 29-28 Mitchell.
WINNER: Bryce Mitchell by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
After his win, Mitchell brought a bible into the octagon, grabbed Dan Ige, and stated that he brought this bible into the cage because he believed that the ongoing wildfire crisis in Hawaii was the work of Satan, before stating that the wildfire crisis was a manmade plot to take the land from Hawaii’s natives, which led to Mitchell asking Michael Bisping to allow Dan Ige to lead the world in a prayer. Bisping looked like the most uncomfortable person in the world and cut the interview, but this was more or less exactly what you would expect from a Bryce Mitchell interview (although it is notable that Mitchell stated that he would donate five thousand dollars to charities to fight the wildfires as well). As far as the fight itself is concerned, the bout was far closer than that 30-27 scorecard may lead one to believe. Mitchell held a significant advantage in the grappling department, but Ige was largely able to prevent Mitchell from doing any damage, and actually ended two of the rounds in top position, while clearly holding the edge in terms of damage dealt. Ige’s problem was his inability to keep Mitchell off of him and ultimately lost this fight due to his own inactivity offensively. Mitchell is now 7-1 in the UFC following this win.
RAFAEL FIZIEV (12-2, 156) VS MATEUSZ GAMROT (22-2, 1 NC, 156) – LIGHTWEIGHT
After an intense faceoff, the fighters touched gloves to begin the main event. Fiziev ripped to the body with a heavy hook before tagging Gamrot with a right hand, before defending a takedown from Gamrot just moments later. Gamrot did not look for another takedown until the final seconds of the round and was instead content to trade with Fiziev, which certainly favored his opponent. That is not to say that Fiziev blew Gamrot out of the water here, as the two exchanged at a fairly even rate, but Fiziev was clearly packing a bit more power behind his strikes, and did a better job of chaining his strikes together in combination.
Fiziev began the second round with a hard kick to the body, but Gamrot was eventually successful in dragging him to the ground. Fiziev successfully escaped to his feet, where he threw a kick with his right leg to the body of Gamrot, and Gamrot seemed to block the kick with his elbow before Fiziev just crumbled to the ground in pain. Gamrot followed Fiziev to the ground, and threw down strikes until the fight was stopped.
WINNER: Mateusz Gamrot by TKO at 2:03 of Round 2
The replay showed that it was Fiziev’s left knee that gave out as he threw the kick with his right leg. This was a very unfortunate ending to what was shaping up to be a fascinating fight between two of the lightweight division’s top contenders. Fiziev’s takedown defense was absolutely ridiculous throughout the bout, but Gamrot was coming closer and closer with each attempt, finally grounding Fiziev momentarily just prior to the fight-ending injury. Gamrot was also very competitive with Fiziev in the striking department, although Fiziev was clearly a step ahead of him on the feet. After Gamrot’s win, he called out Charles Oliviera, referring to Oliveira as the most dangerous grappler in the division. If Oliveira loses to Islam Makhachev in October, I can certainly see that fight getting made, but if Oliveria defeats Makhachev, Gamrot is still likely a win or two away from a title shot.
