After a short-notice change in the main event, UFC Vegas 65 took place at the UFC Apex last night in last Vegas. Here's the results and recap of each fight:
A wild fight for as long as it lasted ended in wild fashion. Kennedy Nzechukwu was controlled and beaten in round 1 but came back in the 2nd to land a picture-perfect knee that started the ending sequence. After several ground strikes, the referee was forced to step in.
After a close first round, Cortes-Acosta was dominant. The 2nd was all his way as he arguably won it in 10-8 fashion. The 3rd round was fought at a controlled pace that highlighted his jab and intelligent striking ability. He remaines undefeated, moving to 9-0.
Round 1 was rough for the Dagestani as Fialho landed several impactful blows. Salikhov remained patient though and invested heavily in shots to the body. As round 2 came about it seemed that investment was paying off well, with Fialho looking tired and flat-footed. He was hurt by everything Salikhov threw. After a big swing and a miss, Fialho fell to the ground and absorbed heavy shots. Several spinning attacks in round 3 and no attempt to respond from Fialho was all the referee had to see.
Jack Della Maddalena def. Danny Roberts (TKO, at 3:24 round 1)
It was a quick night at the office for the Aussie. His 3rd 1st-round knockout win in a row came last night as he boxed his way to the finish, mixing up the target between head and body with perfect form.
Michael Bisping described this fight in one word, "accidental." This referred to the 5+ unintentional fouls that took place, including brutal low blows and eye pokes. The fight itself was a barn burner filled with action on the feet, but many saw it for Zhumagulov instead of Johnson.
This fight was a striking battle for the duration of 3 rounds. Maia looked crisp with her boxing and counters early despite a strong effort from Moroz. In the end, she walked away with the UD win.
The fight was rather slow from the start, both men being hesitant to strike with each other. Johns was more effective with his strikes and secured a few takedowns that won him the fight.
A fun action-packed fight that saw both men have success on the feet and on the ground. It was back and forth the whole way with heavy strikes and fast scrambles. Turcios came on strong in round 3 nearly locking in a choke while landing strikes on the ground.
Vanessa Demopoulos def. Maria Oliveira (Unanimous Decision: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Demopoulos was dominant in round 1 with heavy pressure on the ground. She landed over 60 strikes to 0 at one point. Round 2 was much of the same as she found the takedown and continued to chip away. Oliveira rallied in round 3 with sharp strikes and combos, doing enough to win the round but not the fight.
Another close and entertaining fight. Garcia had success on the feet early while Hiestand looked to work on the ground. Hiestand began to work on the feet in round 2 but ultimately it was his control time on the ground that secured the victory.
A back-and-forth early going started the night off between these two. Bleda threatened with submissions early while Silva worked on the feet. It lead to a spinning back kick from Silva that ended the fight in the 3rd.
Note: The original main event between Derrick Lewis and Sergey Spivak was called off last minute due to Lewis falling ill. It was revealed that Lewis was hospitalized the morning of and dealt with issues in his stomach. Lewis has since passed medical tests and is alright.