Ranked bantamweights Dan Ige and The Korean Zombie (also known as Jung Chan-sung) will square off in the main event of Saturday’s UFC “Fight Night” card from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. The fight headlines a 12-fight card that includes a mix of rising contenders along with experienced veterans.
Follow along throughout the evening for live updates.
A quick preview of the card can be read here.
Quick Results:
Preliminary Card (4:00PM EDT / 1:00PM PDT) (ESPN 2 / TSN 3)
Bout 1: Casey O’Neill def. Lara Procopio via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 3, 2:54)
Bout 2: Ricky Glenn def. Joaquim Silva via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:37)
Bout 3: Josh Parisian def. Roque Martinez via Decision, Split
Bout 4: Khaos Williams def. Matthew Semelsberger via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 5: Virna Jandiroba def. Kanako Murata via TKO, Doctor Stoppage (RD 2, 5:00)
Bout 6: Nick Negumereanu def. Aleksa Camur via Decision, Unanimous
Main Card (7:00PM EDT / 4:00PM PDT) (ESPN 2 / TSN 3)
Bout 7: Matt Brown def. Dhiego Lima via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 3:02)
Bout 8: Bruno Silva def. Wellington Turman via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:45)
Bout 9: Seungwoo Choi def. Julian Erosa via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:37)
Bout 10: Marlon Vera def. Davey Grant via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 11: Serghei Spivac def. Aleksei Oleinik via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 12: The Korean Zombie def. Dan Ige via Decision, Unanimous
Live Coverage:
Bout 12: The Korean Zombie (16-6) vs. Dan Ige (15-3) (Featherweight)
Zombie Sees Return To Winners Circle With Decision Nod Against Ige
The Korean Zombie (also known as Jung Chan-sung) fought back to his winning ways on Saturday night, going five rounds against fellow ranked featherweight Dan Ige for a unanimous decision victory (48-47, 49-46 & 49-46).
The fight started with a close round that was mostly contested on the feet. Later in the fight it was Zombie who took control with his grappling skills.
Zombie’s best moment with striking was early in the second round, as he dropped Ige to a knee briefly with a right hook to the head. Zombie then spent a large portion of the second round on the back of Ige.
Zombie started the third round strong by scoring a takedown and landing in full guard. He eventually moved to the back of Ige, where he pursued a rear naked choke for a few minutes.
Ige was aggressive with strikes in the fourth round, spending the majority of the frame coming forward and connecting with jabs. Zombie was eventually able to slow his momentum by landing a takedown in the final minute of the round.
Clearly looking for a finish, Ige chased down Zombie in the final round with punches. Zombie was able to endure the flurry and eventually take the fight to the ground, where he took the back of Ige once again to close out the fight.
The win preserves Zombie as one of the few featherweights that are two-or-less fights away from a title shot. His previous loss, a main event unanimous decision against Brian Ortega, set Ortega up for a bout this year against current UFC Featherweight Champion Alexander Volkanovski. That fight is currently not scheduled, but is expected to happen after the ongoing season of “The Ultimate Fighter.”
Before his loss to Ortega last year, Zombie had two consecutive first-round stoppage wins in UFC main event bouts.
The fight on Saturday was Ige’s second time in the main event of a UFC card. He had his first headlining fight last year, where Calvin Kattar defeated him via unanimous decision and snapped a six-fight winning streak. Ige has bounced back since then, scoring a 22-second victory over Gavin Tucker earlier this year.
Bout 11: Aleksei Oleinik (59-15-1) vs. Serghei Spivac (12-2) (Heavyweights)
Spivac Continues Streak With Win Over Veteran Oleinik
Serghei Spivac earned a win over an experienced fighter in Aleksei Oleinik in the co-main event, defeating him via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28 & 29-28).
Spivac was the more active striker on the feet while Oleinik was focused on taking the fight to the ground.
Oleinik successfully took the fight to the ground in the first and second round, closing both frames with a submission attempt. Spivac was able to stop takedowns in the third round, allowing them both to have more striking exchanges in the final five minutes.
Both quite fatigued in the final minutes, Spivac took top position over Oleinik on the ground after reversing a takedown attempt.
Spivac had the better shots during the stand-up exchanges. Striking from Spivac did clear damage to Oleinik, cutting him open in the final round.
Spivac is now on a three-fight win streak, including wins over Carlos Felipe and Jared Vanderaa.
On the flip side, Oleinik has now lost his last three fights. His previous bouts saw him get stopped, facing Chris Daukaus and Derrick Lewis.
Bout 10: Marlon Vera (18-7-1) vs. Davey Grant (11-4) (Bantamweight)
Vera Takes Decision Win Over Grant
Marlon Vera got back into the win column with a tough unanimous decision win over Davey Grant on Saturday night (29-27, 29-28 & 30-26). After a close start to the fight, Vera pulled away with his ability to land striking in stand-up and grappling positions.
The opening round of the fight was the closest, as both fighters were able to connect with strong shots. Grant threw a higher volume of strikes in the frame, although Vera answered back with a fair amount as well.
Vera cut Grant open early in the second round with elbows in the clinch position. Grant was able to slow his momentum by scoring a takedown, although he was hit with some ground and pound later in the frame that did further damage.
The bantamweights traded hard and damaging shots on the feet to open the third round. Vera started to take more control later in the round once the fight went to the ground. Vera looked for a rear naked choke in the final moments of the round, although Grant was able to escape the choke before the clock expired.
Vera was coming back after losing a fight against former champ Jose Aldo last year. He called out fellow bantamweight Dominick Cruz following his win. The win avenged a loss that Vera took to Grant back in 2016 via unanimous decision.
The loss snapped a three-fight win streak that Grant had prior to Saturday. The momentum included two finish wins last year, defeating Jonathan Martinez and Martin Day. The win streak was the longest for Grant since he joined the UFC in 2013.
Bout 9: Julian Erosa (25-8) vs. Seungwoo Choi (9-3) (Featherweight)
Choi Continues Win Streak In Return
Seungwoo Choi extended his win streak to a trio of fights on the main card, stopping Julian Erosa in the second minute of action with a left hook.
Choi dropped Erosa with the punch and landed a few before the referee intervened and stopped the bout. The fight was mostly a feeling out process before the finishing sequence.
The victory continued a win streak that Choi first started in 2019 with victories over Suman Mokhtarian and Youssef Zalal. His performance was the first time he scored a stoppage win since joining the UFC roster in 2019.
Erosa entered the fight after picking up finish victories in his two previous showings.
Bout 8: Wellington Turman (16-4) vs. Bruno Silva (19-6) (Middleweight)
Silva Finishes Turman With Ground And Pound In UFC Debut
Bruno Silva showed powerful fists in his UFC debut, stopping Wellington Turman in the first round with ground and pound. He unloaded with a series of shots late in the round while in full guard, knocking Turman out and finishing the fight.
Turman was persistent in looking to take the fight down early on, mounting the back of Silva and shooting for numerous takedowns.
The fight was Silva’s first appearance after serving a two-year U.S. Anti-Doping Agency suspension. He was first set to make his UFC debut back in 2019 against Deron Winn, although he was pulled from the fight due to the drug test.
He entered the UFC on a four-fight win streak from 2017 to 2018.
Turman has now been finished within a round in his last two fights. He last appeared in August last year, where Andrew Sanchez finished him on the ground.
Bout 7: Dhiego Lima (15-8) vs. Matt Brown (22-18) (Welterweight)
Brown Snaps Losing Streak With Walk-Off Knockout
A clean overhand right from Matt Brown put an end to his fight against Dhiego Lima in the second round. The walk-off victory handed Brown his first win in over a year.
Brown’s finish win came after a round-and-a-half-long stand-up battle with Lima. Brown was hurt with leg kicks early on, although he was able to block takedown attempts throughout to keep the fight on the feet.
“Not bad for a 40-year-old man from a small town in Ohio, right?” said Brown, who scored his first win since turning 40 earlier this year.
The UFC vet of over a decade was on a two-fight losing streak heading into Saturday.
Lima is now on a two-fight skid of his own, as he dropped his previous appearance to Belal Muhammad earlier this year.
Bout 6: Nick Negumereanu (9-1) vs. Aleksa Camur (6-1) (Light Heavyweight)
Negumereanu Picks Up Scorecard Win In Return
Nick Negumereanu scored a win in his return to the UFC cage, defeating Aleksa Camur via split decision (29-28 Negumereanu, 29-28 Camur & 29-28 Negumereanu).
The fight came after a scrappy three-round fight that saw both fighters score with a high flurry of punches on the feet.
Negumereanu was warned numerous times during the fight to not grab the cage, although he was never deducted a point.
The fight was Negumereanu’s first appearance since 2019. His last fight dated back to March of 2019, where he lost his UFC debut to Saparbeg Safarov.
Camur is now on a two-fight losing streak. He took his first pro loss last year, losing on scorecards to William Knight.
Bout 5: Virna Jandiroba (16-2) vs. Kanako Murata (12-1) (Strawweight)
Jandiroba Defeats Fellow Former Invicta FC Champ Murata Via Doctor Stoppage
A dominant performance from Virna Jandiroba earned her a win over Kanako Murata on the prelims, ending after two rounds due to a doctor stoppage. Murata was taken out of the fight following the second round due to damage on her left arm.
Murata was visibly not using her left arm throughout the second round, as it became clear that it was injured. The noticeable damage came after the opening round, where Jandiroba had her caught in an armbar for over a minute.
Jandiroba’s striking skills were on display throughout the fight as well, scoring with punches that visibly hurt Murata. Notably, the entire second round was contested on the feet, where Jandiroba overwhelmingly out-landed Murata.
The strawweight was a clash between two former Invicta FC fighters.
Murata’s previous appearance was her UFC debut, which she won via unanimous decision over Randa Markos.
Jandiroba is now back in the win column after losing to Mackenzie Dern late last year.
Bout 4: Matthew Semelsberger (8-2) vs. Khaos Williams (11-2) (Welterweight)
Williams Given Scorecard Nod Following Stand-Up Battle
Khaos Williams returned to the win column on the prelims, fighting a hectic pace against Matthew Semelsberger through three rounds to win via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 & 29-28).
Semelsberger was frequently the fighter who would press forward and throw singular shots. Williams played a counter-punching role throughout, often responding to strikes from Semelsberger with a quick flurry of shots.
The pace of the bout dropped significantly once they entered the third round, with the output of strikes decreasing significantly.
Williams was returning to the cage after taking his first UFC loss to Michel Pereira last year. Prior to then, he picked up two wins in the promotion within a round.
The fight on Saturday was Semelsberger’s first loss since joining the UFC roster. He had a quick win in his last appearance, stopping Jason Witt in just 16 seconds earlier this year.
Bout 3: Josh Parisian (13-4) vs. Roque Martinez (15-7-2) (Heavyweight)
Parisian Scores Split Decision Win Over Martinez After Clinch-Heavy Battle
Josh Parisian scored his first UFC win on the prelims, having a close fight against Roque Martinez to win via split decision (29-28 Martinez, 29-28 Parisian & 29-28 Parisian).
The majority of the fight took place in clinch positions where Parisian and Martinez exchanged punches and elbows. Martinez’s best round was early, as he was able to keep Parisian against the cage and unload punches.
Parisian started to notch more control time in the clinch and land more strikes in the later rounds.
Parisian was returning after losing his UFC debut to Parker Porter last year. He was given a UFC contract after winning on the most recent season of “Dana White’s Contender Series.”
Martinez, a former RIZIN fighter and DEEP Impact Openweight Champion, is now on a three-fight losing streak in the UFC. His two previous appearances in the promotion came against Alexander Romanov and DonTale Mayes.
Bout 2: Joaquim Silva (11-2) vs. Ricky Glenn (21-6-1) (Lightweight)
Glenn Ends Absence With Quick Win
Ricky Glenn had an explosive win in his return to the cage, stopping Joaquim Silva within a minute with strikes.
Glenn scored two knockdowns within the short period of time that the fight was going for. He first dropped Silva with a left hand, then hit him with numerous follow-up shots on the ground. After Silva worked back up to his feet, he was clipped by another punched that floored him, causing the referee to step in.
The fight was Glenn’s first appearance since 2018. The 32-year-old is now back in the win column, as his previous fight was a loss to Kevin Aguilar.
Silva was also competing for the first time in over a year, with his last fight being a stoppage loss to Nasrat Haqparast in 2019.
Bout 1: Lara Procopio (7-1) vs. Casey O’Neill (6-0) (Flyweight)
O’Neill Preserves Flawless Record With Submission Win
Casey O’Neill extended her undefeated record in the opening bout of the card, choking out Lara Procopio in the third round with a rear naked choke. O’Neill first looked for the choke while Procopio was standing up, holding onto the it as they went to the ground and Procopio eventually went unconscious.
The submission win came after a close fight that saw O’Neill showcase her striking and grappling skills.
Procopio had a good start to the fight, scoring takedowns on O’Neill and holding her own in striking exchanges on the feet in the first round.
O’Neill capitalized on stopping a takedown attempt in the second round, putting Procopio down and landing a series of punches and elbows.
O’Neill opened the final round with a dominant position, unloading with punches while on the back of Procopio in a crucifix position. She then transitioned to the back of Procopio, where she locked in the choke that finished the fight.
O’Neill is now undefeated through seven fights as a pro. She scored a win in her UFC debut earlier this year, stopping Shana Dobson in the second round of a bout with ground and pound.
Procopio was also coming off a win, having defeated Molly McCann on scorecards in February.
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