Yan Xiaonan prevailed in her first-ever UFC main event appearance, out-landing Mackenzie Dern on the feet and surviving in grappling exchanges.
Yan’s victory headlined a UFC “Fight Night” card from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA on Saturday night.
Yan’s victory was a tale of two different fighting styles.
The success that Yan had on the feet against Dern earned her the win. She pieced Dern up on the feet, landing the better combinations during stand-up exchanges.
But Yan was only able to get the decision nod because she avoided getting submitted by Dern on the ground.
Dern was able to attack with grappling in three rounds of the fight, aggressively hunting for holds. She nearly had a shot-clock moment in the final seconds of the fifth round, as she looked to extend an armbar on Yan. While she mostly succeeded when setting up this hold, Yan escaped during the extension of her arm.
Yan snapped a two-fight skid in her appearance this weekend. Previous defeats came against two high-level strawweight fighters in Marina Rodriguez and current champion Carla Esparza.
Dern’s first main event win in the UFC still eludes her. Her previous main event UFC fight was in October 2021, when she lost a decision to the aforementioned Rodriguez.
She was coming off a win in this appearance, having beat Tecia Torres earlier this year at UFC 273.
Brown Keeps Streak Alive With Win Over Trinaldo
Randy Brown picked up his fourth consecutive win in the co-main event of the night, working toward a unanimous decision win over Francisco Trinaldo.
Success in the first and second rounds from Brown allowed him to walk away with a decision victory this weekend.
Brown scored a knockdown in the first round, dropping Trinaldo with a right hand. He notably also threatened Trinaldo with a guillotine choke later in that round as well.
The fight remained on the feet during the second round, where Brown was able to out-land Trinaldo.
Trinaldo took ground control for most of the final frame, although that wasn’t enough for him to win the fight on scorecards.
Two of the wins in Brown’s current four-fight winning streak have come this year. His previous performance saw him take a decision nod against Khaos Williams.
Trinaldo also entered this bout on a winning streak. He had a pair of wins recently before this weekend, overcoming Dwight Grant and Danny Roberts in recent appearances.
Barcelos Ground And Pounds His Way To Victory
Raoni Barcelos cleared scorecards against Trevin Jones on Saturday night, using ground and pound to take all three rounds and win via unanimous decision.
Barcelos was able to score with ground and pound shots against Jones in all three rounds of the fight. He often earned full mount positions to land these punches.
Barcelos’ dominance on the ground allowed him to earn two 10-8 rounds on a pair of judge’s scorecards.
The fight brought Barcelos back to his winning ways after a pair of defeats recently. His most recent appearance before this weekend was against Victor Henry, who beat him via decision in January.
Jones has now suffered three consecutive losses since 2021.
Heavy Favorite Yusuff Submits UFC Newcomer In Seconds
Featherweight Sodiq Yusuff needed less than a full minute to defeat UFC newcomer Don Shainis.
Yusuff pulled guard early in his fight with a guillotine choke attempt. He kept with this choke while on the back, eventually causing Shainis to tap out.
Yusuff was originally scheduled to compete in the co-main event of the card against Giga Chikadze. However, after Chikadze was pulled from the card, Yusuff was given Shainis.
Shainis got the UFC call after a busy year on the regional scene, scoring five wins from November 2021 to June.
Yusuff has now scored two wins this year, with his previous appearance being a decision win over Alex Caceres.
Davis Hurts Borshchev With Ground And Pound For Third Consecutive Win
Mike Davis had a strong three-round showing against Viacheslav Borshchev in his return, walking away from the fight with a unanimous decision win.
A grinding performance on the ground from Davis through all three rounds earned him the scorecard win. He was able to earn dominant positions on the ground in all three rounds, allowing him to unload with ground and pound shots.
The first round was his most dominant portion of the fight from Davis, nearly scoring a finish due to an endless streak of ground and pound shots from full mount.
Davis has now put together three consecutive wins since 2019. His previous appearance dated back to early 2021, when he handed Mason Jones his first pro loss.
Borshchev’s UFC record is now a negative one win and two losses. His previous fight was also a defeat, dropping a decision to veteran Marc Diakiese.
The Rest of the Card
UFC’s card lost a bout the day of the event, as a light heavyweight contest between Philipe Lins and Maxim Grishin was removed from the card. Lins wasn’t medically cleared for the fight, per a report from AgFight.
Coming back after an opening round that saw him get dropped numerous times, Daniel Santos rallied back to finish John Castaneda in the second round with strikes.
Ilir Latifi prevailed in a slow-pace battle against heavyweight Aleksei Oleinik, defeating him via unanimous decision in the end. After the fight, Latifi revealed that he might retire from MMA soon: “There’s an end to every story. We’ll see what happens.”
Joaquim Silva’s sharp striking earned him a win against Jesse Ronson, dropping him in the second round with a flying knee and then finishing the bout with ground and pound. Silva snapped a two-fight skid with the performance.
Brendan Allen picked up his third consecutive victory on Saturday night, catching Krzysztof Jotko in the first round with a rear naked choke without hooks. Allen mentioned afterward that he wants to compete at UFC 283 in Brazil next year and face either Andre Muniz or Anthony Hernandez.
Invicta FC alum Chelsea Chandler won her UFC debut on the prelims, scoring with ground and pound shots from full mount to stop Julija Stoliarenko in the first round.
Guido Cannetti earned a fast victory to open the card, submitting Randy Costa with a rear naked choke. Cannetti took the back of Costa after making him slip with a leg kick. He then applied the choke, forcing a tap.
Quick Results
Main Card (7:00PM EDT / 4:00PM PDT) (ESPN+ / TSN 2)
Bout 11: Yan Xiaonan def. Mackenzie Dern via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 10: Randy Brown def. Francisco Trinaldo via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 9: Raoni Barcelos def. Trevin Jones via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 8: Sodiq Yusuff def. Don Shainis via Submission, Guillotine Choke (RD 1, 0:30)
Bout 7: Mike Davis def. Viacheslav Borshchev via Decision, Unanimous
Preliminary Card (4:00PM EDT / 1:00PM PDT) (ESPN+ / TSN 2)
Bout 6: Daniel Santos def. John Castaneda via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 4:28)
Bout 5: Ilir Latifi def. Aleksei Oleinik via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Joaquim Silva def. Jesse Ronson via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 3:08)
Bout 3: Brendan Allen def. Krzysztof Jotko via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 4:17)
Bout 2: Chelsea Chandler def. Julija Stoliarenko via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:15)
Bout 1: Guido Cannetti def. Randy Costa via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 1:04)
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