UFC Fight Night 234 ‘Ankalaev vs. Walker 2’ Play-by-Play, Results & Round Scoring

Round 1

It’s showtime! The UFC is back, and the Apex is its home for its
first card of the year. With no further introductions necessary, we
get right into the action. Flyweights take center stage first as
the surging Van (9-1, 2-0 UFC) welcomes the well-traveled Brazilian
Bunes (13-6, 0-0 UFC) to the promotion. The former has won seven
straight, while the latter claimed the LFA flyweight strap by
punching out Yuma Horiuchi at the beginning of January. The referee
for the first UFC bout of 2024 will be Mark Smith, and he clocks in
the fight as the two men touch gloves. Van takes the middle of the
cage first and ignores an inside leg kick as he tries to find his
range. Bunes is a bit more jittery out of the gate, pawing out jabs
and low kicks. Van advances and pushes out a front kick, only to be
met by a slapping low kick on the outside. Bunes opens up with an
overhand right, and Van retaliates and makes Bunes think twice
about standing in the pocket and trading. Bunes lines up a right
hand and moves to the side, and the two toss front kicks at the
other. The Brazilian has a high kick bounce off the raised guard of
his foe, and he backs off as Van lays into him with two heavy right
hands. Bunes shakes it off and reaches out with a left that misses
and a right that does not. Van blitzes, and part of a left hook
finds its mark before Bunes is able to escape laterally. Bunes
chambers and fires a gnarly right hand, and Van takes it flush and
does not bat an eye. Both fighters let their hands go in a brief
exchange, landing a few shots, and Bunes mixes things up with a
step-in knee. Van throws back with a fury, and he finds himself
suddenly defending a single-leg takedown from “Felipinho.” Bunes
pushes Van back to the fence when he cannot secure the entry, and
Van answers by splitting the uprights with a knee. Bunes drops to
his knees in pain, and Smith calls the foul for the groin shot.
Bunes stays down for over a minute as he tries to cough it out and
recover, and after a minute and 45 seconds, he asks Smith to
restart the fight on the feet instead of in the takedown position.
The Brazilian picks up where he left off with a number of low kicks
on the inside and out, and he weaves to the side as Van lobs bombs
at him. Bunes stays on his bike, but he peppers the body with front
kicks and those to the lead leg, and Van tanks them all while
aiming heavy strikes over the top. Bunes pursues another single-leg
takedown, and he slings Van to the canvas and lands in side control
with 15 seconds left in the round. Bunes climbs into mount, and Van
throws him over the top and shucks off an omoplata setup before the
round comes to a close.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Bunes
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Bunes
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Bunes

Round 2

The flyweights get right after it when they resume the action, and
Van puts his foot on the gas. The Myanmar-born Van comes out
swinging, and he catches Bunes with a few shots. As Van gets
somewhat reckless, Bunes changes levels in pursuit of a takedown,
and he is stuffed before it goes anywhere and takes a number of
elbows to the side of the dome. Bunes shoves Van back to the
fencing and gets a body lock while stomping on Van’s toes, but Van
decides he is sick of it and spins his man around. Van lays into
Bunes with knees and body shots, and Bunes is taking some damage
and shoots for a takedown. Van turns him around and wall-walks to
get back upright. When he gets some space, Van looses a number of
body shots to back the Brazilian to the fence, and he chases an
escaping Bunes from one side of the cage to the other to continue
throwing. Van elects to go for his own takedown, and he threatens
with an unexpected leglock before bailing on it to smash Bunes in
the face with a trio of elbows. Van sits up, not totally in Bunes’
guard, and he lands powerful punches from above. Van stands back
and allows Bunes to get back up, so that they can trade. Van dings
his man a few times, and when Bunes fires back, Van keeps him
backed off and lands harder. Van digs several more body shots, and
Bunes is wearing it but still in the fight as he spins with an
inaccurate wheel kick. “Felipinho” rushes out for a desperate
takedown, and Van pushes him away and slugs him in the face. Bunes
does not stop swinging either, but his punches are far slower.

“The Fearless” fearlessly lasts Bunes with knees to the body and
thunderous punches, until Bunes crumbles to the mat. Van does not
take his foot off the accelerator, raining down punches and elbows
furiously. As Van continues to clobber the former LFA champ with a
flurry of ferocious fists, Smith has no choice but to step in to
save Bunes from his own toughness. This is a big win
for Van, who earns his first stoppage in the Octagon and stamps
himself as yet another young up-and-comer to watch in the
talent-rich flyweight division.

The Official Result

Joshua Van def. Felipe Bunes R2 4:31 via TKO (Punches)

Round 1

Two power-punching lightweights enter the Octagon to make some
waves. Motta (13-5, 1 NC; 1-2, 1 NC UFC) may be fighting for his
job, depending on the result, while unbested Aussie Nolan (6-0, 0-0
UFC) wants to leave a lasting impression in his promotional debut.
Referee Dan Miragliotta draws the charge for this fight that might
not need the full 15 minutes, and it opens up with a glove touch
from the two combatants. Nolan quickly whips a leg kick on the
inside, and he follows it with two punches. Nolan crowds his man
and swings hard, and Motta bites down on his mouthpiece and throws
back with a vengeance. Nolan sits down on a few kicks as he mixes
in punches, while Motta fires off two body kicks that land with
loud slaps. Motta takes a few punches on the chin, says “please
sir, may I have some more,” and retaliates with a left hand and a
vicious right that drops the unbeaten Australian to his seat.

Nolan turns over and tries to survive, but Motta follows him and
proceeds to batter him with right hands. The thudding punches
continue to connect on the side of the head, and Nolan is showing
no signs of recovering at this point. Miragliotta recognizes this
and intervenes, and Nolan thinks about protesting but
decides against it as his circuits are still somewhat scrambled.
Motta rushes off and proceeds to celebrate with his eclectic corner
of Ray Sefo, Jake Shields and Julian Erosa.

The Official Result

Nikolas Motta def. Tom Nolan R1 1:03 via TKO (Punches)

Round 1

If the judges wanted to go out for a smoke break, this is likely
the fight on the card where they could get away with it. Wilson
(16-8, 0-1 UFC) would like nothing more than to get a win in the
UFC, while “Killer” Silva (11-2, 0-0 UFC) appears to be a man on a
mission as he slowly walks to the cage with a glacial pace.
Together, the two featherweights have only gone to a decision once
in their 27 victories, with 22 coming in Round 1. Referee Marc
Goddard will need to be on high alert for the next few minutes.
Silva offers a glove touch, but Wilson just stares at him until
Silva withdraws his hand. Wilson prods out a high kick, and Silva
evades it and whips a kick to the ribcage in response. The two in
alternating stances look to find their respective ranges, and
little comes from either man in the opening stages of the fight.
Wilson rushes out with his hands down, and Silva drills him in the
side of the head and sets him down. The Brazilian steps back and
does not consider finishing the job, instead letting Wilson back
up. Wilson backs himself up to the fence, and Silva meanders
forward and lobs a left hand to get on the inside and scoop Wilson
up and shuttle him to the mat. Wilson hits the ground hard, but is
quick to fight his way back to his feet. Wilson responds with a few
jabs from range, and he blocks a high kick. Wilson again races
forward and gets popped with a vicious left hook, but this time he
stays on his feet. Silva keeps his guard high when Wilson
retaliates, and he waves Wilson on. Wilson obliges him, and Silva
blasts him in the face with a pair of punches that send Wilson
careening to the ground. Somewhere in California, Edmond Tarverdyan
is watching this fight and screaming “head movement!”
Unfortunately, Wilson cannot hear him, as he leaves his chin
straight up in the air. Silva continues to stalk a struggling
Wilson and smash him in the sides of the head with punches, and
Wilson ricochets off the fencing as he keeps taking huge damage.
Wilson gets tagged a few more times and practically topples to the
ground. Wilson rolls and stands back up, and he shoots for a
takedown. Silva intercepts him with a knee but still ends up
hitting his back, only to turn him around and belt him with
additional punches. Wilson somehow works his way up as he is taking
horrible shots again and again. Wilson retreats to the cage wall,
and the Fighting Nerds vet drills him once more with massive hooks.

Goddard asks Wilson to fight back, and Silva is the one who answers
that call by connecting with a flush knee on the chin and several
more swarming punches. As he takes a nasty uppercut on the chin,
Wilson collapses from the punishment, and Goddard gets between them
when observing that Wilson is done. Silva strides away
and barks several times, and he proceeds to put on thick-rimmed
glasses with tape on the bridge to rep his team of the Fighting
Nerds and reenact his success with his teammates.

The Official Result

Jean Silva def. Westin Wilson R1 4:12 via TKO (Punches)

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result

Round 1

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 2

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 3

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 4

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

Round 5

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round:
Tristen Critchfield scores the round:
Tyler Treese scores the round:

The Official Result