Aljamain
Sterling can still stand on business with the best of them.
The “Funk Master” inched closer to his goal of becoming a
two-division
Ultimate Fighting Championship titleholder and cleared his
latest hurdle with room to spare, as he took a unanimous decision
from Youssef
Zalal in their five-round
UFC Fight Night 274 main event on Saturday at the UFC Apex in
Las Vegas. Scores were 49-45, 49-45 and 49-45.
Advertisement
Sterling (26-5, 18-5 UFC) seemed to catch the Factory X standout
off-guard with his aggression, particularly on the feet. Zalal’s
moments were few and far between, though he had his counterpart in
real danger with a guillotine choke in the third round. Sterling
waded through the adversity and found another gear. He did some of
the best work of his career in Round 4, where he punched into
takedown range, dragged Zalal (18-6-1, 8-4-1 UFC) to the mat and
progressed to the back. Sterling secured his position with a body
triangle, hammered “The Moroccan Devil” with punches and made a
pass at an arm-in rear-naked choke. Momentum had shifted
permanently, and from there, the outcome became a formality.
Sterling withstood a knee strike and executed another takedown in
the fifth round, then advanced to the back with a body triangle and
milked the remaining time off the clock.
Meanwhile, onetime King of the Cage champion Joselyne
Edwards filled in as a late-notice replacement for Yana Santos
and took another step toward title contention with a unanimous
decision over Norma
Dumont in their three-round women’s bantamweight co-headliner.
All three judges sided with Edwards (18-6, 9-4 UFC): 29-28, 29-28
and 30-27.
Dumont (13-3, 9-3 UFC) spent almost the entire fight in a state of
retreat. Edwards pressed forward, attacked all levels with equal
aplomb and did not allow the Chute Boxe export to gain a solid
foothold. She backed up Dumont with teeps to the midsection and low
kicks, then turned up the heat in the back half of the bout.
Edwards let fly with hooks from both hands, brushed off the return
fire and continued to advance behind methodical pressure.
The 30-year-old Edwards will carry a five-fight winning streak into
her next assignment.
Further down the main card, ex-Combate Global champion Rafa Garcia
climbed another rung on the 155-pound ladder, as he laid claim to a
unanimous decision over Alexander
Hernandez in their three-round lightweight showcase. Scores
were 29-29, 29-28 and 30-27—all for Garcia (19-4, 7-4 UFC).
Hernandez (18-9, 10-8 UFC) was a step behind the Cub Swanson
protégé. Garcia crowded him from the outset, leaned on a strong
jab, unleashed powerful punching combinations and even mixed in an
early takedown. Hernandez answered on occasion—he cut the Bloodline
Combat Sports representative near the right eye—but often did so
with single shots. By the time the 15-minute clash was over, there
was substantial swelling to his face and blood streaming from his
nose.
Garcia, 31, has won three fights in a row.
Elsewhere, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 18 finalist Davey Grant
kept Father Time at bay and outstruck Adrian
Luna Martinetti to a unanimous decision in their three-round
bantamweight feature. Grant (18-8, 9-7 UFC) swept the scorecards
with identical 29-28 marks from all three judges.
Martinetti (17-2, 0-1 UFC), who entered his promotional debut on a
15-fight winning streak, applied consistent forward pressure but
could not match the 40-year-old Englishman’s output. Grant called
upon a steady diet of low kicks, as he launched an all-out assault
on the Dana White’s Contender Series graduate’s lower extremities.
More importantly, he linked them to three-, four- and five-punch
combinations. Martinetti stayed on the gas through all 15 minutes,
strung together some effective volleys of his own and incorporated
nasty short-range elbows with opportunities arose. Even so, Grant
refused to break, fought well on the counter and found a home for a
number of thudding overhand rights.
The setback was Martinetti’s first since Sept. 20, 2017.
Deeper into the draw, former Resurrection Fighting Alliance and
Shooto Brazil champion Raoni
Barcelos walked through a labyrinth of razor-sharp punches,
stuck to his game plan and outgrappled Montel
Jackson to a split decision in their three-round bantamweight
attraction. All three judges turned in 29-28 scorecards: Sal
D’Amato for Jackson, Michael
Bell and Ron McCarthy for Barcelos.
Jackson (15-4, 9-4 UFC) floored the Brazilian with a stinging jab
in the first round, then proceeded to batter him with vicious
ground-and-pound. The barrage resulted in visible damage around
Barcelos’ right eye, but he somehow weathered the storm. He scored
with a trip takedown late in the middle stanza, at which point he
climbed to full mount, floated to the back and weaved his arms into
place for an attempted rear-naked choke in the waning seconds. Had
the bell not sounded, Jackson might have tapped. It led to a
back-and-forth third round, where Barcelos (22-5, 11-4 UFC) made
the stronger closing statement. He navigated heavy fire through
sheer stubbornness, struck for multiple trip takedowns and again
maneuvered behind Jackson to threaten the neck with time winding
down.
Barcelos, 38, has rattled off five straight wins.
Finally, Fortis MMA standout Ryan Spann
wiped out two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Fighting World
Championships gold medalist Marcus
Almeida with punches in the second round of their heavyweight
appetizer.
Almeida (5-3-1, 0-2-1 UFC) clocked out 2:10 into Round
2.
Spann (24-11, 10-6 UFC) trapped the Brazilian jiu-jitsu savant on
the feet, punished him at every turn and escaped an attempted heel
hook in a frenetic first round. Almeida landed his share of power
punches and made decent use of his jab, but his inability to lure
the former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion into prolonged ground
exchanges proved problematic. Back on the feet, Spann followed a
left hook with a hellacious right cross that short-circuited the
American Top Team rep and dropped him at the base of the cage. No
other shots were required.
The 34-year-old Spann has recorded back-to-back wins for the first
time since 2022.
Continue Reading »
UFC Vegas 116 Prelims: Jackson McVey brabo choke dismisses reeling
Sedriques Dumas on decision-heavy undercard