Back in the win column!
@AmandaRibasUFC
closes the prelims in style!
#UFC267 pic.twitter.com/3SKEJxBqYn— UFC (@ufc)
October 30, 2021
Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream UFC 267
live on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device
via the ESPN app. American Top Team standout Amanda
Ribas reasserted herself in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight division and
showed no lingering effects from her Jan. 23 stoppage loss to
Marina
Rodriguez, as she captured a unanimous decision over Virna
Jandiroba in the featured
UFC 267 prelim on Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United
Arab Emirates.
Ribas was awarded 29-28 marks by all three judges.
Jandiroba (17-3, 3-3 UFC) executed a takedown and sat down the
onetime Jungle Fight champion with an overhand right in the first
round. From there, Ribas seized command. She tore into the former
Invicta Fighting Championships titleholder with multi-punch bursts,
often punctuating them with leg kicks. Ribas (11-2, 5-1 UFC) had
her fellow Brazilian reeling in Round 3, where she blindsided her
with a head kick and pursued the finish with follow-up punches.
Though a stoppage failed to materialize, the die had been cast.
Tukhugov Rebounds, Outlasts Ramos
American Kickboxing Academy export Zubaira
Tukhugov bounced back from a September 2020 setback against
Hakeem
Dawodu, as he took a unanimous decision from Ricardo
Ramos in a three-round featherweight tilt. Tukhugov (20-5-1,
5-2-1 UFC) carried all three cards with 29-28 scores.
Ramos (15-4, 6-3 UFC) remained competitive throughout—he dazed the
Russian with a spinning back elbow in the first round—but could not
string together enough meaningful moments to turn the corner.
Tukhugov applied constant pressure, opened a significant cut above
the Team Alpha Male-trained Brazilian’s left eye, peppered him with
a punishing jab and connected effectively on the counter. It was
enough to keep Ramos at a deficit on the scorecards.
The 26-year-old Ramos has lost two of his past three bouts.
Duraev Clears Kopylov Hurdle
Former two-division Absolute Championship Berkut titleholder and
Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Albert
Duraev extended his run of consecutive victories to 10 with a
unanimous decision over Roman
Kopylov in a three-round middleweight battle. All three judges
sided with Duraev (15-3, 1-0 UFC): 30-27, 29-27 and 29-27.
Kopylov (8-2, 0-2 UFC) sat down his fellow Russian with a surgical
left hand in the second round and enjoyed a late surge in the
third. The moments in between largely belonged to Duraev, who
filled in for Alessio
Di Chirico on short notice. He almost finished it in the middle
stanza, where he struck for a takedown, climbed to full mount and
unleashed his ground-and-pound around arm-triangle and rear-naked
choke attempts. Kopylov emerged with significant damage to his nose
but weathered the assault and forced his counterpart to go an
additional five minutes. Duraev obliged despite a left eye that had
nearly swelled shut.
The 32-year-old Duraev has not tasted defeat since March 14,
2014.
Zaleski dos Santos Handles Newcomer St. Denis
CM System rep Elizeu
Zaleski dos Santos rebounded from a July 11, 2020 defeat to
Muslim
Salikhov, as he laid claim to a one-sided unanimous decision
over Octagon newcomer Benoit St.
Denis in a three-round welterweight confrontation. Zaleski dos
Santos (23-7, 9-3 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-26 marks from
all three judges.
St. Denis (8-1, 0-1 UFC) was simply outmatched in terms of
firepower. A fairly competitive first five minutes gave way to a
difficult-to-stomach second round that bordered on cruel and
unusual punishment. Zaleski dos Santos battered and bloodied the
Frenchman with sweeping hooks from both hands, knee strikes from
the clinch and various other weapons. St. Denis managed to
withstand the assault—referee Vyacheslav
Kiselev could have intervened on more than one occasion—but had
little left in the gas tank with which to return fire. Zaleski dos
Santos’ pace slowed down the stretch and he was docked a point for
an inadvertent low blow, but by then, the lead he had built was
insurmountable.
Zaleski dos Santos, 34, has rattled off nine wins in 11
appearances.
Aggressive Oleksiejczuk Buries Gamzatov
Former Thunderstrike Fight League champion Michal
Oleksiejczuk cut down the previously unbeaten Shamil
Gamzatov in the first round of their light heavyweight clash.
In his first assignment since Nov. 9, 2019, Gamzatov (14-1, 1-1
UFC) bowed out 3:31 into Round 1.
Oleksiejczuk (16-4, 4-2 UFC) overwhelmed the Professional Fighters
League alum with pace. He stepped forward with overhand lefts,
savage body blows and multi-punch bursts at close range.
Oleksiejczuk pinned his winded counterpart to the fence, forced him
into an all-fours defensive shell with
a wicked uppercut and flurried with punches until the job was
done.
It was the eighth first-round finish of Oleksiejczuk’s career.
Murphy Knee KOs Amirkhani
Manchester Top Team’s Lerone
Murphy kept his undefeated record intact and did so in
spectacular fashion, as he knocked out Makwan
Amirkhani with a perfectly timed knee strike in the second
round of their featherweight encounter. A late-notice replacement
for Tristan
Connelly, Murphy (11-0-1, 3-0-1 UFC) drew the curtain 14
seconds into Round 2.
Amirkhani (16-7, 6-5 UFC) dictated the terms of the engagement in
the first round, where he shut down the onetime Full Contact
Contender champion with takedowns, ground-and-pound and mat
returns. Murphy responded at the start of the middle stanza, as he
countered a ducking double-leg takedown attempt from “Mr. Finland”
with
a devastating knee to the head. An unconscious Amirkhani
collapsed downward into a supine position and ate a subsequent
right hand before referee Marc Goddard
could arrive on the scene.
The once-promising Amirkhani now finds himself on a three-fight
losing streak.
Petroski Arm-Triangle Vanquishes Hu
“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 29 semifinalist Andre
Petroski submitted Yaozong Hu
with an arm-triangle choke in the third round of their middleweight
affair. A short-notice replacement for Alen
Amedovski, Petroski (7-1, 2-0 UFC) brought it to a close 4:46
into Round 3.
In his first appearance since Nov. 24, 2018, Hu (3-3, 0-3 UFC)
failed to establish foothold. Petroski walloped him with power
punches on the feet, delivered takedowns virtually at will and
slowly wore down the Tiger Muay Thai product. Hu wilted late in the
third round, where he conceded multiple takedowns and absorbed
heavy ground-and-pound from the Daniel
Gracie protégé. Petroski shifted to full mount in the waning
seconds, dropped elbows and
transitioned to the arm-triangle to prompt the tapout.
Petroski will enter his next assignment on the strength of
back-to-back victories.
Surging Ulanbekov Survives Nascimento
Takedowns and top control carried former Fight Nights Global
champion Tagir
Ulanbekov to a split decision over Allan
Nascimento in a three-round flyweight pairing. All three
cageside judges struck 29-28 scorecards: Vito Paolillo and Darryl
Ransom for Ulanbekov, Ben Cartlidge for Nascimento.
Ulanbekov (14-1, 2-0 UFC) made his intentions known in the first
round, where he executed multiple takedowns and nearly finished the
Chute Boxe standout with a guillotine choke. Nascimento (18-6, 0-1
UFC) answered with a venomous guard that saw him threaten with
various submissions, from triangle chokes and armbars to kimuras
and omoplatas. Nothing stuck. Ulanbekov successfully navigated
those efforts, continued to pile up control time and incorporated
some ground-and-pound laced with short elbows and punches.
The 30-year-old Ulanbekov has won five fights in a row.
