The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned with its latest event today at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC on ABC 2: “Vettori vs Holland” was headlined by a middleweight bout between fast-rising contender Marvin “The Italian Dream” Vettori and short-notice opponent Kevin “Trailblazer” Holland.
In the featherweight co-feature, Arnold “Almighty” Allen squared off against “Super” Sodiq Yusuff. Elsewhere on the main card, veteran “Smile’n” Sam Alvey battled Julian “The Cuban Missile Crisis” Marquez at 185 pounds. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for today’s UFC on ABC 2 card.
Marvin “The Italian Dream” Vettori vs Kevin “Trailblazer” Holland
Round 1:
Leg kicks were exchanged early in the fight and time was called when Vettori was front kicked in the groin. The fight continued after a minute and Holland landed a pair of straight right hands. Vettori blocked a head kick and punched his way into a clinch. Holland prevented him from scoring a takedown and Vettori backed away. Both men landed punching combinations, with Vettori connecting with the better shots, and he took Holland down. Holland initially countered with upkicks, but Vettori settled into Holland’s full guard. He briefly struck from the top and the fighters returned to their feet. Vettori landed two combinations and he initiated another clinch before the bell. 10-9 Vettori.
Round 2:
Both men landed three-punch combos in the second round and Holland landed a hard right cross that backed Vettori up. Vettori responded with a takedown ad he landed short right hands to Holland’s face and body. Vettori postured up with more punches and he prevented Holland from using the cage to get back to his feet. Holland gave up his back and stood up in the final minute, only to be immediately slammed down again. Vettori landed punches from the top, then took Holland’s back again and continued to strike until the fighters stood before the bell. 10-9 Vettori. Could be a 10-8.
Round 3:
Holland’s left eye swelled shut between rounds, but he told the doctor that he could see and the fight was allowed to continue. Vettori took Holland down and moved to mount early in round three. He locked on an arm-triangle choke and passed to side control, but Holland refused to submit and Vettori gave up on it. Holland escaped to his feet and Vettori landed a three-punch combo. He scored one brief takedown and then held Holland against the cage after Holland stood up. The fighters separated and traded body kicks late in the round, and Holland landed a solid combination before the bell. 10-9 Vettori.
Round 4:
Vettori opened the fourth round with a nice left hook and Holland responded with a straight right. Vettori clinched and took Holland down into half-guard. Holland managed to stand up once, but Vettori took him back down and this time he moved to mount. Holland managed to fight back to half-guard, and then to full guard, but Vettori landed constant punches during the transitions. He kept Holland down and landed more punches from the top in the final minute. 10-9 Vettori.
Round 5:
Holland hurt Vettori with a one-two and a follow-up right cross early in the final round. Vettori dropped levels and took Holland down against a corner post. Holland stood up after a minute and he was immediately taken down again. Vettori moved to half-guard and then mounted Holland, but Holland exploded out from the bottom and he got back to his feet. As the fight entered its final minute, Vettori took Holland down one more time. He continued to strike from the top until Holland stood just before the end of the fight. 10-9 Vettori.
Winner: Marvin Vettori by Unanimous Decision (50-44, 50-44, 50-44) after five rounds. He improves to 17-4-1.
Arnold “Almighty” Allen vs “Super” Sodiq Yusuff
Round 1:
Allen landed two left hands in the opening seconds and he countered a kick by taking Yusuff down. Yusuff locked on a tight guillotine choke from the bottom and Allen had to act quickly to scramble free. The fight returned to the feet and Allen landed a hard three-punch combo. Yusuff countered an uppercut with a combination, but Allen dropped him with an overhand left. Yusuff recovered and Allen took him down against the cage. The fighters separated in the final seconds and Allen landed a combination that was punctuated by a lead right hook. 10-9 Allen.
Round 2:
Yusuff closed the distance and jabbed in round two as Allen circled to his right. Arnold landed a left hand and caught a body kick. Seconds later, he dropped Yusuff to a knee with a vicious head kick, but Yusuff somehow survived and recovered as he got back to his feet. In a clinch, Yusuff landed knees to Allen’s thigh. The fighters separated late in the round and Yusuff blocked two head kicks. 10-9 Allen.
Round 3:
Yusuff sprawled out of an Allen takedown attempt early in the final round and a lengthy clinch battle ensued against the cage, with Yusuff landing knees to Allen’s leg. During a brief separation, Yusuff landed a right hand and he fought off another takedown attempt. Both men landed knees to the body in a clinch and Yusuff prevented Allen from taking him down. He landed elbows to the side of Allen’s head and the fight ended with Allen throwing a spinning back elbow. 10-9 Yusuff.
Winner: Arnold Allen by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 17-1-0.
Julian “The Cuban Missile Crisis” Marquez vs “Smile’n” Sam Alvey
Round 1:
Marquez pressed forward in the opening minute and he landed an overhand right that was answered by a left hand and a lead right hook from Alvey. A hard right cross scored for Marquez and he ducked under Alvey’s looping hooks. Marquez wobbled Alvey with a right hook and dropped him to a knee with an uppercut, but Alvey recovered quickly. Marquez landed another right hand, but Alvey responded with a head kick and both men traded punches in close. Hard right hands were exchanged with 45 seconds remaining and Alvey hurt Marquez with a counter left hook late in the round. 10-9 Marquez.
Round 2:
The second round opened with Marquez landing right hands to Alvey’s body, but Alvey cracked him with a lead right hook in return. Marquez landed a hook to Alvey’s temple and that staggered him. Marquez closed in with a barrage of punches and Alvey fell to his knees. He covered up as Marquez attacked with hammerfists. The fight was not stopped, so Marquez locked on a tight rear-naked choke on a seated Alvey and Alvey was rendered unconscious within seconds.
Winner: Julian Marquez by Technical Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 2:07 of round two. He improves to 9-2-0.
Mackenzie Dern vs Nina “The Strina” Nunes
Round 1:
Dern looked to close the distance right away and Nunes countered with uppercuts while circling away. Dern secured a clinch and she got Nunes down on her second try. Dern passed to half-guard and then moved to mount. She postured up with punches and then worked for an armbar on Nunes’s left arm. Nunes defended well and prevented Nunes from extending her arm until very late in the round. Dern finally pulled back on the arm and Nunes tapped out immediately.
Winner: Mackenzie Dern by Submission (Armbar) at 4:48 of round one. She improves to 11-1-0.
Daniel “D-Rod” Rodriguez vs “Platinum” Mike Perry
Round 1:
Rodriguez landed jabs and leg kicks early in the fight, and he countered Perry’s forward pressure with left hooks each time he closed the distance. Perry landed an overhand right and the fighters traded one-twos. Rodriguez backed Perry up with a left hook and he flurried with more punches. Perry recovered, but Rodriguez continued to score with right-left combos. Perry shot in for a takedown and he slammed Rodriguez down to escape from a guillotine choke. He maintained top position in Rodriguez’s half-guard, but landed nothing significant. 10-9 Rodriguez.
Round 2:
Hard body kicks were exchanged early in round two and Rodriguez snapped Perry’s head back with long jabs. Perry scored a body-lock takedown and he tried to take Rodriguez’s back as Rodriguez rose to his feet. Rodriguez broke free and he landed a hard left hook and an uppercut. Rodriguez mixed up his strikes with leg kicks and straight left hands. He used his jab to set up more straight lefts as Perry’s face swelled up. A cut was opened beside Perry’s left eye and he tried for a late takedown. Rodriguez stuffed it and the round ended in a clinch. 10-9 Rodriguez.
Round 3:
Rodriguez prevented Perry from taking him down in the final round and he continued to pick Perry apart on the feet with jabs and hook combinations. Three looping hooks and a pair of straight left hands landed for Rodriguez, who followed with another jab-cross combo. Rodriguez mixed in body kicks and he opened a cut near Perry’s right eye with overhand lefts. Rodriguez shot in for a takedown, but Perry easily stuffed it and the fight ended with an exchange of punches against the cage. 10-9 Rodriguez.
Winner: Daniel Rodriguez by Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 14-2-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)