The UFC returned to the Apex on Saturday with one of the most entertaining fighters of his era stepping back into the spotlight.
Edson Barboza was given a taste of the next generation, though, as England’s Lerone Murphy remained undefeated and picked up the biggest win of his UFC career in his first main event.
Official result for UFC Fight Night: Barboza vs. Murphy below.
MAIN CARD
Lerone Murphy def. Edson Barboza via unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45)
Murphy had a strong opening round as he and Barboza traded strikes. Murphy used a boxing-heavy attack while Barboza mixed in kicks, including a damaging one off his back in the final seconds of the first round. Barboza continued with kicks in the second round, landing multiple hard low kicks to Murphy’s lead leg but was rocked when Murphy landed a standing elbow and subsequent punches.
As the fight progressed, Murphy’s pressure and power was the clear difference as he set a new personal best for strikes landed in a fight, surpassing 200 strikes midway through the final round. Barboza had never absorbed as many strikes in his 30-fight UFC career.
Khaos Williams def. Carlston Harris via knockout at 1:30 of Round 1
It only took Williams 90 seconds to find the spot with his powerful right hand. He joined Shavkat Rakhmonov as the only other fighter to defeat Harris at the UFC level.
Themba Gorimbo def. Ramiz Brahimaj via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
In his first UFC appearance, Gorimbo showed UFC fans his finishing ability with a 32-secon knockout win. On Saturday night, in his second appearance, he showed he can get things done the ugly way. Gorimbo swept the scorecards in a grappling-heavy welterweight fight. Dominick Cruz commented during the broadcast: “They’re cheese-grating each other on the fence.”
Adrian Yañez def. Vinicius Salvador via TKO at 2:47 of Round 1
Yañez snapped a two-fight losing streak in style by putting away his opponent with a counter right hand that began a lengthy finishing sequence that saw Salvador eat multiple hard punches after he was initially dazed.
Angela Hill def. Luana Pinheiro via submission at 4:12 of Round 2
Hill broke a three-way tie with formers champions Jessica Andrade, Carla Esparza and Joanna Jedrzejczyk and is the new all-time leader with a record 11 wins inside the UFC’s strawweight division. This was Hill’s first stoppage victory since 2020 and the first submission win of her 30-fight pro career.
PRELIMINARY CARD
Tom Nolan def. Victor Martinez via TKO at 3:50 of Round 1
Both lightweight fighters came in looking for their first UFC victory, and it was the Australian getting into the win column, as Nolan landed a knee to Martinez’s liver that shut down the American in quick succession.
Oumar Sy def. Tuco Tokkos via submission of 3:43 of Round 1
Sy came out victorious in a battle of debutants as his rear-naked choke of Tokkos earned him a 10th consecutive MMA win, keeping the Frenchman undefeated.
Melissa Gatto def. Tamires Vidal via TKO at 0:37 of Round 3
In her first fight moving from flyweight to bantamweight, Gatto showed the extra pounds had no impact on her as she dispatched her fellow Brazilian for a third career UFC victory.
Abus Magomedov def. Warlley Alves via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
After facing danger in the early moments of their middleweight contest, Magomedov recovered well thanks to an exhaustive ground game that ultimately proved too much for Alves.
Ariane Carnelossi def. Piera Rodriguez via disqualification at 3:16 of Round 2
In a strawweight fight Rodriguez was winning, she inexplicably headbutted Carnelossi, even after the referee’s warnings and it proved costly as she subsequently incurred a loss for her actions.
Alateng Heili def. Kleydson Rodrigues via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
A bout dominated by Heili as the Chinese bantamweight’s activity and striking accuracy handed Rodrigues his second consecutive defeat.
Vanessa Demopoulos def. Emily Ducote via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
An evenly matched see-saw battle kicked off the card with the “Lil Monster” emerging victorious on the judges’ scorecards.