UFC Vegas 116 transpired on Saturday featuring 13 total fights with six of those fights taking place on the main card.
It was an extra-long main card as all but the first fight on the card going the distance. In the main event, an important featherweight scrap, as former UFC bantamweight champion, (#5) Aljamain Sterling out-grappled (#7) Youssef Zalal on his way to a unanimous decision victory. In the co-main event Joselyne Edwards used her constant striking aggression to capture a unanimous decision victory over Norma Dumont.
Four win streaks were snapped on this main card while just two fighters have added to losing streaks.
Youssef Zalal
(#5) Aljamain Sterling put on a clinic in all things grappling and wrestling on Saturday when he smothered (#7) Youssef Zalal over five rounds to log a victory. Bitter defeat for Zalal as this is the first loss of his second UFC stint. Zalal was the owner of a 2-3-1 stretch with the UFC from 2020 to 2022 but that included decision defeats against studs like eventual double champ, Illia Topuria and striking standout, Sean Woodson. Since Zalal’s resigning in 2024, he’s 5-1. Youssef was coming into this fight with a decision win over Calvin Kattar and a first round submission victory against Josh Emmett back in October.
A good next opponent for Zalal would be to give him the loser of Melquizael Costa vs. Arnold Allen. That fight goes down on May 16 so the timing would be just fine. It’s also a main event so it would make even more sense as a matchup. Allen has lost three of his last four as he has recently had a huge step-up in competition. His last fight was back in late January when he lost a unanimous decision to Jean Silva. Melquizael Costa, on the other hand, is on the ascent. Costa is on a six-fight win streak and has finished his last two opponents, most recently, Dan Ige in late February to earn himself a performance bonus.
Best case scenario for Zalal is he’s facing Costa who has a freshly snapped win streak much like himself. This could be a fight night co-main event or potentially even a main event. Great fighters to build names for.
Zalal’s next fight: (#12) Melquizael Costa vs. (#8) Arnold Allen loser
Norma Dumont
(#11) Joselyne Edwards used her muay thai and stayed on the offensive in order to get the victory over (#3) Norma Dumont in the co main event on Saturday. It was a competitive fight, but Dumont suffers a horrific setback suffering her first loss since a split decision in May 2022 (opposite of Macy Chiasson). Dumont is now 9-3 with the promotion. Considering Dumont was originally supposed to take on (#5) Yana Santos before her opponent suffered an injury having to withdrawal, this is a rough defeat.
Norma’s next opponent should be Jacquline Cavalcanti if she loses her fight to Ketlen Vieira. That fight goes down on May 16 so the timing would be fine. The Yana fight would also work fine as a backup as she’s just sitting on the shelf right now. Leaning heavily towards the fight with Cavalcanti though. Dumont was Vieira’s most recent loss, and it was only by split decision. Cavalcanti is 10-1 as a pro and a perfect 5-0 in the UFC. If she stumbles against Vieira, Dumont could be the perfect next test- especially if it’s a close fight.
Dumont’s next fight: (#10) Jacqueline Cavalcanti or (#5) Yana Santos
Alexander Hernandez
Rafa Garica remained cool and composed for the duration of his bout with Alexander Hernadez, fighting within his game plan to tally a nice unanimous decision victory. Bad outcome for Hernandez- but at least he wasn’t finished. The loss stops Alexander’s 4-fight win streak that saw him defeating multiple TUF veterans before stopping Chase Hooper and Diego Ferreira.
Hernandez should look towards a veteran striker for his next matchup, keep the foot on the gas, but maybe a potentially more manageable matchup. Giving Hernandez the loser of the King Green vs Jeremy Stephens fight could be incredibly interesting. Those guys scrap on May 9th so timing would be perfect. King Green even has a recent unanimous decision victory over Jim Miller, and so does Hernandez. Green is headed into that May matchup with Stephens riding a 2-fight win streak.
Jeremy Stephens hasn’t been in the octagon since last May when he lost a violent fight to Mason Jones. Stephens has been all over the place in recent years, from the PFL, to most recently a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships stint. Either one of these vets could offer an interesting and fresh standup battle with Alexander Hernandez. It could be on the main card of a fight night card or prelim of a PPV card.
Hernandez’s next fight: Bobby Green vs Jeremy Stephens Loser
Adrian Luna Martinetti
Davey Grant battered a relentless Adrian Luna Martinetti at the APEX on Saturday to get the unanimous decision victory. Luna Martinetti never gave up, despite his heavily damaged legs, and for that, this fight received fight of the night honors for UFC Vegas 116. The bout was Adrian’s UFC debut as he is a product of last year’s season of the Contender Series. This was Martinetti’s first MMA loss since his third bout, snapping a 15-fight win streak.
Jafel Filho also lost a unanimous decision at UFC Vegas 116, but he fell on the undercard to Cody Durden. Filho is 3-3 with the UFC since being signed off of the 2022 season of the Contender Series. Jafel was fed to the sharks immediately as he faced an undefeated Muhammad Mokaev in his promotional debut. Filho also has a performance bonus under his belt for his 2024 finish over Ode Osbourne. Pairing these two featherweights up could offer a high action fight for fans. Timing makes it too easy of a fight to make as well.
Martinelli’s next fight: Jafel Filho
Montel Jackson
Raoni Barcelos did enough with his grappling and deep submission attempts to steal a split decision over Montel Jackson Saturday, despite Jackson’s early knockdown. This loss extends Jackson’s losing streak to two though his last loss was also a split decision and opposite of former UFC flyweight champion, Deivision Figueiredo. Before this pair of defeats, the 2018 Contender Series veteran was riding a 6-fight win streak featuring three finishes and two bonuses.
Montel Jackson should fight Ricky Simon next. This would be a banger. Simon has big power in his hands and is fresh off a wild majority draw against Adrian Yanez back in late March. Timing wouldn’t be too bad. Simon headed into that fight having dropped three of his last four. But prior to that was his 5-fight win streak that earned him five bonuses in his first five fights with the promotion. Similar fighters in terms of having had their momentums extinguished. Seems like this would be a great time to book this slick standup battle that would have fans on the edge of their seats. This fight could be a co main event on a fight night card.
Jackson’s next fight: Ricky Simon
Marcus Buchecha
Ryan Spann used his 16 fights of UFC experience to expertly navigate the dangerous grappling attacks of Marcus Buchecha before finishing the fight with a two-punch combo in the second. Marcus, who was once 5-1 with ONE Fighting Championship, is now winless since being picked up by the UFC, last July. With a 0-2-1 record with the promotion, it’s worth noting that the 36-year-old heavyweight was originally supposed to take on Max Gimenis on Saturday before Max broke his foot.
Rebook the fight with Max here. Max lost his debut to Josh Hokit, who at the time, was also making his debut. With all the notoriety Hokit has gained recently, giving Max a fight against a fighter that was a name outside of the promotion makes a lot of sense. Plus, the heavyweight division is shallow, and Marcus could be on the shelf long enough for Max to recover from his injury.
Buchecha’s next fight: Max Gimenis
