That included back-to-back knockouts on the women’s side to start the night, and back-to-back kimura submissions later in the evening.

With so many finishes there was little surprise at the UFC forgoing a Fight of the Night and instead awarded four Performance of the Night bonuses following the event. Among them, Carli Judice picked up a bonus for her finish to start the night. That saw her set up the end of Yuneisy Duben’s night with a head kick, followed by a few follow-up blows. Duben had been making her promotional debut, while Judice earned her first win under the UFC banner.

Also picking up a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus at UFC Vegas 104 was Priscila Cachoeira, who stopped Josiane Nunes with a well-timed uppercut. Cachoeira was returning to action for the first time since a loss to Jasmine Jasudavicius in January of 2024.

The two remaining Performance bonus winners on Saturday were Andre Lima, for his rear-naked choke submission of Daniel Barez, and Carlos Vera, who used the same technique to put away newcomer Josias Musasa.

Notably, all four bonus-winners competed on the UFC Vegas 104 preliminary card.

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Both men were coming off victories, but it was Lima who was an undefeated 10-0 to start the night, with three straight wins under the UFC banner. That of course included the infamous DQ victory over Igor Severino, after Severino was caught biting in the octagon. As for the Spaniard, he was coming off his first UFC victory after dropping his debut to Jafel Filho.

Lima opened with a heavy leg kick right away that Barez answered with a combination. Lima wasted no time finding his rhythm with multiple leg kicks, a stiff jab, then a right hand. He then landed a big right hand that stunned Barez. As Lima was calmly hunting down Barez, the Spaniard perfectly timed a takedown and hopped on Lima’s back. Lima immediately fought the hands and dragged Barez off his back.

The Brazilian then started targeting the body with his lead hand. Barez swung with power, trying to dissuade Lima’s constant forward movement, but to no avail. Lima kept plodding forward and was beautifully mixing his weapons and targets. Barez seemed out of answers. An eye poke with 30 seconds left in the round put a stop to the action, but it resumed less than a minute later. Barez attempted a takedown late in the round, but this time Lima easily stuffed it.

As the bell sounded again, Lima was right back at it with punishing leg and body kicks. He stuffed a takedown and then threw a leg kick that stumbled Barez. With a bloodied Barez focused on protecting his head and his legs, Lima feinted high and then dug to the body with his hands. You could hear the thud from those body shots in the empty Apex. Lima, who had clearly found his groove, started to extend his combinations as Barez could do nothing but cover up.

With Barez keeping his high guard, Lima advanced into the pocket and started landing knees and elbows. As the Brazilian was firing elbows to the head, he took a look at referee Kerry Haltey, wondering if he was going to stop the fight. Barez, who had never been finished via strikes in his professional career, used his surviving instincts and kept moving just enough along the fence to keep the referee out of it. Lima used an outside trip from the clinch to get the fight to the ground and landed in side control. Barez worked his way to a full guard and tied up Lima to limit the amount of damage he could inflict. A bullying round from Lima, that should be scored 10-8.

Round three opened with a takedown from Lima in the first 30 seconds. After landing some body shots from full guard, Lima temporarily got up on his feet for a couple seconds, but went back to the ground. This time, Lima wasn’t satisfied with landing strikes from full guard and started playing a little more jiu-jitsu. He took Barez’s back and after working for it, he eventually got the rear-naked choke and forced a tap.

After systematically breaking him down over the first two rounds, Lima secured his first career submission win. The undefeated 26-year-old now moves to 4-0 inside the promotion and could be looking at ranked opposition next.

Official Result: Andre Lima def. Daniel Barez by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 3, 3:05

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Lima (9-0) continued his run at 125 pounds coming into this fight with two consecutive victories over Igor Severino and Mitch Raposo this year. The unfortunate recipient of a bite from Severino, he was able to show his skillset at UFC 302, and came out victorious.

dos Santos (8-1) had an unfortunate start to his career with two fights falling out to begin his UFC run. A loss to Manel Kape at UFC 293 gave the rough start an even bleaker look, but a win over Victor Altamirano in February put him back on track.

An eye poke stopped the action about a minute in, with Lima given some time to recover. Back underway, it was Lima putting the pressure on before a couple of wild punches were exchanged. Dos Santos then opted to pursue a takedown, though Lima was able to fight that off. Dos Santos blocked a Lima head kick; the pair then settled down a little, moving and feinting, throwing the odd punch. Late in the round, Dos Santos would land a bit of a suplex takedown, hoisting Lima up a few times before getting him down. Lima, however, was able to reverse, though Dos Santos was soon back to his feet.

In the second, Dos Santos fired a big knee before Lima tied things up. While Dos Santos would free himself, mere moments later, Lima landed a takedown with apparent ease. He was almost immediately into mount, and the question of whether Dos Santos had tired himself out with his takedown efforts in the first round weighed heavy. Despite the dominant position, Dos Santos would survive the round, with Lima perhaps taking a little too much time getting his offense going.

Lima had the back early in round three, with the pair on the ground. With a bodylock secured just 30 seconds into the frame, Lima was hunting a rear-naked choke, and had it in deep for a moment, but Dos Santos was able to peel the hands away. Lima adjusted his grip, only for Felipe Dos Santos to fight him off again. Andre Lima would hold onto the bodylock for the rest of the round, and while Dos Santos stayed alive to the final horn, it was Lima’s fight.

Official Result: Andre Lima def. Felipe Dos Santos by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

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The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) made the announcement on Tuesday. They also fined him $2,000 plus fees.

Originally he was only supposed to be suspended 6-months, but NSAC chairman Anthony Marnell said the punishment wasn’t enough. The fear was that other fighters would see the suspension as a slap on the wrist and possibly lead to more infractions in bouts.

The suspension is retroactive to March 23 meaning he’ll be eligible to fight by December 23. Severino was cut from the UFC following the incident and no word as to if any other promotions are interested in Severino.

“It’s not who I am as a person. That’s not who I am as a fighter,” he told MMA Junkie after the event back in March.

“My dream became a nightmare overnight. I’m very regretful to my opponent. I apologize to (Lima), to Dana, to the Nevada Athletic State Commission, to Sean Shelby, who spoke to me after the fight. Sorry to everyone who was watching that on TV. They didn’t deserve to see that.”

Lima, to his credit, got the bite tattooed on the spot where Severino bit him following the event.

The post Igor Severino Suspended 9-Months For Biting Andre Lima At UFC Vegas 89 appeared first on Cageside Press.

“I knew I had won all three rounds so when Bruce Buffer started saying the name of the judges I was scared,” Lima told reporters including Cageside Press through a translator at his post-fight scrum.

“I was like no way they’re going to give it to this son of a b*tch. It was pretty clear for me and I think everybody else. When they announced the second scorecard I looked to my manager who was like ‘don’t worry about it’, and then they announced my win. I was able to relax a little bit more.”

Lima (9-0) didn’t just have to deal with a split decision when it came to this fight. He missed weight by 4 pounds on Friday morning and he gave up 30% of his purse.

“I’m very upset as everybody was with my weight miss. It’s something that’s not normal for me. I don’t quite know what happened. I did all that I could,” he said.

“I was in the bathtub between 6am and 9am trying to make weight. Still thinking about staying at flyweight. If (my team) they think it’s better to go to bantamweight I’ll do that easily as well. I’m very upset, but I’m willing to do whatever is best to make sure it never happens again.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Andre Lima above.

The post Andre Lima Vows To Not Miss Weight Again, Surprised By Split appeared first on Cageside Press.

With Lima coming in a full four pounds over the flyweight limit, Raposo would be picking up some extra cash win or lose. Whether the miss would play a factor remained to be seen, but Lima danced his way to the cage on Saturday as UFC 302 kicked off.

UFC fans might remember Andre Lima as the victim of Igor Severino, who was DQ’d and later cut by the promotion after intentionally biting Lima back in March. That garnered the Brazilian ample sympathy, the weight miss not so much.

Lima had the obvious size advantage in the cage on Saturday, and led the action early, walking Raposo down and getting his attention with an early leg kick. That forced a stance switch; Raposo switched back after another kick landed 30 seconds or so later. The game plan was clear by the time a third kick landed. After a fourth, Raposo fired back with a combo, most of which Lima blocked.

Lima continued to work those low kicks, mixing in a knee up the middle about two minutes in. Raposo continued to dance on the outside, firing the odd flurry but struggling to get his own offense going for the most part. By the end of the round Raposo had switched stances a few more times, and was showing clear damage to both legs. In the final minute, he connected with a right hand, but wasn’t able to follow up with anything.

With two chewed up legs, Mitch Raposo headed to his corner, who iced the legs between rounds and advised him that he needed to be fast, and throw off his feints. The problem for Raposo, however, was that Lima stayed on him with those kicks, had taken little damage, and didn’t appear to be tired to any noticeable extent. Raposo did manage to apply a bit of pressure through the first two minutes, moving forward for a chance – but little came of it, and nary a takedown had been seen through a round and a half.

Both fighters had a moment to recover when ref Herb Dean paused the action to warn Lima for a finger poke that seemed to graze the eye; despite that warning Dean had to warn Lima twice more moments later. After the third warning in the round and second, very brief pause, Raposo finally drove into a takedown, completing it just momentarily as Lima was soon back to his feet.

Mitch Raposo came out in the third, pressing forward and firing a combo, trying to build on the little bit of momentum he’d finished the second round with. Still, Lima was in his face, firing leg kicks, and even adding one up high, blocked with an arm that later looked tender with a faint bit of redness to it. From there, Raposo looked to use his speed and get his hands going, and they’d battle to the final bell – but Raposo, having fallen behind early due to the calf kicks of Andre Lima, just couldn’t catch up.

Official Result: Andre Lima def. Mitch Raposo by split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)

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Mitch Raposo
Standing at five-foot-five
Fighting at 125 lbs (flyweight)
25-years-old
Fighting out of Fall River, Massachusetts, US
Training out of Regiment Training Center
A pro record of 9-1
4 KO/TKOs, 3 Submissions

How Raposo will fare in the UFC:

Raposo has been so close to making it to the UFC in the past but has come up just short. He fought on TUF 29 and lost and lost on the Contender Series in 2021. Anybody who watches regional MMA will know prospects from the Northeastern United States often aren’t too good. With Raposo, he has the talent but can only beat these lesser guys. He lost to Liudvik Sholinian on TUF which was at bantamweight. He then lost on the Contender Series to Jake Hadley. He’s won his last five and has won the CES and Cages Titans flyweight titles. Raposo was supposed to fight on the Contender Series this coming season but is now taking this opportunity on short notice.

Raposo has grown into a solid well-rounded fighter. I’d say he started off more as a wrestler/grappler but his striking has been something he heavily leans on. In his last three fights, he’s finished by KO/TKO. I wish Raposo extended his combinations because it’s either the right overhand or the left-right hook. He does a really good job of throwing his hands off in-and-out movement while using a lot of useful feints. He’s got a lot of tools on the feet but just needs to string together more punches.

Raposo struggles the most against bigger wrestlers and that’s evident when you look at his losses. Offensively he does great. He has excellent timing on his level changes and just a good wrestler altogether. Raposo has good top position and good jiu-jitsu at least when he’s on top.

Watching Rapoo there isn’t one area where I’m like “Yeah, he’s going to struggle in this area.” He has the skill set to be a top-15 flyweight but he just has to prove he can do that against higher-level guys. He doesn’t have a key win over anyone so his concern is if he’s just a can crusher or not. The good thing is he’s only 25 and now in the UFC he can get the proper growth he needs instead of fighting in Cage Titans and CES.

How he matches up against Andre Lima:

Raposo may have to go back to his wrestling in this one considering Lima is such a good striker. Lima’s a credentialed striker with experience in Muay Thai and kickboxing. Raposo has a power advantage but that’s all about it. Lima puts it together well. He’s both patient and cerebral. He’s accurate with little wasted motion and everything is sought out. Lima can get taken down but does an excellent job of getting back to his feet.

I’m confident Raposo can get the takedown but I don’t think he can hold him down. Lima should also get credit for his BJJ because it’s solid for a striking-based fighter. I’ve got Lima in this fight because he’s the better striker and I don’t see Raposo being able to use his wrestling to effectively.

The post Welcome to the UFC: Mitch Raposo appeared first on Cageside Press.

That fighter was Andre Lima, who came in well over the flyweight limit at 130lbs. As a result, opponent Mitch Raposo will pick up 30% of Lima’s purse, but the fight at least moved forward.

Joselyne Edwards nearly hit a snag during her own weigh-in, part of a grudge match with Ailin Perez. Edwards initially came in one pound over for the women’s bantamweight fight, but after immediately stripping down, she successfully made 136lbs.

Dustin Poirier and lightweight champ Islam Makhachev headline Saturday’s card in Newark, and both were among the first fighters to weigh in. Sean Strickland, set for a five-round co-main event with Paulo Costa that could produce a number one contender for the winner of Dricus Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya (expected to come next), also weighed in early. As for Costa, he was last to hit the scales, about an hour and a quarter in, but made championship weight to cheers of “secret juice.”

Full results from Friday’s UFC 302 weigh-in, with Cageside Press on hand, and a gallery of highlights from both the official and ceremonial weigh-ins, can be found below.

UFC 302: Makhachev vs. Poirier Weigh-In Results

Main card

Lightweight: Islam Makhachev (c) (155) vs. Dustin Poirier (155) — for the UFC lightweight championship
Middleweight: Sean Strickland (185) vs. Paulo Costa (185)
Middleweight: Kevin Holland (185) vs. Michał Oleksiejczuk (185)
Welterweight: Niko Price (170) vs. Alex Morono (170)
Welterweight: Randy Brown (170) vs. Elizeu Zaleski (170)

Preliminary card

Middleweight: César Almeida (185) vs. Roman Kopylov (185)
Heavyweight: Jailton Almeida (241) vs. Alexander Romanov (265)
Lightweight: Grant Dawson (155) vs. Joe Solecki (155)
Welterweight: Philip Rowe (171) vs. Jake Matthews (170)

Early preliminary card 

Welterweight: Mickey Gall (170) vs. Bassil Hafez (170)
Women’s Bantamweight: Ailín Pérez (135) vs. Joselyne Edwards (136)
Flyweight: Mitch Raposo (125) vs. André Lima (130)*

* Lima misses weight by four pounds for his flyweight fight with Mitch Raposo, will forfeit 30% of his purse

UFC 302: Makhachev vs. Poirier Official Weigh-In

UFC 302: Makhachev vs. Poirier Ceremonial Weigh-In

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Not since Mike Tyson has a fighter taken such a chunk out of an opponent, but Igor Severino did his best Hannibal Lecter impression at the Fight Night event on Saturday. During a grappling exchange/takedown attempt, he took the time to chomp on Andre Lima’s arm, resulting in an immediate disqualification.

Lima, before the event was even over, had managed to get a tattoo commemorating the incident, and UFC President Dana White’s promise of a $25,000 bonus — later upped to $50,000 when he caught wind of the tattoo.

Severino meanwhile was cut for one of the most blatant fouls in recent memory.

The UFC even had a little fun with the incident, officially announcing the “Bite of the Night” bonus.

Tonight's BOTN 💰💰 #UFCVegas89 pic.twitter.com/Ngttbbryr8

— UFC (@ufc) March 24, 2024

The more traditional post-fight bonuses at UFC Vegas 89 saw Fight of the Night honors awarded to Steven Nguyen and Jarno Errens. The bout saw Errens come away with a hard-fought win. Two main card standouts picked up Performance of the Night bonuses, meanwhile. In an absolute beatdown, the undefeated Payton Talbott finished fellow prospect Cameron Saaiman by TKO, a stoppage that felt more like a life-saving intervention by the ref.

Fernando Padilla picked up the other Performance bonus for a brabo (standing d’arce) choke submission of Luis Pajuelo.

All five fighters pick up $50,000 for their efforts; Lima may want to consider a tetanus shot.

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The foul resulted in an immediate disqualification for Severino, with Lima left showing off a deep bite mark on his arm following the bout. It came during a takedown attempt/grappling sequence near the fence, and unlike many biting incidents, was far from a case of a fighter inadvertently biting an opponent’s arm while draped across their face in a choke.

Andre Lima picks up the win over Igor Severino due to a DQ from Severino, who bit Lima’s arm 😳 #UFCVegas89 pic.twitter.com/NQTJuSh9G3

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 23, 2024

As it turns out, the foul also cost Severino, who was previously undefeated along with Lima, his job. UFC President Dana White confirmed that development to reporter Kevin Iole following the bout.

“Those were two up-and-coming undefeated fighters,” White stated. “If you get frustrated and want out of the fight, there are plenty of ways to do it, but the worst thing u can do is bite your opponent. Now, you get cut and lose the biggest opportunity of your life. Not to mention, he’s going to have real problems with the NSAC.”

The UFC Vegas 89 broadcast also quoted the statement from White as the main card got underway on Saturday.

Both fighters had come into the promotion by way of the Contender Series, with the battle of undefeated prospects one that stood out on the UFC Vegas 89 card. Turns out, it will be remembered for all the wrong reasons, which also winds up being rather unfortunate for Lima.

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