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Veretennikov had been set to face Henrique Souza, after stepping up himself to replace Eric Nolan. A real game of musical chairs, one that worked out in Nikolay’s favor.

Niko Price found himself with his back to the fence early in the bout, with Veretennikov controlling and landing several heavy punches. After peeling off the fence, Price fired a front kick, but he was soon cornered again, with Veretennikov landing a right hand, a knee, and then a second right hand! Price looked out on his feet, and the ref made the save while he was slumped against a post.

Price would protest the stoppage, but really had no case, as he was clearly out of it, and doing nothing to defend or even protect himself. For Veretennikov, it was a key victory after losing three of his last four bouts.

“What I want to say about the fight, obviously we prepared for something different,” Veretennikov said following the bout, speaking with Paul Felder. “Thank you to my opponent for saving the fight and taking it short notice. I’m ready for anybody,” he added.

Official Result: Nikolay Veretennikov def. Niko Price by TKO (strikes), Round 1, 1:42

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Soriano (12-4) was candid about the mixed emotions that followed. While his performance marked a step back in the right direction, the Hawaiian middleweight admitted that the victory didn’t bring the relief he expected.

“Physically I feel good. All glory to God. I’m healthy, I got the win,” Soriano told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“Emotionally I’ve been sad. Disappointed whole time. Seeing Edmen (Shahbazyan) win is like the only thing that made me super happy. That was really cool.”

Soriano reflected on the emotional weight he’s carried throughout his recent struggles. Despite picking up the win, he wasn’t satisfied with his performance inside the octagon. The middleweight standout admitted that the fight didn’t reflect the aggressive, crowd-pleasing style he’s known for.

“I’m embarrassed of all the people that had to watch me fight like that. That’s not the way I fight. I normally go out there and bang and like, I don’t know, cool performances,” he said.

“Maybe the pressure got to me or something.”

“I was going to be like, ‘I’m getting worried that I’m next to the title fight!’ as like a joke. There’s no way I can say that. Not even as a goof,” Soriano said laughing.

“I just got to try and find a way to make myself happy tonight, and enjoy the win.”

With rumors of a potential event in Hawaii, the thought of missing that opportunity was never far from his mind.

“That was kind of part of the pressure too,” he laughed.

“I was like man I don’t want to get knocked out and cut before the UFC goes to Hawaii!”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Punahele Soriano above.

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Punahele Soriano scored a big takedown about a minute in, with Nikolay defending with a guillotine. That didn’t work, and Soriano completed the attempt. From there, he was able to posture up and landing some smashing elbows with Veretennikov stuck with his back to the fence.

Soriano ate up a lot of time in that position, landing several solid blows with Veretennikov completely unable to create space or scramble out. Soriano would at times back off and re-engage, with Veretennikov throwing out a haphazard upkick or two that didn’t really come close to catching the Hawaiian. A dominant first round from Puna.

In the second, another solid round from Punahele Soriano, who got the fight down late in the round. Veretennikov did a better job defending this time. He’d have to go right back to defending in round three, with Soriano exploding into a takedown and Veretennikov again working a guillotine to defend. For a time, Veretennikov stayed upright, back to the fence, until Soriano ripped him off it and slammed him to the canvas. On top, there was no moving Soriano, though he wasn’t doing enough damage to hold the position. Instead, the ref stood them back up inside the final minute, with Nikolay Veretennikov going back to his guillotine and pulling guard.

That was deep, and Soriano looked uncomfortable, though he gave the thumbs up and rode it out the the final bell, breaking free just prior to the horn and landing a few big strikes to underscore what was a sure victory.

Official Result: Punahele Soriano def. Nikolay Veretennikov by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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Prado (12-3) has only fought once in each of the last two years, and has lost both of those fights. In his first matchup of 2025 he needs a win over Veretennikov to hold off a three-fight skid.

Veretennikov (12-6) isn’t in a much better situation. He’s also coming into this one on a two-fight skid getting finished by Austin Vanderford in February. Something would have to give in this one.

Round 1 Prado came out with a leg kick then used a right hand to get Veretennikov down. Dropping right into side control Prado then dominated the positions going for the back before sliding off for a triangle attempt.

The height difference played a factor as he had a very hard time locking it up so he switched to an arm bar and Veretennikov slammed Prado right off his arm. Veretennikov landed some ground and pound, but Prado was able to get to his feet.

Veretennikov unleashed a flurry of strikes going from head to body then back, but Prado wanted none of that and shot in for a takedown. The round ended on the fence.

Round 2 was a completely different look as Veretennikov no longer feared Prado’s takedowns and took it to him. A right hand dropped Prado to the ground, he popped back up, and then shot in on Veretennikov.

Veretennikov got too fancy with the spinning attacks and got slammed to the ground with Prado taking top position. He seemed happy landing shots until he got a bit greedy going for the mount and got swept. Both men made it back to their feet.

Veretennikov bet on his power and almost every shot he threw after had a lot of power behind it. Prado seemed to have found his second wind and was able to avoid most of the damage.

Round 3 Prado tried another takedown, but Veretennikov was able to counter it and get his own. Both men got back to the feet and got after it until Veretennikov tried once again to throw fancy spinning stuff and got taken down again.

Veretennikov tried once again to throw a spinning attack and Prado was all over it grabbing him, but then got taken down instead. They got back to their feet with Veretennikov seemingly running out of gas.

Prado put him on the fence and Veretennikov jumped the guillotine with no legs in place on the way down. Prado was more than happy to take top position.

The fight went to the judges after Prado was unable to secure a finish with a triangle choke or the ground and pound at the end.

Official Results: Nikolay Veretennikov def. Francisco Prado via Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

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For some, the short-notice fight against Nikolay Veretennikov may have seemed to come out of left field. However, when Vanderford exited the Bellator/PFL umbrella and took a fight (and won decisively) for LFA last October, his eventual destination appeared self-evident. Especially with VanZant herself back in the fold, somewhat, care of PowerSlap.

A heavy exchange in the pocket from both guys early in the fight got the action started. Vanderford was trying to land moving in and out as Veretennikov was landing good in twos. Just as he started to land Vanderford changed levels nicely and got the takedown. Right away he skimmed the forehead of Veretennikov with an elbow causing a cut along the hairline. Vanderford was comfortable on top smashing with short elbows. Veretennikov was a bit careless with his position letting Vanderford jump to side control for an arm-triangle. He didn’t have the angle and the time so Veretennikov was able to survive the round.

In round two Veretennikov came marching forward. He was throwing but overreaching and let Vanderford push him against the cage. Vanderford was able to chain a takedown to the legs to get the eventual scoop takedown. The best weapon of Vanderford in round one was his ground and pound and it continued in round two. Veretennikov had no answer on the bottom. Vanderford had an arm trapped and landed many unanswered punches until the ref stepped in. An angry Veretennikov, irate about the stoppage, crossed the cage and shoved Vanderford as officials moved in to separate the pair – but Veretennikov had no one but himself to be mad at, as he did nothing to get out of that position. Now, he’s likely secured his exit from the UFC.

Official Result: Austin Vanderford def. Nikolay Veretennikov by TKO (ground and pound), Round 2, 4:13

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After challenging for gold in Bellator, exiting the promotion last year, and picking up a win in LFA, Vanderford (12-2) has joined UFC Seattle, where he will face Nikolay Veretennikov (12-5).

Cageside Press confirmed the booking following an initial report from Full Send MMA. Due to the short-notice nature of the pairing for both fighters, the fight will be contested at a catchweight of 175lbs.

Husband of former UFC and BKFC star Paige VanZant, Vanderford earned five straight victories under the Bellator banner from 2019 to 2021 to earn a shot at then-middleweight champ Gegard Mousasi. After being finished by Mousasi, Vanderford suffered another TKO defeat at the hands of fellow Contender Series vet Aaron Jeffery. Missing all of 2023, Vanderford returned to action in October, making short work of Victor Romero at LFA 194.

UFC Seattle takes place on February 22, and has taken a number of hits, losing Dominick Cruz in particular (who subsequently announced his retirement), as well as Curtis Blaydes vs. Rizvan Kuniev (shifted to UFC 313) and Macy Chiasson vs. Ketlen Vieira (off due to a Chiasson injury).

The following match-ups remain attached to the card at the Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, WA:

• Henry Cejudo vs. Song Yadong
• Brendan Allen vs. Anthony Hernandez
• Rob Font vs. Jean Matsumoto
• Jean Silva vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan
• Alonzo Menifield vs. Julius Walker
• Ion Cuțelaba vs. Ibo Aslan
• Andre Fili vs. Melquizael Costa
• Mansur Abdul-Malik vs. Nick Klein
• Ricky Simón vs. Javid Basharat
• Nikolay Veretennikov vs. Austin Vanderford
• Nursulton Ruziboev vs. Eric McConico
• Modestas Bukauskas vs. Raffael Cerqueira

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Goff (9-3) will face Nikolay Veretennikov (12-5) in welterweight action at UFC Vegas 102 on February 15, 2025.

News of the booking was announced by Iridium Sports Agency, who represent Goff, on Tuesday.

Goff is 1-1 in the UFC thus far, having joined the promotion after stopping Shimon Smotritsky on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2022. He followed that up by knocking out Yusaku Kinoshita last year, then returned in May 2024, losing a decision against Trey Waters that nevertheless earned Goff a Fight of the Night bonus.

Veretennikov, a UFL and Fury FC welterweight champ, dropped his promotional debut for the UFC in his last outing. That saw him lose a split decision against Danny Barlow in August.

UFC Vegas 102 will be the promotion’s second show at the Apex in 2025, and does not yet have a main event announced or reported. The following match-ups have been reported for the Fight Night card, which comes on the heels of UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia:

• Julia Avila vs. Jacqueline Cavalcanti
• Rodolfo Vieira vs. Jacob Malkoun
• Ismael Bonfim vs. Nazim Sadykhov
• Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Gabriel Bonfim
• Juliana Miller vs. Carli Judice
• Jose Delgado vs. Connor Matthews
• Billy Goff vs. Nikolay Veretennikov

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Marcin Tybura

Marcin Tybura was submitted via armbar by his opponent Serghei Spivac in the main event of UFC Vegas 95. Tybrua entered the fight as the #8 ranked UFC heavyweight while Spivac was ranked at #9. The fight was a rematch from 2020 in which Tybura had secured a unanimous decision over Spivac.

Tybura is 7-3 since his first win over Spivac but has struggled at the upper levels of the division losing three of his last six fights (the other losses coming to Alexander Volkov and Tom Aspinall).

Tybura should fight Derrick Lewis in his next fight. Lewis and Tybura fought once before in 2018 with Lewis stopping Tybura in the third round, and final, round. They are both 2-2 in their last four fights. Lewis doesn’t have a fight booked and is ranked at #11. And with nearly every other fighter having been booked in the bottom half of the rankings, this rematch makes a lot of sense.

Tybura’s next fight: Derrick Lewis 

Damon Jackson

Damon Jackson lost a high-paced unanimous decision to Chepe Mariscal in the co-main event of Saturday’s card. Mariscal is now a perfect 4-0 in the UFC, so it was yet another solid competitor for Jackson. Damon has now won just one of his last four fights, a split decision to Alexander Hernandez in April.

Jackson should fight Andre Fili in his next fight. Fili and Jackson have a recent common opponent in Dan Ige. Both Damon and Andre were stopped by the Hawaiian in the first round of their respective bouts, within 13 months of each other.  Fili is 2-2 in his last four fights having last been in action at UFC 303 when he won a split decision over Cub Swanson.

Jackson’s next fight: Andre Fili

Nikolay Veretennikov

Nikolay Veretennikov was defeated in his promotional debut by Danny Barlow via spilt decision. Veretennikov stepped up on short notice and had his opponent miss weight as well. Niokolay, who was on the wrong end of a fight on the 2021 season of the Contender Series, captured Arizona’s UFL welterweight strap in the time since his apperance.

Nikolay Veretennikov should fight Yusaku Kinoshita in his next fight. Kinoshita is 0-2 in the UFC and is also a veteran of the Contender Series (2022 season).  Kinoshita has been finished in the first round of both of his UFC fights while opposite of Billy Goff and Adam Fuggit. He was even matched up to fight Danny Barlow, earlier this year, but withdrew from that fight.

Veretennikov’s next fight: Yusaku Kinoshita

Quang Le

Quang Le lost for the first time in his professional career on Saturday to Chris Gutierrez. Le was a standout in the LFA and faced a very experienced fighter in Gutierrez. Quang impressed, despite the final result of the bout.

Quang should fight Alatengheili in his next fight. Alatengheili is another exciting fighter that has also faced Chris Gutierrez and lost a unanimous decision as well. Actually, Gutierrez is Alatengheili’s sole loss in his last four fights. He was last in action back in May when he defeated Kleydson Rodrigues by unanimous decision.

Le’s next fight: Alatengheili

Chelsea Chandler

Chelsea Chandler lost a unanimous decision to Yana Santos on Saturday. To make matters worse, Chandler also missed weight by five pounds ahead of the bout. It was her second time in a row missing weight. Chandler entered the bout as the #14 ranked UFC women’s bantamweight while Santos was ranked at #12.

Chelsea is now 2-2 in her last four fights and has struggled with making weight. Chandler should fight Pannie Kianzad in her next fight. Pannie is ranked at #11 as of Saturday in the UFC’s rankings. She has lost four of her last five fights with her only win being over Lina Lansberg who is now retired. Pannie fought Karol Rosa on the undercard of UFC Vegas 95, losing a one-sided unanimous decision. It’d be a bout that makes sense in more ways than one.

Chandler’s next fight: Pannie Kianzad 

Charalampos Grigoriou

Charalampos Grigoriou was submitted in the second round of his bout with Toshiomi Kazama on the first main card bout of UFC Vegas 95. The 2023 Contender Series alum is now 0-2 in the UFC, having lost his promotional debut to Chad Anheliger earlier this year.

Grigoriou should fight Fernie Garcia or a fresh fighter off of the Contender Series. Fernie Garcia is currently 0-4 with UFC since his win on the 2021 season of the Contender Series. Garcia has lost unanimous decisions to bantamweight’s: Journey Newsome, Brady Hiestand and Rinya Nakamura. Charalampos was finished in his most recent bout by Hyder Amil in a featherweight affair. The loser of that fight would likely be out of the UFC.

Grigoriou’s next fight: Fernie Garcia or 2024 Contender Series fighter

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While it was Veretennikov stepping in to replace Uros Medic in the fight, Barlow had actually come in heavy, albeit by just a quarter of a pound.

In round one early on, Veretennikov landed a thudding straight right to the body. Barlow was being measured but did time a nice knee to the body. Also, a counter hammerfist from Barlow landed which was awkward but effective. Barlow was swinging wild and Veretennikov was doing a good job of slipping out of the way. Barlow landed quite a bit in round one with his kicks to the legs and body. Veretennikov was almost taken down but had good balance but was taken down in the final seconds.

In round two Veretennikov came out stalking forward. Both guys were looking for openings but Barlow continued to go first. Barlow’s kicks were the highlight of this fight to that point. Barlow timed a beautiful left hand as Veretennikov threw something, which was the biggest moment of the fight thus far. Veretennikov had to clinch up but Barlow quickly turned it around and put him against the cage. A low blow from Veretennikov caused a pause in the action. They resumed back in the clinch but it didn’t stay there long. Barlow ended the last minute of the round with long jabs but a nice right from Veretennikov to end the round.

Going into the final round it was likely Veretennikov needed a finish. He was the one pressing the action but Barlow was elusive and sticking on the outside. Veretennikov would throw looping punches where Barlow was beating him to the punch with the straights. It was clear Barlow had a speed advantage not just with his hands but with his feet. Veretennikov did get some respect with a clubbing right hand and charging forward with some power shots. Veretennikov started to find his rhythm but Barlow was taking it well. With a minute left a looping left hook from Veretennikov landed. Barlow let off the gas in the third but survived to the bell likely winning the first two rounds.

Come the scorecards, there was one surprise: two judges had it for Danny Barlow, but the third awarded all three rounds to Veretennikov. That scorecard will certainly raise eyebrows.

Official Result: Danny Barlow def. Nikolay Veretennikov by split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)

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