We return for another card at the UFC APEX. Tonight’s Fight Night card is headlined by a lightweight fight between Grant “KGD” Dawson and “King” Bobby Green. Before we get to the main card action, we have some interesting prelim fights to get through. Read below for play-by-play updates of tonight’s undercard in Las Vegas.
JJ Aldrich vs. Montana De La Rosa
With ten UFC fights, De La Rosa is now a well-rounded attacker and looks to break into the Flyweight rankings with a win over Aldrich, who is coming off her first stoppage victory in the UFC on August 26. A quick turnaround for Aldrich who takes this fight on short notice.
Round 1
Southpaw for Aldrich, Orthodox for De La Rosa. Nice jab from Aldrich, and she throws a standing knee to the head, which just grazes her opponent. They circle; Aldrich lands a jab but eats one in return. They clinch briefly but nothing of note is thrown. Head kick from De La Rosa is read. Aldrich ducks under a looping right hand and tries to take De La Rosa’s back.
Aldrich takes her opponent to the fence but can’t secure the takedown. They break and return to the center of the octagon. Aldrich has success with the jab, and as we enter the final thirty seconds of the round, De La Rosa lands a nice head kick and follows up with a combo.
Round 2
Body kick by De La Rosa. Considering these two were training partners previously, they’re not as cagey as you’d expect them to be. They both enter the pocket; De La Rosa lands an uppercut but takes a jab. Left hook misses by De La Rosa, but she lands a right body shot. Aldrich steps in and lands a one-two. It’s clear both women respect each other’s abilities as they circle some more, but they’re now entering the pocket to exchange more frequently.
De La Rosa is happy to box, but Aldrich is first to the punch with her quick entries and exits. It’s a close fight so far; neither fighter is dominant. De La Rosa has thrown more strikes, but slightly more damage seems to have come from Aldrich. They clinch to end the round, and De La Rosa lands a nice knee to the body.
Round 3
Commentary seem to favor Aldrich so far but it looks too close to call. De La Rosa shoots for the takedown but it’s stuffed. They clinch on the feet and De La Rosa attempts an elbow. Nice jab from Aldrich followed by a solid left hand. Blood now comes from De La Rosa’s nose but she presses forward still, breathing from the mouth. Nice low kicks from De La Rosa which is returned with a spinning back kick from the 3rd Dan black belt in Tae-Kwon Do, JJ Aldrich.
We enter the final minute and Aldrich lands a body kick, circles and lands a combo. De La Rosa enters the pocket and throws an right hook which misses, but then lands an elbow. Aldrich continues to be effective with the one-two combination. A good, competitive fight.
Result: JJ Aldrich wins via unanimous decision, 30-27 x3
Johnny Munoz vs. Aoriqileng
Munoz is the former King Of The Cage Bantamweight Champion and is a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt with seven submission victories on his record. Aoriqileng has won two of his last three fights and has eight knockout victories. The bookmakers can’t decide who is the favorite for this one, with both men going into it at -110.
Round 1
Aoriqileng with the first strike, a calf kick. He looks relatively flat-footed as he waits for Munoz to throw. Munoz is staying on the outside and apart from a few low kicks from Aoriqileng, there’s not much action in the opening ninety seconds. Aoriqileng steps in and a lands a straight right hand and then Munoz returns the favor but with more power. Munoz pushes Aoriqileng to the fence and secures the takedown.
Munoz has the back of his opponent and works to secure the rear-naked choke. Aoriqileng does well to hold him off and tries to see out the round, but he’s getting frustrated as Munoz punches him from his back. Munoz secures an armbar but fails to get his opponent to tap. Aoriqileng breaks free, gets to his feet and throws a right hand on his grounded opponent just before the end of the round.
Round 2
Nice one-two by Aoriqileng who then throws a flying knee. Bright start from the man fighting out of Shanghai, China. Aoriqileng gets the takedown and throws intermittent strikes as he smothers his opponent. Munoz does brilliantly to secure an armbar from his back but it’s not long before he has to let go. Aoriqileng standsup and as Munoz goes to get back to his feet, Aoriqileng throws a right hand and we are back to where we were before. After a while, both men get back to their feet on the instructions of the referee, Keith Peterson.
Munoz is stunned by a right hand but Aoriqileng fails to capitalize. They grapple and the Mexican, Munoz, presses Aoriqileng against the fence. Munoz attempts a guillotine but he doesn’t have a strong enough position to hold it. It’s 1-1 going into the final round.
Round 3
Aoriqileng comes out fast again, throwing a one-two combo like the second round. Nice leg kicks follow, and Munoz’s legs are visibly purple from the bruising, although his movement is not compromised. Aoriqileng lands a right hand which puts Munoz on the floor; it’s unclear if he dropped Munoz or if he sat down off his own accord.
Aoriqileng is on top position but isn’t throwing anything of note, however the ground control will go in his favor with the judges. Munoz tries to secure a calf-slicer from his back as Aoriqileng throws punch after punch.
Result: Aoriqileng wins via unanimous decision, 29-28 x3
Vanessa Demopoulos vs. Kanako Murata
The 12-2 Murata has won eight of her last nine fights but hasn’t fought since June 2021 after tearing ligaments in her arm and having visa issues. Demopoulos moved to Las Vegas in June and says her new training regime at Xtreme Couture has benefitted her. The former LFA Strawweight Champion has won three of her last four fights.
Round 1
No touch of gloves. Both women miss shots; Demopoulos looks a lot bigger than her opponent. They clinch against the fence, Murata sweeps the leg, and they end up on the ground. Interestingly, Murata lets Demopoulos get back to her feet. Both land big body kicks on each other. A jab from Demopoulos puts Murata on the floor but it’s more of a result of being off balance – the same thing happens again shortly after.
Murata catches a leg kick and they end up on the canvas again. Demopoulos throws elbows from her back and the round ends.
Round 2
Demopoulos emerges the aggressor and lands a head kick after both exchange punches. They clinch, Demopoulos throws a knee to the head, then ends dup on the canvas as Murata has success with another takedown. Murata throws a double hammer fist but misses the head of Demopoulos. A replay on the broadcast shows an accidental clash of heads earlier in the round which has opened up a cut on Murata. Demopoulos attempts a couple of submissions from her back but the rest of the round is otherwise pretty uneventful.
Round 3
Demopoulos throws a head kick but Murata sees it coming and takes her down. Not a good position for Demopoulos as in round two, she struggled to get off her back and to secure a submission. Demopoulos attempts an armbar but is unsuccessful. Round three is very similar to the second.
Result: Vanessa Demopoulos wins via unanimous decision, 29-28 x3
Nate Maness vs. Mateus Mendonca
Mendoca has won ten of his eleven MMA fights and is rocking light blue hair on his way to the octagon. He was awarded a UFC contract on season 6, Week 10 of Dana White’s Contender Series. Maness is 14-3 and has a four inch height advantage. He is the +220 underdog.
Round 1
Mendonca comes out throwing kicks and shoots for the takedown. Maness gets back up to his feet on both occasions he is almost taken down. They end up on the ground and Mendonca tries, unsuccessfully, to trap the leg of Maness. Back to the feet we go. Mendonca throws knees from the clinch and Maness lands body shots.
Maness ends up on top of Mendonca and throws multiple shots, most of which are landing. Mendonca goes for a heel hook as Maness throws punches to his body, and then his head. Ground and pound follows and the fight is waved off.
Result: Nate Maness wins via TKO in round one
Diana Belbita vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
Kowalkiewicz is on a three-fight win streak and has re-entered the rankings at #15. Kowalkiewicz has the sixth most wins in Strawweight history and is the -150 favorite . Belbita feels she’s improved as a fighter since moving to Canada and has five first-round finishes on her MMA record.
Round 1
They get straight into it. Kowalkiewicz throws a knee from the clinch but they’re soon back to the middle of the cage. Belbita lands a takedown but Kowalkiewicz takes her back before working her way around to gain mount position. Belbita manages a great reversal and the fighters separate, returning to their feet.
They clinch again and Kowalkiewicz lands a right hand as they separate once again. Both land nice shots as they stand within each other’s range. Both women show nice boxing skills but it’s Kowalkiewicz who is a little crisper so far. Nice right hand by Belbita makes Kowalkiewicz take a couple of steps back.
Round 2
Body kick by Kowalkiewicz, Belbita happy to stand and trade. Kowalkiewicz goes for the takedown, but Belbita shows excellent defense against the cage wall. Kowalkiewicz lands an uppercut and continues to look for the body lock takedown. The jabs of Kowalkiewicz have a little more weight behind them, but Belbita still stands in front of her, fancying her chances in the stand-up exchanges. Kowalkiewicz catches a kick and pushes Belbita against the fence; Belbita steps across and secures the takedown. It might not be enough to win the round, and it could be 1-1 going into the third.
Round 3
Both continue to exchange. Kowalkiewicz clinches against the fence and goes for the sweep; Belbita defends well. Kowalkiewicz is landing more and has a higher volume so far in the final round – the veteran is rolling back the years as she grows into the fight. Belbita is being discouraged from advancing as Kowalkiewicz throws multiple jabs. Belbita eats a spinning kick and despite a swollen eye, she’s still throwing a lot. They empty the tank in the last ten seconds; great fight.
Result: Karolina Kowalkiewicz wins via unanimous decision, 30-27 x3
Ion Cutelaba vs. Philipe Lins
Fight postponed due to illness to Philipe Lins.
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