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The elite prospect will get another shot in the Octagon soon.

Three time NCAA Division I champ Bo Nickal impressed in his Octagon debut last week, winning his Contender Series match-up in just 62 seconds. The quick victory moved him to 2-0 on his burgeoning MMA career.

Despite the stellar showing, Nickal did not earn a UFC contract on the show. UFC President Dana White explained that, though he thought Nickal had a great deal of potential, he didn’t want to sign a fighter with only two pro fights on their record.

Instead, White promised to feature Nickal for a second time on his Contender Series. A second win on that funnel show might lead to an appearance in the UFC proper.

According to MMA Junkie Nickal’s second UFC audition is now booked for this season’s finale episode of the Contender Series on September 27.

Nickal’s opponent will be Donovan Beard.

Beard is 32-years-old and 6-1 in his pro career, fighting out of Off the Chain MMA in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

After eight fights as an amateur Beard turned pro in 2020. He won his first five pro fights, including two by submission and one by TKO.

In 2021 he lost to Raheam Forest in the CFFC promotion. Since then he has picked up wins over Tracy Hardy and Miles Lee.

Nickal, whose aggressive grappling style has earned him the online nickname ‘American Khabib’, switched from high level wrestling to MMA in 2021, winning two amateur fights before turning pro.

His pro debut was at iKON FC 3 in March. There he beat John Noland with a 33 second KO. His win in the Contender Series, over Zack Borrego, came via rear naked choke.

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Get a unique rundown on all the awards that should have been handed out at UFC San Diego with Dayne Fox’s Unofficial Awards

Aside from the main event, there wasn’t a lot of name value to UFC San Diego. That didn’t stop those on the card from turning in a hell of a showing, making it difficult for those handing out the Performance Bonuses to figure out who to award the extra $ 50K to. It probably would have been best if a couple of extra bonuses were handed out – at least two extra to the usual four in my opinion – but that’s another deal. As for the main event, Marlon Vera appears to have put an end to the title aspirations of two-time former bantamweight kingpin, Dominick Cruz when he sent him sprawling to the canvas face first. It wasn’t an upset by any means – Vera was a notable favorite – but it was still a shock to the system to see the all-time great get finished in such a violent manner when he had spent most of his career being one of the hardest fighters to land a clean strike on. Unfortunately, Father Time comes for everyone and Vera firmly established his spot amongst the best of the bantamweight division as anything other than a fluke.

Of course, given that’s the main event of the event, plenty will be said about that contest in articles and podcasts over the next few days. We’re here to touch on some of the more overlooked happenings of the event with my Unofficial Awards….

For a different perspective, click here. For an audio review of the event, click here.

Biggest Jump in Stock: There’s a good chance the majority of viewers didn’t know who Nate Landwehr was prior to his co-main event showing with David Onama. They sure as hell remember it after last night. Along with his dance partner, David Onama, Landwehr put on a once in a lifetime performance that was put over the top by Landwehr’s showmanship. After a rough start, Landwehr recovered to put a hell of a beatdown on Onama, put couldn’t put away the resilient youngster. Even though he couldn’t finish Onama Landwehr played to the crowd, letting Onama back to his feet on several occasions despite having Onama in serious trouble, giving Onama every chance to get back into the fight. Onama did take advantage of that that, winning the final round on one scorecard. Despite playing with fire, Landwehr was able to walk out of San Diego with a win.

Biggest Fall in Stock: It’s one thing to lose to Alex Pereira in a standup battle. Pretty much everyone is going to do that, few finding the success Bruno Silva did against the soon-to-be title challenger. But losing a standup battle to Gerald Meerschaert is something no high-level middleweight should have happen to them. The record will show that Meerschaert submitted Silva, so perhaps he can erase the memory of that performance. But anyone who watches the film will see that Meerschaert won via club-and-sub. If Meerschaert had simply caught him in the midst of a wild exchange, that wouldn’t be a bad deal. Meerschaert is a cagey vet after all. But Meerschaert is also a minus athlete and had no business outstriking Silva. Perhaps it was just an off night. Perhaps there’s an injury or illness we’re all unaware of. Until further evidence comes along, Silva has lost pretty much all the good will he built up in his first four contests in the organization.

Best Newcomer: Sometimes, this spot is by default. If the debut isn’t impressive, I tend to skip this award. Given there were five fighters making their official UFC debuts, there was no choice other than to give someone their due and it wasn’t easiest thing to do. Ultimately, even though I believe we got the best look at Yazmin Jauregui, the limited time that we had to look at Josh Quinlan was too much to overlook. Though he’s already created plenty of controversy for picking up his UFC contract via DWCS while on PED’s, no one can deny that his explosive debut putting away Jason Witt within a matter of minutes wasn’t impressive. So long as the humble persona he displayed after his win is legitimate, Quinlan will probably be able to win over his detractors.

Saved Their Job(s): Most would agree Gabriel Benitez was given a gift when the UFC matched him opposite Charlie Ontiveros, but he did what he was supposed to do when he took out the chinny Texan. Benitez had been finished in three of the four fights prior to this contest, so many were shocked he was still on the roster. Despite that, Benitez took some solid shots from Ontiveros, threw the massive lightweight to the ground, and punched away until Ontiveros broke. It will extend his UFC run for sure, but I still have doubts it will be a significant extension.

It would have only been his second loss in a row, but I have no doubt the UFC would have cut loose the 38-year-old Tyson Nam if he showed any sign of rust. It wasn’t just age the longtime KO specialist was battling; he was also returning from a torn ACL. Nam did look slow, but no slower than he was prior to the injury as he’s never been the fastest man at flyweight. However, his timing and power are still there as he caught Ode Osbourne on the return from a flying attack to spell the beginning of the end of the fight. That should be enough for Nam to return to his gatekeeping role.

I could still see the UFC letting him loose, but I’d be keeping Youssef Zalal around after he staged a blistering comeback to secure a draw against newcomer Da’Mon Blackshear. Of course, perhaps there should be an asterisk given Blackshear took the fight on short notice and is a BIG 135er, so it wasn’t a surprise to see him gas down the stretch. Nevertheless, Zalal did what he needed to do to keep himself from losing. Throw in the fact this was his first fight at bantamweight and he’s still just 25, I believe it would be a mistake for the UFC to give up on him.

Start Typing a Resume: I get the feeling Jessica Andrade took the soul of Cynthia Calvillo when they fought about a year ago. Calvillo hasn’t looked like the same fighter. Confidence used to beam from her. That hasn’t been the case since that fight. To be fair, Calvillo did look better in her loss to Nina Nunes than she did against Andrea Lee towards the end of last year, but it also wasn’t enough for her to pick up the win over a fighter who has also been struggling to regain her previous form. It proved to be the fourth loss in a row for Calvillo, which should be enough for the company to axe her.

Even though I don’t think Ontiveros should be on the UFC roster, that doesn’t mean that I don’t enjoy watching him fight. Though I agree with the general idea that there’s a reason axe kicks are rarely thrown, Ontiveros throws them with great frequency and effectively. That said, wins need to be coming at some point at none have come for him after three appearances. Even worse, he’s been finished in spectacular fashion every time too. It’s hard to believe he’ll be coming back.

It feels like the UFC has been looking for an excuse to cut Jason Witt for a while. The smothering wrestler has never had the most exciting style and has a limited ceiling. The one thing the UFC has been able to capitalize on is his fragile chin, Witt being on the receiving end of three first round KO’s, including the aforementioned one from Quinlan. Given Witt was initially signed as a short notice replacement in the first place, it shouldn’t be a surprise in the least.

Biggest WOW Moment: Without context, I’d probably go with Quinlan’s KO of Witt. It was a legit one-punch KO that had Witt’s eyes up in his head even before he hit the mat. Those don’t come around every day. With contest, Vera’s head kick KO of Cruz deserves this spot. While Cruz hasn’t been as difficult to land a clean shot on as he was in his prime, his durability has vaunted. Hell, the lone TKO loss on his record prior to Vera putting him away was embroiled in controversy… and perhaps cigarettes and alcohol. There was no controversy this time around. Cruz was done and he knew it when the cobwebs cleared… and he was on the receiving end of a brutal highlight.

Knowing When to Say When: Not bad for a hobby. Given Nunes got into MMA for that reason, I think things turned out pretty well for her. The journey turned into a career and led to her meeting her wife after all. Nunes may not have developed into a title contender, but she did crack the top five after an inspiring four-fight win streak after many anticipated her time in the organization would have soon drawn to a close. Now that Nunes has officially decided to call it a career, it appears to be the right call. Sure, she pulled out a win over Calvillo, but it wasn’t exactly an inspiring performance. She doesn’t have the fire she had when she made her way up the rankings.

Worst Game Plan: I had several fights in mind for this. At first, I was considering Cruz, but a re-watching of his contest revealed he was more insistent on pursuing takedowns than I had recalled after the initial viewing. Unfortunately for Cruz, the wrestling wasn’t finding great success for him. Thus, the game plan can’t be blamed for his loss. However, I can confidently ask what Lupita Godinez and Devin Clark were thinking. Godinez was at least having a competitive fight with Hill, so I feel I can cut her some slack as she may have believed things were going differently on the judges’ scorecards. Plus, while she didn’t take advantage of her edge in wrestling as much as I would have liked, she did at least make a few efforts to take the fight to the ground. That wasn’t the case with Clark. The longtime veteran didn’t get a single takedown attempt on record while Azamat Murzakanov did whatever the hell he wanted to Clark. If Clark had at least attempted to wrestle and failed, there wouldn’t have been questions about his strategy. As it is, it looks like he was running his head into the wall time and again.

Worst Decision: I hate the word robbery in the sport of MMA. It gets thrown around way too damn much. There are certainly decisions that I strongly disagree with, but I always make the greatest effort to see what my detractors would see. Usually, I can develop an understanding of what they saw, even if I disagree. I can’t understand what two judges saw when they gave the decision to Martin Buday over Lukasz Brzeski. Brzeski outlanded Buday by a significant margin, keeping the bulkier Buday on the defense for the vast majority of the contest. Even in the round I would have given Buday, Brzeski outlanded him, Buday getting the edge as he appeared to hurt Brzeski. However, even that was contentious as Brzeski either wasn’t hurt too badly or her recovered quickly. The first two rounds, I can’t reasonably see Buday winning. Thus, as much as I hate using the word robbery, I think I’m willing to use it in this case.

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Eric Nicksick called Marlon Vera’s knockout of Dominick Cruz down to a T.

Xtreme Couture coach Erick Nicksick accurately predicted Marlon Vera’s head kick knockout of Dominick Cruz moments before ‘Chito’ landed the KO in round four.

Nicksick watched the fight from home and noticed that Cruz, the former WEC and UFC bantamweight champion, tended to dip his head to the right with his hands down, leaving himself open for the counter.

The 2022 Coach of the Year nominee Tweeted that a left high kick from Vera would stop Cruz dead in his tracks, and lo and behold, Vera delivered.

The Ecuadorian fighter caught Cruz with a perfectly-timed head kick that sent ‘The Dominator’ crashing face-first into the canvas to mark his second knockout in four fights.

Vera’s power proved to be the difference maker in the fight as the 29-year-old dropped Cruz several times leading up to the KO, getting the better of his opponent in most of the exchanges despite landing with less volume.

The win saw Vera extend his winning streak to four straight fights, with the No. 5-ranked bantamweight a prime candidate to face the winner of Aljamain Sterling vs. T.J. Dillashaw for the bantamweight title sometime next year.

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The real winners and losers from UFC San Diego

What is essentially a UFC bantamweight tournament began on Saturday night with Marlon Vera making an unscheduled and unwanted adjustment to the shape of Dominick Cruz’s nose via a head kick in the fourth round of their UFC San Diego main event.

The victory earned Vera his fourth straight win and fourth consecutive post-fight bonus. He now gets to sit and watch as the upcoming bouts between Merab Dvalishvili and Jose Aldo at UFC 278 and the pair of 135-pound fights at UFC 280 — champion Aljamain Sterling vs. T.J. Dillashaw and Petr Yan vs. Sean O’Malley — shake out before he knows his next assignment.

Exciting times are in full swing for the UFC’s bantamweight division.

And speaking of exhilarating moments, the UFC San Diego card, which took place at Pechanga Arena was full of those fantastic happenings. Read on for the winners and losers from UFC San Diego.

Winners:

Marlon Vera: According to my quick (and perhaps incorrect) research, Marlon Vera didn’t break into the official UFC bantamweight rankings until late October 2019. By that time, Vera had been with the UFC for nearly five years and had a record of 9-4. He dropped out of those rankings in June 2020 and didn’t return until he defeated Sean O’Malley in August. He briefly fell out of the top-15 again in early 2021, but by late February of that year, he secured his position as the No. 15 fighter.

Since locking himself into the top-15, Vera has done nothing but rise in the rankings, raise his profile in the UFC and climb closer to a bantamweight title fight. Vera extended his winning streak to four straight with his brutal head kick knockout of Dominick Cruz in the fourth round of their main event bout at UFC San Diego, where he entered the contest as the No. 5 ranked fighter in the 135-pound division.

Vera is as confident a fighter you will find in the UFC’s 135-pound division right now and a knockout win over the former champ will not diminish that self-assurance one bit.

Nate Landwehr: Nate Landwehr might not be a technically good fighter, but he is a fighter to the core. If the UFC wants to test the heart, resolve and toughness of a rising featherweight competitor, a fight against Landwehr will do that. Landwehr defeated David Onama on Saturday night and left us with a lot more questions about Onama than we had before this fight card.

Yazmin Jauregui vs. Iasmin Lucindo: These two young strawweights put on a fantastic 15-minute scrap at UFC San Diego. Jauregui (23) took the unanimous decision win to move to 9-0 as a pro. Lucindo (20), saw her seven-fight winning streak end in the bout.

It felt like these two wanted to take advantage of being on the main card for their UFC debuts and that they did, putting on a striking battle that brought UFC president Dana White to his feet at the end of Round 2 and saw the UFC boss pull the victorious fighter aside as she left the Octagon.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see both these women on another main card, perhaps a pay-per-view card, in their next outings.

Azamat Murzakanov: Azamat Murzakanov made body strikes a big focus of his approach against Devin Clark and by the time the third round rolled around, the payout of emphasizing the body as a target paid dividends as Clark dropped to the mat where Murzakanov finished the fight via ground strikes. With the stoppage, his second in two fights with the UFC, moved Murzakanov’s record to 11-0 with eight knockouts.

Priscila Cachoeira: Priscila Cachoeira moved to .500 in the UFC with her knockout win over Ariane Lipski at UFC San Diego. Three of Cachoeira’s victories, including Saturday’s triumph, have come via knockout.

Gerald Meerschaert: Gerald Meerschaert had a good game plan for Bruno Silva, mix up his striking, pursue takedowns and avoid the power of his foe. He did that for most of the fight and when the opening came in the third round to land a power punch, he did, dropping Silva and using that set up a guillotine choke submission. Meerschaert showed a veteran’s savvy in switching to the choke instead of pursuing the knockout finish.

Angela Hill: Fan favorite Angela Hill ended the first three-fight losing skid of her career on Saturday with a decision win over Lupita Godinez. I don’t know if Hill would have been released with a fourth straight loss because she is a fighter the UFC can count on to accept fights on short notice and deliver exciting scraps, but her win on Saturday allowed the UFC matchmakers to avoid pondering that question.

Lukasz Brzeski: Lukasz Brzeski was on the wrong end of a split decision against Martin Buday, but I liked his high output style and how he mixed up his striking targets. Brzeski’s lack of power hurt him in this matchup.

Nina Nunes: Nina Nunes retired after her win over Cynthia Calvillo at UFC San Diego. She said she is going to focus on coaching and the family she and her wife, two-division UFC champion Amanda Nunes, share. All fighters want to go out on a win. Nunes is doing that.

Gabriel Benitez: Gabriel Benitez was struggling with the length of his opponent, Charlie Ontiveros, in the early going of their bout. However, after opening a cut near the eye of Ontiveros and a break because of a knee to the groin from Benitez, the momentum changed. Benitez turned the tables and swarmed Ontiveros with strikes before dumping him to the mat and finishing the fight in a violent manner. The win ended a two-fight losing skid for Benitez.

Tyson Nam: Tyson Nam returned to action after more than a year out of the cage due to injury and while he didn’t spend much time in the cage, he made the most of that time. Nam, a professional fighter since 2006, easily avoided a jumping knee from Ode’ Osbourne and he perfectly timed a right hand that landed on the unprotected chin of Osbourne. A great return to action for the 38-year-old, who didn’t get the call from the UFC until 2019.

Also, props for coming to the mic with this phrase, “Bingo, Bango, Pickled Mango. I love you San Diego!”

Josh Quinlan: When Josh Quinlan earned his UFC contract on the DWCS via a nasty early knockout, UFC president Dana White said of Quinlan, “You couldn’t have a better debut, kid.” Daniel Cormier, who was working the commentary of that event, said, “My goodness, you want to make a statement, you do that.”

Well, Quinlan, in his first official UFC fight, topped that knockout in San Diego, sending an unconscious Jason Witt to the mat with a massive left hook.

I don’t know how many of Josh Quinlan’s future opponents will give him time, space and keep their hands down, but if they do, there’s a good chance they’ll end up on Quinlan’s highlight reel.

One item to keep an eye on with Quinlan is if he has issues with athletic commissions related to “pulsing” of the M3 metabolite of dehydrochloromethyltestosterone (DHCMT).

Losers:

Dominick Cruz: With an unquestionable knockout loss to Marlon Vera, ex-UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is, at 37, likely out of the running for another shot at UFC gold. Cruz was the No. 8 ranked fighter ahead of this matchup and with the depth (and age) of the talent in front of him, it’s doubtful that he has the time left in his career to mount another run at the title.

With that, the question becomes, what’s next for Cruz?

David Onama: David Onama had a very good first round against Nate Landwehr, however Landwehr showed Onama that he’s built different and dragged Onama into deep and turbulent waters and seemed close to breaking Onama. At 28, Onama has been a pro since 2019. He is very much a work in progress. His fight with Landwehr could be a turning point in his career. The problem I have with that is that I don’t know which way Onama will turn. I think we’ll find out a lot more about Onama and his potential upside in his next outing if the UFC books him against a fighter with a similar style to Landwehr.

Don’t forget, Onama was a -340 favorite when this matchup began, which made him one of the biggest favorites on the card. I have no doubt the UFC matchmakers expected him to beat Landwehr and move on to bigger and better things.

James Krause: I saw a lot of praise on social media for how James Krause handled David Onama between the second and third round of his fight opposite Nate Landwehr. I disagree. Krause asked Onama if he wanted to keep fighting. Onama failed to answer. In response, Krause kept repeating the question – he asked five times. No reply from Onama was a response, and Krause ignored that before finally telling him, “you gotta keep fighting.” I don’t think that deserves praise.

Ariane Lipski: Priscila Cachoeira tagged Ariane Lipski with a counter. That punch hurt Lipski, but instead of retreating or defending, Lipski engaged in a slugfest, which resulted in Cachoeira getting a TKO victory in the first stanza. With three losses over her last four, the former KSW champion’s UFC career is in jeopardy.

Bruno Silva: I’m not saying Bruno Silva is a one-trick pony, but with 19 of his 22 career victories coming via knockout, it seems as if he might be an easy fighter to plan for. Silva seemed to get frustrated by his opponent in this fight, Gerald Meerschaert, and that frustration resulted in him over-throwing his strikes and putting himself out of position. Meerschaert submitted Silva in the third round. The loss put Silva on the first two-fight losing skid since 2012.

Jason Witt: Thirty-five year old Jason Witt has lost four times in the past two years. All those losses have come via knockout. That might be a sign to consider his mixed martial arts future.

Youssef Zalal: Youssef Zalal needed a win at UFC San Diego. He didn’t get it. With that, his record with the promotion fell to 0-3-1 since October 2020.

Zalal has skills, but a lack of urgency might have cost him in this contest. Had he been more aggressive in the first two rounds, he might have earned the win in his matchup opposite Da’Mon Blackshear, instead he settled for a draw.

Da’Mon Blackshear: Da’Mon Blackshear learned a lesson in his UFC debut: there are levels to MMA. Blackshear, a former Cage Fury bantamweight champion, took his bout against Youssef Zalal on short notice and while he showed some positives, he is a work in progress.

Blackshear has some skills, but he needs to show better situational awareness, make better decisions on what techniques to use and be more patient. He also needs to set a better pace because he ran out of gas in the third round and that nearly cost him the fight.

If Blackshear gets a full camp for his next outing, we should be able to get a better idea of just how good he is in the octagon.

UFC fighter pay: The UFC continues to have a starting pay rate of $ 10,000 for some fighters, which was the case for Brzeski and Quinlan. That’s despicable and indefensible.

Neither:

Martin Buday: Martin Buday picked up a split decision win over Lukasz Brzeski. Buday can take a punch and he has power, but he is a bit plodding, which is not a surprise since he weighed in at 266. and his tendency to focus on head strikes shows a somewhat limited game plan.

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Zane Simon & Eddie Mercado are here to breakdown this Saturday’s, August 13th, UFC San Diego: Vera vs Cruz Fight Night event. The guys will have hot takes, possible next fights, as well as reactions to the overall event.

Bloody Elbow fight expert, Zane Simon is here, joined by his cohort, Eddie Mercado. We recorded for you on Saturday, August 13th, 2022, with a breakdown of the UFC San Diego: Vera vs Cruz 13-bout Fight Night event; which took place at The Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California.

June M. Williams

The guys have hot takes, possible next fights, as well as reactions to the overall event in the player above, or they can be caught on our Bloody Elbow Presents YouTube Channel or any platform in our BE Presents Podcast Network.

For all the results, reactions and a plethora of details about the main card, and plenty of tidbits about all the prelims, be sure to hit play on the show to hear what our fight experts have to say!

Overall, this 13-bout card saw four exciting first round finishes, six thrilling KO/TKO’s, one sweet submissions, and several hard-fought decisions – 1 majority, 2 split, 2 unanimous, with the opening bout ending in a majority draw. Rounding things out, our fighters who were awarded for putting forth BONUS efforts included — FOTN: Nate Landwehr vs. David Onama. POTN: Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera & Tyson Nam.

Here’s a look at the UFC San Diego: Vera vs Cruz fight card with full results & updated fight records:

The main event was scheduled for five rounds, with the remaining bouts scheduled for three rounds each. | Official UFC Scorecards

ESPN/ESPN+ MAIN CARD | SAT. AUG. 13
13. Main Event: Marlon Vera (22-7) DEF. Dominick Cruz (24-4) — via KO, Head Kick at 2:17 of the fourth round

12. Co-Main Event: Nate Landwehr (16-4) DEF. David Onama (10-2) — via majority decision (28-28, 29-27, 29-27)

11. Yazmin Jauregui (9-0) DEF. Iasmin Lucindo (13-5) — ia unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

10. Azamat Murzakanov (12-0) DEF. Devin Clark (13-7) — via TKO (strikes, G&P) at 1:18 of the third round

9. Priscilla Cachoeira (12-4) DEF. Ariane Lipski (14-8) — via TKO (strikes) at 1:05 of the first round

8. Gerald Meerschaert (35-15) DEF. Bruno Silva (22-8) — via submission (guillotine choke) at 1:39 of the third round

ESPN/ESPN+ PRELIMS
7. Angela Hill (14-12) DEF. Lupita Godinez (8-3) — via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

6. Martin Buday (11-1) DEF. Lukasz Brzeski (8-2) — via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

5. Nina Nunes (11-7) DEF. Cynthia Cavillo (9-5) — via split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29)

4. Gabriel Benitez (23-10) DEF. Charlie Ontiveros (11-9) — via TKO (strikes, G&P) at 3:35 of the first round

3. Tyson Nam (21-12) DEF. Ode Osbourne (11-5) — via KO, Counter Right Hook at 2:59 of the first round

2. Josh Quinlan (6-0) DEF. Jason Witt (19-9) — via KO, Left Hook at 2:09 of the first round

1. Youssef Zalal (10-5) vs. Da’Mon Blackshear (12-4) — (29-28) fight to a majority draw (28-28, 28-28)

Be sure to follow Zane – @TheZaneSimon & Eddie – @TheEddieMercado; and follow @BloodyElbow on twitter as well, for all the latest in MMA happenings.

If you enjoy our wide variety of shows, give us a shout out in the comments here on Bloody Elbow, and give us a “like”, share & subscribe on your BE Presents Podcast platform of choice: SoundCloud, YouTube, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, OverCast, Player FM, & Amazon Music – For previous episodes of the show, check out our playlists on any of our BE Presents channels.

Join us again for another episode of the ‘6th Round’ next week on Saturday, August 20th, for UFC 278 PPV, USMAN VS EDWARDS 2 for the UFC Welterweight Championship; Plus, Paulo Costa vs Luke Rockhold, José Aldo vs Merab Dvalishvili, & Marcin Tybura vs Alexandr Romanov from the Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Join us here at Bloody Elbow for live results, discussion, and play-by-play (main event) as UFC Fight Night: Cruz vs. Vera goes down from the Pechanga Arena in San Diego.

The main event for this fight night will take place in the bantamweight division, with former champ Dominick Cruz trying to make one last run at another title run when he takes on the surging Marlon Vera. The co-main comes at featherweight, with Nate Landwehr meeting David Onama.

This will be an ESPN show and is going down at the usual time. The seven-fight preliminary card is scheduled to start at 4pm ET/1pm PT on ESPN and ESPN+. The six-fight main card will stay on ESPN and ESPN+ and that is scheduled to start at 7pm ET/4pm PT.

Marlon Vera vs. Dominick Cruz

Round 1 – Cruz presses forward right away as Vera staying ducking down for a second after the fight started. He presses with a three-punch combo. Jab from Vera. Cruz feinting a ton. Low kick from Cruz knocks Vera off balance. Front kick from Vera and Cruz catches it to take Vera down. He lets him up though. Vera almost catches a kick. Vera drops Cruz with a left! He’s up right away though and resets. Low kicks and mad pressure from Cruz. High kick. Jab to the body. Vera backs off as Cruz throws five or six in a row. Cruz with a wide right and he’s faking knees. Low kick. Frot kick to the belly from Vera. Cruz backs him all the way across the cage with a barrage of punches, some of which land. Vera with a straight right. Cruz with a takedown. He’s in Vera’s closed guard. Vera with elbows from the bottom. He almost secures an armbar but Cruz flips out of it. He’s kicking the legs on a downed Vera now. 10-9 Vera for the knockdown, but Cruz controlled.

Round 2 – Cruz with a right. Hard low kick from Cruz. They exchange. Two body kicks from Cruz are blocked. Vera presses with a kick and they exchange. Oblique kicks rom Vera. Cruz attacks, Vera slides away. Hard body shot and right from Cruz. Another big right. Inside leg kick. Back to the body. Body kick from Vera. Low kick from Vera. They trade punches. Front kick from Vera. Low kick and a combo from Cruz. Cruz digs to the body and comes over the top. Vera clubs him back. Vera lands a body kick as Cruz misses with the right. He lands the next one though. Straight right from Cruz. Cruz shoots but gets stuffed. Left from Vera. Cruz returns it. 10-9 Cruz.

Round 3 –

Main Card (7 PM ET, ESPN/ESPN+)

Nate Landwehr def. David Onama via majority decision (28-28, 29-28, 29-28

Yazmin Jauregui def. Iasmin Lucindo via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Azamat Murzakanov def. Devin Clark via TKO (punches), 1:18 of round 3

Priscila Cachoeira def. Ariane Lipski via TKO (punches), 1:05 of round 1

Gerald Meerschaert def. Bruno Silva via submission (guillotine choke), 1:39 of round 3

Preliminary Card (4 PM ET, ESPN/ESPN+)

Angela Hill def. Loopy Godinez by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)

Martin Buday def. Lukasz Brzeski by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Nina Nunes def. Cynthia Calvillo by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)

Gabriel Benitez def. Charlie Ontiveros by TKO (punches) at 3:35 of Round 1

Tyson Nam def. Ode’ Osbourne by KO (punches) at 2:59 of Round 1

Josh Quinlan def. Jason Witt by KO (punch) at 2:09 of Round 1

Youssef Zalal vs. Da’Mon Blackshear ends in majority draw (28-29, 28-28, 28-28)

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Check out the betting odds for UFC San Diego, where Marlon “Chito” Vera is favored over Dominick Cruz in the main event.

The day has come for UFC San Diego to blast off from the Pechanga Arena in California, USA. The top of the billing will involve the UFC’s former bantamweight champion, Dominick Cruz, scrapping it out with the promotion’s #5 ranked 135-pounder, Marlon “Chito” Vera. Let’s now go take a look at what the odds have to say about this one.

Marlon Vera has been steadily climbing the ranks at 135-pounds, and has learned a few lessons along the way to achieve a UFC record of 13-6. With less miles on his body, and a slightly better winning streak going on, the oddsmakers have decided to side with Vera here. Chito is sporting a strongly favored moneyline of -230, and a successful $ 100 bet at that line would receive a complete payout of $ 143.48.

Dominick Cruz became the WEC bantamweight champion before Chito competed in his first professional MMA match (2010). Cruz has only lost three times in career, all of which were title bouts, and he’s currently won two fights in a row. Father Time might be Cruz’s true opponent, and the odds here reflect that. Cruz is posted up as a +195 underdog, with a $ 100 bet on “The Dominator” standing to see a total return of $ 295.

According to the odds, the UFC San Diego main event will be reaching the scorecards. The prop bet ‘Fight goes to decision’ can be scooped up with a favored position of -165, with a +120 comeback on the ‘Fight doesn’t go to decision’ option. Naturally, Chito is the fighter deemed more likely to get the nod, as ‘Vera wins by decision’ is trending at +140, while ‘Cruz wins by decision’ is listed a bit further out at +300.

Check out the UFC San Diego betting odds, courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook:

For an in-depth breakdown of each UFC San Diego scrap, check out The MMA Vivisection Podcasts. Be sure to subscribe to our SoundCloud Channel and YouTube channel to stay up to date with all of our live video content. Stay glued to Bloody Elbow for all of your event coverage including play-by-play, results, highlights, and more! Happy hunting!

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Leon Edwards believes Kamaru Usman’s championship days are over.

Leon Edwards believes now is the perfect time to fight Kamaru Usman because ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’s’ body is starting to break down from all the wars he’s been in.

Edwards will look to become the first man to defeat Usman in the UFC when he challenges the pound-for-pound king for the welterweight championship later this month at UFC 278.

‘Rocky’ previously lost to Usman at UFC on FOX 17 back when both men were starting their UFC careers in 2015, with Usman winning a unanimous decision.

However, Edwards has improved ‘leaps and bounds’ since then while Usman may have deteriorated due to his championship wars with Colby Covington (twice) and Gilbert Burns.

“All I’ve been doing is training,” Edwards, who is on a nine-fight win streak, told CBS Sports in a recent interview. “The Khamzat Chimaev fight, for example, that’s three camps. I’ve done many camps and improved leaps and bounds. Now is the perfect time to fight. I think those years looking back on it now were blessings in disguise. It gave me time to hone my skills and polish what I needed to polish. [Usman’s] competed but he’s also been in wars. His body is breaking down and I think now is the perfect time.”

UFC 278: Usman vs. Edwards II takes place next Saturday, Aug. 20 at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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Bellator MMA is in South Dakota for some Friday night fights.

At the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, Bellator 284 sees former welterweight title challenger Neiman Gracie take on longtime featherweight and lightweight contender Goiti Yamauchi, who is moving up to 170 lbs for the first time in his career. In the co-main, former interim heavyweight champion Valentin Moldavsky looks to get back on track against Steve Mowry.

Bellator 284 kicks off with a free live stream of the prelims, which can be watched at the top of the page starting at 6 PM ET/3 PM PT. Showtime has the main card at 9 PM ET/6 PM PT. You can watch the main card on Bellator’s YouTube channel if you live in other select international jurisdictions. BBC iPlayer has this card for the United Kingdom viewers. Select countries have the live stream of the main card available on Bellator’s YouTube page.

Main Card (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET)

Goiti Yamauchi def. Neiman Gracie via KO (punches) at 3:58 of Round 2

Valentin Moldavsky vs. Steve Mowry ends in no contest due to eye poke at :54 of Round 1

Ilima-Lei Macfarlane def. Bruna Ellen via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Gokhan Saricam def. Said Sowma via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Aaron Jeffery def. Austin Vanderford via TKO (punches) at 1:25 of Round 1

Preliminary Card (Online, 6 p.m. ET)

Marcos Breno def. Josh Hill via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

DeAnna Bennett def. Justine Kish via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Sullivan Cauley def. Tyson Jeffries via KO (knee) at 1:39 of Round 1

Pat Downey def. Keyes Nelson via submission (arm-triangle choke) at :36 of Round 1

Bailey Schoenfelder def. Mark Currier via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:35 of Round 2

Mitchell McKee def. Tony Ortega via TKO (strikes) at 1:28 of Round 2

M,A,Yah II def. Brett Bye via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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It’s the UFC’s first Brazil-based pay-per-view since 2019.

At long last, the UFC will be back in Brazil.

The promotion announced earlier this week that the Octagon is headed for Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro on January 21, 2023. UFC 283 will be the first pay-per-view in Brazil since Jessica Andrade knocked out Rose Namajunas at UFC 239 in 2019 (also in Rio).

Of course, the last time the UFC was in Brazil was a Fight Night show in Brasilia back in March 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic was prompting global lockdowns and restrictions. The Brasilia show was held without fans, after which the UFC had to postpone several events through May.

The other big announcement for Brazilian UFC fans was the new broadcast deal. Starting in 2023, Globo (and Combate) is out and Band is in. UFC Fight Pass is also coming to Brazil on January 1st and will air a majority of the promtion’s shows exclusively on the streaming service, while Band will have 12 shows airing on free TV (via MMA Fighting).

“Anyone who follows this sport knows how important Brazil is to mixed martial arts and to UFC,” Dana White said. “Brazil is one of our biggest and fastest growing markets and has produced some of the best athletes this sport has ever seen. Fight Pass is going to take our business to the next level by delivering all our content directly to our fans.

“Plus, we’re teaming up with Band, one of the biggest broadcasters in Brazil, which is going to provide massive exposure for UFC and help us grow our fan base and make this sport bigger than ever.”

No fights have been announced for UFC 283 as of yet. At the moment the UFC’s current Brazilian champions are flyweight king Deiveson Figueiredo and two-division women’s champion Amanda Nunes.

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