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Strawweights will be the main focus tonight when UFC returns to the “APEX” studio in Las Vegas, Nevada for their latest Fight Night card, UFC Vegas 73. The 12-fight MMA card will be headlined by ranked 115-pound talents Mackenzie Dern and Angela Hill.
Both Hill and Dern will be gunning for their first-ever main event UFC win. They have both been in the five-round spotlight before, but have yet to get their hand-raised after those grueling contests.
This matchup was unexpectedly put into the main event spot a couple of weeks back. While Dern and Hill were originally expected to meet as part of the UFC on ABC card last week, plans changed after a bantamweight bout between Irene Aldana and Raquel Pennington was removed from the promotion’s lineup. So, the duo of strawweights that were initially expected to go three rounds on a main card now sees themselves fighting up to 25 minutes in the headlining spot this weekend.
Some things about tonight’s UFC Vegas 73 Fight Night card that stick out
Hill and Dern are not the only strawweights on the card. In fact, it might unofficially be strawweight night from the UFC APEX. Also on the main card, Emily Ducote and Loopy Godinez will meet up at a catchweight of 120 pounds. And as part of the prelims, former title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz will take on former LFA Strawweight Champion Vanessa Demopoulos.
The co-main event spot will go to a middleweight clash that could let Edmen Shahbazyan build upon a new series of momentum. The 25-year-old snapped his sole pro losing streak last year with a win over Dalcha Lungiambula. Before then, he had a rough three-fight skid that built up over the course of more than a year. Now, months later, he could follow up on that victory with a win over Anthony Hernandez, who is on a three-fight winning streak.
Explosive welterweights will get paired up against one another as part of the main card as well. Andre Fialho, a talent who has only gone the distance four times in his 22-fight pro career, will take on Joaquin Buckley. Many will remember Buckley for his viral knockout win from 2020 – however, he has been heavily active since then, winning five of his nine UFC appearances since joining the promotion nearly three years ago.
Follow UFC Vegas 73 throughout the night
The main card starts at 7 p.m. ET, a later start after the up-and-early midday start time of last week’s event. For the early crowd that likes to watch some of the more obscure UFC bouts, the prelims will kick off at 4 p.m. ET. The entire evening will be broadcasted on ESPN+ for viewers in the U.S.
Check back on the page throughout the evening to see the latest developments from Vegas. We’ll have highlights, results, and some quick commentary regarding notable moments on the card as it progresses.
And if you want, feel free to drop a comment and share your thoughts on the card! We’re always interested to hear what you think about the show – disagree with scorecards? Think a fence grab was missed? Simply feel strongly about anything that happened? Let us know!
Main Card (7 p.m. ET) (ESPN+)
- Mackenzie Dern def. Angela Hill via unanimous decision (49-43, 49-44 & 49-44): Strawweight
Dern picked up her first UFC main event win with a pretty dominant performance over Hill.
Dern succeeded both on her feet and on the ground. She succeeded in wild stand-up exchanges, did landed strikes on the ground and looked to grapple at times as well.
Dern was able to hurt Hill in chaotic stand-up exchanges, providing her with the opening to take the fight to the ground with a hip toss. This was seen in the first and third rounds of the fight. Once the fight went to the ground, Dern attempted the armbar submission after numerous minutes of landing strikes.
The fight put Dern back into the win column after suffering a defeat against Yan Xiaonan in October.
- Anthony Hernandez def. Edmen Shahbazyan via TKO (ground and pound) at 1:01 of round 3: Middleweight
Hernandez has quietly put together four consecutive wins at middleweight over the past two years. This stream includes a submission win over Marc-Andre Barriault last year and a massive upset win against Rodolfo Vieira in 2021.
On the other side of things, this was Shahbazyan’s fourth loss in his last five fights. He has struggled since 2020, losing against many of the higher-up names at 185 pounds.
- Loopy Godinez def. Emily Ducote via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 & 29-28): Catchweight 120 lbs
Godinez was a short-notice opponent for Ducote, stepping in to replace Polyana Viana. Her previous appearance was just last month when she beat Cynthia Calvillo at UFC 287.
- Joaquin Buckley def. Andre Fialho via TKO (head kick) at 4:15 of round 2: Welterweight
Buckley got back into the win column with another big finish. He connected with a clean head kick that floored Fialho, causing the fight to end shortly after. Five of Buckley’s six UFC wins have all come via finish, including a viral knockout against Impa Kasanganay in 2020.
Saturday was Buckley’s first UFC appearance as a welterweight. He previously competed in the promotion as a middleweight. Prior to this weekend, his most recent welterweight bout was in 2018 for Bellator.
- Diego Ferreira def. Michael Johnson via KO (overhand right) at 1:50 of round 2: Lightweight
Saturday snapped an extensive losing streak for him, putting him back into the win column for the first time since early 2020. He entered this card on a three-fight skid and was making his first appearance in over a year.
Preliminary Card (4 p.m. ET) (ESPN+)
- Viacheslav Borshchev def. Maheshate via TKO (punches) at 2:37 of round 2: Lightweight
- Karolina Kowalkiewicz def. Vanessa Demopoulos via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 & 30-27): Strawweight
- Gilbert Urbina def. Orion Cosce via TKO (strikes) at 2:55 of round 1: Welterweight
- Rodrigo Nascimento def. Ilir Latifi via split decision (29-28, 28-29 & 29-28): Heavyweight
- Chase Hooper def. Nick Fiore via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27 & 30-27): Lightweight
This fight was Hooper’s debut at lightweight, moving up after a six-fight UFC run in the featherweight division.
- Natalia Silva def. Victoria Leonardo via TKO (punches) at 2:58 of round 1: Flyweight
- Themba Gorimbo def. Takashi Sato via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 & 30-27): Welterweight
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