Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returned to action last night to stage UFC Vegas 62 from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the main event of the evening, Alexa Grasso did enough to outscore Viviane Araujo (full recap here), while Cub Swanson suffered a devastating knockout loss at the hands of Jonathan Martinez in his bantamweight debut (see it again here).
Biggest Winner: Alexa Grasso
Grasso made huge strides toward a shot at the women’s flyweight title by defeating Araujo after five rounds of back-and-forth action. That’s because it was her fourth straight win, the longest during her time with the promotion. Currently ranked No. 5 at 125 pounds, the Mexican-born fighter can expect a a nice bump up, inching her closer to her first-ever shot at UFC gold in a division currently run by Valentina Shevchenko. She currently tied with Tracy Cortez for the longest win streak in the division with four consecutive wins. That said, Grasso is inching toward a Top 3 ranking while Cortez is still sitting outside of the Top 10. It was a huge win for Grasso against a tough opponent, one that gives her heaps of confidence as she starts to face the cream of the crop.
Runner Up: Jonathan Martinez
The bantamweight division is deep, so cracking the Top 15 is far from an easy task. That being said, Martinez is making huge strides toward that goal and scoring an impressive knockout win (leg kick) over a longtime veteran like Swanson only strengthens his case. “The Dragon” has won four straight. though two of those were in the featherweight division. Still, if Martinez can keep winning at 135 pounds. slowly but surely he will be carve his path and perhaps earn a spot in the rankings.
Biggest Loser: Misha Cirkunov
Remember when Cirkunov was considered a legit player in the light heavyweight division? Four straight wins inside the world-famous Octagon can give you that rep pretty quickly, but since then, Cirkunov has been hot and cold earning a 2-7 record which includes four straight defeats, including his most recent setback against Alonzo Menifield via first-round knockout (KO). With his last win coming three years ago, it’s safe to say that Cirkunov’s time with UFC could be coming to an end pretty soon.
For complete UFC Vegas 62: “Grasso vs. Araujo” results and play-by-play, click HERE!