Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to its APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, TONIGHT (Sat., Jan. 14, 2023) with its first event of the year, featuring a 205-pound showdown between two Top 15 contenders — Sean Strickland (No. 7) vs. Nassourdine Imavov (No. 12) — both of whom are eager to cement their position in the crowded middleweight title chase with Kelvin Gastelum sidelined by injury. In UFC Vegas 67’s co-main event, veteran featherweight bruisers — Dan Ige (No. 13) vs. Damon Jackson (unranked) — lock horns in a meaningful 145-pound collision. Elsewhere on the card, all-action middleweight sluggers, Punahele Soriano vs. Roman Kopylov, will also throw down, as well Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Raoni Barcelos, a sure-fire bantamweight banger. All that and so much more as UFC kicks off its 2023 face-punching season on ESPN+.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 67 fight card below, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” undercard bouts at 4 p.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time at 7 p.m. ET. Bet on all the UFC Vegas 67 action with our friends at DraftKings Sportsbook right here.
Keep in mind that we will also be the spot for the latest news, recaps, and post-fight analysis following “Strickland vs. Imavov.” Without further delay, see below for the updated UFC Vegas 67 results. (Note: This will go from the bottom up; therefore, scroll toward the bottom for the latest detailed round-by-round action).
UFC VEGAS 67 QUICK RESULTS:
Sean Strickland vs. Nassourdine Imavov — Strickland def. Imavov by unanimous decision (49-46 x2, 48-47)
Dan Ige vs. Damon Jackson — Ige def. Jackson by KO (punch) at 4:13 of Round Two — HIGHLIGHTS
Punahele Soriano vs. Roman Kopylov — Kopylov def. Soriano by TKO (body kick and punches) at 3:19 of Round Two
Raquel Pennington vs. Ketlen Vieira — Pennington def. Vieira by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Raoni Barcelos — Nurmagomedov def. Barcelos by KO (punch) at 4:40 of Round One — HIGHLIGHTS
Javid Basharat vs. Mateus Mendonca — Basharat def. Mendonca by unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)
Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Claudio Ribeiro — Alhassan def. Ribeiro by TKO (punches) at 0:28 of Round Two
Mateusz Rebecki vs. Nick Fiore — Rebecki def. Fiore by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27 x2)
Carlos Hernandez vs. Allan Nascimento — Nascimento def. Hernandez by submission (rear naked choke) at 3:16 of Round One
Daniel Argueta vs. Nick Aguirre — Argueta def. Aguirre by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Charles Johnson vs. Jimmy Flick — Johnson def. Flick by TKO (punches and elbows) at 4:33 of Round One — HIGHLIGHTS
Note: The flyweight bout between Priscila Cachoeira and Sijara Eubanks has been canceled.
UFC VEGAS 67 PLAY-BY-PLAY:
205 lbs.: Sean Strickland vs. Nassourdine Imavov
Round 1: Quick jabs from Imavov. Left hook falls short, Strickland’s does not. Imavov low kick, avoids a 1-2. Solid left hook. One minute in. Lead right lands clean, as does a short hook on the fence. 1-2-3 from Strickland. 1-2 from Imavov, body kick behind it. Each looking to check the other’s hands. Two minutes in. Lead shovel hook by Imavov, who gets buzzed by a counter right. Strickland marching after him, trying to polish him off. Two minutes to go.
Strickland ties up after whiffing on an overhand right. Jab on the exit. Imavov low kick, Strickland jab. Right hook by Strickland. One minute to go. He answers an overhand with a combination. Imavov’s lost a lot of crispness already as he flails with overhand rights. 10-9 Strickland.
Round 2: Strickland continuing to stalk. Imavov not throwing a lot in return. Strickland punches into the clinch. One minute in. Separation. 1-2-3 from Strickland. Imavov is barely throwing anything, not even the stuff that was working. There’s a nice left hook from him as they exchange. 1-2. Strickland comes back with a looping right. Strickland wraps up a body lock and hits an outside trip. Imavov works his way back up. More 1-2s from Strickland with two minutes to go.
Imavov’s really looping his overhands and missing by a mile. Strickland ties up and takes him to the fence. Separation. One minute to go. Some slopping boxing exchanges. Strickland’s looking a little spent as well as he takes Imavov to the fence. Elbow from Imavov. 10-9 Strickland.
Round 3: Back to the boxing exchanges. They’re just planting their feet and letting things go at this point. Nice jab by Imavov a minute in. Strickland body kick and 1-2. Clean jabs. Two minutes in; Imavov hasn’t thrown anything in about 30 seconds. He shoots, not even close. Hard lead hook. Strickland potshotting. Two minutes to go.
Short combo by Strickland. 1-2 after both swat each other with body kicks for a bit. One minute to go. Imavov body shot, Strickland 1-2. Another 1-2. Strickland clinches, eats a knee downstairs. Imavov whiffs on a spinning back fist. 10-9 Strickland.
Round 4: Strickland lands a right to the body. 1-2. Imavov rushes in with a right hand, gets caught in an exchange. Brief clinch a minute in. More jabs from Strickland. Both fire body kicks. Strickland 1-2 and jab. Imavov comes back with a combo, eats more right hands. More 1-2s split the guard two minutes in. Hard right hand buzzes Imavov, who tries to shoot. Strickland gets double unders and reverses on the fence. Two minutes to go.
Elbow from Imavov on the break. Strickland 1-2. Clean jab. Imavov tries to burst in with an overhand, misses, eats another jab. One minute to go. One minute to go. Imavov throws some half-hearted kicks and gets a 1-1-2 to the face. Imavov briefly puts him on the fence before Strickland slow-mo walks him across the cage. Late right by Imavov. 10-9 Strickland.
Round 5: Strickland continuing to punch the jab. Couple decent right hands by Imavov. They trade in the center, neither lands clean. One minute in. Strickland puts him on the fence. Separation. Back to the fence two minutes in. Imavov tries a knee on the break. Both fire 1-2s. Nice elbow by Imavov on the next clinch attempt. Left hook. Strickland takes him to the fence again. 1-2 from Imavov when they separate. Clinch with two minutes to go.
Strickland controls him for a bit, then eats another elbow on the break. Imavov tries a left hook, gets clinched. More elbows by Imavov. Strickland basically just trying to hold on at this point. Imavov tries a Yair Rodriguez elbow, then goes back to landing at range. Strickland ties up, eats another elbow, ties up. Superman punch from Imavov. Strickland lands a straight and they end the fight slugging. 10-9 Imavov.
Final result: Strickland def. Imavov by unanimous decision
145 lbs.: Dan Ige vs. Damon Jackson
Round 1: Jackson tries to bully his way in with punches, gets cracked by an overhand before separating. Both swinging hard. Body shots from Ige. One minute in. Ige staying on the front foot, nice left hook downstairs. Getting the better of the striking so far. Counter two-piece after avoiding a Jackson front kick. Two minutes in. Jackson circling a lot, just blocks a head kick. Jackson tries a single-leg, and as Ige shoves him away, his glove appears to damage Jackson’s eye. Looks like he might be bleeding out of his tear duct. Jackson’s good to go after a bit, but Ige puts together some nice punches. Two minutes to go.
Counter right lands for Jackson, his best punch of the fight. Low kick as he circles. Ige runs in with a body kick with a minute to go. 1-2. Knee from Jackson. Low kick to left hands by Ige in return. Jackson fighting scared, seems like. Ige takes him down before the bell. 10-9 Ige.
Round 2: Ige continuing to push forward. Jackson just seems afraid to commit. Body shot from Ige, low kick from Jackson. Ige shoots against the fence. One minute in. Separation. Knee and elbow inside by Jackson. Counter right from Ige opens Jackson up two minutes in. Nice body shot from Ige. Lead left hook. Two minutes to go.
Jackson doing nothing as he circles. There’s a flurry attempt. Body kick and right hand. One minute to go. Jackson tries to step in and open up in the pocket, but Ige is waiting with a left hook that sounds like a gunshot. Jackson stanky legs his way to the mat and this one’s over in dramatic fashion.
Final result: Ige def. Jackson by KO (punch)
185 lbs.: Punahele Soriano vs. Roman Kopylov
Round 1: Soriano hurls some left hands before changing levels. Kopylov exits with a knee. Low kicks. Soriano tries to open up on the fence. Kopylov working behind his jab, absorbs a combo a minute in. The sneaky low kicks are working well for him. Counter flurry, eats a lead left. Strong jabs landing for him. Clean uppercut stings Soriano, who comes back with an overhand left. Soriano backs him to the fence with a combo. Kopylov’s jab is doing a lot for him. Continuing to land it. Two minutes to go.
Soriano tries to flurry his way inside. More heavy jabs by Kopylov. He avoids another blitz. More thudding jabs and he stuffs a takedown. Soriano already looks discouraged with a minute to go. There’s a solid lead left from him. Kopylov hits a surprise takedown of his own and enjoys side control for a bit before Soriano stands. Continuing to ding him with the jab. 10-9 Kopylov.
Round 2: Kopylov brushes off an early low blow. Soriano looking for uppercuts as Kopylov gets the jab going again. Soriano struggling to land at range but he’s picked up on how Kopylov leans forward inside. Kopylov body shots a minute in. Good left upstairs, spinning back kick soon after. Soriano’s gas tank looking shaky. Solid uppercuts inside. Kopylov to the body again two minutes in. Nice counters. More hard body shots by Kopylov and a kick has Soriano hurt. Kopylov tearing into him, but takes his foot off the gas when Soriano tries to throw back. Desperate shot from Soriano fails. Kopylov hurts him with another body kick and blasts him with punches until the ref intervenes.
Final result: Kopylov def. Soriano by TKO (body kick and punches)
135 lbs.: Raquel Pennington vs. Ketlen Vieira
Round 1: Trading hands in the early going, both women getting in their licks. One minute in. Jabs from both. Sharp right cross from Vieira, who’s using her length well. Two minutes in. Pennington fires a combo, eats an elbow. Vieira 1-2. Continuing to push forward. Pennington low kick with two minutes to go.
Three-piece from Vieira to answer a body kick. Pennington really struggling with the range. She comes in with a left hook and gets backed off by a combination. One minute to go. Pennington body jab, eats a counter right. They trade and Vieira puts her on the fence. 10-9 Vieira.
Round 2: Back to the boxing match. Pennington trying to get her jab going. Vieira low kicks. One minute in. Big 1-2 from Pennington. Another, her best shots of the fight. One minute in. She punches into the clinch and grabs a body lock. Good cross from Vieira on the break two minutes in. Both land well in the center. 2-3 from Vieira. Pennington punches into the clinch again, then lands a low blow. They resume at a distance. Trading jabs. Two minutes to go.
Vieira low kicks. Counter hook. Good right cross by Pennington. 1-2, knees. Vieira puts her on the fence. One minute to go. Trading knees inside. Vieira looks for the back. 10-9 Vieira.
Round 3: A quick hug to start the round. Back to trading in the center. Heavy 1-2 from Pennington, Vieira lands one of her own. Left hook by Pennington, then they trade right hands. Vieira hauls her to the fence again. Short punches from Vieira. They separate. Big 1-2 by Pennington. Another exchange of right hands. They’re going for it two minutes in. Pennington hauls her to the fence. Landing short punches. Vieira reverses. Two minutes to go.
Nice knee by Pennington answered by a lead elbow. Ref wants more action. Vieira keeping her locked against the fence. Vieira elbow, Pennington knee. One minute to go. Rear body lock for Vieira. Holding onto the grip as Pennington tries to punch over her shoulder. 10-9 Vieira, but Pennington has an argument for the second and third.
Final result: Pennington def. Vieira by split decision
135 lbs.: Umar Nurmagomedov vs. Raoni Barcelos
Round 1: Lead right lands for Barcelos. Nurmagomedov goes high-low with kicks. One minute in. Right hook from Nurmagomedov. Low kicks. Stiff jab. Barcelos looks for a head kick, lands a low kick. Two minutes in. Jab and body kick land for Nurmagomedov. Mostly sparring so far, with Nurmagomedov the busier of the two. Check hook and 1-2. Left hook and right cross from Barcelos in response. Barcelos shoots and Nurmagomedov chides him for leading with his head. Two minutes to go.
More good jabs by Nurmagomedov. He fires a sequence of kicks, then buzzes Barcelos with a straight left. One minute to go. Barcelos body kick. combination whiffs. They trade in the center. Nurmagomedov leads with a knee, and the millisecond Barcelos’ hands come down to block it, he unleashes a point-blank left hook that knocks Barcelos into next year. Incredible one-punch finish of an extremely dangerous veteran.
Final result: Nurmagomedov def. Barcelos by KO (punch)
135 lbs.: Javid Basharat vs. Mateus Mendonca
Round 1: Mendonca aggressive early. Narrow miss on a head kick. He catches Basharat’s attempted knee and ties up. Basharat circles off and separates. Jab lands for him, then a leg kick, which Mendonca answers with a heavier one a minute in. Mendonca continuing to pursue, tries an awkward Saenchai-style kick. Basharat not throwing a ton so far, but does stop a takedown and answer with an uppercut. Two minutes in. Mendonca tries a flying switch kick and eats a 1-2. Body kick and straight left sting Mendonca. He shoots against the fence and spins Basharat down, but can’t keep him there. He tries to fall back for the back. can’t manage it with two minutes to go.
Basharat lands a knee before separating. Spinning back kick attempt. Left hand in combination. Basharat tries a reactive single-leg, denied. One minute to go. Mendonca rushing after him. There’s a decent right. Basharat doing good work with his jab. Successful single-leg, avoiding a guillotine in the process. Solid lefts from him as Mendonca works his way up. Heavy elbow on the break, then a head kick that Mendonca eats before coming back with a takedown. 10-9 Basharat.
Round 2: Basharat continuing to show off great distance management. Front kick to the body as he circles. Counter uppercut from Basharat, but Mendonca rsponds with a takedown. Basharat again pops right back up and lands shots as Mendonca tries to drag him back down. One minute in. Basharat limp-legs out after landing an elbow. Sharp straight right and body jab. Mendonca low kick; he’s looking pretty dispirited. Good level change, gets sprawled on two minutes in. Basharat separates, and as Mendonca complains of an eye poke, Basharat lands some good punches. Another takedown from Basharat, who again avoids a guillotine. Ground-and-pound from the top. Two minutes to go.
Mendonca goes for a leglock, no dice. Basharat looking to pass. He pins down an arm with his shin and drops elbows. Full mount with a minute to go. Mendonca sneaks in a butterfly hook. Mendonca goes for a Hail Mary heel hook, but Basharat pops his knee free. 10-9 Basharat.
Round 3: Mendonca still on the front foot, but it’s all Basharat at this point. Basharat walks him into a nasty counter left. Mendonca’s clearly tired, though he still manages to wade in and fire 1-2s. One minute in. Dart right by Basharat, then a shifting jab and snap kick to the body. Straight right. Mendonca can’t deal with the lateral movement. Straight left and body kick land for Basharat. He goes for a throw, which allows Mendonca to put him on the fence. He gets Basharat to a knee two minutes in, can’t keep him there. Another attempt and he tries to transition to a triangle, but ends up on the bottom. Basharat picking his shots. Two minutes to go.
Basharat looks for the back, briefly gets mount, then shoots back in as Mendonca stands. Another takedown, another unsuccessful guillotine from Mendonca. One minute to go. Mendonca trying to strike off his back. Nice elbow by Basharat, who slips out of a last-second heel hook attempt. 10-9 Basharat.
Final result: Basharat def. Mendonca by unanimous decision
185 lbs.: Abdul Razak Alhassan vs. Claudio Ribeiro
Round 1: Hard calf kicks from Ribeiro to start. Continuing to land them. Alhassan fires a double-leg against the fence. One minute in. Pressing Ribeiro against the fence. Ribeiro grabs the Thai clinch and uses it to separate. Back to the calf kicks on the now-southpaw Alhassan. Good straight right by Ribeiro. Head kick attempt. Alhassan shoots again. Two minutes to go.
Knees to the thigh from Alhassan. Ribeiro reverses and digs a knee to the body. Jockeying for position and trading knees. One minute to go. Alhassan doing the grinding, lands a nice elbow. Ribeiro knee, hard elbows by Alhassan that appear to hurt Ribeiro. Alhassan flurries until the bell. Think Alhassan stole it late. 10-9 Alhassan.
Round 2: More calf kicks from Ribeiro, but Alhassan hurts him with a right hand in return. Ribeiro staggers back and Alhassan blasts away with more rights until he crumbles against the fence.
Final result: Alhassan def. Ribeiro by TKO (punches)
155 lbs.: Mateusz Rebecki vs. Nick Fiore
Round 1: Rebecki opens with a body kick. Low kick, looking for overhand lefts. Combo from Fiore met by a counter left and 1-2. Rebecki putting on the pressure. Continuing to advance, good straight left a minute in. Hard two-piece met by a straight right. Fiore low kick, avoids a 1-1-2. Rebecki goes low-high. Nice uppercut and body kick to bookend a combo. Fiore comes back with a lead right. Two minutes in. Rebecki rips a right to the body, then a straight left and uppercut. Fiore landing off the back foot but getting the worst of it. More body work by Rebecki. Flying knee attempt. Combo inside with two minutes to go.
Rebecki continuing to stay in his face, lands uppercuts and body shots. Easy double-leg into guard. Elbow splits Fiore open with a minute to go. Rebecki stays heavy and continues to chip away until the bell. 10-9 Rebecki.
Round 2: Hard body kick from Rebecki as he picks up where he left off. Heavy body shots. 1-2 into a level change, rebuffed a minute in. Looking for uppercuts, rips the body again. Awakward spin. Fiore now throwing with him and looks for a double-leg of his own. He gets it and looks for mount. Nice scramble from Rebecki to get up two minutes in. Uppercut and overhand left. He looks like he’s feeling the pace. Low kick stings Fiore, who comes back with an uppercut. Power double puts Rebecki back on top in guard. Two minutes to go.
Rebecki putting pressure with his forearm. Short ground-and-pound. One minute to go. Rebecki stays heavy and once again ends the round chipping away. 10-9 Rebecki.
Round 3: Fiore fighting like he knows he’s losing. Takedown attempt denied. Short right and low kick land for Rebecki. Feint into a successful double-leg, popping his head out of a guillotine in the process. Full guard a minute in. Staying heavy, landing short punches and elbows. Two minutes in. Fiore not showing much urgency to get off his back. Two minutes to go.
There’s a sweep attempt from Fiore that goes nowhere. One minute to go. Better punches from Rebecki now. This continues until the bell. 10-9 Rebecki.
Final result: Rebecki def. Fiore by unanimous decision
125 lbs.: Carlos Hernandez vs. Allan Nascimento
Round 1: Nascimento pushing forward to start. Quick low kicks. Hernandez to the body, eats a front kick that Nascimento uses to set up a takedown. Hernandez back up, Nascimento still attached a minute in. Nascimento sits back and pulls Hernandez down into full back mount. Two minutes in. Body triangle. Hernandez trying to walk on the wall as he fights the hands. He looks to roll and Nascimento uses the opportunity to wrap up the RNC. It’s way, way too deep and the tap comes soon after.
Final result: Nascimento def. Hernandez by submission (rear naked choke)
145 lbs.: Daniel Argueta vs. Nick Aguirre
Round 1: Argueta punches his way into a double-leg attempt. Good life to put Aguirre on his back. Full guard. Argueta hauls him to the fence. One minute in. Aguirre trying to invert, turns it into a takedown attempt, avoids an inverted triangle. Argueta hunting a kimura from the rear crucifix. Two minutes in. Attempted back take denied, prompting Aguirre to latch onto his back instead. Full body triangle. Argueta fighting the hands. Two minutes to go.
Argueta slowly turns and settles in Aguirre’s full guard. He drops some right hands before grabbing a front headlock and trying to spin to the back. Aguirre rolls, ends up in bottom side control with a minute to go. Argueta trying to drop ground-and-pound, then tries to wrap up an RNC. 10-9 Argueta.
Round 2: Argueta pushing forward with strikes to start the round. Body shot into the clinch. One minute in. Aguirre separates and circles away. Looking for jabs and 1-2. Argueta comes back with low kicks and they trade inside. Good low kick by Argueta into the clinch. He backs off a bit and throws until Aguirre separates. Aguirre with a knee and some right hands before Argueta shoots again. Good double-leg finish puts him on top in guard. They scoot to the fence with two minutes to go.
Short shots from Argueta, looking for the back. One hook in, then the other. Putting in the RNC at a bad angle, loses it, drops an elbow with a minute to go. Full mount. Back to the back, another RNC attempt, still can’t get the angle. One more elbow before the bell. 10-9 Argueta.
Round 3: Aguirre tosses out some head kicks to start. Argueta back on the advance, lands some short head and body punches before tying up on the fence. They separate quickly. Low kick from Argueta, then some awkward punches inside a minute in. More pressure from Argueta. Aguirre landing as well, but it’s all arm punches from both sides. There’s some nice elbows by Argueta to set up a double-leg two minutes in. Hunting the back again, one hook in. Aguirre tries to sweep, gets forced back down into guard. Argueta posturing up and dropping steady shots. Two minutes to go.
Argueta threatens a guillotine as Aguirre sits into him. Back to half guard. One minute to go. Aguirre rolls to his knees and again is forced back into guard. To his knees, then his feet, only to get dumped one last time by Argueta. 10-9 Argueta.
Final result: Argueta def. Aguirre by unanimous decision
125 lbs.: Charles Johnson vs. Jimmy Flick
Round 1: Johnson showing a lot of movement as usual. Low kick exchange. Straight left bounces off Flick’s guard. Nice shot by Flick, but Johnson rides through and ends up on top in half butterfly guard a minute in. Flick regains full guard. Johnson postures out of a potential triangle attempt, then frames and separates as Flick tries to sit up into him. Flick slips throwing a head kick and eats a liver shot for his trouble. Johnson’s combos are flowing, though Flick’s catching a lot on his forearms. Nice low-high combination gets Flick’s attention. Johnson continuing to push forward and throw. He catches a body kick, then cracks Flick with a head kick around the guard. Two minutes to go.
Good level change from Flick. Lift, slam, instant back take. Johnson immediately slips out of the hooks and takes top position, dropping punches and elbows. These are good shots with a minute to go. Flick trying to get away with a knee shield, but the volume of ground-and-pound is too much for the ref’s liking.
Final result: Johnson def. Flick by TKO (punches and elbows)
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