UFC Vegas 23 went down yesterday (Sat., April 10, 2021) inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, which saw Marvin Vettori defeat Kevin Holland via unanimous decision (highlights). In the co-main event, Arnold Allen defeated Sodiq Yusuff to win his tenth in a row, while Mackenzie Dern submitted Nina Nunes in the very first round to win her fourth in a row.
Biggest Winner: Marvin Vettori
“The Italian Dream” put on a dominant performance against Kevin Holland to earn a unanimous decision win despite a slow start in the opening round. That is now five straight wins for Vettori, who should move up a spot or two and crack the Top 5 next week. While he is eying a shot at the title, he may not get it just yet since there are several other fighters ranked ahead of him with a bit bigger name value who will likely get a shot at Israel Adesanya first. Still, it was a huge win for the hard-hitting Italian, putting the entire division on notice… if they weren’t already.
Runner Up: Arnold Allen
It’s time Allen get a bit more respect put on his name. The man his quietly won eight straight inside the Octagon, the longest win streak in the Featherweight division under the UFC banner next to Alexander Volkanovski’s, which stands at nine. Overall, Allen has won 10 in a row and 17 of 18 overall. Allen is unassuming and quiet, but when he gets inside the cage he is an absolute dog that no one wants to face right now. One more big win could catapult him into the Top 5, setting him up for bigger fights and inching closer to his championship dreams.
Biggest Loser: Mike Perry
“Platinum” came up short in his fight against Daniel Rodriguez, losing on all of the judges scorecards after getting worked on the feet. The loss was Perry’s second in a row and fourth in last five outings. Going back a bit further, Perry is just 3-7 since 2017, which makes you wonder just how long UFC is going to keep him around. Dana White wasn’t in a hurry to cut Perry even after his out-of-cage antics and missing weight by five pounds in his fight prior, but the man just can’t seem to win consistently. I’m not advocating for anyone to get fired, I hate for anyone to lose their job, but it makes you wonder how the promotion can justify cutting a longtime veteran and former champion such as Alistair Overeem — who was 4-2 in his previous six fights and close to a title fight with another win before losing — while Perry still has White’s support. I get it, Overeem commands much more pay, but one more loss for Perry inside the Octagon could mark the end of the UFC road for him.
For complete UFC Vegas 23 results and coverage click here.