UFC Vegas 56 went down last night (Sat., June 4, 2022) in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the main event of the ESPN+-streamed event, Alexander Volkov knocked out Jairzinho Rozenstruik in the very first round (see it here). In the co-main event, Movsar Evloev dominated Dan Ige to earn a unanimous decision win (recap here).
Biggest Winner: Alexander Volkov
“Drago” got back into the win column in a big way by stunning Rozenstruik in round one with a vicious straight right hand, rocking him enough to give him the opening to land a few more bombs to force the stoppage. Granted, some may have thought it was a bit premature (I am one of them), but it seemed that even if Herb Dean let it go a bit longer the finish was likely around the corner. With the win, Volkov (No. 7), opens the door for himself to move up a spot or two in the rankings. And in the Heavyweight division, two or three impressive knockouts gets you close to a title shot.
Runner Up: Movsar Evloev
If six fights into his UFC career Evloev hadn’t put the entire 145-pound division on notice, his dominant win over Dan Ige surely did the trick. Evloev made it look easy against the No. 10 ranked fighter in the division, dominating every round to score a clean sweep on the judges scorecards. Now, the 16-0 fighter can expect to move into the Top 10 and get a bigger challenge in his next outing. Boasting some of the best grappling wrestling in the division, Evloev — the former M-1 Global Bantamweight king — is making all the right moves to move into UFC title contention sooner, rather than later.
Honorable Mention: Karine Silva
Silva had one of the best UFC debuts anyone can ask for, stopping a six-fight veteran in Poliana Botelho via first-round submission (Brabo choke). That is now six straight wins for Silva, who has finished every single one of her 15 opponents, 11 of them in the very first round. With the win, Silva immediately opens up some eyes in the women’s Flyweight division, all while banking a cool $50,000 in post-fight bonus cash for her first UFC bout.
Biggest Loser (s): Dan Ige and Felice Herrig
Coming into the event, both Ige and Herrig were in desperate need of victories. Ige was coming into the fight having lost two in a row and three of his last four, a big fall from grace after an impressive run early in his UFC career. Now, Ige is the owner of a three-fight losing streak for the first time in his career, which is sure to send him tumbling down the rankings. As for Herrig, she hasn’t tasted victory in nearly five years and was on a three-fight skid coming into the event. But after losing to Karolina Kowalkiewicz via unanimous decision, “Lil’ Bulldog” finds herself the not-so proud owner of four straight losses, which prompted her to retire from the sport.
For complete UFC Vegas 56 results and coverage click here.