It was a good night for former UFC fighters.

Regional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion XMMA went down last night (Weds., May 3, 2023) inside John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center in Myrtle Beach, SC. Five former Ultimate Fighter Championship (UFC) fighters were on the card, and three picked up impressive wins.

In the main event, Francisco Rivera (15-10-1) took on former Bellator and Eagle FC standout Ricky Bandejas (15-8-1) and was on his way to potentially stopping Bandejas with a dominant first round; however, early into the second stanza, Rivera was accidentally poked in the eye and was unable to continue.

Rivera, 41, went 4-6-1 in UFC and was released after being suspended for four years due to a failed drug test.

In the co-main event, Saidyokub Kakhramonov (11-3) made very easy work of Rafael Costa by submitting him via arm-triangle in less than a minute.

Kakhramonov, 27, was surprisingly released after going 2-1 in UFC, only losing to Said Nurmagomedov last December (watch highlights).

In the featured bout of XMMA 6, Vince Morales (12-7) took on always-entertaining fellow ex-UFC fighter, Teruto Ishihara. Morales put Ishihara to sleep in the second round with an anaconda choke.

Morales, 32, was released from UFC in 2022 after going 3-5 in the promotion, losing to the likes of Song Yadong, Chris Gutierrez, and Jonathan Martinez. However, he did knock out Louis Smolka in 2021 (watch highlights).

Finally, Justin Scoggins (14-6) finished Josh Smith in less than three minutes via rear-naked choke.

Scoggins, 31, went 4-5 in UFC and unfortunately, hasn’t been as active as he was when he was fighting for UFC. In the last few years, he has competed in BKFC and Rizin.

For more regional MMA news and notes click here.

It was a good night for former UFC fighters.

Regional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion XMMA went down last night (Weds., May 3, 2023) inside John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center in Myrtle Beach, SC. Five former Ultimate Fighter Championship (UFC) fighters were on the card, and three picked up impressive wins.

In the main event, Francisco Rivera (15-10-1) took on former Bellator and Eagle FC standout Ricky Bandejas (15-8-1) and was on his way to potentially stopping Bandejas with a dominant first round; however, early into the second stanza, Rivera was accidentally poked in the eye and was unable to continue.

Rivera, 41, went 4-6-1 in UFC and was released after being suspended for four years due to a failed drug test.

In the co-main event, Saidyokub Kakhramonov (11-3) made very easy work of Rafael Costa by submitting him via arm-triangle in less than a minute.

Kakhramonov, 27, was surprisingly released after going 2-1 in UFC, only losing to Said Nurmagomedov last December (watch highlights).

In the featured bout of XMMA 6, Vince Morales (12-7) took on always-entertaining fellow ex-UFC fighter, Teruto Ishihara. Morales put Ishihara to sleep in the second round with an anaconda choke.

Morales, 32, was released from UFC in 2022 after going 3-5 in the promotion, losing to the likes of Song Yadong, Chris Gutierrez, and Jonathan Martinez. However, he did knock out Louis Smolka in 2021 (watch highlights).

Finally, Justin Scoggins (14-6) finished Josh Smith in less than three minutes via rear-naked choke.

Scoggins, 31, went 4-5 in UFC and unfortunately, hasn’t been as active as he was when he was fighting for UFC. In the last few years, he has competed in BKFC and Rizin.

For more regional MMA news and notes click here.