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 first round to win her fourth straight (see it here).
Winner: Marvin Vettori
Who He Should Face Next: Derek Brunson
Rebooking the fight against Darren Till would be ideal for Vetorri, but a broken collarbone takes time to heal so “The Gorilla” will be out of commission for a bit. As for Brunson, his last win also came over Holland, so why not book them to fight against one another? Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum are set to collide next week at UFC Vegas 24, a bout that could have major championship implications, especially for Whittaker. That said, the winner over Vettori should definitely earn a shot at the title. A win for “The Italian Dream” would be his sixth in a row. For Brunson, getting his fifth straight victory over Vettori finally gets him to the big dance.
Winner: Arnold Allen
Who He Should Face Next: Calvin Kattar
Allen picked up his eighth straight win inside the Octagon — tenth overall — after defeating Sadiq Yussuff in a hard-fought battle. He will likely move up a few pegs in the rankings, but it won’t be enough to surpass Kattar, who is sitting at No. 6 while Allen is at No. 10. A fight between them makes sense with the booking of Dan Ige and Chan Sung Jung. Kattar is coming off a tough loss to Max Holloway on “Fight Island” so he could use a big win to get him back in the mix. For Allen, handing Kattar his second straight loss should get him closer to the Top 5.
Winner: Julian Marquez
Who He Should Face Next: Trevin Giles
Marquez picked up his second straight win by choking out Sam Alvey via rear-naked choke. He has now won seven of his last eight fights and is starting to make some noise in the Middleweight division. Giles, meanwhile, has won three straight and is starting to pick up some momentum after suffering back-to-back defeats. Taking out Marquez would be huge for his stock, while “The Cuban Missle Crisis” can up his resume and climb toward the Top 15 with a nice performance and victory over “The Problem.”
Winner: Mackenzie Dern
Who She Should Face Next: Michelle Waterson
Dern is really starting to hit her stride, winning her fourth in a row with an impressive submission win over Nina Ansaroff in the very first round. Currently ranked No. 11, Dern could be in line for an intriguing fight against Waterson. “Karate Hottie” recently snapped her two-fight skid with a win over Angela Hill in Sept. 2020. She was set to face Amanda Ribas in her comeback fight but ultimately withdrew for undisclosed reasons. Primarily known for her outstanding jiu-jitsu, Dern has really improved in her striking over her last couple of fights, which is right up Waterson’s alley. Book it.
Winner: Daniel Rodriguez
Who He Should Face Next: Impa Kasanganay
Rodriguez picked up a huge win over Mike Perry, piecing him up in the striking department to earn a unanimous decision win. He has won won 10 of his last 11 fights, including going 4-1 inside the Octagon so far. While he still has a way to crack the Top 15, Rodriguez is off to a good start to his UFC career. Kasanganay, meanwhile, got back in the win column by defeating Sasha Palatnikov on the undercard. He is 2-1 so far in his young UFC career but a win over Rodriguez could pay off big time for him. Kasanganay is 9-1 overall with his lone loss coming at the hands of Joaquin Buckley via the spinning kick heard around the world.
For complete UFC Vegas 23 results and coverage click here.