UFC Fight Night: Blaydes vs Lewis Prelims

Moldovan heavyweight prospect Serghei Spivac turned in a stellar effort in the opener, as he stopped Octagon newcomer Jared Vanderaa in the second round.

Spivac got the fight to the mat early in the first round and he kept it there, using solid control and ground-and-pound to dominate the frame, and it was right back to the canvas to start round two, as Vanderaa wasn’t able to stop Spivac’s takedown attempt. Soon, Vanderaa was cut and Spivac unloaded with strikes that went unanswered until referee Chris Tognoni called a halt to the bout at 4:32 of the second stanza.

With the win, Spivac moves to 12-2. Vanderaa falls to 11-5.

Official Result: Serghei Spivac def. Jared Vanderaa by TKO (strikes) at 4:32 of Round 2

In a clash of bantamweight prospects, Aiemann Zahabi snapped a two-fight losing streak with a first-round knockout of Contender Series alum Drako Rodriguez.

Rodriguez got off to a good start on the feet as Zahabi took a while to get warmed up, but once the Canadian got into a rhythm, a 1-2 punctuated by a big right hand dropped Martinez and ended the bout, with referee Mark Smith halting the bout at 3:05 of round one.

With the win, Zahabi moves to 8-2. Rodriguez, who missed weight for the bout at 140.5 pounds, falls to 7-2.

Official Result: Aiemann Zahabi def. Drako Rodriguez by KO at 3:05 of Round 1

MORE UFC VEGAS 19: Official Scorecards | Weigh-In Results | Fight By Fight Preview | Main Event Preview | Shana Dobson | Tom Aspinall | Aleksei Oleinik's Submissions | Chris Daukaus | Drakkar Klose | Jared Gordon | Jamall Emmers | Derrick Lewis | Keltlen Vieira

Due to back spasms backstage, Jamall Emmers has withdrawn from his fight against Chas Skelly and this bout has been cancelled.

Unbeaten Australian newcomer Casey O’Neill impressed in her flyweight bout against Shana Dobson, halting her opponent in the second round.

O’Neill came out fast to start the bout but ate a couple right hands for her trouble, prompting a clinch. Once separated, Dobson continued to throw hard but was taken down by the Scotland native. The bout didn’t stay on the mat long, and the two 125-pounders kept battling at a fast pace, with O’Neill ultimately controlling the rest of the round with her ground game.

Putting the fight back on the mat to start round two, O’Neill quickly took Dobson’s back and let her hands go as she then took the full mount. More strikes followed, and with no answer coming back from Dobson, referee Chris Tognoni stepped in and stopped the fight. The official time of the finish was 3:41 of the second round.

With the win, O’Neill improves to 6-0. Dobson falls to 4-5.

Official Result: Casey O’Neill def. Shana Dobson by TKO (strikes) at 3:41 of Round 2

As expected, it was chaos when featherweights Julian Erosa and Nate Landwehr faced off, but it was Erosa leaving the Octagon with the victory via first-round TKO.

Erosa’s strikes were on target as soon as the fight began, and those straight shots rattled Landwehr. The Tennessee native roared back and briefly dropped Erosa, but Erosa jumped to his feet, kept throwing, and when a flying knee put Landwehr on the deck, referee Mark Smith stopped the fight 56 seconds in.

Erosa moves to 25-9 with the win. Landwehr falls to 14-4.

Official Result: Julian Erosa def. Nate Landwehr by TKO (strikes) at :56 of Round 1

John Castaneda scored his first UFC victory in impressive fashion, halting bantamweight veteran Eddie Wineland in the opening round.

Wineland (24-15-1) played the role of the aggressor for much of the first round, but Castaneda (18-5) was never out of it, and late in the frame, he clipped the former WEC champion with a right hand that briefly staggered him. Castaneda sensed that his opponent was hurt, and he pounced, ripping off a series of punches on the feet and the ground that prompted referee Jason Herzog to stop the fight at 4:44 of the first frame.

Official Result: John Castaneda def. Eddie Wineland by TKO (strikes) at 4:44 of Round 1

In featherweight action, up and comer Jared Gordon scored a workmanlike three-round unanimous decision over Danny Chavez.

Gordon and Chavez were throwing heat from the start, and while Chavez’ fast shots had a little more on them, the volume war was being won by Gordon, who missed weight for the bout at 150 pounds.

Chavez got a quick takedown early in round two, but Gordon bounced up immediately and got back to pressuring his foe. In the second minute, Gordon returned the favor with his own takedown, and his ground-and-pound attack kept Chavez from getting back to his feet before the end of the round.

Gordon continued to swarm his foe on the feet and the mat in the final round, making it no surprise when the judges turned in scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for the New Yorker, now 17-4. Chavez falls to 11-4.

Official Result: Jared Gordon def. Danny Chavez by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

The rapid rise of heavyweight prospect Tom Aspinall continued in the main card opener, as the Brit submitted former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski in the second round.

In the second minute of the fight, Aspinall jarred Arlovski and opened up with strikes that nearly brought a halt to the bout, but the veteran survived, and after a brief clinch against the fence, the two separated, only to clinch again moments later after a flurry from Arlovski. In the closing seconds, Arlovski landed well, showing that he was fully recovered from the early trouble he was in.

Arlovski got off to a good start in the second, but Aspinall stayed cool, scored a quick takedown, and the rear naked choke that followed was even quicker, as he took his foe’s back and sunk in the finisher, with Arlovski’s tap out coming at 1:09 of round two.

Official Result: Tom Aspinall def. Andrei Arlovski by submission (rear naked choke) at 1:09 of Round 2

Phil Hawes survived some dicey moments against fellow middleweight prospect Nassourdine Imavov before making it to the final horn and a three-round majority decision victory.

Scores were 29-28 twice and 28-28 for Hawes, now 10-2. Imavov falls to 9-3.

Outside of an elbow landed by Imavov, the first round belonged to Hawes, who pressured his foe on the feet and then dominated in the clinch and on the mat.

Imavov did briefly stun Hawes in the second round, but “Megatron” went back to his grappling game to wrap up another round on the scorecards.

There was more of the same in the third until the final two minutes, when Imavov put Hawes on rubbery legs. Luckily for the New Jersey native, another clinch followed. A couple elbows and a hard knee again wobbled Hawes, but Imavov ran out of time to finish the bout.

Official Result: Phil Hawes def. Nassourdine Imavov by majority decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28)

Heavyweight prospect Chris Daukaus made it three first-round knockouts in three UFC appearances, as he impressively halted veteran contender Aleksei Oleinik.

Oleinik closed the distance early and tried to drag the fight to the mat, but Daukaus kept standing and fired off strikes to get his distance. The shots kept coming from the Philadelphian, and after a barrage of unanswered blows, referee Herb Dean had seen enough, stopping the bout at the 1:55 mark.

With the win, Daukaus moves to 11-3. The No. 10-ranked Oleinik falls to 59-15-1.

Official Result: Chris Daukaus def. Aleksei Oleinik by TKO (strikes) at 1:55 of Round 1

Darrick Minner continued to roll in featherweight action, as he won his second straight over Charles Rosa.

Scores were 30-26, 30-27 and 29-27 for Minner, now 26-11. Rosa falls to 13-5.

Both fighters slugged it out as the bout began until they visited the canvas in the second minute. Minner immediately went to work for a submission, but Rosa defended well and kept his eyes open for his own submission. With 90 seconds left, Minner sought out an arm triangle, and when that came up empty, Rosa tried for a leg lock, capping off a fast-paced frame.

Minner rocked Rosa with right hands early in round two, and the fight was back on the mat. This time, Minner landed in the full mount, and while he didn’t stay there long, he was controlling the action and avoiding any sub attempts from Rosa. With under two minutes remaining, Rosa briefly got to his feet, only to be dragged back down to the canvas by Minner, who again looked for the arm triangle. He didn’t get it, and Rosa nearly locked up an arm late, but the horn intervened.

In the third, it was still Minner controlling the fight, and by the end of the frame, he had his second UFC victory.

Official Result: Darrick Minner def. Charles Rosa by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 29-27)

Russia’s Yana Kunitskaya scored one of the biggest wins of her career, as she outpointed fellow bantamweight contender Ketlen Vieira over three rounds.

Scores were 29-28 across the board for the No. 7-ranked Kunitskaya, now 14-5 with 1 NC. The No. 8-ranked Vieira, who missed weight for the bout at 138 pounds, falls to 11-2.

Vieira used her strikes to effectively set up a clinch, and in the opening minute she had Kunitskaya on the mat. The Russian contender got up quickly and landed some knees as she now controlled the clinch against the fence. Another Vieira takedown followed just before the midway point of the round, and this time, the Brazilian was able to get some work done as she kept her foe grounded until the horn.

The fight went right back to the mat to start the second, this time with Kunitskaya on top. Vieira stayed busy from her back and with a little over 90 seconds left, the two rose, with Vieira then putting the fight on the canvas, only to have Kunitskaya reverse position and finish the round strong with strikes on the ground and the feet.

The ground battle continued in the final frame, with Vieira’s control and consistent attempts to look for a submission apparently losing out on the scorecards to a late striking surge from Kunitskaya that drew blood just before the bout’s conclusion.

Official Result: Yana Kunitskaya def. Ketlen Vieira by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Derrick Lewis took a little while to get into a rhythm in his UFC Fight Night main event against Curtis Blaydes, but once he landed a flush shot in the second round, the fight was over, and the heavyweight contender had his fourth consecutive victory as he tied Vitor Belfort for most knockouts in UFC history.

Houston’s Lewis struck first with a right hand as Blaydes closed the distance in the opening minute, but in a subsequent sequence it was Blaydes getting the better of the exchange. In the second half of the round, Lewis threw a couple kicks to keep Blaydes at bay, but it was “Razor” consistently scoring well in the striking exchanges as his punches and kicks were on target, except for an inadvertent eye poke late that brought a brief halt to the action.

Blaydes came out throwing again in round two, but a subsequent takedown attempt was turned away by Lewis. But just when it seemed like the Illinois native was about to start taking control, he shot in and a single right hand from Lewis froze him and put him on the canvas. Two follow-up shots later and referee Herb Dean had stopped the fight. The official time was 1:26 of the second round.

With the win, the No. 4-ranked Lewis moves to 25-7, 1 NC. The No. 2-ranked Blaydes falls to 14-3, 1 NC.

Official Result: Derrick Lewis def. Curtis Blaydes by KO at 1:26 of Round 2