By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch Senior Columnist
UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Figueiredo was this past weekend and
featured some exciting fights. Who won and who lost? Let’s get to the
rundown.
UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Figueiredo
GOOD- Jeremy Stephens vs. Mason Jones
They start off trading hard kicks until they start mixing in punches.
Jones gets a rear waistlock takedown and puts Stephens back down when
he scrambles back to his feet shortly before the first round ends. The
second round begins with both men firing away with hard punches this
time before mixing in some kicks. They’re fighting in close until
Jones gets another takedown and the second round ends. The third round
starts with Jones getting a quick takedown. Stephens is up but dragged
back down. They’re up and down a few more times before the fight ends.
We go to the judges to render their verdict.
Jones wins the decision to improve to 16-2 with 1 No Contest and has
won 5 straight fights while Stephens drops to 29-22 with 1 No Contest.
Good win for Jones.
GOOD- Cameron Smotherman vs. Serhiy Sidey
They’re trading strikes early until Sidey starts relentlessly trying
for a takedown but Smotherman defends. The second round begins with
Sidey getting an immediate takedown but Smotherman is quickly back up.
Sidey continues trying for takedowns and they’re down and up a few
more times before the second round ends. The third round starts with
Sidey getting another takedown but Smotherman avoids danger and
returns to his feet. Sidey evades until the fight ends. We go to the
judges to render their verdict.
Sidey wins the decision to improve to 12-2 while Smotherman drops to
12-5 and has his 4 fight winning streak snapped. Okay win for Sidey,
who won thanks to those takedowns.
GOOD- Montel Jackson vs. Daniel Marcos
They clinch to start off but Jackson quickly sweeps Marcos to the mat.
Jackson lets him up. They clinch again and Jackson gets a takedown
before the first round ends. The second round begins with Marcos
getting a takedown and this time Marcos lets him up. They clinch until
the second round ends. The third round starts with some striking
exchanges before they both try for takedowns. Eventually Jackson gets
a takedown but the fight ends. We go to the judges to render their
verdict.
Jackson wins the decision to improve to 15-2 and has won 6 straight
fights while Marcos drops to 17-1 with 1 No Contest. Good win for
Jackson.
GOOD- Daniel Rodriguez stops Santiago Ponzinibbio
Tentative start as neither man wants to make a fight-ending mistake.
Things heat up as Rodriguez nails Ponzinibbio with a big left hand
that wobbles him but he survives until the first round ends. The
second round begins and ends with some solid striking but nothing too
substantial. The third round starts with Rodriguez crushing
Ponzinibbio with a combination that drops him and forces the referee
to jump in to stop the fight a bit over a minute into the third round.
Rodriguez improves to 19-5 while Ponzinibbio drops to 30-9. Good win
for Rodriguez.
GOOD- Reinier de Ridder stops Bo Nickal
The first round is all clinch work, as both men jockey for position. A
failed guillotine attempt by Nickal gives de Ridder top position as
the first round ends. The second round begins with more clinch work
until de Ridder hurts Nickal badly with a knee to the sternum. The
knees keep flying until Nickal collapses and the referee jumps in to
stop the fight not quite two minutes into the second round.
de Ridder improves to 20-2 and has won 4 straight fights while Nickal
drops to 7-1. Good win for de Ridder.
GOOD- Cory Sandhagen stops Deiveson Figueiredo
They trade a few strikes until Figueiredo gets a takedown. He
threatens with submissions but Sandhagen cuts him off with
ground-and-pound until the first round ends. The second round starts
with Figueiredo getting another takedown but they’re quickly back up
and this time Sandhagen gets the takedown. As they’re scrambling
around their legs get tangled and Figueiredo suffers a knee injury of
some sort and taps as the referee rushes in a little over four minutes
into the second round.
Sandhagen improves to 18-5 while Figueiredo drops to 24-5-1
*************
PFL 4 (2025)
Light Heavyweight Winners
Phil Davis (25-7, 1 NC) stops Rob Wilkinson (19-4, 1 NC) by TKO in Round 2 0:51
Antonio Carlos Junior (17-6, 2 NC) beat Karl Moore (12-4) by Decision
Simeon Powell (11-1) stops Karl Albrektsson (14-7) by TKO in Round 2 2:05
Sullivan Cauley (7-1) stops Alex Polizzi (11-5) by TKO in Round 1 1:36
Davis will fight Cauley and Carlos Junior will fight Powell at a later date.
Heavyweight Winners
Valentin Moldavsky (14-4, 1 NC) beat Sergey Bilostenniy (13-4) by Decision
Alexander Romanov (19-3) submitted Timothy Johnson (18-12) in Round 1 1:53
Oleg Popov (20-2) beat Karl Williams (10-3) by Split Decision
Rodrigo Nascimento (12-3, 1 NC) beat Abraham Bably (5-2) by Split Decision
Moldavsky will fight Romanov and Popov will fight Nascimento at a later date.
*************
Former Bellator Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Champion Ryan Bader
(31-8, 1 NC) has signed with RIZIN and is expected to fight the winner
of the ongoing heavyweight Grand Prix at the New Year’s Eve card later
this year.
My new epic fantasy book is out. It’s called Kingdom of Zarias: The End’s
Beginning. The exciting epic fantasy series Kingdom of Zarias
returns with the 4th book in the series. After the harrowing events of
Book 3 the residents of the Kingdom of Zarias continue on their paths.
Serena Summers continues to learn and grow as a fighter, desperately
seeking to become stronger before she loses anyone else in her life.
Daniel Summers discovers new parts of the world that open his eyes to
just how little he truly knows. A new hero, Lamar Abeers, arrives to
join the fight against evil. Plus, Zach Summers, Tiana Highsmith, and
Xavien Ekens continue their journeys with their friends, and a new
ruler of Vhaharen is crowned. The world has found a little peace.
However, that peace is only temporary. In a shocking act of violence,
the monstrous villain Galren strikes from the shadows and changes the
world forever. This is Book 4 in the series. There’s lots of action,
magic, and monsters in the Kingdom of Zarias. It’s like a tabletop
game in novel form. It’s on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and many other
places. If you’re interested, I would greatly appreciate it if you
would check it out and support me.Thank you very much, have a good
day.
Comments and suggestions can be emailed to me at
hydenfrank@gmail.com and you can follow me on Twitter at @hydenfrank.
Thanks for reading and have a good day.
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