In a 140-pound catchweight bout, Chris Gutierrez extended his current unbeaten streak to five with a three-round unanimous decision win over Andre Ewell.

Ewell’s counters were sharp in the first round and he was the busier fighter, but Gutierrez (16-3-2) may have stolen the round with a head kick that rocked the Californian right before the horn. In the second, it was another close frame with each fighter having his moments, but again, it was a late rally – this time by Ewell – that may have swung it in his favor.

Gutierrez’ patented leg kicks were starting to take their toll on Ewell (17-7) as the final round began, and the Coloradan sensed it, as he pressed forward and upped his work rate. And while Ewell tried to disguise it, the fight was quickly slipping away from him, and at the end of three rounds, it was Gutierrez taking the nod via scores of 30-26, 29-28 and 29-27.

Official Result: Chris Gutierrez def. Andre Ewell by unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 29-27)

Strawweight prospect Polyana Viana made quick work of fellow up and comer Mallory Martin, submitting her opponent in the first round.

Martin got the fight to the mat in the opening minute of the bout, but Viana stayed busy with her strikes from the bottom position and soon locked up a triangle choke. Viana added in several elbows before transitioning into an armbar, and that was what forced Martin to submit at the 3:18 mark.

With the win, Viana moves to 12-4. Martin falls to 7-4.

Official Result: Polyana Viana def. Mallory Martin by submission (armbar) at 3:18 of Round 1

Welterweight contender Belal Muhammad made it four wins in a row with a shutout three-round unanimous decision over Dhiego Lima.

Scores were 30-27 across the board for the No. 13-ranked Muhammad, who improves to 18-3. Lima falls to 17-8.

Muhammad put the pressure on Lima immediately and he kept it up, mixing his strikes up nicely. Lima was patient in response, but he drilled Muhammad with enough low kicks to mark up his foe’s leg, and the two engaged in some nice back and forth exchanges late in the frame.

The leg kicks from Lima kept coming in round two, but Muhammad didn’t stop throwing and marching forward, clearly draining the Brazilian’s gas tank as the frame progressed, and in the third it was more of the same from the tireless Muhammad, who punctuated his win with a takedown in the final minute.

Official Result: Belal Muhammad def. Dhiego Lima by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Anthony Hernandez delivered a shocker in middleweight action as he submitted the previously unbeaten Rodolfo Vieira in the second round.

Vieira (7-1) dropped Hernandez to the mat within 20 seconds, and moments later he had Hernandez in deep trouble as he moved into the mount. Hernandez hung tough, forcing Vieira to look for an arm before the two rose to their feet. Vieira kept the pressure on against the fence, and once they broke with under two minutes left, Hernandez fired off strikes, rocking Vieira before attempting a choke. Again, they separated, and Hernandez had Vieira hurt and on the verge of a stoppage before the horn saved the Brazilian.

Hernandez (8-2, 1 NC) kept the heat on in round two, and he continued to rock the exhausted Vieira, cutting him with an elbow before getting him to the mat and stunning the MMA world by submitting the decorated jiu-jitsu black belt with a guillotine choke at 1:53 of the second frame.

Official Result: Anthony Hernandez def. Rodolfo Vieira by submission (guillotine choke) at 1:53 of Round 

Sidelined due to injury since July 2018, Julian Marquez scored an exciting come from behind victory over Maki Pitolo, submitting his opponent in the third round of their middleweight bout.

Pitolo went after Marquez as soon as the fight began, and after landing a couple hard shots, the two clinched against the fence, with Pitolo landing a flush elbow before taking the fight to the mat. There, the Hawaiian controlled the action for a long spell, and even when the two stood, he continued to wear on his foe with his grappling until Marquez nearly locked in a guillotine choke. Pitolo got loose, but he ate a couple hard shots just before the round ended.

An inadvertent low kick by Marquez brought a momentary halt to the action early in round two, and when the fight resumed, the two traded until Pitolo scored a pair of takedowns. As he looked for a third, Marquez locked up a guillotine choke, and while Pitolo escaped, he found himself in trouble on the mat until he reversed position and then controlled the fight from the top for the rest of the frame.

Marquez unloaded on Pitolo early in the final round while also looking for an opening for his guillotine choke, but the Hawaiian weathered the storm, then took the fight back to the mat. Soon, he had a choke in, but Marquez was able to get loose and find a spot for his strikes. With a little over a minute left, he rattled Pitolo with his strikes, and as the fight went to the mat, he sunk in the anaconda choke that forced Pitolo to tap out at 4:17 of round three.

With the win, Marquez moves to 8-2. Pitolo falls to 13-8.

Official Result: Julian Marquez def. Maki Pitolo by submission (anaconda choke) at 4:17 of Round 2

Ricky Simon vs Brian Kelleher

The third time was the charm for the oft-delayed matchup between Ricky Simon and Brian Kelleher, with Simon winning a dominant three-round decision in their featherweight battle.

All three judges saw it 30-27 for Simon, now 18-3. Kelleher falls to 22-12.

Simon was all action from the start, whether on the feet or the mat, and when you add in an elbow that opened a nasty cut on the corner of Kelleher’s eye, things went south in a hurry for New York’s “Boom.” And while Kelleher wouldn’t go away and had a better round in the second, going into the third, it was Simon’s fight to lose, and he refused to do that, as he kept pushing the pace at distance and in the clinch, throwing all the while. Kelleher worked for a kimura on the mat midway through the final frame, but it was Simon reversing it before the two stood and continued grappling on the feet until some striking before the final horn.

Official Result: Ricky Simon def. Brian Kelleher by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

After three tough losses, middleweight contender Kelvin Gastelum got back in the win column, decisioning Ian Heinisch over three hard-fought rounds.

Scores were 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 for the No. 9-ranked Gastelum, now 17-6, 1NC. The No. 15-ranked Heinisch falls to 14-4.

Heinisch got an early takedown but Gastelum scrambled out of trouble, only to find himself in it again when Heinisch looked to lock up his arm. Again, Gastelum got free and scored his own takedown and got into the mount. Midway through the round, the fighters were back on their feet, and after trading strikes, Gastelum got a takedown with a minute left. Heinisch rose immediately, and the two kept it standing until the horn.

A flying knee attempt by Heinisch ended with a Gastelum takedown in the second minute of round two. Upon standing, Heinisch tried to press the action, but he was matched each step of the way by Gastelum, who was using his experience perfectly, especially in the grappling realm.

A right hand and a quick takedown by Heinisch got him off to a good start in the third round, but Gastelum stayed cool and got back to a steady work rate. Heinisch found a moment of real daylight in the second half of the round as he took his foe’s back and looked for a submission, but with 90 seconds remaining, Gastelum got free and though Heinisch kept pressing for a late finish, he ran out of time. 

Official Result: Kelvin Gastelum def. Ian Heinisch by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Mexico’s Alexa Grasso won her second straight at 125 pounds, as she took a three-round unanimous decision over Maycee Barber in the UFC 258 co-main event.

Scores were 29-28 across the board for the No. 15-ranked Grasso, now 13-3. The No. 10-ranked Barber, who was making her first start since January 2020, falls to 8-2.

It was a solid first round for Grasso, as she held the edge in the striking from range, but more importantly, she held her own and did good work in the clinch against her seemingly stronger opponent.

In the second minute of round two, Grasso briefly rattled Barber with a left hand, and even in the clinch, she was outworking her foe. Barber wasn’t deterred, though, and she got in some hard shots before the fight went to the mat. Grasso didn’t stop working from her back, and she was able to reverse position, nearly locking in an arm triangle before working for a rear naked choke just before the end of the frame.

After more good clinch work from Grasso to start the third, Barber got a takedown, landed some ground strikes, and when the two rose, she let her strikes go, putting together her best work of the fight. And while Grasso was able to slow things down in the closing stages, Barber did surge at the end as she continued to chase a finish.

Official Result: Alexa Grasso def. Maycee Barber by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

With his 17th consecutive victory, Kamaru Usman didn’t just stop number one contender Gilbert Burns in the third round of the UFC 258 main event, but he set a UFC record for most consecutive wins in the welterweight division with 13, breaking a tie with Georges St-Pierre.

In the process, he once again proved himself to not just be the best welterweight in the world today, but perhaps one of the all-time greats.

After Usman refused a touch of gloves with his friend and former teammate, Burns came out fired up and staggered the champion with a right hand to the head. Usman got his legs back quickly, and when Burns slipped to the mat, he fired kicks at his opponent’s legs, opting against going to the ground with the jiu-jitsu black belt. With 2:16 left, Burns got back to his feet and landed a knee before separating from his foe. The two combatants traded kicks evenly, but when it came to punches, Burns’ shots were landing with more force. 

Usman continued to work a sharp jab as round two began, and with 2:45 remaining, he stung Burns with a right hand and had him hurt. As Burns tried to clear his head, Usman calmly picked at him with flush shots, and a jab put “Durinho” on the deck just before the four-minute mark. Burns got up quickly, but it was a big round for the champion.

A straight right put Burns down seconds into round three, and Usman closed the show, with a barrage of follow-up shots bringing in referee Herb Dean to stop the fight at :34 of the third stanza.

With the win, Usman moves to 18-1 as he successfully defended his title for the third time. The No. 1-ranked Burns falls to 19-4.

Official Result: Kamaru Usman def. Gilbert Burns by TKO (strikes) at :34 of Round