UFC Fight Night 216 Prelims: Cory McKenna Outflanks Cheyanne Vlismas in Las Vegas

Cory McKenna found the weakness and exploited it.

The Team Alpha Male standout leaned on takedowns, positional dominance and spotty ground-and-pound, as she took a step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight division with a unanimous decision over Cheyanne Vlismas in the featured UFC Fight Night 216 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. McKenna (8-2, 3-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28 nods from all three judges.

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Vlismas (7-3, 2-2 UFC) kept it standing for much of the first round, countered effectively and pieced together two- and three-punch combinations. McKenna wisely switched gears in the second, controlled the Xtreme Couture rep in the clinch and slowly but surely turned the tide in her favor. She powered into top position in Round 3 on an ill-advised choke attempt from Vlismas, attacked with short punches and walked away with her sixth win in seven outings.

Semelsberger Handles Favored Matthews

Crazy 88 MMA export Matthew Semelsberger rode three knockdowns to a unanimous decision over “The Ultimate Fighter Nations” alum Jake Matthews in a three-round welterweight clash. Scores were 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28—all for Semelsberger (11-4, 4-2 UFC), who bounced back from an Aug. 30 loss to Alex Morono.

Matthews (18-6, 11-6 UFC) was in trouble often. Semelsberger dropped him with a crushing right cross in the first round that seemed to put the Aussie on autopilot. Matthews withstood the follow-up onslaught but had dug a hole from which he could not escape. Semelsberger also knocked him down with right hands in the second and third round, seemingly exposing a blind spot. Matthews fought well down the stretch—he pieced his punches together and executed a few nifty trips from the clinch—but could never get his head above water.

Semelsberger has won eight of his past 10 bouts.

Nurmagomedov Guillotine Stuns Kakhramonov

Akhmat Fight Team product Said Nurmagomedov put away former Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder Saidyokub Kakhramonov with a guillotine choke in the second round of their bantamweight tilt. Nurmagomedov (17-2, 6-1 UFC) brought it to a close 3:50 into Round 2.

Kakhramonov (10-3, 2-1 UFC) controlled virtually every second of the fight—up until the moment he tapped out. He took down Nurmagomedov with surprising ease, excelled in scrambles, piled up control time and applied his ground-and-pound. However, he left his neck exposed late in the second round. Nurmagomedov clamped down on the guillotine, adjusted his grip and prompted the submission.

Nurmagomedov has won four fights in a row, three of them finishes.

Bloodied Garcia Outduels Hayisaer

Former Combate Global champion Rafa Garcia rebounded from a July 30 defeat to Drakkar Klose with a unanimous decision over Maheshate Hayisaer in a three-round lightweight bloodbath. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 30-27 for Garcia (14-3, 3-3 UFC).

Hayisaer, who missed weight for the match by 2.5 pounds, had his moments but too few of them to make real headway. He opened a horizontal cut on the side of Garcia’s head with a standing elbow in the second round, drenching both men and much of the Octagon in DNA. Hayisaer needed more than unsettling visuals. Garcia outboxed him during the majority of their standup exchanges and mixed in takedowns when opportunities presented themselves.

The loss snapped Hayisaer’s seven-fight winning streak.

Dominant Fakhretdinov Mauls Battle

Repeated takedowns, damaging ground-and-pound and suffocating control spurred American Top Team’s Rinat Fakhretdinov to a unanimous decision over “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 29 winner Bryan Battle in their three-round welterweight encounter. Scores were 30-25, 30-25 and 30-27—all for Fakhretdinov (20-1, 2-0 UFC).

A short-notice replacement for Michael Morales, Battle (8-2, 3-1 UFC) was out of his depth. Fakhretdinov powered him to the mat in all three rounds, opened a cut near his left eye with a slicing elbow strike and denied his counterattacks at every turn. The former Gorilla Fighting Championships titleholder decked Battle with a mean right cross inside the first 30 seconds of Round 3, then resumed the browbeating from top position.

An emerging threat at 170 pounds, the 31-year-old Fakhretdinov has recorded 19 consecutive wins.

Surging Kape Handles Dvorak

Onetime Rizin Fighting Federation titleholder Manel Kape continued his climb on the 125-pound ladder with a unanimous decision over David Dvorak in a three-round flyweight affair. Kape (18-6, 3-2 UFC) swept the scorecards with 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 marks from the cageside judiciary.

Dvorak (20-5, 3-2 UFC) executed a takedown with roughly two minutes left in the first round, then found himself in grave danger. Kape framed a kimura from the bottom, rolled into top position and cranked on the shoulder in gruesome fashion. Dvorak somehow survived but appeared physically compromised the rest of the way. Kape had him reeling again in Round 2, this time with knees and punches. Though a finish failed to materialize, his superiority was nevertheless established. He navigated the final five minutes on cruise control, picking apart Dvorak from the outside.

Kape will ride a three-fight winning streak into his next assignment.

Relentless Morozov Smothers Newson

Takedowns and clinch control carried former M-1 Global champion Sergey Morozov to a unanimous decision over Journey Newson in their three-round bantamweight pairing. All three cageside judges scored it for Morozov (19-5, 3-2 UFC): 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28.

Newson (10-4, 1-3 UFC) enjoyed some success with stinging jabs and sharp leg kicks but failed to manage distance effectively. Morozov struck for takedowns in all three rounds, progressed to the back in the middle stanza and wore down his counterpart in the clinch, where he controlled the Impact Jiu-Jitsu rep from the rear waistlock and fired knees to the thighs and glutes.

Morozov, 33, has rattled off eight victories in 10 appearances.