Roman Dolidze Defeats Marvin Vettori in Five-Round Thriller at UFC Fight Night

Roman Dolidze secured a unanimous decision victory over Marvin Vettori in the main event of UFC Fight Night on Sunday, March 16, at the UFC APEX. The top middleweight contenders engaged in a back-and-forth battle, with Dolidze’s powerful combinations and striking volume proving decisive in the later rounds.

The fight mirrored their first encounter, with Vettori initially controlling the action with heavy kicks, while Dolidze responded with aggressive combinations. After Vettori scored a knockdown in the third round, Dolidze rebounded strongly in the fourth and fifth, earning the judges' nod with scores of 49-46 across the board.

“First of all, I want to say big thanks to Marvin, he agreed to fight me,” Dolidze said. “This was a big and important test for me mentally to go five rounds. I deserve a top-five fight 100%. Give me Robert Whittaker or Israel Adesanya—just give me a date!”

In the co-main event, Chidi Njokuani showcased his striking prowess against Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos, finishing the fight in the first round. Njokuani landed a precise double knee that dropped dos Santos before sealing the win with ground strikes for a technical knockout victory at 2:19 of Round 2.

“I was prepared for a three-round war, but I don't know what I hit him with—it ended the fight early,” Njokuani said. “We trained for his spinning attacks, and it worked out exactly as planned. My next fight, I need a top-15 opponent!”

ROAD TO UFC Season 3 bantamweight tournament winner SuYoung You impressed in his UFC debut, earning a dominant unanimous decision over A.J. Cunningham. Despite Cunningham’s size and reach advantage, You controlled the bout with high-impact takedowns and striking.

“Everything went to plan for the most part,” You said. “I prepared counter strikes, but they didn’t work as well as I hoped.”

Performance Bonuses:

• Carli Judice
• Priscila Cachoeira
• Andre Lima
• Carlos Vera

Official Results:

Main Event
Roman Dolidze def. Marvin Vettori by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)

Co-Main Event
Chidi Njokuani def. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos by TKO (knee and punches) – Round 2, 2:19

Main Card
Alexander Hernandez def. Kurt Holobaugh by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Da’Mon Blackshear def. Cody Gibson by submission (kimura) – Round 2, 4:09
Brendson Ribeiro def. Diyar Nurgozhay by submission (kimura) – Round 2, 1:28
Kevin Vallejos def. SeungWoo Choi by TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:09

Prelims
Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Ryan Spann by TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:48
SuYoung You def. AJ Cunningham by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Carlos Vera def. Josias Musasa by submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:16
Sam Hughes def. Stephanie Luciano by split decision (29-28, 29-27, 28-29)
Andre Lima def. Daniel Barez by submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 3:05
Priscila Cachoeira def. Josiane Nunes by KO (right hand) – Round 1, 2:46
Carli Judice def. Yuneisy Duben by TKO (head kick) – Round 1, 1:40