UFC Vegas 61 Results: Yan Xiaonan edges out Mackenzie Dern in the main event

LockerRoom Team

02 Oct 2022

UFC FIGHT NIGHT: DERN VS YAN aired live in Asia on Sunday, October 2 from UFC APEX in Las Vegas. Future contenders got their starts in the rankings climb, and China's Yan Xiaonan capped off the night with a victory in her first main event.

Strawweight contenders #5 Mackenzie Dern and #6 Yan Xiaonan entered the Octagon with high stakes in the title contention picture. It was grappler versus striker as Dern went for constant takedowns and Yan used her powerful punches and kicks; the momentum surging back and forth for each. Dern controlled Yan on the ground and worked her creative and dangerous transitions, while Yan had a knockdown in the third and damaging blows throughout. In the final round, Dern was ferocious on the takedown, ground and pound, and went for a last minute armbar attempt that Yan escaped with just 10 seconds left.

"I know her jiu jitsu is amazing - she's a black belt, I'm a white belt. I trained so hard in grappling during this camp. And now, I could do this! I didn't train a lot on striking because if it's standing up, I know I can win no matter what. I didn't get an Octagon interview in my last two fights, because I lost, so I just want to say thank you to everyone for supporting me here and back home,” Yan noted after the fight.

It was a battle of attrition between Randy Brown and Francisco Trinaldo in the co-main event, with “Rude Boy” doing enough over the opening two frames to secure the unanimous decision victory. The 32-year-old Brown has now earned four straight victories in the talent-rich welterweight ranks, putting himself in a position for a step up in competition next time out.

"That was a test, but I don't think that was my best work. He was a true veteran and it was an absolute honor. I definitely felt his experience in there,” Brown said.

odiq Yusuff got the second-fastest submission in UFC featherweight history with a 30 second guillotine choke of Don Shainis, and then he called out the owner of the first Twister in the Octagon, Korean Zombie.

It was a huge comeback win for Daniel “Willycat” Santos after he got rocked multiple times in the opening round of his bantamweight clash with John Castaneda. Each time Castaneda landed, Santos took it and continued marching forward, offering heavy shots of his own in response. Late in the second round, Santos hurt Castaneda, and when he saw the opportunity to finish, he pounced.

OFFICIAL RESULTS From UFC Vegas 61

Fight of the Night: Daniel Santos vs John Castaneda
Performances of the Night: Joaquim Silva, Brendan Allen, Chelsea Chandler, Guido Cannetti

MAIN EVENT

Yan Xiaonan def. Mackenzie Dern by majority decision (48-47, 48-47, 47-47)

CO-MAIN EVENT

Randy Brown defeats Francisco Trinaldo by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

MAIN CARD

Raoni Barcelos defeats Trevin Jones by unanimous decision (30-25, 30-27, 30-27)
Sodiq Yusuff defeats Don Shainis by submission (guillotine choke) at 0:30 of Round 1
Mike Davis defeats Viacheslav Borshchev by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-26, 30-26)

PRELIMS

Daniel Santos defeats John Castaneda by TKO (strikes) at 4:28 of Round 2
Ilir Latifi defeats Aleksei Oleinik by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Joaquim Silva defeats Jesse Ronson by TKO (strikes) at 3:02 of Round 2
Brendan Allen defeats Krzysztof Jotko by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:17 of Round 1
Chelsea Chandler defeats Julija Stoliarenko by TKO (strikes) at 4:15 of Round 1
Guido Cannetti defeats Randy Costa by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:04 of Round 1

What are your thoughts on the event? Let us know in the comments below.