The best facts and figures about UFC Fight Night 188, which features a Rob Font vs. Cody Garbrandt main event.
The UFC’s final event in a busy May stretch goes down Saturday with UFC Fight Night 188, which takes place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams entirely on ESPN+.
A high-stakes bantamweight clash headlines the card. Ranked contenders [autotag]Rob Font[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 8-3 UFC) and [autotag]Cody Garbrandt[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) will meet in a bout scheduled for five rounds that will determine which man takes the next step toward a title shot at 135 pounds.
For more on the numbers behind the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for 30 pre-event facts about UFC Fight Night 188.
A potential title eliminator in the strawweight division between Carla Esparza and Yan Xiaonan is on tap for May.
A potential title eliminator in the strawweight division between [autotag]Carla Esparza[/autotag] and [autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] is on tap for May.
Former UFC champ Esparza (17-6 MMA, 8-4 UFC) will take on Xiaonan (13-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) at UFC Fight Night on May 22, MMA Junkie confirmed from multiple sources close to the situation following an initial report from MMA DNA. The people requested anonymity because UFC has yet to make an official announcement.
The May 22 event does not have a location or venue, and broadcast plans have not been revealed.
Esparza, who won the UFC’s inaugural 115-pound title in December 2014, is currently riding a four-fight winning streak. She’s No. 5 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie strawweight rankings, having put together wins over Marina Rodriguez, Michelle Waterson, Alexa Grasso and Virna Jandiroba.
No. 6-ranked Xiaonan, meanwhile, is unbeaten over her past 12 fights dating back to September 2010. The Chinese fighter is perfect through six octagon appearances, with her past two victories over former title challengers Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz being her most notable to date.
With the addition, the lineup for UFC Fight Night on May 22 includes:
Take a look inside Yan Xiaonan’s unanimous decision win over Claudia Gadelha at UFC on ESPN+ 40 in Las Vegas.
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LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] defeated Claudia Gadelha via unanimous decision Saturday to open up the main card at UFC on ESPN+ 40 in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Xiaonan, who claimed her sixth straight UFC win to move one step closer to title contention in the strawweight division.
UFC on ESPN+ 40 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that launched after the UFC’s deal with Reebok.
LAS VEGAS – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 40 event took home event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $146,500.
The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
UFC on ESPN+ 40 took place at UFC Apex. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.
The full UFC on ESPN+ 40 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Reebok’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2011 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $3,500 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,000; 6-10 bouts get $5,000; 11-15 bouts earn $10,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $15,000; and 21 bouts and more get $20,000. Additionally, champions earn $40,000 while title challengers get $30,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2020 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
China boasts both the UFC strawweight champion and the woman who holds the division’s longest active winning streak.
Zhang Weili isn’t the only major player in the UFC strawweight division out of China.
Weili holds the belt, but Beijing’s [autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] announced herself as a serious contender at 115 pounds Saturday night with her biggest win to date.
Xiaonan (12-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC)rallied over the final two rounds to earn a unanimous decision over former title challenger [autotag]Claudia Gadelha[/autotag] in the main-card opener of UFC on ESPN+ 40. The judges’ scores at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas were 29-28 across the board.
The victory gave Xiaonan her 11th straight win overall and sixth in the UFC, which is the longest active streak in her division.
Gadelha (18-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) has always been known to push a fast pace, and it was no different Saturday. Gadelha controlled the tempo in the opening stanza with a pair of takedowns and got the better end of of the clinch work standing. After the second takedown in the round’s final minute, though, Xiaonan noticeably landed solid elbows from the bottom. And while that wasn’t enough to swing the round, it showed she wasn’t going away.
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Indeed, the second round was much more to Xiaonan’s liking. She outstruck her opponent by a 2-to-1 margin, landing crisp jabs and and answering Gadelha’s single shots with with counter flurries as the latter began to falter
It was clear the fight was still in the balance as the final round wore on, and that it would be a matter of who wanted it more. Gadelha did her best to tie up Xiaonon in the clinch when she could, but never did much of anything with it. Referee Jason Herzog ordered a restart in the final minute, and Xiaonan was the far more active fighter as the seconds ticked off, firing jab after jab in what may have been the deciding sequence of the fight.
Xiaonan outlanded Gadelha in significant strikes over the course of the fight 63-33.
All six of Xiaonan’s UFC wins have been unanimous decisions. Gadelha had a two-fight winning streak snapped and is 3-3 in her past six.
The strawweight bout opened up the UFC on ESPN+ 40 main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN+ 40 results include:
Yan Xiaonan def. Claudia Gadelha via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
In the main event, [autotag]Thiago Santos[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 13-6 UFC) takes on [autotag]Glover Teixeira[/autotag] (31-7 MMA, 14-5 UFC) at light heavyweight. The winner will stay in the title picture. Santos is more a -250 favorite at BetMGM; the comeback on Teixeira is +200. Among our 14 editors, writers, videographers and radio hosts, only two are taking Teixeira in an upset.
In the co-feature, former UFC heavyweight champion [autotag]Andrei Arlovski[/autotag] (29-19 MMA, 18-13 UFC) takes on [autotag]Tanner Boser[/autotag] (19-6-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC). Boser is a -313 favorite, but he has just a 9-5 lead over Arlovski in the picks.
Also on the main card, [autotag]Raoni Barcelos[/autotag] (15-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) meets [autotag]Khalid Taha[/autotag] (14-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in a bantamweight bout. Barcelos is a heavy -371 favorite and has a big 11-3 picks lead.
[autotag]Brendan Allen[/autotag] (15-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) fights [autotag]Ian Heinisch[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) in a middleweight bout that is a pick’em with the oddsmakers. It’s close among our pickers, too, with an 8-6 lead for Allen.
And to open the main card, former women’s strawweight title challenger [autotag]Claudia Gadelha[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) takes on [autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC). Xiaonan is a -162 favorite, but it’s Gadelha with an 8-6 picks lead.
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Santos (72 percent), Boser (71 percent), Barcelos (83 percent), Allen (51 percent) and Gadelha (53 percent) are the choices.
Claudia Gadelha is set to return to the octagon this fall looking for her third win in a row.
[autotag]Claudia Gadelha[/autotag] is set to return to the octagon this fall.
The former UFC title challenger and long-time strawweight contender has been booked to fight China’s [autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] at a UFC event planned for Sept. 26 in Las Vegas. The news was first reported by Combate and later confirmed by MMA Junkie.
Gadelha (18-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC), 31, is coming off a split decision win over Angela Hill in May at UFC on ESPN 8. The Brazilian is now on a two-fight winning streak and 3-1 in her last four outings.
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On the other hand, Xiaonan (12-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) looks to remain unbeaten in the UFC. The Chinese fighter is on an 11-fight winning streak with five of those victories in the UFC. Xiaonan last fought in February where she defeated former title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz via unanimous decision.
All the notable stats and figures to come out of UFC Auckland, which saw Dan Hooker beat Paul Felder in the main event.
The UFC made its third visit to New Zealand on Saturday with UFC on ESPN+ 26. The 12-fight card took place at Spark Arena in Auckland and streamed entirely on ESPN+.
In the main event, [autotag]Dan Hooker[/autotag] (20-8 MMA, 10-4 UFC) elevated his status as a lightweight contender when he edged out a memorable “Fight of the Night” clash with [autotag]Paul Felder[/autotag] (17-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) by split decision in front of his hometown fans.
The headliner wasn’t the only fight to produce notable results, though. For more, check below for 45 post-event facts to come out of UFC on ESPN+ 26.
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General
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The UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payout for the event totaled $137,000.
Debuting fighters went 0-1 at the event.
Hooker, Felder, [autotag]Jimmy Crute[/autotag] and [autotag]Priscila Cachoeira[/autotag] earned $50,000 UFC on ESPN+ 26 fight-night bonuses.
UFC on ESPN+ 26 drew an announced attendance of 10,025 for a live gate of $1,239,625.
Betting favorites went 8-4 on the card.
Betting favorites improved to 4-1 in UFC headliners this year.
Total fight time for the 12-bout card was 1:59:19.
Main card
Dan Hooker
Hooker improved to 7-1 since he moved up to the UFC lightweight division in June 2017.
Felder has suffered four of his five career losses by decision.
Crute (11-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) has earned eight of his 11 career victories by stoppage. That includes all three of his UFC wins.
Crute became the fifth fighter in UFC history to earn multiple submission victories by Kimura. Krzysztof Soszynski, Rani Yahya, Frank Mir and George Sotiropoulos also accomplished the feat.
[autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag] (14-4 MMA, 2-2 UFC) suffered consecutive losses for the first time in his career.
Oleksiejczuk has suffered both of his UFC losses by submission.
Yan Xiaonan
[autotag]Yan Xiaonan[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) improved to 9-0 (with one no contest) since returning from a nearly five-year layoff in July 2015.
Xiaonan’s five-fight UFC winning streak at strawweight is tied with Tatiana Suarez for the longest active streak in the division.
Xiaonan has earned all five of her UFC victories by decision.
[autotag]Karolina Kowalkiewicz[/autotag]’s (12-6 MMA, 5-6 UFC) four-fight losing skid is the longest of her career. She hasn’t earned a victory since April 2018.
[autotag]Marcos Rogerio de Lima[/autotag] (17-6-1 MMA, 6-4 UFC) has alternated wins and losses over his past nine fights.
De Lima improved to 3-1 in the UFC at heavyweight.
De Lima has earned 15 of his 17 career victories by stoppage. He’s finished 14 of those wins in Round 1.
[autotag]Ben Sosoli[/autotag] (7-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) suffered the first knockout loss of his career.
[autotag]Brad Riddell[/autotag] (8-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) has earned both of his UFC victories by decision.
[autotag]Magomed Mustafaev[/autotag] (14-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) suffered the first decision loss of his career.
Preliminary card
Zubaira Tukhugov def. Kevin Aguilar
[autotag]Kevin Aguilar[/autotag] (17-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) suffered consecutive losses for the first time in his career.
Aguilar has suffered both of his career stoppage losses by knockout.
[autotag]Jalin Turner[/autotag] (9-5 MMA, 2-2 UFC) has earned all eight of his career victories by stoppage. He’s finished both of his UFC wins by knockout.
[autotag]Joshua Culibao[/autotag] (8-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) had his eight-fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.
[autotag]Jake Matthews[/autotag] (15-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) improved to 5-1 since he moved up to the UFC welterweight division in November 2017.
Matthews has earned four of his five UFC welterweight victories by decision.
[autotag]Emil Meek[/autotag]’s (9-5-1 MMA, 1-3 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since December 2016.
Meek has been taken down 21 times in his four UFC appearances.
Meek has suffered all three of his UFC losses by decision.
[autotag]Callan Potter[/autotag] (18-9 MMA, 1-2 UFC) has suffered all nine of his career losses by stoppage.
Song Kenan has earned 13 of his 15 career victories by stoppage. That includes three of his four UFC wins.
[autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag] (21-8 MMA, 4-1 UFC) has earned all four of his UFC victories by decision.
[autotag]Tyson Nam[/autotag] (18-11-1 MMA, 0-2 UFC) has suffered eight of his 11 career losses by decision. That includes both of his UFC defeats.
Angela Hill
[autotag]Angela Hill[/autotag] (12-7 MMA, 7-7 UFC) became the first to earn two UFC victories in 2020.
Hill improved to 6-5 since she returned to the UFC for a second stint in February 2017.
Hill’s seven victories in UFC strawweight competition are tied with Jessica Andrade for second most in divisional history behind Joanna Jedrzejczyk (nine).
[autotag]Loma Lookboonmee[/autotag] (4-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) suffered the first decision loss of her career.
[autotag]Cachoeira[/autotag] (9-3 MMA, 1-3 UFC) snapped her three-fight losing skid for her first victory since September 2017.
Cachoeira’s 40-second knockout marked the fastest stoppage in UFC women’s flyweight history.
[autotag]Shana Dobson[/autotag]’s (3-4 MMA, 1-3 UFC) three-fight losing skid is the longest of her career. She hasn’t earned a victory since December 2017.
Dobson suffered the first knockout loss of her career.
UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.
