Last night (Saturday, October 10, 2026), the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returned home to the Meta Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC Vegas 122. A veteran middleweight contender in the main event Brendan Allen the goal was to turn away the rising graduate Christian Leroy Duncan. Both men were just outside the 185-pound title picture and looking to take the final step. The rest of the map was thorough wellfeaturing a handful of lovable veterans and decent prospects … along with a slew of fighters on long losing streaks.
Let’s take a closer look at the best performances and highlight the finishing touches of the night:
Allen vs. Duncan wasn’t a bad fight, just an irritating fight full of messed up decisions from both men in the fight.
Duncan seemingly doesn’t know his strengths and weaknesses. Faster and longer, Duncan picks up Allen from distance and then purposefully closes the valve to his own detriment. On the canvas, he hung around rather than loose, giving his jiu-jitsu black belt opponent plenty of opportunities to change position and stay in the fight.
Meanwhile, Allen was unable to capitalize on his combative advantage. He took Duncan down multiple times with bodylock takedowns… then just decided not to shoot for the entire fourth round, allowing “CLD” to touch him and hurt him to the body. In the fifth, Allen remembered he was a wrestler, shot down and then choked Duncan with a pretty wild sequence.
That’s great, but… what took so long?
For a competitive five-round fight with a dramatic finish, it wasn’t all that fun. It really seemed like both fighters were hampered by their own decision making. Therefore, neither fringe contender feels like a very real threat to the middleweight title.
Another Fili performed well against Kai Kamaka III.
The veteran immediately pounced on his shorter opponent. Kamaka tried to counter with low kicks and takedown combinations, but Fili landed a jab in the face. As Kamaka tried to push through this range, he ran into heavy control hooks that calmed him down. When Fili switched to the southpaw, he timed his left hand well and ripped a few body shots.
Classic “Touchy” Fili, in a nutshell.
Early in the second round, Fili secured the third high-kick KO of his UFC career (previous victims include Sheymon Moraes and Gabriel Benitez). Hiding a right high kick behind a 1-2, he knocked Kamaka out cold with one connection. Kamaka fell to the floor in slow motion and Fili was able to hold back his last blanket of hay in a very kind display.
After 13 years in the Octagon, Fili remains a dangerous department head who always comes off as scrap. You don’t get to 28 UFC fights by accident!
I don’t want to spoil the rest of my article below, but “Prequels” was terrible. Fortunately, the main card started with a war at 135 pounds Otari Tanzilov and Malcolm Wellmaker which was both competitive and high-profile.
Tanzilovi was known for his cage wrestling in the past, but he wanted to strike here. He was quick right away, firing quick high kicks at his southpaw foe and peppering him with counter combinations. However, Wellmaker’s power appeared early. He threw two-handed power and doubled up with a right hook to catch Tanzilov on the temple, seriously stunning the Georgian prospect.
In the second round, however, Tanzilov really started to fight. He found his range and countered Wellmaker’s offense, never allowing Wellmaker to unleash his charged power punches. Suddenly, that quick right high kick found the mark, hidden by a crafty right hand/right post to the side of the head. Wellmaker’s hand was at his chin, but the blow still knocked him silly.
Niko Price given a rare second chance to retire versus the unannounced Leon Shahbazyanand he absolutely made the most of it.
Throughout his professional career, Shahbazyan wins completely by submission and loses only through strikes. Even after all his injuries and wars, Price was smart enough to know that offense was a great solution for this type of fighter. He immediately attacked Shahbazyan, and “SOG” looked incredibly uncomfortable. He tried to jump guard with a guillotine that wasn’t remotely locked in, and then Price just beat the crap out of him from top position.
He looked like some random BJJ purple belt forced into a cage fight.
Exceeding level of competition aside, it’s great to see “The Hybrid” get its flowers and go on to win. Price was never an elite contender, but he was a consistently entertaining and unique finisher who always took the fight to his opponent.
- Julius Walker defeats Gerald Meerschaert by second round knockout: Unfortunately, it was a one-way street for Walker, as the move to light heavyweight didn’t alleviate the simple fact that “GM3” is worn out after 60 pro fights. He just doesn’t have it anymore — his only highlight here was an armbar attempt that landed him on the head. Walker is still rough around the edges, but he’s a great athlete who fights out of a good camp, so he was able to easily avoid Meerschaert’s classic traps when elbowing him. Meerschaert left after the final defeat, a late move that was still nice to see. Like Price, Meerschaert was game even when he was outmatched, and his jiu-jitsu prowess resulted in more than one awesome come-from-behind victory.
- Francisco Prado defeated Ismael Bonfim by first round knockout (highlights): Man, it’s nice to see the Prado weigh 155 lbs. Despite his obvious talent and toughness, he didn’t have the length or reach to compete in the upper middleweight division. The 24-year-old Argentinian resumed his UFC career in a more suitable weight class and looked great even against a foe who was eight pounds short! Prado picked up the pace and found rival striking shifts, so he converted it with a timely takedown along the fence. When he was on top, he was able to bully the Brazilian and overwhelm him with ground strikes to maintain a 100% finish.
- Brendson Ribeiro wins Felipe Franco via guillotine first round choke: Like the fight before it, it was a low-level affair. Ribeiro is ostensibly a Muay Thai fighter and joined the UFC with most of his wins by knockout. Somehow he only wins in the UFC via knockout! Franco dived into a neck guillotine, took a moment to take stock of his situation, then kicked Ribeiro right into the closed guard. He offered absolutely no defense, resulting in a surprisingly easy upset loss.
- Allen Frye Jr. defeated RJ Harris by first round knockout: The most notable thing about this fight was that it felt like a random regional fight forced onto the UFC card. Neither Frye Jr. nor Harris looked particularly athletic, skilled, or in shape. If you had said this was the main event on the California amateur MMA card, I would have believed you. Frye Jr. was the less powerful man, but still won because Harris never bothered to raise his hands or move his head. Truly, the road to the UFC roster has never been shorter or less arduous.
- Alice Pereira defeats Darja Železnjakova by first round knockout/cut (highlights): Pereira is one of the few impressive bantamweight prospects and may have just earned a spot on the rankings at 20 years old. Light but powerful, Pereira throws with serious heat. He jabbed Železnjakova repeatedly in the pocket, shook the Russian, and then took him down the fence. The commentary team was critical of the decision – the knockout did seem to get the legs – but it gave Pereira a chance to show off his skills. He applied heavy pressure, set up and then struck the “Iron Lady”. An elbow just before the bell put a hole in Železnjakova’s forehead, prompting the veteran to say “No Mas” between rounds. Fierce, athletic and talented, Pereira is a rare bright light at 135 pounds!
To be complete UFC Vegas 122 for results and play-by-play, click here.
