Alex Perez returned to winning form in spectacular style by knocking out Matheus Nicolau in the second round of their flyweight main event in a UFC Fight Night at the APEX Facility in Las Vegas on the morning of Sunday 28 April 2024.
Perez, who came into the event on the back of three straight losses and was a late replacement for Manel Kape, defied the odds to improve his record to 25-8. Perez softened Nicolau up with body punches through the first round and then just over two minutes into the second he put his opponent’s lights out with a perfectly timed right hook.
“It feels amazing, you know,” Perez said post-win. “Everybody counting me out [because] of three losses. I fought Davidson [Figueiredo], fought [Alexandre] Pantoja and I lost to [Muhammad] Mokaev. S*** happened in my last camp, but three weeks no problem, any time, any day.”
He continued, “I tell people all the time, I don’t get paid to sit on the couch, I get paid to fight. So I’m always at the gym. I’m at the gym all the time, helping other teammates, helping people out, coaching, doing what I have to do. I’m always working. Everybody gives me a hard time, [because] all I do is train and this is the reason why. [Because] I get an extra 50k right, for that knockout?”
The rest of the main card saw Bogdan Guskov stop Ryan Spann in the second round of their light heavyweight bout; Karine Silva claimed a unanimous decision triumph over Ariane Lipski in a women’s flyweight fight; David Onama did the same against Jonathan Pierce in a catchweight (148.5 lbs) match; and in the welterweight opener Uros Medic made quick work of Tim Means.
Next weekend brings UFC 301 from the Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on the morning of Sunday 5 May, headlined by a flyweight championship fight between Alexandre ‘The Cannibal’ Pantoja and Steve Erceg.
NICOLAU V PEREZ - MAIN CARD RESULTS
- Main event: Flyweight: Alex Perez def. Matheus Nicolau via KO (punch), R2, 2:16
- Light heavyweight: Bogdan Guskov def. Ryan Spann via TKO (punches), R2, 3:16
- Women’s flyweight: Karine Silva def. Ariane Lipski via unanimous decision (30-27 29-28 29-28), R3, 5:00
- Catchweight (148.5 lbs): David Onama def. Jonathan Pierce via unanimous decision (29-28 29-28 29-28), R3, 5:00
- Welterweight: Uros Medic def. Tim Means via TKO (punches), R1, 2:09