Derek Brunson Ignores Chatty Kevin Holland, Nets Decision in UFC on ESPN 21 Headliner

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Derek Brunson paid no attention to all the extracurricular activity associated with Kevin Holland.

The Sanford MMA representative on Saturday executed takedowns in four of the five rounds, piled up copious amounts of control time, applied his ground-and-pound and ignored the interminable trash talk, as he took a unanimous decision from Holland in the UFC on ESPN 21 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Scores were 49-45, 49-46 and 49-46, all for Brunson (22-7, 13-5 UFC).

Holland (21-6, 8-3 UFC) was effective while he remained upright. However, Brunson withstood his bursts of violence and used his aggression against him, closing the distance to either clinch or pursue takedowns. Holland did what he could to hide his frustration, but his deficit grew with each passing round. He opened a cut near Brunson’s right eye in the fifth round and even recorded a takedown of his own. Success was short-lived and empty. Brunson returned to his feet, secured his final takedown with a little more than a minute left in the match and chewed up the remaining time.

The defeat was Holland’s first since 2019, snapped a fight-fight winning streak and established a clear ceiling within the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s middleweight division.

Griffin Short-Circuits Song

Former Tachi Palace Fights and West Coast Fighting Championship titleholder Max Griffin chopped down Kenan Song with punches in the first round of their welterweight co-main event. Song (16-6, 4-2 UFC) succumbed to blows 2:20 into Round 1, putting a stop to his modest two-fight winning streak.

Griffin (17-8, 5-6 UFC) blitzed the Phuket Top Team rep with early activity, settled into a rhythm after eating a few jabs and unleashed his hands. He backed up Song with a clubbing right, corralled him along the fence and cut loose with punches. Griffin uncorked hooks from both hands, burying the 31-year-old in a facedown heap.

The 35-year-old Griffin has delivered back-to-back victories since his split decision loss to Alex Oliveira a little more than a year ago.

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Ruiz Stymies Frustrated Buys

Repeated head-and-arm throws paired with suffocating control carried Montserrat Ruiz to a unanimous decision over Fortis MMA’s Cheyanne Buys in a three-round women’s strawweight feature. All three cageside judges scored it for Ruiz (10-1, 1-0 UFC): 29-28, 29-28 and 29-27.

Buys (5-2, 0-1 UFC) was the superior fighter in space but could not keep the Invicta Fighting Championships veteran at bay. Ruiz swarmed into the clinch repeatedly, snatched the head-and-arm throw and threatened with the scarf hold armlock once the hit the mat. An increasingly frustrated Buys freed herself on occasion—she climbed to full mount late in the second round—but spent too much time eating punches and worrying about being submitted while pinned underneath her opponent.

The setback snapped a four-fight winning streak for Buys.

Surging Yanez KOs Lopez

Metro Fight Club prospect Adrian Yanez wiped out former Combate Americas champion Gustavo Lopez with a devastating right hook in the third round of their bantamweight showcase. Victimized by one of the rising stars in the 135-pound weight class, Lopez (12-6, 1-2 UFC) bowed out 27 seconds into Round 3.

Yanez (13-3, 2-0 UFC) made it clear from the start that he was the vastly superior tactician on the feet. Lopez elected to exchange with him—he did not attempt a single takedown—and paid a steep price, eating one counterpunch after another. Yanez dropped him to a knee with a right hook in the second round, stayed composed and drew his prey further and further into his traps. Perhaps sensing he was down on the scorecards, Lopez threw caution to the wind at the start of the third and ran into another counter. The impact of the exquisitely timed hook spun him around, left him in a dazed state on the canvas and prompted referee Chris Tognoni to intervene on his behalf.

The 27-year-old Yanez has won six fights in a row, five of them by knockout.

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Tuivasa Waylays Newcomer Hunsucker

Former Australian Fighting Championship titleholder Tai Tuivasa cut down Harry Hunsucker with punches in the first round of their heavyweight feature. Tuivasa (11-3, 5-3 UFC) drew the curtain 49 seconds into Round 1, authoring the fifth sub-minute finish of his career.

Hunsucker (6-4, 0-1 UFC) connected on a clean two-punch combination, only to have his counterpart barely acknowledge it. Tuivasa marched down the Kentucky native with leg kicks, floored him with two overhand rights and pounced with follow-up punches and hammerfists until referee Herb Dean had seen enough.

Tuivasa, 28, has recorded back-to-back wins since enduring consecutive losses to Junior dos Santos, Blagoy Ivanov and Sergey Spivak.

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