The Jake Paul vs. Mike Perry boxing match may have been stealing the headlines all week, but Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was also in action, as UFC Vegas 94 went down last night (Sat., July 20, 2024) in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the main event of the evening, Virna Jandiroba submitted Amanda Lemos with seconds remaining in round two (see it again here). In further action, Steve Garcia knocked out Choi Seung-woo in the very first round.
Biggest Winner: Virna Jandiroba
Jandiroba pretty much stole Lemos’ No. 3 ranking after submitting her in round two with an armbar. In doing so, she collected her fourth straight win and improves to 7-2 in her last nine fights. But, perhaps more importantly, in taking out Lemos she eliminates a top contender that was standing in her way on the road to a 115-pound title shot. If the Brazilian bomber keeps performing the way she is, she poses a legit threat to anyone holding the strap when her time comes.
Runner Up: Steve Garcia
Don’t look now, but Garcia is slowly starting to find his groove in the Featherweight division after racking up his fourth straight win following his knockout win over Seung-woo. He improves to 5-2 inside the Octagon, but what makes his win streak even more impressive is that all four wins have come via technical knockout (TKO). One of his wins during his run was in the Lightweight division, but 145-pounds is where he is making his mark.
Biggest Loser: Brian Kelleher
Coming into the event, Kelleher made our list for the fighter who needed a win the most since he was coming into his fight against Cody Gibson having lost three in a row. Furthermore, his last win was over 2.5 years ago. And things got worse for “Boom” after Gibson submitted him in the very first round with an arm-triangle choke, giving him his fourth straight defeat. The outlook doesn’t look good for the 37 year-old rapping Bantamweight, who will undoubtedly be on edge in the coming weeks because a pink slip coming to his inbox is very realistic.
