The action at UFC Vegas 110 saw a host of finishes, a touch of controversy, and a statement performance from its main event star.
UFC Vegas 110 Power Rankings
RDX Sports‘ Editor-in-Chief and veteran MMA writer Simon Head casts his eye over the main card winners, and presents his Power Rankings for UFC Vegas 110.
1. Steve Garcia
When you’re handed your first UFC main event opportunity, you know you’ve been given the perfect chance to strap a rocket ship to your career. Steve Garcia understood the assignment and delivered a brilliant performance to finish the previously impressive David Onama.
Garcia’s controlled pressure, sharp striking and refusal to give Onama a moment’s rest all came together in a performance that showed that he’s a real threat to the division’s bigger names at 145 pounds.
Garcia entered the weekend at 12th in the official UFC featherweight rankings, one spot above Onama, so it’s unlikely his win will catapult him up that list. However, it should secure him a matchup against top-10 opposition next time out.
His callout of Max Holloway for a BMF title fight was optimistic, but showed the sort of level he feels he should be operating at. After the way he dealt with Onama on Saturday night, a step up in class is a must for “Mean Machine.”
2. Waldo Cortes Acosta
Waldo Cortes Acosta went on a rollercoaster ride in the co-main event that saw him take an eye-poke, look like he’d been finished with strikes, then come back to knock out one of the most hyped rising contenders in the heavyweight division.
Let’s be honest, things were not going Cortes Acosta’s way early. He looked hesitant to strike, and Delija appeared very relaxed and confident as he strode forward looking to land strikes.
But, after the Croatian contender backed Cortes Acosta up against the fence and unloaded a vicious salvo of punches, it looked like the fight was all over. But referee Mark Smith’s intervention wasn’t to wave off the fight. It was to address a suspected eye-poke by Delija. Sure enough, the ref got it right, and after replays confirmed the accidental poke, Cortes Acosta was given time to recover.
Incredibly, a fight that looked like it was over was then restarted, and Cortes Acosta promptly dropped Delija, then finished him with ground strikes to cap a jaw-dropping comeback win as he showed that, in heavyweight MMA, one clean shot in those small MMA gloves can be all it takes to turn a fight on its head.
It meant Cortes Acosta successfully defended his number-six ranking spot from a man listed three places below him. But more importantly, it put him back in the frame to fight top-five opposition next time out.
It was a painful night for “Salsa Boy”, but he ended up getting the win his career needed.
3. Allan Nascimento
The first fight on the main card produced one of the most impressive wins, as Brazilian flyweight Allan Nascimento took all the pressure Cody Durden could throw at him, then turned the tables to brilliantly submit him with an anaconda choke in the second round.
Nascimento is a wizard on the mat, with 16 of his 22 career wins coming via submission. When you’re facing someone of that skill level you can’t afford to give him an opening. Eventually, Nascimento found one, and took full advantage to halt what was initially an impressive showing from Durden, and turn it into an eye-catching win of his own.
I’d expect to see him in the Octagon with ranked opposition sooner rather than later. And if he can keep those submission skills sharp, he’ll be a handful for anyone he faces in that 125-pound division.
4. Jeremiah Wells
Former CFFC welterweight champ Jeremiah Wells couldn’t afford to lose on Saturday night. The 39-year-old from Philadelphia hadn’t fought since February 2024, and hadn’t won since April 2023. Heading into Saturday nights return fight on a two-fight skid, his back was up against the wall.
Thankfully for Wells, he produced an excellent performance to outwork Themba Gorimbo en route to a unanimous decision victory. His win was made all the more notable as he did so after unanimously losing the first round.
After dropping the opening frame to Gorimbo, Wells couldn’t make any mistakes, and he did what he needed to do to claim Rounds 2 and 3 to seal a much-needed decision win.
5. Charles Radtke
“Chuck Buffalo” is always must-see TV when he pulls on the four-ounce gloves, and the heavy-handed former CFFC welterweight champion showed off his submission skills to finish Daniel Frunza with just 29 seconds left on the clock in their 170-pound matchup.
Radtke’s willingness to get in the cage and throw down with anyone has led to him losing to the likes of Carlos Prates and Mike Malott, but his victory over Frunza sealed his fourth UFC victory to take his record to 11-5, and 4-2 under the UFC banner.
Radtke’s performance showed that he’s as dangerous on the mat as he is in the stand-up, and with his tendency to get itchy knuckles pretty quickly after fights, it would come as no surprise to see him back in action sooner rather than later.
And when he is, we’ll be tuning in.
6. Yadier del Valle
Taken at face value, del Valle’s first-round submission victory over Isaac Dulgarian was certainly an impressive one, especially given Dulgarian’s status as the betting favorite heading into the bout.
But since the matchup, question marks have been raised after it emerged that sportsbooks had suspended prop bets from their market lists after the odds unexpectedly moved prior to the bout. Some oddsmakers even refunded bets.
Then, last night, it was reported that Dulgarian had been released by the UFC.
It all casts a shadow over what should have been hailed as a superb win by del Valle, who went out there and did his job. But it looks like the story about Dulgarian’s performance, and the betting line moves prior to the matchup, hasn’t quite run its course just yet.
Simon Head is Editor-in-Chief with renowned combat sports equipment company RDX Sports.
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