EXCITING STRAWWEIGHT CONTENDERS
(#5) MACKENZIE DERN AND (#6) YAN XIAONAN
BATTLE AT UFC® APEX
FEATURED BOUT:
RANDY BROWN vs FRANCISCO TRINALDO
UFC® returns to UFC APEX with an exciting strawweight contenders’ bout that will see No. 5 ranked Mackenzie Dern clash with No. 6 Yan Xiaonan. An action-packed co-main event will see a showdown between exciting welterweights Randy Brown and Francisco Trinaldo.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: DERN vs. YAN will take place Saturday, October 1 at UFC APEX in Las Vegas. The entire card will be available exclusively on ESPN+ (English and Spanish), with the main card starting at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT and the prelims at 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. PT.
Fan favorite Dern (12-2, fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif.) returns to the Octagon to continue her impressive climb up the 115-pound rankings. The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt has secured impressive wins against Tecia Torres, Nina Nunes, and Randa Markos. Dern will now set out to stop Yan and stake her claim for a title shot.
Yan (13-3, fighting out of Beijing, China) looks to steal the show by adding another notable name to her resume. Proven to be a dangerous striker, she has secured victories over Cláudia Gadelha, Karolina Kowalkiewicz and Angela Hill. Yan now looks to become the first fighter to finish Dern with a statement victory.
Due to injuries to both athletes, the bantamweight bout between Cody Garbrandt and Rani Yahya has been removed from the card.
Additional bouts on the card include:
- Randy Brown (15-4, fighting out of Queens, N.Y.) looks to continue his win-streak when he meets Francisco Trinaldo (28-8, fighting out of Brasilia, Distrito Federal, Brazil) at welterweight
- Maxim Grishin (32-9-2, fighting out of Grozny, Chechen Republic, Russia) squares off with Philipe Lins (15-5, fighting out of Warsaw, Poland) at light heavyweight
- Middleweights battle, as Krzysztof Jotko (24-5, fighting out of Orneta, Poland) meets Brendan Allen (19-5, fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisc.)
- A thrilling featherweight bout will see Sodiq Yusuff (12-2, fighting out of Bladensburg, Md.) face newcomer Don Shainis (12-3, fighting out of Easton, Mass.)
- Raoni Barcelos (16-3, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) clashes with Trevin Jones (13-8, fighting out of Maite, Guam) at bantamweight
- Heavyweights collide as Ilir Latifi (16-8-1, fighting out of Malmo, Sweden) meets grappling specialist Aleksei Oleinik (60-16-1, fighting out of Moscow, Russia)
- Jessica Penne (14-7, fighting out of Huntington Beach, Calif.) takes on Tabatha Ricci (7-1, fighting out of Ventura, Calif.) at strawweight
- An exciting lightweight matchup pits Mike Davis (9-2, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Fla.) against Dana White’s Contender Series signee Viacheslav Borshchev (6-2, fighting out of Sacramento, Calif.)
- John Castaneda (19-5, fighting out of Minneapolis, Minn.) battles Daniel Santos (10-2, fighting out of Uberlandia, Brazil) at bantamweight
- Lightweights face off as Joaquim Silva (11-4, fighting out of Curitiba, Brazil) meets Jesse Ronson (21-11, London, Ontario, Canada)
- Julija Stoliarenko (10-7-1, fighting out of Kaunas, Lithuania) and Octagon newcomer Chelsea Chandler (4-1, fighting out of Stockton, Calif.) are set to compete in a 140-pound catchweight bout
- An exciting bantamweight bout sees Guido Cannetti (9-7, fighting out of San Antonio de Padua, Buenos Aires, Argentina) face off against Randy Costa (6-3, fighting out of Taunton, Mass.)
Visit the UFC.com for information and content to support your UFC coverage.
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About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization (MMA), with more than 688 million fans and 207 million social media followers. The organization produces more than 40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas around the world, while broadcasting to nearly 900 million TV households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 75 countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat sports. UFC is owned by global entertainment, sports and content company Endeavor, and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram and TikTok: @UFC.
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