UFC Vegas 96 Results: Bonus Winners and Highlights

Caio Borralho will be in the top five of the UFC middleweights next week.

He won an impressive unanimous decision over Jared Cannonier in the main event of UFC Vegas 96. The scrap was lively. Both fighters had their moments, but Borralho had the most memorable, especially in the fifth round when he came close to stopping Cannonier. A one-two combination rocked Cannonier badly.

Honestly, the fight could have been stopped based on how Cannonier fell to the canvas. Veteran referee Dan Miragliota allowed it to continue and Cannonier survived the round with grit and determination.

However, Borralho had clearly done enough to lock down the win. After the match, Borralho was asked to make a call-out. He may have missed an opportunity as he chose to call on reigning champion Dricus Du Plessis.

As the potential No. 5 ranked fighter, that’s not a crazy idea. However, since Sean Strickland has already been promised the next title shot, there’s no point in asking for a title shot. The appropriate message would be Israel Adesanya. The former champion has lost his last two fights but is still ranked No. 3.

If Borralho takes this fight and wins, he could then ask for a title shot and have a better chance. Regardless, he locked up one of the event’s bonuses as he and Cannonier won Fight of the Night for their entertaining brawl.

Here’s a look at all the results from UFC Vegas 96 and highlights of the finishes.

• Caio Borralho defeats Jared Cannonier by unanimous decision (49-45×2, 48-46)
• Tabatha Ritchie def Angela Hill via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
• Ryan Loder defeats Robert Valentin via TKO at 1:49 of the 2nd round

After overcoming a tough first round, Lauder bounced back to dominate the second, forcing a TKO win. Lauder secured the advantage with the cross, raining down elbows to force the referee to stop the fight.

Lauder is the middleweight champion of Season 32 of The Ultimate Fighter.

Check out the finish:

• Mairon Santos defeats Kaan Ofli via KO at 1:30 of round 2

Santos looked outstanding every second of the fight and put the lights out on Ofli with a perfect left hook to become the TUF Season 32 featherweight champion.

Here’s a look at the finish:

• Michael Morales defeats Neil Magny via TKO at 4:39 of Round 1

Morales looks like a legitimate title contender at 170 pounds. He destroyed the tough welterweight by TKO after leveling Magny and landing punches non-stop.

Here is the finish:

• Gerald Meerschaert defeated Edmen Shahbazyan via submission at 4:12 of Round 2 (arm triangle)

Meerschaert had to dig deep after finding himself in trouble in the first round, but the veteran rebounded, securing the submission victory to give him the most finishes in UFC middleweight history.

Here is the finish:

• Francis Marshall defeats Dennis Bouzuccia by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
• Zachary Reese def Jose Daniel Medina by unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
• Viacheslav Borshchev defeats James Llontop by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
• Jacqueline Cavalcanti defeats Josiane Nunes by split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
• Wang Cong defeats Victoria Leonardo via KO at 1:02 of round 1

The flamboyant and powerful Chinese fighter made a splash in her first fight in the UFC. Cong’s one-hit shutout was the most memorable finish of the night, but he still didn’t get one of the bonuses.

Here’s a look at KO:

UFC Vegas 96 Bonus Winners

FOTN: Jared Cannonier vs. Caio Borralho

POTN: Gerald Meerschaert and Michael Morales