Prelim finisher among $50,000 winners

Cesar Almeida def. Dylan Budka, UFC Fight Night 240

Cesar Almeida def. Dylan Budka via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:13

Cesar Almeida (5-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) had to work to defend Dylan Budka’s (7-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) takedown attempts, but he landed short elbows and punches while he did it, stayed patient, and hurt him bad enough to make him crumple. From there, Almeida made sure those takedown attempts that wore Budka out were his undoing.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 06: (R-L) Ignacio Bahamondes of Chile punches Christos Giagos in a lightweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 06, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Ignacio Bahamondes def. Christos Giagos via TKO (head kick) – Round 1, 3:34

Ignacio Bahamondes (15-5 MMA, 4-2 UFC) drilled Christos Giagos (20-12 MMA, 6-8 UFC) with a spinning back kick to the body that no doubt hurt him. But a short time later, after a series of on-the-button punches, he landed a kick to the temple that put Giagos on the canvas against the fence. Bahamondes moved in for a follow-up, but didn’t need one with a walkoff highlight-reel KO.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 06: (L-R) Chepe Mariscal kicks Morgan Charriere of France in a featherweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 06, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

Chepe Mariscal def. Morgan Charriere via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)

Chepe Mariscal (16-6 MMA, 3-0 UFC) and Morgan Charriere (19-10-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) battled back and forth for 15 minutes and showed why even though their names may not be on the tip of casual fans’ tongues, their spot that high on the card was worthy. In the end, Mariscal took a pair of 29-28 scores for the split call – though the dissenting card for Charriere was a 30-27 in his favor.