This Saturday marked the end of UFC’s “Apex Era”, which started when the UFC debuted the small Las Vegas arena in 2019. The Apex, for all its faults, was responsible for carrying the UFC through much of Covid, and provided a space for UFC shows like Dana White’s Contender Series and The Ultimate Fighter.

Many fans and fighters alike have criticized the arena, sighting its lack of seating, atmosphere, and its smaller Octagon … which is a whole five feet less wide than its standard counterpart.

This past Saturday’s UFC Vegas 100, marked the venue’s 100th event, and its last before going into construction until the end of the year. Though we will still see events at the Apex in the future, UFC executives have made it clear that going forward, the organization will rely on the venue less.

So how did the UFC’s final “Love Letter to the Apex” go?

Carlos Prates punched his ticket to a spot in the UFC’s Welterweight rankings with a signature KO victory over Neil Magny in the main event of the evening. The rising star from Brazil’s “Fighting Nerds” gym, extended his win streak to eleven with the victory, and used the win to callout #4 ranked Jack Della Maddalena, a fight that would have interesting title implications.

Magny, the longtime Welterweight veteran and division gatekeeper, tried to eliminate Prates superior striking with a variety of takedown attempts early in the first round, all of which, Prates was able to avoid. It didn’t take long for Prates to start to walk down Magny, and showing his signature power, put Magny out cold on the canvas with a grazing left hand against the cage.

Prates, who has knocked out every opponent he has faced since entering the UFC, seems to have what we in the business call “spooky power” … We don’t actually call it that, but yes, Prates has it. The shot he hit Magny with wasn’t his best, and it still put him on the floor. Many fighters at the Fighting Nerds gym like Jean Silva, Caio Borralho, and Mauricio Ruffy all seem to poses this otherworldly KO ability, and the gym is producing some of the best rising starts in the sport.

Will he ever get past Round 3?

Carlos Prates finishes Neil Magny in Round 1 at #UFCVegas100 pic.twitter.com/5nnpM8baF5

— UFC (@ufc) November 10, 2024

Also on Saturday, a debuting Reiner de Ridder, took down UFC veteran Gerald Meerschaert after transitioning from One Championship. “The Dutch Knight” de Ridder was formerly at the pinnacle of rival MMA promotion One Championship, where he successfully defended a Middleweight title twice before dropping it in 2022.

He matched up as a sizeable favorite against the longtime vet in Meerschaert, who used to be his old training partner. It was assumed that de Ridder’s grappling pressure would be the difference maker in the fight, and it was. Meerschaert, gassed out early in the third round and de Ridder was able to put the American away with an arm triangle submission. On paper, the debut looked great for de Ridder, he scored a knockdown early in the first, and ended up getting the finish late in the fight … So what is left to be desired for the former Dutch Champion? To come into an organization like the UFC after being at the peak of their second or third largest competitor and to have a very competitive matchup with an unranked fighter shows a clear gap between the two organizations. De Ridder looked ok, but struggled on the feet in moments during the fight that a former champion shouldn’t have, and as a result his UFC run may not look as star studded as his run with One Championship.

Also on the card … The “Apex Era” ended with a bang, as six other fights on the card were won by finish. 

• Melissa Mullins opened the prelims with a second round TKO of Klaudia Syguła
• Tresean Gore added a second win in a row by defeating Antonio Trocoli via guillotine choke in the first round
• Da’Mon Blackshear also added a thrilling submission win to the card when he beat Cody Stamann via rear naked choke in the first round
• Charles Radtke got back in a big way after a KO loss to the aforementioned Carlos Prates, when he KO’d Matthew Semelsberger in under a minute of round one
• Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos also got a first round KO, when he swarmed a debuting Zach Scroggin in the first round.

Jacob Smith

11/13/2024

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UFC’s Vegas 100, Apex Card Blowout Spectacular!!!! 😂

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