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UFC Fight Night Kevin Lee vs. Charles Oliveira — Live recaps, results and analysis

March 14, 2020
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1:44 PM ET

  • Brett Okamoto

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    ESPN Staff Writer
    • MMA columnist for ESPN.com
    • Analyst for “MMA Live”
    • Covered MMA for Las Vegas Sun
  • Marc Raimondi

Make your predictions for UFC Fight Night: Lee vs. Oliveira with our new UFC Fight Night Pick ‘Em.

Kevin Lee was expecting to venture into hostile territory when he steps into the Octagon for Saturday’s UFC Fight Night main event against Charles Oliveira in Brasilia, Brazil. Oliveira is from Sao Paulo, after all, and the Brazilian fans always are loud and enthusiastic in support of their fighting countrymen.

But because of the coronoavirus pandemic, the UFC fights are playing out inside Ginasio Nilson Nelson with no fans in attendance.

Lee (18-5), a Michigan native who now lives and trains in Las Vegas, is coming off a head-kick knockout win in his return to lightweight in November.

All fights from UFC Fight Night: Lee vs. Oliveira are available to watch on ESPN+.

• Kevin Lee vs. Charles Oliveira
• Demian Maia vs. Gilbert Burns
• Renato Moicano vs. Damir Hadzovic
• Johnny Walker vs. Nikita Krylov
• Francisco Trinaldo vs. John Makdessi
• Jussier Formiga vs. Brandon Moreno
• Randa Markos vs. Amanda Ribas
• Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos vs. Aleksei Kunchenko
• Rani Yahya vs. Enrique Barzola
• Maryna Moroz vs. Mayra Bueno Silva
• Bruno Silva vs. David Dvorak
• Veronica Macedo vs. Bea Malecki

Oliveira (28-8) has won six fights in a row — all finishes. He has 13 submission wins in the UFC, a promotion record.

Lee did miss weight on Friday, but the key lightweight bout will go on as scheduled after Lee forfeited a percentage of his purse.

The co-main event features the No. 2 submission specialist in UFC history. Middleweight Demian Maia has tapped out 11 opponents, most recently former Olympic wrestler Ben Askren. Maia (28-9) takes on a fellow multiple-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion, Gilbert Burns (17-3). It is a dream matchup for grappling fans.

The undercard features the return of Johnny Walker, who was a contender for a shot at light heavyweight champ Jon Jones until Walker’s first-round KO loss to Corey Anderson on Nov. 2. Walker takes on Nikita Krylov.

In all, there are a dozen fights on the card. Follow along here for recaps of all the action from Brazil:

Fight in progress:

Bantamweight: Rani Yahya (26-10, +150) vs. Enrique Barzola (17-5-1, -180)

Results

Women’s flyweight: Maryna Moroz (6-1) vs. Mayra Bueno Silva (10-3) unanimous decision

It was a hard-hitting battle, but the former member of the Ukranian boxing team got the job done in her return from an elbow injury with all three judges scoring the fight 29-28.

After a close first round, the second round was all Moroz who held top position for a good portion of it. She landed a number of significant strikes and was constantly active on her feet, circling with intent.

The third round was a different story with Bueno Silva walking down Moroz time and time again. Her kicks found their mark, including a big knee from the clinch and a second that split her forehead wide open with a minute remaining in the fight.

Moroz has now won back-to-back fights, with each of her last six fights ending in a decision. She cashes as a +120 underdog.

Watch this fight.

Flyweight: David Dvorak (18-3) defeated Bruno Silva (10-5-2) by unanimous decision

Silva landed the most impactful shot of the fight with a front kick to Dvorak’s face at the end of the first round, but Dvorak did enough to extend his win streak to 14. It was Dvorak’s UFC debut.

Silva lost his second consecutive fight in the UFC after entering the promotion on a three-fight unbeaten streak (2-0-1).

Watch this fight.

Women’s bantamweight: Bea Malecki (4-0) defeats Veronica Macedo (6-4-1) by unanimous decision

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Veronica Macedo and Bea Malecki unleash a series on punches on each other at the end of the third round. For more UFC, sign up here for ESPN+ http://plus.espn.com/ufc.

Macedo came out firing with over 100 strikes thrown in the first round. Then the gas tank ran out.

From the start of the second round on, Malecki turned the tables and owned the matchup as Macedo simply didn’t have enough to keep the fight moving. Macedo has lost four of her past five.

It was Malecki’s first decision win. She had finished her three previous fights, including two by submission.

“It was a bit weird, not having any fans inside the arena, but I was able to hear everything my coaches were saying, and it was good,” Malecki said. “Sometimes it is so loud out there. It was a crazy week; we did not know if the fight was going to happen or not, but we stuck to the plan. It was really emotional. My corner really helped me between the first and second rounds. She has been my partner for the past months, and she really made it happen tonight.

“I thought Veronica was going to try to take me down, but she actually had some good punches. I was smiling sometimes during the fight, but it is because it is fun to get hit in the head also.

“I am really happy, [UFC matchmaker] Mick Maynard just showed me a message from Dana White saying ‘What a way to start the card!'”

Watch this fight.

Still to come:

Lightweight: Kevin Lee (18-5, -150) vs. Charles Oliveira (28-8, +120)

Welterweight: Demian Maia (28-9, +150) vs. Gilbert Burns (17-3, -180)

Lightweight: Renato Moicano (13-3-1, -350) vs. Damir Hadzovic (13-5, +275)

Light heavyweight: Johnny Walker (17-4, -150) vs. Nikita Krylov (26-7, +120)

Lightweight: Francisco Trinaldo (24-7, -180) vs. John Makdessi (17-6 +150)

Flyweight: Jussier Formiga (23-6, -160) vs. Brandon Moreno (16-5, +130)

Strawweight: Randa Markos (10-8-1, +260) vs. Amanda Ribas (8-1, -330)

Welterweight: Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos (21-6, -140) vs. Aleksei Kunchenko (20-1, +110)


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