Kevin Vallejos announced himself as one of the featherweight’s most dangerous names on Saturday night, stopping Josh Emmett in the opening round of the UFC Fight Night 269 main event at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas. The card also delivered a retirement, a record-breaking wrestling display, and a loud title shot call from the strawweight division.
Main Card
Kevin Vallejos defeats Josh Emmett by TKO, Round 1, 3:33
Gillian Robertson defeated Amanda Lemos by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Jose Miguel Delgado defeated Andre Fili by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Marwan Rahiki defeated Harry Hardwick by TKO (injury) at 5:00 of Round 2
Ion Cutelaba defeated Oumar Sy by submission (mounted guillotine choke) at 4:24 of Round 1
Charles Johnson (30-27, 29-28) defeated Bruno Silva (29-28) by split decision
Prelims
Myktybek Orolbai defeated Chris Curtis by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Vitor Petrino defeats Steven Asplund by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Elijah Smith defeats SuYoung You by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:04 of Round 2
Manoel Sousa defeats Bolaji Oki by knockout (right hand) at 4:12 of Round 3
Eryk Anders defeats Brad Tavares by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Bia Mesquita defeats Monste Rendon by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:07 of Round 1
Hecher Sosa defeats Luan Lacerda by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Piera Rodriguez defeats Sam Hughes by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
In his first UFC headline assignment, Vallejos was sharp from the opening seconds. He cut Emmett above the eye with a standing elbow, then dropped him with a counter right hand. Once Emmett hit the canvas, Vallejos swarmed with punches, elbows, and knees until referee Herb Dean stepped in at 3:33. The final strike count read 43 to three in Vallejos’ favor.
Now 4-0 in the UFC with an overall record of 18-1, “El Chino” has finished Seung-woo Choi, Giga Chikadze, and now Emmett in succession since arriving off Dana White’s Contender Series. He credited Emmet’s career during his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping, saying: “I have the utmost respect for Josh Emmett. I grew up watching his brutal knockouts.”
At 41, Emmett has now dropped five of his last six. The Team Alpha Male veteran once challenged for the interim featherweight title, but his future in the promotion looks uncertain after another stoppage loss.
In the co-main event, Gillian Robertson stretched her winning streak to five with a unanimous decision over Amanda Lemos. Lemos was effective on the feet in round one, but Robertson gradually imposed her grappling game in rounds two and three, controlling long stretches of top position to take all three scorecards.
Robertson told Bisping post-fight: “I have the most wins of any women, the most finishes of any women, the most submissions of any women. All I need is that belt.”
Now 17-8, the Canadian holds the record for most submission wins in UFC women’s history and is tied with Amanda Nunes for the most finishes by any female fighter at ten. She spent fight week calling for a title shot against strawweight champion Mackenzie Dern, saying at media day: “With Mackenzie being such a highly accomplished grappler outside of the UFC and with me being the submission queen inside the UFC. It is something everyone has wanted to see. And why not for the belt?”
Elsewhere on the main card, Marwan Rahiki moved to 7-0 with a strong UFC debut, stopping Harry Hardwick at the end of round two after Hardwick suffered a broken jaw. Ion Cutelaba submitted Oumar Sy with a mounted guillotine late in the first round. Jose Miguel Delgado edged Andre Fili by split decision in a back-and-forth featherweight fight, and Charles Johnson rallied in the third round to pip Bruno Silva on two of three scorecards.
On the prelims, welterweight Myktybek Orolbai put on a historically dominant wrestling performance against Chris Curtis, breaking the record for most takedowns landed in a single welterweight fight before the third round began. He finished with 19 takedowns and a clean 30-27 sweep, moving to 5-1 overall and 3-0 at 170 pounds.
Middleweight veteran Eryk Anders closed out his career with a unanimous decision win over Brad Tavares before announcing his retirement in the cage. Speaking post-fight, Anders said: “That’s it for me, man. I’ve had a hell of a career. I got a win out here in front of my son, so that’s huge for me. I just don’t have the balls for this stuff no more, man.” The win was his 20th and final UFC appearance. For Tavares, the defeat also denied him the record for most wins in UFC middleweight histor, he remains tied with Michael Bisping at 16.
Manoel Sousa made a confident UFC debut, finishing Bolaji Oki with a right hand in round three. Bia Mesquita submitted Montse Rendon in just over two minutes. Elijah Smith tapped out SuYoung You in round two, and Piera Rodriguez picked up a dominant 30-27 sweep over Sam Hughes.
UFC Fight Night 269 aired live on Paramount+ from the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 14, 2026.
