Cory Sandhagen Vs. Deiveson Figueiredo Card

The UFC was at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, for tonight’s UFC Fight Night card. In the main event of the UFC Des Moines fight card, former interim UFC bantamweight title challenger Cory Sandhagen faced ex-UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo in a 135-pound matchup. In the high-stakes middleweight co-main event, Reiner de Ridder met Bo Nickal in a middleweight contest. Below, we have UFC Des Moines results, reactions, and more.

The main card for UFC Des Moines aired on ESPN following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.

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UFC Des Moines Results

Cory Sandhagen Defeats Deiveson Figueiredo

It seemed as if Deiveson Figueiredo was very much invested in getting the fight to the mat where Cory Sandhagen’s height and reach would not as big of an advantage. However, Sandhagen was unafraid to tangle with Figueiredo on the ground, using his ability to get free of the leg entanglements Figueiredo was pursuing to land a lot of ground strikes. The fight ended in the second round when a knee injury on the mat forced Figueiredo to tap while Sandhagen was firing off strikes to the head.

After the win, Sandhagen called for the winner of the upcoming fight between UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili and Sean O’Malley.

Reinier de Ridder Defeats Bo Nickal

Reinier de Ridder put a halt to the hype train that was Bo Nickal in the co-main event of UFC Des Moines. De Ridder controlled a good portion of the first round via his top game on the mat. In the second round, De Ridder, best known for his grappling, showed that he has some striking skills, doing a lot of good work with his knees to the body, one of which ended the fight in the second stanza. Re Ridder is now 3-0 in the UFC. He was the No. 13 fighter in the 185-pound division entering Saturday’s fight card. He’s likely to move up a notch or two after dismantling Nickal.

Daniel Rodriguez Defeats Santiago Ponzinibbio

The first two rounds of the Santiago Ponzinibbio vs. Daniel Rodriguez welterweight matchup were fairly uneventful. Both men were looking to implement their striking in the first 10 minutes with Rodriguez having more success thanks to his output and distance management. With both fighters looking a bit tired, Rodriguez unloaded a combination that put Ponzinibbio on the canvas. While Ponzinibbio did not like the ref’s stoppage, his arguments against the stoppage became moot when he stood and staggered to the fence.

With the win, Rodriguez is on a two-fight winning streak since ending a three-fight skid between late 2022 and mid-2024.

As for Ponzinibbio, he is now 3-6, dating back to 2021.

Serhiy Sidey Defeats Cameron Smotherman

Serhiy Sidey did an excellent job of using his length, movement, target selection, and ground control to defeat Cameron Smotherman on Saturday night. Sidey’s footwork and activity prevented Smotherman from getting a read on his foe. Sidey’s approach also thwarted Smotherman from landing his powerful counters. Sidey had a good game plan in this fight and stuck with it to get the win.

Mason Jones Defeats Jeremy Stephens

Mason Jones opened his lightweight fight against Jeremy Stephens with kicks, controlling the center of the octagon. He was very good with those kicks, mixing up his targets and assaulting Stephens from calf to head with those techniques. As the first round wore on, Jones added punches to his repertoire, fighting well behind the jab and forcing Stephens to the outside. Meanwhile, Stephens did what he has always done, look to land with power. Near the end of the first, Jones showed Stephens he could also wrestle, scoring a couple of takedowns.

The second round started as more of a slugfest, which is where Stephens wanted it. Jones backed off after a hectic first minute and looked to work at range, fighting behind kicks and a jab while forcing Stephens to the fence. Jones then added some elbows to the mix, cutting Stephens with those techniques.

While Jones looked good against Stephens, he did his best work at range or on the mat but seemed to put himself at risk a few times when he decided to tangle in close with the powerful Stephens. Jones and his team would be well served to improve his situational awareness. However, overall, this was a good performance by Jones in a fight that was designed for him to win and get some traction, beating a fighter with a name like Stephens.

UFC Tonight: UFC Des Moines Main Card Results

Cory Sandhagen defeats Deiveson Figueiredo via KO at 4:08 Round 2 (Tap out due to knee injury)

Reinier de Ridder defeats Bo Nickal via TKO at 1:53 of Round 2 (Knee to body at distance)

Daniel Rodriguez defeats Santiago Ponzinibbio via TKO at 1:12 of Round 3 (Punch to head at distance)

Montel Jackson defeats Daniel Marcos via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)

Serhiy Sidey defeats Cameron Smotherman via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Mason Jones defeats Jeremy Stephens via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)

UFC Tonight: UFC Des Moines Preliminary Card Results

Yana Santos defeats Miesha Tate via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)

Azamat Bekoev defeats Ryan Loder via TKO at 2:44 of Round 1 (Punch to head at distance)

Gillian Robertson defeats Marina Rodriguez via TKO at 2:07 of Round 2 (Strikes to head from mount)

Quang Le defeats Gaston Bolaños via technical submission at 1:54 of Round 2 (Rear naked choke)

Thomas Petersen defeats Don’Tale Mayes via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-26, 30-26)

Juliana Miller defeats Ivana Petrović via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)

UFC Des Moines Results: Video Highlights

UFC Des Moines Results: Fight Night Bonuses

Performance of the Night: Cory Sandhagen

Performance of the Night: Reinier de Ridder

Performance of the Night: Azamat Bekoev

Performance of the Night: Quang Le

UFC Des Moines Results: Official Scorecards

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UFC Des Moines Main Event: Cory Sandhagen Vs. Deiveson Figueiredo

Cory Sandhagen (17-5) joined the UFC in 2018 with a 7-1 record. He went unbeaten in his first five fights with the promotion. That run, culminating with decision wins over John Lineker and Raphael Assuncao, earned the then 28-year-old the No. 4 ranking in the UFC’s 135 weight class and a matchup against the No. 2 ranked Aljamain Sterling.

The slick Sterling submitted Sandhagen in the first round, earning himself a shot at the UFC bantamweight title, a belt he won in his next outing. As for Sandhagen, the submission setback did not hurt him in the rankings, as he remained at No. 4.

Following his first UFC loss, the UFC booked Sandhagen against the No. 1 ranked Marlon Moraes. Sandhagen won that fight and a “Performance of the Night” bonus with a highlight-reel spinning wheel kick KO.

That stunning stoppage earned Sandhagen the No. 2 ranking in the division and a fight against former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. Sandhagen dispatched Edgar with a vicious flying knee 28 seconds into that bout. He again earned a “Performance of the Night” bonus for his effort.

A decision loss to former UFC bantamweight champ T.J. Dillashaw followed Sandhagen’s win over Edgar. He then faced ex-135-pound champ Petr Yan for the interim UFC bantamweight belt in October 2021. The scrap was “Fight of the Night” on the UFC 267 pay-per-view card, but Yan picked up the victory and the belt via unanimous decision.

Following that setback, Sandhagen, who is now 33, was on a three-fight winning streak with victories over Song Yadong, Marlon “Chito” Vera, and Rob Font. Sandhagen saw that run come to a halt in August 2024 when he dropped a decisionto Umar Nurmagomedov in a bantamweight title eliminator.

Sandhagen is the No. 4 fighter in the official UFC bantamweight rankings.

ForbesUFC Des Moines Card: Sandhagen Vs. Figueiredo Odds And PredictionsBy Trent Reinsmith

Deiveson Figueiredo (24-4-1) is a former two-time UFC flyweight champion. The 36-year-old first claimed UFC gold in July 2020 when he scored a submission over Joseph Benavidez. He defended the title twice, beating Alex Perez and fighting Brandon Moreno to a draw. Figueiredo surrendered the belt to Moreno in a June 2021 rematch, losing by submission.

Figueiredo regained the 125-pound title in January 2020 when he defeated Moreno via decision. The two met for a fourth time in January 2023. Moreno regained the belt in that matchup, winning via doctor stoppage TKO.

The loss to Moreno was Figueiredo’s final fight at 125 pounds. The 36-year-old moved up to bantamweight in December 2023, defeating Rob Font by decision in that scrap. After that, Figueiredo picked up two more wins at 135, submitting former UFC champ Cody Garbrandt and beating recent UFC title challenger Marlon “Chito” Vera by decision in August.

Figueiredo’s winning ways ended in November when he lost to former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan via decision.

Figueiredo enters UFC Des Moines as the No. 5 fighter in the UFC’s bantamweight division.

UFC Des Moines Co-Main Event: Reiner de Ridder Vs. Bo Nickal

Reinier de Ridder (19-2) joined the UFC in 2024. De Ridder was a two-division champion with ONE, claiming titles in the middleweight and light heavyweight weight classes.

A talented grappler with 11 career submission victories before inking his UFC deal, De Ridder is 2-0 with the UFC, picking up submission wins over Gerald Meerschaert and Kevin Holland.

De Ridder’s victory over Holland put him in the official UFC middleweight rankings, where he sits in the No. 13 spot.

I wrote the following about De Ridder after his win over Holland, “Reinier de Ridder looked excellent in his second UFC fight. The former two-division ONE champion won in his UFC debut over Gerald Meerschaert in November, but he looked a bit reserved and willing to accept positions as they came. He did not resemble that fighter at all at UFC 311, dominating Kevin Holland.

“De Ridder scored a takedown early in the first round and then used his striking and grappling skills to control Holland, opening a cut on Holland before securing a rear-naked choke submission.”

ForbesUFC Des Moines Card: De Ridder Vs. Nickal Odds, Picks And PredictionsBy Trent Reinsmith

Bo Nickal (7-0) joined the UFC in 2023 after one fight on an iKON FC card and two bouts on the Dana White Contender Series. Nickal won those contests by stoppage in the first round (two submissions, one KO). None of the matchups went past 62 seconds of the first round.

Since his debut with the promotion in March 2023, Nickal has compiled a 4-0 UFC record with two submissions, one knockout and one decision. In his most recent outing, Nickal went the three-round distance with Paul Craig on the pay-per-view portion of the UFC 309 fight card.

Known for his wrestling, Nickal was a three-time NCAA champion under Cael Sanderson at Penn State, did not attempt a single takedown against Craig. Instead, he focused on developing his striking game in that matchup.

I wrote the following after that win:

Bo Nickal went 15 minutes for the first time in his MMA career against Paul Craig at UFC 309. While Nickal looked decent against Craig, the fight showed that he needs some more seasoning before he’s ready to compete against the elite of the UFC’s middleweight division.

Nickal needs to work on his striking and distance management. Craig, who is not an elite striker, did a decent job in keeping Nickal at distance, but Nickal was able to land with power, by throwing some somewhat sloppy strikes. Nickal came into UFC 309 with a lot of hype behind him. I don’t think that hype disappears after UFC 309, but Nickal’s performance showed he has a lot of work to do.

Nickal did not break into the UFC middleweight rankings with his victory over Craig.

UFC Des Moines results, reactions and more will be updated live throughout tonight’s fight card.