UFC Vegas 105 results: Sooo ... About last night | Emmett vs. Murphy

Andrew Richardson is a professional fighter who trains at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, Calif., providing MMAmania.com (and its readers) with expert technical fighter breakdowns, insight and analysis you can't get anywhere else.

Last night (Sat., April 5, 2025), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returned home to UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada for UFC Vegas 105. At this stage of the game, the best we can hope for from events inside the Apex is an interesting main event and some decent scraps throughout the night. The five-round Featherweight booking Josh Emmett vs. Lerone Murphy certainly fulfilled the former requirement, and the latter was reasonably occupied even if one of the best “Prelims” of the card was cancelled on weigh-in day.

Let’s take a look back over at UFC Vegas 105’s best performances and techniques:

Murphy Edges Emmett

I’m sad to say this wasn’t a particularly fun fight.

Murphy made a lot of smart choices. His use of lateral movement and counter elbows against Emmett’s aggressive punching style was effective, and he really limited the amount of times Emmett hit him cleanly — his brain thanks him. He landed some heavy kicks too, notably to the calf and liver.

The problem was these moments of effective offense were few and far between. Emmett spent most of the fight trying to hit Murphy and largely coming up short, and Murphy was pretty content with those exchanges. He failed to land any particularly meaningful offense of his own, so while he edged the win, it wasn’t especially fun or impressive.

As for Emmett, the veteran did offer up some different looks, working the body a bit more and landing some big takedowns. His cardio and physicality held up impressively for a 40-year-old knockout artist, but ultimately, he struggled to create consistent collisions against a very mobile opponent.

Sabatini Blankets Brito

This wasn’t a fun watch, but Pat Sabatini absolutely dominated Joanderson Brito.

It was a case of one fighter making all the correct decisions versus an opponent getting frustrated. Sabatini caught a kick early for an easy takedown in the opening 30 seconds — a perfect start. Brito responded by hanging onto the guillotine for most of the first round, which is not a great response.

Brito’s answer in round two? Headhunt wildly! Predictably, he ended up floored in the second too, stuck on bottom in half guard yet again. With five minutes to make a finish happen, Brito failed to rise to the moment, swinging in chaotic fashion and jumping on a guillotine in the opening 30 seconds.

Predictably, the choke didn’t work, and Brito spent the rest of the round on bottom.

The Most Middleweight Match Ever

We knew exactly what to expect when Brad Tavares met Gerald Meerschaert inside the Octagon. Tavares has fought in the UFC 26 times, whereas “GM3” has made a mere 24 trips to the Octagon. Tavares, the known kickboxer, would try to sprawl-and-brawl Meerschaert, the tricky submission ace.

By and large, Tavares succeeded. He ate a few shots in the process, but he floored Meerschaert with low kicks and landed his right hand a whole bunch of times. It wasn’t the most fun fight ever, but there’s something nice about seeing two known quantities do their thing.

It feels like a rarity nowadays.

Additional Thoughts

• Chang Ho Lee defeats Cortavious Romious via second-round knockout (highlights): This fight was fairly hilarious. Both of the Bantamweights wrestle with a lot more enthusiasm and muscle than actual wrestling form. The result was some wonky clinch throws and lots of weird scrambles, including Romious falling off back mount at least four separate times. The difference-maker seemed to be Lee’s superior control. Once able to gain top position — whether via takedown or scramble — Lee would started raining down heavy punches, whereas Romious was only focused on catching a submission. Lee is known for his ground striking, and the Road to UFC product lived up to his reputation by forcing the finish from back mount with a flurry of elbows and punches.
• Ode Osbourne defeats Luis Garule via second-round knockout (highlights): This was a good, competitive fight! The debuting Garule started fairly strong in the first, landing a couple high-amplitude takedowns and keeping it competitive on the feet. Osbourne scrambled well, however, and he’s one of the few Flyweights with true knockout power. He was a little quicker and a little longer with his straight punches, which alongside his patience allowed him to line up a lovely counter left hand that floored Garule. The referee refused to give him the walk-off KO, but a few follow up connections put the Jamaican talent back in the win column.
• Dione Barbosa defeats Diana Belbita via first-round arm triangle choke: Barbosa fought this one smartly. She took a few shots slugging it out with Belbita, but her willingness to throw down enabled her to time the takedown well along the fence. She dragged Belbita to the canvas easily, and their gap in experience on the floor was immediately clear. Within just a couple minutes, Barbosa had passed guard and attacked an arm triangle, forcing the tap even as Belbita frantically tried to roll over her own shoulder.
• Rhys McKee defeats Daniel Frunza via first-round doctor stoppage (highlights): McKee stepped into the cage intent to avoid extending his UFC losing streak to 0-4, and “Skeletor” made it happen! Both men were happy to brawl from the first bell, but the difference was McKee’s jab. The Irish athlete was consistently able to interrupt Frunza’s swings with a jab, and his opponent was pushing forward so hard that those shots were actually hurting him badly. McKee also did some neat things like rolling his head to set up body shot counters. It was a bit of a bar room brawl, but there’s no doubt who was winning it. McKee knocked down Frunza four separate times, split his lip apart, and closed his eye, forcing the doctor to intervene between rounds.

For complete UFC Vegas 105 results and play-by-play, click here.