MMA Junkie Fight of the Month for May 2023: Evloev vs.

Movsar Evloev (17-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC) rolled the dice putting his undefeated record on the line against newcomer Diego Lopez (20-6 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in a featherweight bout, and nearly cost him.

After stepping in as a substitute on five days’ notice, López made an impressive report of himself, threatening multiple close orders. Evloev shrugged off the danger and found a huge move in his offense, managing to claim a unanimous decision after three exciting rounds.

Aljamain Sterling (23-3 MMA, 15-3 UFC) beat Henry Cejudo (16-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) in a close match to set up a grudge match with rival Sean O’Malley.

Cejudo returned from a three-year absence to challenge for Sterling’s bantamweight title. It was a back-and-forth five-round contest that was light on damage but heavy on solid technique on both sides. In the end, two of the three judges rated Sterling’s work more, and he was awarded a split-win decision for his fourth consecutive title defense.

This defense from Cejudo is wild 😨 #UFC288 pic.twitter.com/PPgxwUmeqj

– UFC (UFC) May 7, 2023

Mansour Bernawi (20-5 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) gave Brent Primus (12-3 MMA, 10-3 BMMA) no choice but to dig deep into enemy territory, and the former Bellator Lightweight Champion rose to the occasion.

Primus and Bernawi became involved in a fast-paced, back-to-back affair, which the American ultimately prevailed by unanimous decision. After 25 minutes, the judges scored the fight 48-47 across the board in favor of Primus, who advanced to the Lightweight Grand Prix semi-finals, where he would get a shot at champion Usman Nurmagomedov.

Try to make a deep one @Brentprimus155!# Bellator 296 | 🇺🇸 @tweet | 🇫🇷 @tweet pic.twitter.com/reVXj1iXSD

– Bellator MMA (BellatorMMA) May 12, 2023

Mackenzie Dern (13-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) overwhelmed Angela Hill (15-13 MMA, 10-13 UFC) by 25 minutes for her first UFC main event win after two previously unsuccessful attempts.

Dern, the wrestling specialist, displayed a more refined game than ever when she defeated Hill via a lopsided unanimous decision. She combined her striking and grappling over the course of the fight, leaving with the ultimate victory and strawweight title contender status attached to her name.

The start of this fight from Dern & Hill 😳 #UFCVegas73 pic.twitter.com/vcznl6nzd8

– ESPN MMA (@espnmma) May 21, 2023

Evloev had to give almost everything he had to defeat promotional newcomer Lopez at UFC 288 in Newark, NJ,

Lopez took over the fight in just five days when Bryce Mitchell pulled out, and even though he raised his hand, his stock rose and proved he belonged in the UFC.

Evloev was a heavy favorite nearly 10-1 when the contest began, but Lopez has threatened him with deep requests on multiple occasions. UFC President Dana White praised Lopes after the fight for his heart and awarded the pair an additional $50,000 each for Fight of the Night, but Evloev was the ultimate victor as he extended the winning streak to start his career at 17 consecutive fights.