Melissa Croden vs. Darya Zhelezniakova
BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Croden (-160); Zheleznyakova (+130)

Round 1
With a 100% finish rate still in her pocket, Alberta native Croden (7-3, 1-1 UFC)—quick note to all those who watched the Shillan & Duffy preview show for this one and thought this fight card was going down in the province of Alberta: tonight’s action is in southern Manitoba, just north of the shared border of North Dakota and Minnesota, two provinces to the right of Alberta. Croden will still be the favored athlete in the building of the two, as she faces off Russian striker Zheleznyakova (10-2, 2-1 UFC). The two bantamweights come to blows with referee Jerin Valel calling the shots, and they touch ‘em up before engaging.
It is all about the jab in the early going for the two bantamweights, with the two standing relatively the same size and presenting a similar fist-first style. Jabs lead to follow-ups, which leads to an unexpected trading of leather in the first 30 seconds. Croden thinks twice about throwing caution to the wind to just brawl and resets to work her way forward at her own pace. Zheleznyakova chops at her foe’s leg with a hefty kick and circles away from the power from the Canadian, dodging a head kick and stepping in to strike. Croden drives her away with a quick one-two, and Zheleznyakova still manages to get in her face with a single fist. They crash together and end up clinched, trading knees until they decide against doing this any further. It is not a mirror match, but it is fairly close to that. One after the other, they slug one another in the chops. Croden throws a hard right hand, takes one right back, and is amped up and tries to force “Iron Lady” into a brawl. Zheleznyakova does not oblige her, instead strafing to either side.
Zheleznyakova kicks low to swing high, and she moves all the way around the cage to time her way in with a short flurry. Zheleznyakova gets a front kick through the guard, and when she engages further, Croden ties her up to grapple. Croden bullies the Russian to the fencing, looking perhaps for a body lock. Zheleznyakova keeps circling away to her right, away from Croden’s power, and this includes breaking out of a clinch. Zheleznyakova checks a kick to sling a one-two, and she lets a head kick fly past her harmlessly. Zheleznyakova steps forward to bloody Croden’s nose with a one-two, and her movement is flustering the Canadian. Zheleznyakova tries to engage again in a quick blitz, and Croden stonewalls her and shoves her back. The deliberately paced round ends.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova
Brian Knapp scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova

Round 2
Zheleznyakova races out of her corner to engage as the second round kicks off, and she does so right into the fists of her waiting adversary. Croden welcomes this so she can score effectively, forcing Zheleznyakova to retreat very soon after she starts trading. Croden whiffs on four fast punches because Zheleznyakova is already out of range, and she is stuck chasing while blood leaks from her nose. Zheleznyakova keeps moving, racking up plenty of steps while avoiding the worst of what flies her way time and again. Croden walks into the occasional jab from the Russian, who is largely playing an avoidance-first game that may not be the most aesthetically pleasing from a “just bleed” perspective. Nearly a minute goes by without a significant strike landing, and then they crash together and drill one another in the face with a heavy punch. Zheleznyakova tries to put three after it, and Croden has no answers while her face is starting to transform because of the impact of the shots she is absorbing.
Croden runs after the Russian, chasing her around the cage to try to punch her. She does not let Zheleznyakova off the hook, busting her nose open in the midst of her punch salvos. Zheleznyakova turns tail and runs away, forcing Croden to eventually slow Zheleznyakova down by tying her up. Croden looks for a body lock and a trip takedown, but Zheleznyakova is able to stay on her feet. Zheleznyakova breaks free, and she beans the Canadian with a right hand flush on the temple. Both beaks are leaking, and Croden pays it no mind as she rushes forward to attack. Croden nails her foe with two elbows, and Zheleznyakova tries to run away but is trapped. The Russian grabs the fence to prevent a takedown, with Valel screaming at her to knock that off. On her second effort, Croden throws her down and knees her in the face and thigh on the way back up. Croden leans on her opponent, sneaking in elbows. Zheleznyakova pushes her back with her fists, so Croden slaps her in the face with the instep of her foot as the round wraps.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Croden
Brian Knapp scores the round: 10-9 Croden
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Croden

Round 3
Croden greets her opponent with raised arms to hug her, and then the last round begins. Zheleznyakova pumps out a one-two that shakes Croden up and instantly re-bloodies her nose again, and she sits in the pocket to jack her in the jaw with a left before circling away. Zheleznyakova bounces her way forward behind her jab, slipping back to dodge every counter. Croden lumbers ahead slinging a left hook, and she shells up to block a one-two but is nailed with three more punches when she tries to clinch. Zheleznyakova breaks off and turns to run and reset on her own terms, but Croden catches up with her and clinches her. Croden stays tight until Zheleznyakova shoves her away and pins her down with a one-two. Zheleznyakova swipes out with subsequent hooks when Croden follows her recklessly, but it is a trap for the Canadian. Croden ducks down to surprise Zheleznyakova with a tackling takedown, and Zheleznyakova grabs the fence to improve her position and stand back up while Croden’s team bellows about the uncalled foul.
In the meantime, Croden starts to hook up a standing arm-triangle choke, and Zheleznyakova tugs with both hands on the fencing to take some of the leverage out of it. Croden topples over with the choke to put Zheleznyakova flat on her back, and she releases the sub to start beating the Russian down with left hands and a questionable knee while Zheleznyakova was standing. Valel calls for a replay due to the strike, and Croden continues pressuring the increasingly bloodied Zheleznyakova in a vicious clinch exchange. Croden frames off with elbows and occasionally slashes them out to damage her opponent, and Zheleznyakova breaks off. Croden runs towards her and tackles her to the floor, climbing directly in mount so she can bash Zheleznyakova with elbows. Zheleznyakova sits up to try to turn things around but only gives her back up. Croden unloads with a final barrage of elbows and fists, but time runs out before she can secure the stoppage she was seeking.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Croden (29-28 Croden)
Brian Knapp scores the round: 10-9 Croden (29-28 Croden)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Croden (29-28 Croden)

The Official Result
Melissa Croden def. Darya Zheleznyakova via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Melissa Mullins vs. Darya Zheleznyakova
BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Mullins (-278), Zheleznyakova (+225)

Round 1
With their bout already hinted at in the previous match, Mullins (7-1, 2-1 UFC) and Zheleznyakova (9-2, 1-1 UFC) will run back a match from Ares 9 in 2022 where Mullins pulled off the last-second TKO that some referees might have let go to the bell. Any doubt is about to be removed from the equation as these two bantamweights rematch, and referee Rich Mitchell is on top of the action. Gloves are quickly touched, but Zheleznyakova wants to get her hands on her opponent and does just that immediately. The Russian goes to the head and body, and she beats Mullins to the punch with a straight right hand when splitting apart. Zheleznyakova stings Mullins with a combination, and Mullins’ face is red and taking shots in a hurry. Mullins shoots desperately after getting hurt, and Zheleznyakova shoves her away and continues punching her in the face. Zheleznyakova disengages and finds her way forward with two looping hooks. Mullins catches Zheleznyakova on her way in with a right hand that turns Zheleznyakova’s nose red, but Mullins’ whole face is already crimson. Zheleznyakova swings a right hand that buzzes the jaw, and she goes to the body after to keep things flowing. Mullins pushes her away with a front kick, and she drills Zheleznyakova with a left hand but gets caught on the way back. Both women show facial damage after less than half a round, and Mullins stuns her opponent with a crisp right hand. Mullins stands in the pocket and nails Zheleznyakova with an uppercut, backing her opponent up and rifling off a left hand. Zheleznyakova circles and swings hard, knocking Mullins’ head around but not discouraging her from entering. Three more punches from Zheleznyakova connect clean on the Brit’s jaw, which still holds up under fire. Mullins meanders forward, bounding away from a few punches but sitting down on her right hand. Zheleznyakova misses on a few blitzes, and Mullins backs her off with a clean jab. Mullins puts three hands on her foe, dislodging Zheleznyakova’s gumshield. Mitchell grabs it and hands it back to the women, who take a moment to figure out who lost it. Zheleznyakova replaces it, and Mullins knocks it right back out on the restart. Mullins bullies her opponent to the floor, standing in half guard and sitting down into mount. Mullins snatches up an armbar in a moment, rolling over to lock it down. Zheleznyakova stays tight to stop the submission from hyperextending her limb, making it to the bell.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Mullins
Christian Laporte scores the round: 10-9 Mullins
Scottie Smith scores the round: 10-9 Mullins

Round 2
The women tap their gloves together, and they proceed to trade jabs. Mullins pushes out a front kick to the ribs, staying out of range from the Russian’s long punches. Mullins stays in the center of the cage, hopping out of the way of the offense of her foe and clipping Zheleznyakova with a right hand. The right hand causes immediate damage, as Zheleznyakova’s left eye starts swelling up fast. Zheleznyakova tries to pay her back with an overhand right, but it is not nearly as powerful. Mullins flicks out her jab, and she hammers the front leg with a kick. Zheleznyakova crashes in swinging, and Mullins stands her ground and pops her with an overhand right. When Mullins goes to the lead leg again, she stumbles back and inadvertently avoids the counters soaring past her. They jab at one another, and Mullins eventually follows one with a two. Zheleznyakova swings wide a few times, her mouth wide open, and she finds her bearings and tags Mullins with a trio of punches. Zheleznyakova reaches out with a right hand and follows with a left on the jaw, and she backs Mullins off with a few punches and appears to frazzle Mullins with a body shot, who bends over. Zheleznyakova springs into action, spraying punches every which way including some towards Mullins. As Zheleznyakova lays into her opponent, Mullins grits her teeth and tackles the Russian to the mat. Zheleznyakova keeps her arms wrapped around Mullins to shut down any offense, and Mullins explodes with 15 seconds left to get into top position. The round ends.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova
Christian Laporte scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova
Scottie Smith scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova

Round 3
The bantamweights touch ‘em up as they reach the last round, and jabs from both sides come again to start off. Zheleznyakova does not bite on a faked takedown effort, and she swings with a left hook but misses the mark. Zheleznyakova strings four punches together, rattling around her rival’s head, and she does not eat any counter as Mullins’ offense dwindles. Zheleznyakova jabs the body and goes upstairs with a right hand, and Mullins sees another one of those combos coming and parries it. Zheleznyakova mixes it up with a right to the body and a left to the dome, and Mullins defends by keeping her elbow up hoping that the Russian will walk into it. Mullins kicks her opponent’s front leg a single time, with Zheleznyakova appearing to have a second wind as she is the one pushing the pace, her face a swollen and busted mess. Mullins’ visage is not any better, and Zheleznyakova pins two punches on it to make it worse. The Brit connects with a body kick and then targets the sternum with the ball of her foot, and jumps to anticipate a strike that does not come. The jabs open up Mullins’ nose, which might be leaking from both nostrils. Mullins drops down for a single, and Zheleznyakova turns to the side and is dragged back down. Zheleznyakova defends a takedown by grabbing the fence, and Mitchell yells at her. The foul saving her from going down, she is able to bound off her knees instead and keep her back to the fence. Zheleznyakova pushes her away with 45 seconds to spare, and she gets right in Mullins’ face with her jabs and twos. The two ladies trade it out until the final horn, and they embrace after 15 minutes of bloody combat.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova (29-28 Zheleznyakova)
Christian Laporte scores the round: 10-9 Mullins (29-28 Mullins)
Scottie Smith scores the round: 10-9 Mullins (29-28 Mullins)

The Official Result
Darya Zheleznyakova def. Melissa Mullins via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Ailin Perez (136.5: Missed Weight) vs. Darya Zheleznyakova

Round 1
In a fight that some have posited should not be happening today, Perez (10-2, 3-1 UFC) appears to be in much better shape than she was on Friday. The Argentinian still did miss weight as she cut down to 136.5 pounds, and her tremors and wobbly nature appear to be a thing of the past. Her team says the shakes were a ruse, but is Perez that good of an actor? Happy to take 20% of her foe’s purse, Zheleznyakova (9-1, 1-0 UFC) would also like to cash a second check and further work her way up the women’s bantamweight ladder. There is no glove touch offered as this has developed into a chippy fight, and referee Herb Dean watches on. After a fair amount of circling, Perez eventually engages with a takedown shot. Zheleznyakova pushes her away, and they resume their staring contest. Zheleznyakova decides she would like to try the grappling game, and she gets Perez down and lowers herself to side control. Zheleznyakova bails on the position for some reason and stands, and she has to quickly defend a shot from the Argentinian. Zheleznyakova reaches her opponent with a right hand, and she stuff another try and connects with another right hook. Perez crashes the pocket and tackles Zheleznyakova to the mat with a body lock takedown, where she scrambles her way all the way to full mount. Perez opens up with a few punches as she gets dragged back to half guard, and she starts setting up an arm-triangle choke. Perez lowers her body weight down to pressure the Russian’s throat, and Zheleznyakova’s face transforms to a brilliant shade of red in a hurry. Before she even moves to side control or mount, Perez manages to elicit the tap she was seeking. Dean officially calls a halt to the match, and when Zheleznyakova stands, Perez twerks in her face. The fans don’t know what to think, but she does not care, as her celebration dance continues.

The Official Result
Ailin Perez def. Darya Zheleznyakova R1 3:52 via Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke)

Montserrat Rendon vs. Dariya Zheleznyakova
BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Zheleznykova (-218), Rendon (+180)

Round 1
The largest betting favorite of the evening comes in this preliminary women’s bantamweight tilt. Heavy underdog Rendon (6-0, 1-0 UFC) will try to land an upset again powerful Russian Zheleznyakova (8-1, 0-0 UFC), with the latter coming in around -250 depending on the book. Whether the lines can be trusted or if all bets are off, they will have 15 minutes to figure it out. Joining them in the cage will be referee Jason Herzog, who sits back as Zheleznyakova cruises forward ready to throw down. The Russian tags her unbeaten opponent in the mouth with an overhand right, and she backs her off with a pair of punches to follow. Rendon throws back but is out of range, as Zheleznyakova zips in and out to find her own shots. Zheleznyakova connects with a powerful right hand, and Rendon counters inaccurately. Rendon sits down on a right hand after eating a one-two, and she presses forward and takes Zheleznyakova down to the mat with a body lock. Zheleznyakova scoots her way to put her back to the wall, and she wall-walks and grabs the fence to do so. Rendon presses hard on her and searches for a mat return with various trips, and she eats a knee right on the solar plexus that stands her up momentarily. Rendon tries with all her might to secure another body lock takedown, but Zheleznyakova breaks free and jabs her in the face. Zheleznyakova sticks and moves as Rendon comes up shy of the mark with an overhand right, and she is in and out to land another right. Rendon scores at the end of a right hand, and she races forward as Zheleznyakova circles away. Zheleznyakova aims a right to the ribs and meets a blitzing Rendon with a knee to the sternum, shutting down Rendon’s takedown effort. Zheleznyakova overswings on a right hand, leading Rendon to snag hold of her and push her to the fence. Rendon completes the outside trip with her body lock and places Zheleznyakova flat on her back. Rendon lands in half guard, and she hangs on until the round ends.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova

Round 2
Zheleznyakova starts off the second round aggressively, with several punches down the middle. Rendon lets fly her own strikes but is out of range again, as Zheleznyakova keeps her at the end of her punches and knocks her back with a long left hand and a body kick. Zheleznyakova lands a right hand and shuts down a takedown effort with a pair of punches. Rendon scores straight punches that bust open a cut on the Russian’s nose. Rendon pushes forward to pursue a takedown, and she fails to get it and eats a few punches on the nose. Zheleznyakova decides to start slugging it out, her nose leaking red down her face. Zheleznyakova surges forward to land a few, and Rendon has found her home with her power punches. Zheleznyakova spins with a strike and is stopped with a right hand, and Rendon clips her again as she tries to spin. Rendon crashes the pocket in pursuit of a takedown, and Zheleznyakova grabs the fence and has her hand slapped. The close round ends in the clinch.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Rendon
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Rendon
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Rendon

Round 3
Zheleznyakova is cleared to compete in the last round, and they proceed to swing it out inaccurately. Zheleznyakova lobs a big left hand and brushes past the cheek, and she knocks Rendon back with a jab. Rendon crowds her but does not tie her up, instead backing up when she cannot find the right angle for a takedown. Zheleznyakova snaps the head back with a jab, and aims a right hand to the body and just misses a left over the top. Rendon sprints at her recklessly, dodging a strike and tying Zheleznyakova up to go after some kind of awkward takedown. Zheleznyakova shuts it all down and escapes out the side, and she pops out her jab to decent effect. When settling down with a big right hand, she gets backed off, but lands on the chest. Zheleznyakova goes high with a left and low with a right, and she snipes a charging Rendon with shots as Rendon runs at her. Rendon looks for a body lock and a trip, and she gets Zheleznyakova down to a knee for a moment before Zheleznyakova gets right back up. Rendon wrenches her down to a knee again, and she keeps her body weight pressed on the Russian to nullify any other offense. Zheleznyakova aims knees to the body as she tries to escape the clinch, and Rendon hooks her legs between her opponent’s. Zheleznyakova breaks free and lands a jab and a spinning back fist. Zheleznyakova spins with another back fist, and when that misses, she follows with a left that nails the unbeaten fighter. Rendon spins back with a fist that lands, and Zheleznyakova spins two more times to end the bantamweight bout.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova (29-28 Zheleznyakova)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova (29-28 Zheleznyakova)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Zheleznyakova (29-28 Zheleznyakova)

The Official Result
Dariya Zheleznyakova def. Montserrat Rendon via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)