Xiaonan Yan Holds Off Spirited Mackenzie Dern in UFC Fight Night 211 Main Event

Xiaonan Yan could not have fought any smarter.

The Team Alpha Male standout outstruck and outfoxed Mackenzie Dern, as she took a significant step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight division with a majority decision in their five-round UFC Fight Night 211 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Scores were 48-47, 48-47 and 47-47.

Yan (16-3, 7-2 UFC) managed to stay on her feet long enough to bank the requisite points across 25 minutes, denying repeated takedown attempts and cutting loose with crisp combinations to the head, all while attacking the body and legs with kicks. Dern (12-3, 7-3 UFC) made her moves in the second and fifth rounds, where she dragged her counterpart to the canvas and went to work with her world-class jiu-jitsu skills. The 2015 Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist threatened with an arm-triangle choke in Round 2 and an armbar in Round 5. Yan survived both and left her fate to the judges.

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Brown Outpoints Ageless Trinaldo

Onetime Ring of Combat champion Randy Brown maximized his considerable height, length and reach advantages, as he was awarded a unanimous verdict over Francisco Trinaldo in their three-round welterweight co-main event. All three cageside judges scored it 29-28 for Brown (16-4, 10-4 UFC).

Trinaldo (28-9, 18-8 UFC) struggled to manage distance for the better part of 10 minutes. Brown sat him down with a right hand and threatened with a guillotine choke in the first round, leaned on a persistent jab and connected with front kicks to the body. Trinaldo did not go down quietly. The 44-year-old Brazilian knocked down Brown with a kick to the lower leg in Round 3, pinned him to the canvas and bottled him up with positional control and ground-and-pound. However, the finish he needed was never in play.

The 6-foot-3 Brown has quietly put together three straight wins at 170 pounds.

Barcelos Routs Reeling Jones

Former Resurrection Fighting Alliance and Shooto Brazil champion Raoni Barcelos administered a comprehensive beatdown on Trevin Jones, as he took a unanimous decision in their three-round bantamweight showcase. All three judges sided with Barcelos (17-3, 6-2 UFC): 30-25, 30-27 and 30-27.

The 32-year-old Jones (13-9, 1-3 UFC) was out of his depth. Barcelos chewed up the ex-Pacific Xtreme Combat titleholder with body-head combinations, kicks to all levels and the occasional knee on the feet. On the ground, the situation grew even direr for Jones. Barcelos passed guard with ease, achieved mount on multiple occasions and expanded his lead with damaging, elbow-laced ground-and-pound.

Jones now finds himself on a three-fight losing streak.

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Yusuff Guillotine Dismisses Shainis

Sodiq Yusuff dispatched Glory MMA representative Don Shainis with a guillotine choke in the first round of their featherweight attraction. Yusuff (13-2, 6-1 UFC) slammed the door on the Octagon newcomer 30 seconds into Round 1, netting the second-fastest submission in the history of the 145-pound weight class.

Shainis (12-4, 0-1 UFC) walked right into the Lloyd Irvin protégé’s trap. Yusuff snatched the Thai plum, blasted the Cage Titans champion with knees to the body and caught the guillotine when the action spilled onto the fence. Once he wrapped Shainis in full guard, the outcome became a formality.

The 29-year-old Yusuff has won eight of his past nine bouts.

Davis Handles Replacement Borshchev

Fusion X-Cel’s Mike Davis made a successful return from a 20-month layoff, as he laid claim to a unanimous decision over Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Viacheslav Borshchev in a three-round lightweight feature. Davis (10-2, 3-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28, 30-26 and 30-26 marks from the cageside judiciary.

A short-notice replacement for Uros Medic, Borshchev (6-3, 2-2 UFC) simply could not stay upright. Davis took down the Team Alpha Male export in all three rounds and applied his ground-and-pound to great effect, nearly finishing it inside the first five minutes. Borshchev briefly rallied and damaged his counterpart’s right eye with a left hook in the third round but saw his gains erased after he conceded two more takedowns.

Davis, 29, will carry a three-fight winning streak into his next assignment.

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