Josh Emmett vs. Lerone Murphy squared off in a Featherweight contest earlier tonight (Sat., April 5, 2025) at UFC Vegas 105 from UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. After five competitive rounds, Murphy was named the victor.
Murphy opened the fight moving on the outside while Emmett patiently stalked forward. The first kick of the English athlete was countered by a 1-2. Emmett landed a body-head combination but ate a counter elbow as well, which opened a cut on the forehead. Murphy’s kicks started to find the target in the second half of the round, particularly to the lead leg. Emmett caught a kick and turned it into a brief takedown late in the round.
All told, it was a competitive and tense opening five minutes.
Emmett opened the second with a surprise slam takedown! Murphy was back to his feet about a minute later without eating too many shots. The English talent landed a lovely spin kick and then stuffed a takedown along the fence. He even landed a nice combo as Emmett tried to chain takedowns together. The pace slowed a bit when the duo returned to their feet, largely trading single shots. Murphy was a bit more active, particularly with that probing side kick.
A big trade early in the third saw both men land, then Murphy chopped into the lead leg. Murphy landed a nice counter right as Emmett advanced, then Emmett landed with a thudding connection. Emmett tried to capitalize on a slip with a takedown but couldn’t complete the shot. An eye poke paused the action. Murphy kept his lateral movement going and was difficult to hit. He wasn’t throwing a ton himself but did land a hard left body kick. Emmett dumped Murphy over on a caught kick and settled into guard. He landed a few hard shots as Murphy worked back to his feet.
Through 15 minutes, the fight was quite competitive, but Murphy held an edge in overall volume.
An early trade of low kicks saw Emmett hit the floor briefly. Moments later, he was exploding into a jump knee that barely missed. Murphy ripped another left kick then ate an over hand. Emmett tried to surge forward, but Murphy kept his guard high and defended well. Murphy stayed on his bike and kept side kicking the knee. Emmett hit the body hard with a right hook then brought a right to the chin. Stiff front kick scored for Murphy, then Emmett shot into a deep double leg along the fence.
Somehow, Murphy kept his footing.
Murphy kicked and moved to start the fifth frame. Emmett kicked the lead leg and snapped a jab. Murphy landed a nice left hook around the guard. Along the fence, Emmett fired a combination and tried to finish with a takedown, but Murphy shut it down. Back in the open, Emmett pressed heavily but neither man landed too cleanly. Emmett took a few right hands down to the body, then Murphy cracked him with a counter left. Emmett tried to bait Murphy into slugging in the final 30 seconds, but Murphy didn’t bite.
This was a surprisingly low-paced fight without any huge moments for either man (aside from that memorable slam in the second). Murphy definitely landed more shots overall, but many of them were low commitment side kicks, whereas Emmett hit more air but definitely committed to his punches.
Ultimately, the judges unanimously sided with Lerone Murphy. It wasn’t the most dominant performance by any means, but a win’s a win! The crowd booed pretty fiercely for the Apex, but Murphy remains undefeated moving forward.
Result: Murphy defeats Emmett via unanimous decision
For complete UFC Vegas 105 results and play-by-play, click here.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
