UFC Abu Dhabi results: Sooo … About last night | Whittaker vs. de Ridder

Last night (Sat., July 26, 2025), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to Etihad Arena in United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi, for UFC Abu Dhabi. Generally, there’s a bit of an unofficial tier system to UFC “Fight Night” events and their relative quality. Events inside the Apex are generally lacking in star power and ranked athletes, though there’s always the chance the next Ilia Topuria is debuting somewhere on the undercard. A show with a live crowd somewhere in the US will usually bring some additional fan favorites and a couple relevant talents, while an Asian event that airs at 3 A.M. will be filled with local talent and little else. Finally, when the UFC heads to the Middle East, we are gifted with a damn near PPV-worthy card for free!

Such was the case last night, as UFC Abu Dhabi was debatably a richer card than UFC 318 (aside from the main event). Let’s take a look back over the best performances and techniques of the evening:

RDR Outlasts The Reaper

Reinier de Ridder spent the first seven or so minutes of his first UFC main event getting smacked around. Robert Whittaker was much faster and much sharper than him, shucking off takedowns and clinches with relative ease. His speed and angular kickboxing were on display, as he repeatedly hopped into range, cracked “RDR,” then pulled away to safety.

The left knee changed the game. De Ridder found his timing with his stepping knee to the body, and it seemed to sap all the life from Whittaker. After he landed a couple in quick succession midway through round two, suddenly he was on top, chipping away at the former champion. For the rest of the fight, Whittaker never quite recovered the snap in his punches that had previously stranded de Ridder at distance.

Instead, the two battled back-and-forth. Whittaker tried his best to recoup his energy and explode, and occasionally he connected with a sharp shot. More often, he couldn’t even finish his movement. On the flip side, de Ridder never stopped working. His awkward jabs were slow from the start, but their speed remained consistent. He landed more and more often as the fight wore on, and his grueling clinch work was effective as well.

The end decision was razor close, but de Ridder deserves his props for finding a way to level the playing field and scoring the biggest win of his UFC career.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Yan Turns Away McGhee

Marcus McGhee is a good fighter. He proved as much here, throwing punches-in-bunches at Petr Yan and presenting the former champion with some interesting questions. He even stung Yan a couple times with straight punches.

Unfortunately, “No Mercy” was simply sharper and more experienced. His high guard nullified a lot of McGhee’s activity, and he found his openings as McGhee pulled away from exchanges. Time and time again, he would crack McGhee as the American moved backwards, clearly landing the heaviest blows. Then, he outwrestled McGhee in the third to solidify the win, clearly separating himself from the rising talent.

It wasn’t the most exciting win of Yan’s career, but it should still position him well for the next title shot.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

The King of Kung Fu!

Muslim Salikhov has still got it at 41 years of age.

Carlos Leal is an intimidating Welterweight who should have entered this bout undefeated inside the Octagon. He has giant trapezius muscles, 11 knockout wins on his record, and zero fear of his opponent’s offense. He pressed the older striker immediately, getting in the kicker’s face and trying to impose his will. Instead, Salikhov cracked him in just 45 seconds with a perfect overhand counter, sending Leal to the floor face-first for an astounding walk-off KO.

The Wushu Sanda ace has now won three straight after becoming the first man to stop Leal with strikes. He’s not at his best anymore, but clearly, Salikhov is still a very dangerous member of the 170-pound roster.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Ageless Davey Grant

Davey Grant is f—king awesome. He reinvented his UFC career in 2021 at 35 years of age. Finally healthy enough to fight multiple times per year, Grant went from somewhat one-note grappler to all-action slugger, and the results were immediate. He became a must-watch fighter and started picking up the best wins of his career!

The problem with a late-career renaissance is there isn’t much time to capitalize. Or, at least, there shouldn’t be. Now 39 years of age, Grant is still fighting at his absolute best. Opposite Da’Mon Blackshear — a major physical talent who WAS riding a three-fight win streak — Grant weathered the early storm then went on offensive with his signature big-swinging-shifting combinations. He punished the lead leg badly, ripped up the mid-section, and tried to take off Blackshear’s head en route to an entertaining unanimous decision win.

It’s really unfortunate the judges robbed Grant against Daniel Marcos a couple years back. Were it not for that mishap, the elder Englishman would be riding a five-fight win streak! He may not have a number next to his name and will likely be forced to keep fighting up-and-comers, but don’t ever forget that “Dangerous” Davey Grant is a damn good Bantamweight by any metric.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Corner of the Year!

Tabatha Ricci’s corner earned their 10% last night.

The bout versus Amanda Ribas was not going particularly well for “Baby Shark.” She’s accustomed to a size disadvantage, but Ricci is not used to facing a fellow Judo black belt who’s also much bigger! She couldn’t get her wrestling going at all, leaving her stranding at distance to get hit or stuck in the clinch, accomplishing little.

Between rounds one and two, Ricci’s corner implored her to throw upward elbows to help set up the shot. She could control in the clinch after all even if advancing position wasn’t happening. Ricci responded well to their advice, and the first elbow she threw clearly upset Ribas.

Sensing the opening, Ricci doubled down and threw more of those angled elbows. The final one landed directly into the eye socket, sending Ribas crumbling to the canvas in pain. Ricci swarmed, securing the just the second TKO win of her entire pro career!

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Additional Thoughts

• Bogdan Guskov defeats Nikita Krylov via first-round knockout (highlights): Krylov’s striking defense is so, so bad. Just a few months after getting flatlined by Dominick Reyes, “Miner” tried to adjust by not running forward into counters. Instead, he followed Guskov around and flicked kicks at him. The problem with this newfound patience is that his defense is still bad! He gave Guskov plenty of time to line up his favorite weapon, the straight right hand. Guskov cracked Krylov mid-kick, sending him to the floor badly wounded. Krylov then tried to resist the barrage by … attacking a straight ankle lock?!? Predictably, it didn’t work too well, leaving him in terrible position to defend himself. Why did this man not even try to wrestle the knockout artist? Baffling stuff.
• Steven Nguyen defeats Mohammad Yahya via second-round doctor stoppage: It’s never a great night at the office when the UFC commentary crew is repeatedly talking about your grit and heart. Local favorite (but betting underdog) Yahya got absolutely smashed here, dropped in the first 10 seconds by a major right hand and never able to work his way back into fight. Nguyen pummeled him with dozens and dozens of punches en route to a debatable 10-7 opening round. There was a brief spark of hope when Yahya landed a nice shot of his own early in round two, but the onslaught resumed moments later, standing and on the floor. Thankfully, the doctor intervened between rounds two and three, preventing Yahya’s grotesque broken orbital from growing more severe.

For complete UFC Abu Dhabi results and play-by-play, click here.