Gabriel Bonfim vs. Randy Brown leads Fight Night action at UFC Apex

The welterweight division is in the spotlight this Saturday as the UFC returns to the Apex in Las Vegas for a second consecutive weekend of Fight Night action.

Gabriel Bonfim and Randy Brown are set for a five-round contest in the 170-pound division in what will be the first UFC main event for both fighters.

Brazil’s Bonfim, 28, is 18-1 in mixed martial arts and coming off a split decision win over Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson in July. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt is 5-1 since debuting in the UFC in 2023, with three of his wins coming by submission.

Jamaica's Brown, 35, has won four of his past five and picked up a big knockout win over Nicolas Dalby in April in his most recent appearance. The six-foot-three fighter who trains out of New York has been in the UFC for nearly a full decade with a 14-6 record. One of Brown’s losses was against current welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena, and one was to former champ Belal Muhammad.

Bonfim is currently the No. 14-ranked contender in the weight class, with the unranked Brown looking to take Bonfim’s spot in the top 15.

This is the penultimate Fight Night card scheduled for the UFC Apex in 2025, with the next one slated for Dec. 13.

In other welterweight action, 41-year-old Muslim Salikhov will look for his fourth consecutive win when he faces Uros Medic in what should be an all-action bout. Russia’s Salikhov has earned a performance of the night bonus in each of his past two outings thanks to highlight-reel knockouts of Song Kenan late last year and Carlos Leal in July. Serbia’s Medic, 32, is coming off a 63-second knockout of Gilbert Urbina in August and has never gone the distance in his 14-fight pro career.

Saturday’s co-main event will see Joseph Morales aim to continue his hot streak that included winning the flyweight tournament on The Ultimate Fighter season 33 earlier this year. Morales, 31, has won his past six fights overall highlighted by his trio of TUF 33 wins over Eduardo Henrique, Imanol Rodriguez and Alibi Idiris. Morales meets 15-fight UFC veteran Matt Schnell, 35, who returned from a brief retirement earlier this year with a win over Jimmy Flick.

Also on the main card, Gabriel Bonfim’s older brother, Ismael Bonfim, faces Chris Padilla in a lightweight contest. Bonfim has alternated wins and losses since debuting in the UFC with a flying knee knockout of Terrance McKinney in early 2023. Padilla has won six in a row with five of those wins by stoppage.

Rising middleweight star Marco Tulio will face his toughest test to date in Christian Leroy Duncan. Brazil’s Tulio has won 10 straight with seven of his wins on his current streak coming by KO/TKO, while England’s Leroy Duncan is riding high off a spinning elbow knockout of Eryk Anders this summer.

Ricky Simon and Raoni Barcelos meet in a pivotal bantamweight bout. Simon is looking for his third win in a row and Barcelos is going for his fourth in a row. Barcelos is coming off back-to-back wins over Payton Talbott and former champ Cody Garbrandt.

The preliminary card features undefeated heavyweight prospect Josh Hokit, one-time women’s bantamweight title challenger Mayra Bueno Silva, former LFA champion Jacqueline Cavalvanti, plus ranked strawweights Tecia Pennington and Denise Gomes among others.

The organization is looking for a short-notice replacement opponent for bantamweight Adrian Yanez after his opponent, Cristian Quinonez, withdrew from the matchup this week.

Below is the projected bout order for UFC Fight Night: Bonfim vs. Brown…

MAIN CARD

-- Gabriel Bonfim vs. Randy Brown

-- Matt Schnell vs. Joseph Morales

-- Muslim Salikhov vs. Uros Medic

-- Chris Padilla vs. Ismael Bonfim

-- Ricky Simon vs. Raoni Barcelos

-- Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Marco Tulio

PRELIMINARY CARD

-- Hyder Amil vs. Jamall Emmers

-- Adrian Yanez vs. TBA

-- Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Jacqueline Cavalcanti

-- Josh Hokit vs. Max Gimenis

-- Miles Johns vs. Daniel Marcos

-- Tecia Pennington vs. Denise Gomes

-- Jackson McVey vs. Robert Valentin