UFC Vegas 100 delivered an entertaining night of fights at the UFC APEX as a host of fighters claimed crucial victories as they looked to make an impact in their respective weight classes.
Here, we take a look at the night’s top five most impressive winners and order them in terms of the impact and importance of their respective performances in our post-fight power rankings.
UFC Vegas 100 power rankings
1. Carlos Prates
The main event winner made the biggest statement on the night as Brazil’s Carlos Prates put on a show to knock out welterweight stalwart Neil Magny and put the rest of the division on notice.
Prates was simply outstanding, as he comfortably dealt with Magny’s wrestling before lighting him up with his strikes and, eventually, sending him face-first into the canvas with a shot that clipped “The Haitian Sensation’s” temple.
Prates’ victory continued the remarkable rise of Sao Paulo-based Fighting Nerds team and showed just why his fighting moniker of “The Nightmare” is well deserved.
He’ll be added to the UFC welterweight rankings this week, and he’ll get a high-profile matchup for his next fight. If his next performance is as impressive as his last one, it might not be long before he enters the championship conversation at 170 pounds.
2. Reinier de Ridder
The biggest debut performance on the card came in the co-main event, as “The Dutch Knight” Reinier de Ridder claimed a second-round submission victory to get his UFC career off to a winning start.
De Ridder captured world titles at 205 and 225 pounds in ONE Championship, and is now targeting glory in the UFC’s 185-pound division. And, matched against fellow ground game specialist Gerald Meerschaert, de Ridder was handed the chance to showcase his special brand of submission grappling.
After a slightly nervy-looking start, de Ridder finally settled and, after badly rocking Meerschaert with his striking at the end of the first round, he finished him with an arm-triangle choke in the second round.
The division’s top middleweights will fancy their chances against “The Dutch Knight” on the feet. But as we just saw at the UFC APEX, if you go to the mat with de Ridder, you could be in big trouble.
3. Gillian Robertson
When UFC Hall of Famer Michael Bisping asked Gillian Robertson about her performance at UFC Vegas 100, “The Savage” admitted she wasn’t too satisfied. That’s because the flame-haired Canadian is a prolific finisher of fights, and her victory over Luana Pinheiro came on the scorecards, rather than via stoppage.
But, despite her disappointment at her own performance, the win came over a fighter who was ranked above her in the strawweight division, and extended her winning run to three UFC fights.
It’s a step forward for Robertson, who is likely to get the chance to face top-10 opposition the next time we see her inside the Octagon.
4. Charles Radtke
Both Charles Radtke and his opponent Matthew Semelsberger headed into UFC Vegas 100 looking to prove a point, and an explosive matchup was expected when their welterweight preliminary card bout got underway.
But any hopes of an all-out slugfest were soon obliterated with one swing of “Chuck Buffalo’s” heavy hands as he hurt “Semi The Jedi” in the bout’s opening seconds. Radtke poured on the pressure to score a 51-second finish that made everyone sit up and take notice.
The former Cage Fury Fighting Championships welterweight champion bounced back from his defeat to Prates in June. And with Prates looking like a major threat to the division’s best at 170 pounds, that defeat doesn’t age too badly for Radtke, who is now back in the win column and determined to make an impact of his own in 2025.
5. Mansur Abdul-Malik
Undefeated prospect Mansur Abdul-Malik would have dreamed of an impressive debut the night before UFC Vegas 100. But surely even he couldn’t have visualized a performance as impressive as the one he delivered on fight night.
Abdul-Malik stopped fellow striker Dusko Todorovic in the first round, with a huge knee to the Serbian’s chin opening the door to an eye-catching TKO finish.
Abdul-Malik needed a few ground strikes to put the finishing touches to his performance, his performance made everyone sit up and take notice.
Make no mistake, the 27-year-old Contender Series graduate is definitely one to watch at 185 pounds next year.
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