Prelim Results | UFC 312: Du Plessis vs Strickland 2 – UFC
Saturday’s UFC 312 prelims were a showcase of newcomers, Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) alums, and Chinese talents, with six of the seven victories accounted for by members of those three groups.Newcomer and DWCS grad Quillan Salkilld opened the show with a 17-second knockout win over Anshul Jubli before fellow Season 8 winner Jonathan Micallef out-hustled Kevin Jousset to win his debut as well. Rongzhu and Wang Cong collected unanimous decision victories on either side of Alexandre Topuira securing his first UFC triumph, while Australian DWCS alum Tom Nolan secured his third straight win in the penultimate bout of the early slate.In the final prelim, Gabriel Santos turned in an impressive effort, dominating promising Aussie Jack Jenkins, submitting him in the third round to register his second consecutive win inside the Octagon.These seven contests made for an entertaining start to the action at Qudos Bank Arena, and set the stage for the pay-per-view main card to follow. Get yourself caught up on how things played out with the recaps below, and enjoy the main card!Main event and co-main event are scheduled for five rounds. All other bouts scheduled for three rounds.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVOne and done!The first and only right hand that Quillan Salkilld threw connected with a thud and put Anshul Jubli on the deck, prompting referee Jim Perdios to jump in and stop the fight in a flash.This was an absolute cannon of a right hand for the member of the Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) Class of ’24. What a bomb and what a debut from Perth’s Salkilld.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVJonathan Micallef established himself as another ascending Australian to keep tabs on going forward on Saturday’s prelims, turning in a crisp effort against Kevin Jousset to win his promotional debut.The recent DWCS graduate was the quicker, more powerful of the two throughout the contest, landing with greater force whenever the two men exchanged. He dropped Jousset in the first and caused him to “glitch” on his feet a couple other times, connecting with myriad heavy kicks and sharp left hands throughout.Entering with just eight fights under his belt, it was difficult to know what to expect from the 25-year-old newcomer, but Micallef looked poised and dangerous in turning back a more experienced opponent. With his winning streak now at three and his first UFC triumph under his belt, it’ll be interesting to see who “The Captain” lines up opposite next time out.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVRongzhu and Kody Steele left their defensive fundamentals in the back, opting to spend the duration of their clash slinging hammers and putting on a show for the fans in Sydney, with the 24-year-old veteran emerging with the clean sweep of the scorecards.Steele had good moments early in the contest, landing a handful of clean shots that got Gongzhu’s attention and forced him to go. And go he did, as the Chinese prospect closed out the opening round putting it on the newcomer, dropped him with a heavy jab in the second, and dominated the exchanges the rest of the way to secure the unanimous decision win.After going 1-2 in his first stint with the promotion, Rongzhu got things moving in the right direction again here after dropping his returning bout last year against Chris Padilla. Rongzhu has always been allergic to being in boring fights, and should remain an all-action fan favorite in the 155-pound weight class, and an intriguing name to track given his age, experience, and new relationship with the City Kickboxing crew.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVAleksandre Topuria, the older brother of featherweight champ Ilia Topuria, turned in a solid all-around effort in his promotional debut, taking the fight to short-notice replacement Colby Thicknesse to secure a dominant victory.Fighting a division below his brother, Topuria showed some of the same movements and attacks as his sibling, and punctuated his first UFC round by connecting on a beautiful belly-to-back suplex. Judicious with his offerings, but efficient when he threw, the 29-year-old connected at an outstanding clip while showing swift defensive movements as well.Thicknesse was game throughout, but he just couldn’t build enough momentum to really change the tides of this one, as Topuria did well to ground him in the third and grind out the win. That’s now for straight wins for Topuria, and makes he and his brother the latest set of siblings to each earn victories inside the Octagon.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVAfter getting upset last time out, Wang Cong turned in a quality effort against Bruna Brasil to get herself back into the win column at UFC 312.The charismatic Chinese flyweight stalked Brasil throughout, battering her lead leg with heavy low kicks while consistently flashing her sharp hands. While Brasil had some success with low kicks of her own early, the Fighting Nerds representative couldn’t muster enough offense to prevent Wang from continuing to push forward and punish her, resulting in a landslide win for “The Joker.”Wang had a ton of momentum after a blistering knockout win in her debut, but stumbled in her sophomore effort. This was a solid, measured performance to get things moving in the right direction again, and should earn Wang a slight step up in competition next time out.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVTom Nolan continued to make strides inside the Octagon, collecting his third straight victory in a competitive, entertaining clash with Viacheslav Borshchev.The promising Australian showcased the full complement of his arsenal on Saturday, mixing his attacks on the feet, threatening with submissions on the canvas, and even landing a couple sharp up-kicks when on his back in the third round. As always, Borshchev was game and did not wilt, but “Big Train” was simply too active and too sharp to be denied.All three judges scored the fight in favor of the DWCS Season 6 graduate, who lost his debut last January, but has looked increasingly sharp since. Just 24 years old, the Team Compton Training Centre representative is a quality long-term prospect in the 155-pound weight class, and is starting to build some quality momentum.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVGabriel Santos closed out the prelims with a statement-making effort against tough Aussie Jack Jenkins, dominating on the canvas and squeezing out a tap in the third round.Jenkins started well, dropping Santos with a head kick in the opening stages of the first, only to find himself stuck defending a deep triangle after chasing the Brazilian to the canvas. From that point forward, it was all Santos, as the Chute Boxe Diego Lima representative controlled the second after taking it to the canvas, then hurt Jenkins early in the third, dragging him to the canvas and working to secure the choke.Santos is a dark horse in the talent-rich featherweight division, having now earned back-to-back wins after dropping each of his first two UFC assignments. The 28-year-old is now 12-2 as a professional, and heads into the second quarter of the 2025 fight calendar with a ton of momentum.Main Card Results | Official Scorecards | Order PPVDon’t miss a moment of UFC 312: Du Plessis vs Strickland 2, live from Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney Olympic Park, New South Wales, Australia on February 8, 2024. Prelims start at 8pm ET/5pm PT, while the main card kicks off live on PPV at 10pm ET/7pm PT.See How The Judges Scored Every Round Of UFC 312: Du Plessis vs Strickland 2, Live From Qudos Bank Arena In Sydney, ATICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28.See The Fight Results, Watch Post-Fight Interviews With The Main Card Winners And More From UFC 312: Du Plessis vs St
