Leron Murphy played at a pace that was simply too much for Edson Barboza to handle in UFC 241 Fight Night.
The UFC Apex featherweight main event in Las Vegas saw “The Miracle” from Manchester, England, rarely give Barboza (24-12 MMA, 18-12 UFC) room to attack. With that, Murphy (14-0-1 MMA, 6-0-1 UFC) remained undefeated, winning by unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45).
The fight started with both fighters moving in and out with feints before they began to sit down with hard leg kicks and straight punches upstairs. A kick from Barboza was low, pausing the fight for a few seconds, but when the fight resumed, the blows began to fly more frequently with Barboza controlling the center of the cage. The back and forth round ended with a great moment for Barboza, who landed a clear shot just before the horn.
Murphy recovered at halftime and returned to striking with Barboza. After receiving some strong leg kicks, Murphy turned things around with a clean takedown, but Barboza stopped the fight from hitting the mat.
Murphy immediately increased the offensive pressure with hard punches, leaving Barboza on wobbly legs as he circled to the outside. Looking for a desperate change of momentum, Barboza slipped while attempting a spinning attack, leaving an opening for Murphy to take control until the second round came to a close.
Barboza started the third round controlling the center of the cage and landed a big kick to the body, but Murphy quickly turned the tide and responded with strong forward pressure. With about 90 seconds left in the third round, Murphy left Barboza on shaky legs again, sensing a submission, even though it didn’t come.
In the fourth round, Murphy continued to attack Barboza, seemingly at will. However, in typical fashion, Barboza still found space to land some powerful shots as the frame progressed.
Barboza needed to hit a home run, but Murphy did well not to leave that opening for him. Instead, Murphy saw his dominant performance until the final horn, landing 182 significant strikes on Barboza.
Murphy’s first fight of 2024 was a dominant showing against one of the most dangerous strikers in the division. He is currently tied for the second-longest active win streak at featherweight alongside champion Ilia Topuria.
During his post-fight interview with Paul Felder, Murphy called out someone in the top 10 after delivering a blunt message about his future in the division:
“I’m going to change my name back to ‘The Iceman’ because there’s nothing miraculous about it. I should be here. Destiny. I should be here and I will be champion. Simple.”
Updated UFC Fight Night 241 results include:
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Lerone Murphy defeated. Edson Barboza by unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45)
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Khaos Williams defeated. Carlston Harris by KO (punch) – Round 1, 1:30
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Themba Gorimbo defeated. Ramiz Brahimaj by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
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Adrian Yanez defeated. Vinicius Salvador by TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:47
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Angela Hill defeated. Luana Pinheiro via submission (guillotine) – Round 2, 4:12
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Tom Nolan defeated. Victor Martinez by TKO (knee, punches) – Round 1, 3:50
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Oumar Sy defeated. Tuco Tokkos via submission (rear naked choke) – Round 1, 3:43
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Melissa Gatto won. Tamires Vidal by TKO (punches) – Round 3, 0:37
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Abus Magomedov defeated. Warlley Alves by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
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Ariane Carnelossi defeated. Piera Rodriguez by disqualification (intentional headbutt) – Round 2, 3:16
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Heili Alateng defeated. Kleydson Rodrigues by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
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Vanessa Demopoulos defeated. Emily Ducote via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
For more information on the card, visit the MMA Junkie events hub to UFC 241 Fight Night.
