Cutelaba vs Nzechukwu

Who won Cutelaba vs Nzechukwu?

Kennedy Nzechukwu beat Ion Cutelaba by knockout in the 2nd round during the main event of UFC Fight Night, on Saturday 19th November 2022 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 205 pounds (14.6 stone or 93 KG).

Cutelaba vs Nzechukwu stats

Ion Cutelaba stepped into the octagon with a record of 16 wins, 8 losses and 1 draw, 12 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 2 by submission.

Kennedy Nzechukwu made his way to the cage with a record of 10 wins, 3 losses and 0 draws, 7 of those wins coming by knock out.

This was Ion Cutelaba's 19th fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2016. Kennedy Nzechukwu marked his 13th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2019.

Ion Cutelaba's UFC record stood at 8-10-1, while Kennedy Nzechukwu's came in at 8-5-0.

The stats suggested Cutelaba had a slight advantage in power over Nzechukwu, with a 75% knock out percentage over Nzechukwu's 70%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Cutelaba had an advantage over Nzechukwu, with a 13% submission rate over Nzechukwu's 0%.

Ion Cutelaba was the younger man by 1 year, at 31 years old.

Nzechukwu had a height advantage of 4 inches over Cutelaba. That also extended to a 8-inch reach advantage.

Cutelaba was the more experienced professional fighter, having had 12 more fights, and made his debut in 2012, 4 years and 7 months earlier than Nzechukwu, whose first professional fight was in 2016. He had fought 11 more professional rounds, 51 to Nzechukwu's 40.

Cutelaba vs Nzechukwu form

Nzechukwu had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 2 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Karl Roberson at UFC Fight Night: Dos Anjos vs. Fiziev on 9th July 2022 by knockout in the 3rd round at UFC APEX, Las Vegas, United States.

Previous to that, he had lost to Nick Negumereanu at UFC 272 on 5th March 2022 by split decision in their 3 round contest at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas.

Going into that contest, he had been beaten by Da Un Jung at UFC Vegas 42 on 13th November 2021 by knockout in the 1st round at UFC APEX, Las Vegas.

Before that, he had beaten Danilo Marques at UFC Vegas 30 on 26th June 2021 by knockout in the 3rd round at UFC APEX, Las Vegas.

He had defeated Darko Stosic at UFC on ESPN 5 on 3rd August 2019 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Prudential Center, Newark.

Activity check

Cutelaba's last 4 fights had come over a period of 8 years, meaning he had been fighting on average every 2 years. In those fights, he fought a total of 5 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.3 rounds on average.

Nzechukwu's last 5 fights had come over a period of 5 years, 10 months and 7 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 1 year, 2 months and 3 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 13 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.6 rounds on average.

What were the odds on Cutelaba vs Nzechukwu?

Ion Cutelaba was a 29/20 (+150) underdog going into the contest, while Kennedy Nzechukwu made his way into the ring at 14/25 (-180) with oddsmakers.