When the official decision was read, Serghei Spivac was tired and covered in blood – but he did enough to get his hand raised.
Spivac (13-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) defeated Aleksei Oleinik (59-16-1 MMA, 8-7 UFC) in the UFC on ESPN 25 co-main event via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
UFC on ESPN 25 took place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It aired on ESPN2 and streamed on ESPN+.
Oleinik had his moments early, especially in the striking. Throughout Round 1, Oleinik walked down Spivac as he winged bombs. The submission specialist’s takedown attempts were mostly nullified, however, as Spivac displayed a large strength discrepancy.
In the first two rounds, Oleinik found success on the ground only when he pulled guard. As the fight moved along, both fighters tired – especially Oleinik. In Round 2, the momentum shifted in Spivac’s favor.
By Round 3, Oleinik was exahusted. A giant gash was opened on the side of his face, but he continued to move forward. Spivac gained top control as the clock wound down – until the final buzzer. His performance in Round 2 and Round 3 was enough to get the nod.
An exhausted Serghei Spivac and @oleynikufc embraced after their three-round battle at #UFCVegas29 pic.twitter.com/2frb2b5xzt
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 20, 2021
With the victory, Spivac extends his winning streak to three. For Spivac, UFC on ESPN 25 came on the heels of back-to-back wins over Carlos Felipe and Jared Vanderaa. His only career losses have come against Walt Harris and Marcin Tybura.
As for Oleinik, who is one week shy of his 44th birthday, the defeat is his third in a row. Prior to UFC on ESPN 25, Oleinik lost back-to-back fights by TKO against Derrick Lewis and Chris Dauakaus.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 25 results include:
- Serghei Spivac def. Aleksei Oleinik via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Marlon Vera def. Davey Grant via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 30-26)
- Seungwoo Choi def. Julian Erosa via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:37
- Bruno Silva def. Wellington Turman via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 4:45
- Matt Brown def. Dhiego Lima via knockout (punch) – Round 2, 3:02
- Nicolae Negumereanu def. Aleksa Camur via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Virna Jandiroba def. Kanako Murata via TKO (injury) – Round 2, 5:00
- Khaos Williams def. Matthew Semelsberger via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Josh Parisian def. Roque Martinez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Ricky Glenn def. Joaquim Silva via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:37
- Casey O’Neill def. Lara Procopio via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 2:54
