LAS VEGAS – Melissa Martinez beat Alice Ardelean with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 245 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Take a look inside the fight with Martinez, who returned after more than two years away to pick up her first UFC win.

Melissa Martinez def. Alice Ardelean

Melissa Martinez

Result: Melissa Martinez def. Alice Ardelean via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Updated records: Martinez (8-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC), Ardelean (9-7 MMA, 0-2 UFC)
Key stats: Ardelean outstruck Martinez 103-78 overall and 92-72 in significant strikes.

Martinez on the fight’s key moment

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Melissa Martinez of Mexico punches Alice Ardelean of Romania in a strawweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on October 19, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

“I was happy to actually to put it into practice, everything that I can do. I wasn’t able to do it in my first (UFC) fight because the nerves got in the way. … I knew she was a tough fighter. I think when you get to this level, every fighter is tough. This is an organization that whoever, her or anyone else, is going to be a tough fighter. I knew it was going to be a tough challenge and I think when you’re up here, you have to be ready to face everyone.”

Martinez on a phantom low blow

Melissa Martinez def. Alice Ardelean, UFC Fight Night 245 phantom low blow

“I felt that the shot was legal, and (the ref missed it), … but I didn’t let that distract me from the fight because the focus is actually to come out with the win. I would love for that to be a different result (and it was a TKO), but I think the referees are doing their job and I think that it was the correct procedure because they were not sure whether it was legal. The only thing was not to let myself get distracted and continue to fight.”

Martinez on what she wants next

Melissa Martinez def. Alice Ardelean, UFC Fight Night 245 (via UFC)

“I’m going to rest a little bit, but I’m going to go back into the gym – not with the same intensity as usual, but I’m going to be right there and continue to support all my my other teammates because they have their fights coming.”

To hear more from Martinez, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 245.

TEMPLEGATE wants winners on Tuesday – after Sophia’s Starlight went in at 18-5 on Monday.

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COME ON YOU SPURS (4.10 Yarmouth, nap)

She won back-to-back races over this trip on soft ground when held up so it was a surprise to see her front-running when coming home in fifth at Musselburgh last time. Neil Callan won the last time he rode Richard Spencer’s filly and the experienced pilot will surely ride a more measured race this time.

JACKPOT DES BORDES (2.10 Exeter, nb)

Did well in two bumpers last season and has a bright future over hurdles. Harry Cobden has an excellent strike-rate at Exeter too.

BALMORAL LADY (4.45 Yarmouth, treble)

Didn’t break sweat when scoring in the mud at Windsor last week. She is best over this trip and can defy a 6lb penalty for that impressive success.

BARNABY (7.25 Newcastle)

Completes the Lucky 15.  He had plenty in the tank when winning over course and distance last month. That was his first crack over seven furlongs and it brought major improvement.

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The UFC’s year-end pay-per-view event has taken its first significant hit just one week after the lineup was officially announced as Tatiana Suarez vs. Virna Jandiroba is no longer happening.

X user MMA Melotto reported Monday that Suarez suffered an injury that has forced her out of the UFC 310 matchup on Dec. 7 in Las Vegas. A person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the news to MMA Junkie. It’s unclear if Jandiroba will remain on the card against a replacement opponent.

The fight between Suarez and Jandiroba, who are ranked No. 1 and No. 3 in the strawweight division, respectively, was widely viewed as a title eliminator to determine the next challenger for champion Zhang Weili.

Suarez (10-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), who hasn’t lost as a professional, most recently competed in August 2023 when she submitted former champion Jessica Andrade. Her other notable UFC wins include former champions Carla Esparza and Alexa Grasso. Suarez’s career has been riddled with injuries, which kept her out of action for three-and-a-half years before she returned in February 2023.

Jandiroba (21-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC), a former Invicta FC champ, is on a four-fight winning streak after consecutive victories over Angela Hill, Marina Rodriguez, Loopy Godinez, and a Submission of the Year candidate armbar against Amanda Lemos in July.

With the change, the UFC 310 lineup includes:

• Belal Muhammad vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov – for welterweight title
• Alexandre Pantoja vs. Kai Asakura – for flyweight title
• Ciryl Gane vs. Alexander Volkov
• Nick Diaz vs. Vicente Luque
• Movsar Evloev vs. Aljamain Sterling
• Dominick Reyes vs. Anthony Smith
• Virna Jandiroba vs. opponent TBD
• Clay Guida vs. Chase Hooper
• Michael Chiesa vs. Max Griffin
• Cody Durden vs. Joshua Van

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 310.

Crystal Palace spent much of the summer fending off interest in their best players, but while Eberechi Eze and Marc Guehi both stayed, they were unable to keep hold of star man Michael Olise.

Bayern Munich spent about £50m to lure him from south London and he has proved impossible to replace.

The 22-year-old scored 10 goals in 19 league appearances for Palace last season and was key to their strong finish. Indeed, Glasner has only won one game without Olise in his team – a 3-0 victory over 10-man Burnley.

“Olise is a massive miss. What he’s doing now for Bayern Munich and the quality of player that he is,” former Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey said on Sky Sports. “He’s maybe one of the best that’s ever come out of Palace.

“The impact he had on that team last year was remarkable, so that’s not so easy to replace.”

While the departure of centre-half Joachim Andersen to Fulham did not attract the same attention as Olise’s move, it has arguably had as big an impact.

They conceded just 14 times in 13 matches under Glasner last season, with the 28-year-old key to a stingy Eagles defence. This season, they have already let in 11.

At both ends of the pitch Palace are not the team they were six months ago.

“When you’re losing one of your best defenders and one of your best attackers, no matter what your set-up is as a manager, it’s difficult to replace that quality,” added former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher.

Top ranked strawweight contender Tatiana Suarez will have to wait until 2025 to make her return after she was forced out of her upcoming fight against Virna Jandiroba, which was scheduled for UFC 310 on Dec. 7 in Las Vegas.

Sources told MMA Fighting on Monday that Suarez is dealing with a health issue that will prevent her from competing in December in what was expected to be a No. 1 contender’s bout at 115 pounds. MMA Melotto first reported the news.

It’s an unfortunate setback for Suarez, who has long been considered a popular pick as a future champion in the UFC but health problems have continued to plague her career. After she dispatched Nina Nunes back in 2019, Suarez appeared on the cusp of title contention but injuries kept her sidelined for more than three years.

When she finally returned to action, Suarez jumped right back into the deep end of the waters with a submission win over Montana De La Rosa at flyweight and then finishing former UFC champion Jessica Andrade to earn a Performance of the Night bonus back in August 2023.

Suarez was then scheduled to face Amanda Lemos in February but an injury knocked her out of that matchup before she was then set to clash with Jandiroba in December.

Sadly now that fight has also been cancelled.

There’s no word yet on how long Suarez is expected to be sidelined after falling out of her upcoming fight in December. It’s unclear if Jandiroba plans to remain on the UFC 310 card against a new opponent or potentially wait for a future date to compete again.