Quillan Salkilld Came Out of Nowhere and Changed UFC's Lightweight Division

The course of the lightweight division may have changed. In a time where everyone’s attention is on the brilliance of rising prospects like Paddy Pimblett, the violence of Benoit Saint Denis, the excellence of Ilia Topuria or even the grit of Justin Gaethje, to have Quillan Salkilld come from the shadows and announce his dominance is something outstanding to see.

At 26, Salkilld slowly collected 4 straight R1 finishes, showcasing variance between striking and his submission grappling. Facing Mateusz Gamrot, fans expected a heavy wrestling pressure from Gamrot and counter striking from the Australian. They perhaps expected heavy efforts to keep it standing, but what many didn’t expect was a beautiful round one submission over one of the toughest challengers in the division.

This event also featured the newly expanded Meta Apex, which visibly brought more life and light to a venue that was first used to hold events during the pandemic in 2020. The crowd’s intensity played a factor in several of these bouts that didn’t necessarily catch the attention at first glance.

Alexia Thainara and Amanda Lemos had a delightful display of violence between two Brazilians while at the same time, Carol Foro and Gigi Canuto did the same, proving there is indeed hidden value amongst WMMA Fights.

Steven Asplund proved over 3 Rounds that he is a name to be considered when talking about the future of the Heavyweight Division. No finish this time for Asplund, though a very fun fight for a fighter characterized by his intention, volume and cage presence, not to mention a fun personality outside the cage.

UFC Vegas 220 also served as the stage for Darren Elkin’s last fight as he is now retired from the sport of MMA. Elkins, known for his stubbornness to give up, ability to wear damage and pure violence on his face had a tough challenge with Yadider Del Valle in front of him. The faith of the fight and the first round knock-out proves why rarely do we get fairy tale endings in the organization.

The co-main featured Diego Ferreira proving age is just a number as the 41 year old scrapped a decision win over fan favorite Billy Q. Essentially, the bout was an accurate definition as for why one doesn’t skip the Apex Cards.

All the moments led to the main event as Quillan Salkilld passed his toughest test with flying colors. At the moment, all that remains is discovering his next opponent. We wonder how far the Australian who seemingly came from nowhere can go. His talent is surely one of the deepest, proving how the new generation of fighters aren’t necessarily focused on one segment of fighting, rather that collective skillset getting blended together since the early stages of development.