Buenos Aires, March 13 (NA) – Argentine fighter Kevin Vallejos will face American Josh Emmett in the main event of UFC Vegas 114, which will take place at the Meta Apex stadium during the night of Saturday, March 14, and the early morning of Sunday, March 15. According to the Argentine News Agency, it will be a fight between two fighters ranked in the top 15 featherweights (Emmett is eleventh and Vallejos is fourteenth) and could propel the Argentine into the top 10, bringing him closer to a hypothetical title fight. Additionally, the card will feature another main event, a strawweight fight headlined by Brazilian Amanda Lemos, ranked fifth, and Canadian Gillian Robertson, eighth in her weight class, at 115 pounds. After a dream 2024, Kevin Vallejos will seek to continue growing and making history in Argentine martial arts by headlining a UFC event where it will be only his fourth fight in the world's leading promotion. “El Chino” earned a contract with the company run by Dana White at the end of 2024 with a great performance against American Cam Teague in a tournament called the Contender Series, before debuting in the firm on March 15, 2025, next Sunday will mark exactly one year. Far from nerves, his first fight was impeccable. Facing South Korean Seung Woo Choi, Vallejos secured a technical knockout victory in the middle of the first round after connecting a spinning punch and finishing the fight with ground strikes. His second fight came in August against American Danny Silva, although it was less spectacular: although there was no knockout, the Marplatense won by unanimous decision on the scorecards. In his third fight, the Argentine once again amazed the world. Kevin Vallejos had to face a great and experienced fighter like Georgian Giga Chikadze, who caused him problems throughout the first round with a particular kick that characterizes him, which impacts directly to the liver. But the power of the fighter who stands out for his performances at 24 years old was more, and he repeated the formula of his first UFC triumph, with an effective spinning punch that surprised and dropped the Georgian, for Vallejos to again define the result on the ground, with head strikes to the head. His high level and surprising streak brought him more than one comparison with Spaniard Ilia Topuria, one of the best fighters of the current era who possesses great knockout power, and brought him a dangerous matchup for his progress in the division, Josh Emmett. Despite being 41 years old and dragging a 1-3 record in his last four fights, Emmett is one of the most feared fighters in the division. With 19 victories, 7 by knockout, in the 24 fights he participated in the sport, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt has one of the most impressive knockouts in the history of the sport, in his last triumph, stopping Bryce Mitchell dead in his tracks with a precise flying kick that impacted directly in the left eye of his rival, who fell to the ground immediately and remained almost motionless for a long time. Thus, Vallejos will have the most difficult fight of his life against a rival whom he described as a “legend” a few days ago, but whom he will have to overcome to be able to maintain the dream of being the first Argentine to fight for a title in the UFC.
