UFC Fight Night 131: Rivera vs. Moraes | Event Profile, Full Results & Legacy
- Daniel Cornmeat
- May 20
- 7 min read
Table of Contents
Introduction
UFC Fight Night 131: Rivera vs. Moraes took place on Friday, June 1, 2018 at Adirondack Bank Center in Utica, New York — broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 to 517,000 average viewers (322k FS1 prelims). The card drew 5,063 fans for a gate of $322,825. It was the first UFC event in Utica and the promotion’s first-ever Friday night main card event in several years. The event came just five days after UFC Fight Night 130 in Liverpool, England.
Marlon Moraes stopped Jimmie Rivera by KO at 0:33 of round one with a head kick and follow-up punches, earning Performance of the Night and ending Rivera’s 20-fight win streak. Gregor Gillespie, Ben Saunders, and Nathaniel Wood each earned the other Performances of the Night. No Fight of the Night was awarded. Belal Muhammad won a welterweight preliminary fight. Rivera received a 90-day medical suspension following the KO.
First UFC in Utica — Five Days After Liverpool
Utica is an upstate New York city of approximately 65,000 — one of the UFC’s smallest-market venues. The Adirondack Bank Center holds approximately 7,500; the 5,063 attendance was below two-thirds capacity. The $322,825 gate was the lowest in the UFC’s 2018 schedule. The event was announced alongside the Atlantic City card — reflecting the UFC’s strategy of pairing larger and smaller market events to fill the 2018 Fight Night calendar.
The five-day gap between Liverpool (Sunday, May 27) and Utica (Friday, June 1) was one of the shortest back-to-back Fight Night gaps in 2018, with Utica following the Liverpool card by just 5 days. The Friday night scheduling — unusual for a main card — was selected to avoid competing with the upcoming UFC 225: Whittaker vs. Romero 2 the following weekend. Multiple last-minute replacements reshaped the card: Ben Saunders replaced Bryan Barberena against Ellenberger; David Teymur replaced Leonardo Santos against Nik Lentz.
Quick Stats
📅 Date: Friday, June 1, 2018 (1st UFC in Utica, NY; Friday main card; 5 days after Liverpool FN130)
📍 Venue: Adirondack Bank Center, Utica, New York
👥 Attendance: 5,063
💰 Gate: $322,825
📺 Broadcast: Fox Sports 1 — 517,000 avg. viewers (322k FS1 prelims; Friday night card)
🏆 Main Event: Jimmie Rivera vs. Marlon Moraes — BW (Rivera 20-fight win streak; 5-0 UFC; Moraes former WSOF BW champion; positioned as #1 BW contender)
✅ Result: Moraes def. Rivera via KO (head kick and punches) — R1, 0:33 (PoN $50k; Rivera’s 20-FIGHT WIN STREAK SNAPPED; Rivera received 90-day medical suspension)
Main Event: Moraes’ 33-Second Head Kick KO of Rivera
Rivera had gone 20 consecutive professional fights without a loss, including 5-0 in the UFC with wins over Thomas Almeida and Urijah Faber. His technical defensive boxing and head movement made him one of the BW division’s most difficult opponents to finish. His professional record entering Utica had produced no KO losses. Moraes — a 28-year-old Brazilian with 15 finishes in his last 16 fights entering Utica — had produced multiple PoN-quality finishes including a 67-second knee KO of Aljamain Sterling at UFC Fight Night 123 in December 2017.
Moraes landed a head kick at 0:33 of round one that dropped Rivera. His follow-up punches produced the stoppage before Rivera could recover. The 33-second finish was Moraes’ most emphatically delivered individual KO result — ending a 20-fight win streak in under a minute. The result positioned him as the BW division’s most dangerous active contender and set up a potential title fight against the winner of the Dillashaw vs. Garbrandt rematch at UFC 227 in August 2018.
Gillespie Extends Unbeaten Run, Saunders PoN & The Card
Gregor Gillespie’s arm-triangle choke of Vinc Pichel at 4:06 of round two earned Performance of the Night and extended his undefeated professional record to 10-0. Gillespie — a Cornell University wrestling alumnus — was the LW division’s most technically sound developing contender. Ben Saunders’ TKO of Jake Ellenberger at 1:56 of round one earned PoN. Saunders — a Florida welterweight known for Muay Thai striking and submission quality — had replaced Bryan Barberena, who withdrew with injury.
Nathaniel Wood’s finish of Johnny Eduardo earned the fourth Performance of the Night. Wood — a 24-year-old London bantamweight making early career appearances — would go on to build a top-five BW record over subsequent years. Belal Muhammad’s welterweight win over Chance Rencountre continued his WW career build — a win that was one step toward his UFC WW Championship at UFC 304 in July 2024. Julio Arce’s rear-naked choke of his opponent in round three and Walt Harris’ TKO of Daniel Spitz added finishes to the card’s preliminary depth.
Full Results
Main Card (Fox Sports 1)
Marlon Moraes def. Jimmie Rivera — KO (head kick and punches) — R1, 0:33 — BW (PoN $50k; Rivera’s 20-fight win streak SNAPPED; 33 seconds; head kick + punches; Rivera 90-day medical suspension)
Gregor Gillespie def. Vinc Pichel — Submission (arm-triangle choke) — R2, 4:06 — LW (PoN $50k; Gillespie 10-0 undefeated; Cornell wrestling)
Walt Harris def. Daniel Spitz — TKO (punches and elbows) — R2, 4:59 — HW
Ben Saunders def. Jake Ellenberger — TKO (knee to body and punches) — R1, 1:56 — WW (PoN $50k; Saunders replaced injured Barberena; late replacement PoN)
Julio Arce def. Daniel Teymur — Submission (RNC) — R3, 2:55 — LW
Sam Alvey def. Gian Villante — Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) — LHW
Preliminary Card (FS1 / UFC Fight Pass)
Sijara Eubanks def. Lauren Murphy — Women’s FLW
David Teymur def. Nik Lentz — LW (Teymur replaced injured Leonardo Santos)
Belal Muhammad def. Chance Rencountre — WW (Muhammad building WW career; future UFC WW champion at UFC 304 July 2024!)
Des Green def. Gleison Tibau — LW
Nathaniel Wood def. Johnny Eduardo — BW (PoN $50k; Wood early career; future BW contender)
Bonuses & Awards
🥇 Fight of the Night: NOT AWARDED
🥇 Performance of the Night: Marlon Moraes + Gregor Gillespie + Ben Saunders + Nathaniel Wood — $50,000 each (4 PoN; no FotN)
Records & Milestones
• First UFC event in Utica, New York.
• Moraes’ 33-second R1 KO — ended Rivera’s 20-fight win streak.
• 5,063 attendance and $322,825 gate — among the smallest market UFC events of 2018.
Legacy & Impact
Moraes’ Utica KO positioned him as the UFC BW division’s mandatory title contender. However, his subsequent title shot against TJ Dillashaw at UFC Fight Night 148 in January 2019 in Brooklyn produced a TKO loss in round one for Moraes. Dillashaw subsequently tested positive for EPO (erythropoietin) and was stripped of the title; the result was overturned to a no-contest. Gregor Gillespie’s Utica PoN extended an unbeaten run to 13-0 before his first loss to Kevin Lee at UFC 244 in November 2019.
Belal Muhammad’s Utica preliminary win was an early step in a WW career that produced 11 consecutive wins — including a 2021 No Contest against Leon Edwards — before his UFC WW Championship at UFC 304 in July 2024. Nathaniel Wood’s Utica PoN debut was the beginning of a BW and then FW career that produced wins over multiple ranked opponents. Ben Saunders’ replacement PoN of Ellenberger was his most prominent individual bonus result after several years of inconsistent UFC performances.
FAQ
What was Rivera’s 20-fight win streak?
Rivera had won 20 consecutive professional fights — 19 before his UFC debut and all five of his UFC fights. His UFC wins included Thomas Almeida (a highly regarded BW prospect) and Urijah Faber (a former WEC and UFC BW title challenger). His professional record of 21-1 before Utica represented one of the most impressive active win streaks in the UFC’s BW division. The 33-second head kick KO by Moraes was his first career KO loss.
What was Moraes’ career trajectory after Utica?
Moraes’ Utica KO of Rivera positioned him as the mandatory BW title challenger. His subsequent fight was against TJ Dillashaw at UFC Fight Night 148 in January 2019 in Brooklyn — a TKO loss in round one for Moraes. The competitive setback was subsequently complicated by Dillashaw’s positive EPO test, which resulted in the title being vacated and the fight overturned to a NC. Moraes’ career produced additional BW contender appearances before his retirement.
Why was the card on a Friday?
The Friday scheduling was unusual for a UFC main card but was selected to avoid competing commercially with the UFC 225: Whittaker vs. Romero 2 pay-per-view the following Saturday, June 9. The back-to-back timing — UFC Fight Night 130 in Liverpool on Sunday May 27, UFC Fight Night 131 in Utica on Friday June 1 — filled the promotional calendar between the Liverpool and Chicago events. The Friday schedule contributed to the low viewership: 517,000 average viewers on Fox Sports 1 for a prime-time Friday slot.
Who was Gregor Gillespie’s fight with Pichel?
Gillespie was a 31-year-old Niagara Falls, New York lightweight who had wrestled at Cornell University. His Utica fight against Vinc Pichel — a 34-year-old Washington State lightweight with a legitimate UFC record — was his fourth UFC appearance, all wins. His arm-triangle choke at 4:06 of round two demonstrated the grappling chain quality that produced his five consecutive UFC wins before the Kevin Lee loss.
What was Ben Saunders’ situation as a replacement?
Saunders replaced Bryan Barberena, who had pulled out with injury on March 23. Saunders was a 34-year-old Largo, Florida welterweight with a background in Muay Thai and BJJ. His replacement TKO of Ellenberger at 1:56 of round one with a knee to the body and follow-up punches was his most commercially visible UFC performance in several years. Ellenberger was a former top-five UFC welterweight whose career had been in decline; Saunders’ body-kick TKO was definitive.
Who was Nathaniel Wood before Utica?
Wood was a 24-year-old London bantamweight who had gone 10-2 professionally before his UFC signing. His Utica debut PoN finish of Johnny Eduardo — a Brazilian veteran with UFC experience — established his finishing credentials. His subsequent UFC career produced wins over multiple ranked BW opponents and an eventual move to featherweight where he became a top-ten contender. His Utica debut was the first public demonstration of his submission-based finishing style to a UFC audience.
References
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