UFC Fight Night 86 results: Crowd unsure, but Bojan Velickovic tops Alessio Di Chirico

Bojan Velickovic

ZAGREB, Croatia – Alessio Di Chirico and Bojan Velickovic fought with the urgency of UFC newcomers trying to make a good impression, keeping a high pace over three rounds.

But in the end, it was Velickovic (14-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC), who fell far short of a UFC contract on “The Ultimate Fighter 19,” who convinced judges he was the better man against the undefeated Di Chirico (9-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC).

The middleweight bout opened today’s UFC Fight Night 86 preliminary card at Zagreb Arena in Zagreb, Croatia. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass prior to additional prelims and a main card on FOX Sports 1.

Velickovic earned scores of 29-28 twice and, curiously, 30-27, extending his current win streak to five after flunking out of “TUF 19” in an elimination round bout. Di Chirico suffered his first loss as a professional.

Where Di Chirico may have failed to convince judges is the pace he kept relative to Velickovic, who busily chopped away at his lead leg over three rounds. Although Di Chirico regularly landed accurate punches that caught Velickovic flush, prompting a change of strategy with a second-round takedown, he often appeared to be catching up.

A takedown late in the middle frame nearly brought Velickovic a quick finish as he grabbed a kimura and torqued Di Chirico’s arm in grim fashion. When Di Chirico survived to the bell, it was questionable whether he’d have use of his arm.

But as the final frame commenced, Di Chirico’s fists still worked fine as he tried to match a last-minute push from Velickovic, who was the better kicker again despite a deficit in punches.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 86 results include:

• Bojan Velickovic def. Alessio Di Chirico via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

For more on UFC Fight Night 86, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan contributed to this report on site in Zagreb.)