Cortes-Acosta vs Spann

Who won Cortes-Acosta vs Spann?

Waldo Cortes-Acosta beat Ryan Spann by knockout in the 2nd round during the prelims of UFC Fight Night, on Saturday 15th March 2025 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 205 pounds (14.6 stone or 93 KG).

Cortes-Acosta vs Spann stats

Waldo Cortes-Acosta stepped into the octagon with a record of 12 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, 5 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 1 by submission.

Ryan Spann made his way to the cage with a record of 22 wins, 10 losses and 0 draws, 6 of those wins coming by knock out and 13 by submission.

This was Waldo Cortes-Acosta's 7th fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2022. Ryan Spann marked his 14th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2018.

Waldo Cortes-Acosta's UFC record stood at 6-1-0, while Ryan Spann's came in at 8-6-0.

The stats suggested Cortes-Acosta had an advantage in power over Spann, with a 42% knock out percentage over Spann's 27%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Spann had a massive advantage over Cortes-Acosta, boasting a 59% submission rate over Cortes-Acosta's 8%.

Waldo Cortes-Acosta was the same age as Ryan Spann, at 33 years old.

Spann had a height advantage of 1 inch over Cortes-Acosta. That also extended to a 1-inch reach advantage.

Cortes-Acosta was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 19 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2018, 5 years and 3 months later than Spann, whose first professional fight was in 2013. He had fought 20 less professional rounds, 33 to Spann's 53.

Cortes-Acosta vs Spann form

Cortes-Acosta had beaten 4 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going to the judges 3 times.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had won against Robelis Despaigne at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Nascimento on 11th May 2024 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Enterprise Center, St. Louis, United States.

Previous to that, he had beaten Andrei Arlovski at UFC Fight Night: Ankalaev vs. Walker on 13th January 2024 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC Apex, Las Vegas.

Going into that contest, he had defeated Lukasz Brzeski at UFC Fight Night – Holloway vs. Korean Zombie on 26th August 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at Singapore Indoor Stadium, Kallang, Singapore.

Before that, he had lost to Marcos Rogerio de Lima at UFC Fight Night – Song vs. Simon on 29th April 2023 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC Apex, Las Vegas, United States.

He was victorious against Chase Sherman at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. Spivak on 19th November 2022 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at UFC Apex, Las Vegas.

Spann had beaten 2 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight before this contest, he had won against Ovince St. Preux at UFC 307 on 5th October 2024 by submission in the 1st round at Vivint Arena, Salt Lake City, United States.

Previous to that, he had been beaten by Bogdan Guskov at UFC Fight Night: Nicolau vs. Perez on 27th April 2024 by knockout in the 2nd round at UFC Apex, Las Vegas.

Going into that contest, he had been defeated by Anthony Smith at UFC Fight Night – Holloway vs. Korean Zombie on 26th August 2023 by split decision in their 3 round contest at Singapore Indoor Stadium, Kallang, Singapore.

Before that, he had lost to Nikita Krylov at UFC Fight Night: Yan vs. Dvalishvili on 11th March 2023 by submission in the 1st round at The Theater at Virgin Hotels, Las Vegas, United States.

He had beaten Dominick Reyes at UFC 281 on 12th November 2022 by knockout in the 1st round at Madison Square Garden, New York City.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Waldo Cortes-Acosta had been fighting more than Ryan Spann.

Going to this contest, Waldo Cortes-Acosta had last fought 10 months and 18 days ago, while Ryan Spann's last outing had been 5 months and 24 days ago.

Cortes-Acosta's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 4 months and 10 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 5 months and 21 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 13 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.6 rounds on average.

Spann's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 4 months and 17 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 5 months and 22 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 8 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.6 rounds on average.

What time did Cortes-Acosta vs Spann start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 9:30 PM UTC , which was 5:30 PM EST or 2:30 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 9:30 PM GMT in the UK.

What were the odds on Cortes-Acosta vs Spann?

Waldo Cortes-Acosta was a 11/20 (-200) favourite going into the contest, while Ryan Spann made his way into the ring at 29/20 (+160) with oddsmakers.