UFC Vegas 50 results: Sodiq Yusuff punishes Alex Caceres with leg kicks, calls out Bryce Mitchell following win

Sodiq Yusuff had to make some mid-fight adjustments to take out Alex Caceres’ legs to win a unanimous decision on the UFC Vegas 50 main card.

Dedicated to his striking throughout the fight, Yusuff really started to connect with his kicks towards the latter part of the first round, which did damage on Caceres’ lead leg. Yusuff stuck with that strategy the rest of the way as he wrapped up the victory, with the judges scoring the fight 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28, all in his favor.

“I’m really excited,” Yusuff said of the win. “I was happy I was able to get that mat time. My plan was to go to my arm and kick to his arm, but his stance was a little bit too wide, so the inside [leg kicks] were a bit of an audible during the fight.”

Yusuff was anxious to get started in his first fight back in nearly a year, attacking Caceres both on the feet and with his grappling from the clinch position. Caceres defended well, as he appeared willing to trade strikes while also looking to take advantage of any openings that Yusuff gave him battling for position against the cage.

Caceres was very calculated with his combinations as he measured his punches while Yusuff was throwing with fight finishing power behind every shot. As time passed, Yusuff also started to mix in a series of punishing leg kicks that began taking a toll, with a couple of them actually putting Caceres on the ground momentarily.

Realizing the damage being done, Yusuff started to target the lead leg while Caceres tried to either stay out of range or close the distance to avoid more of those kicks. Even with Caceres circling away, Yusuff still dug into the inside and outside of the leg before going back up top with his punches.

By the end of the third round, Yusuff had connected with 40 leg kicks as he continued to chip away at Caceres’ foundation, which was really the difference in the fight.

Back in the win column following a loss to Arnold Allen in his previous outing, Yusuff is now targeting a step forward in the featherweight division — and he called out another top-ranked fighter at 145 pounds.

“I really want to test myself against Arkansas finest,” Yusuff said. “I’d really like to fight Bryce Mitchell.”