Lerone Murphy outpoints Josh Emmett, fires back at rowdy crowd after winning UFC Vegas 105 main event
Lerone Murphy may not have been the fan favorite in the UFC Vegas 105 main event, but he did more than enough to earn a victory over Josh Emmett to stay undefeated in his career.
It was a technically sound performance from Murphy as he outstruck Emmett round after round and frustrated the one-time interim title challenger, who just couldn’t get his offense going during the fight. Murphy consistently chipped away at the legs with a series of nasty kicks and then popped Emmett with a stiff jab that paid dividends all night long.
When it was over, the judges scored the fight 48-47, 48-47 and 49-46 with Murphy getting the nod by unanimous decision to move to 16-0-1 overall with the win.
As soon as the decision was announced, a loud chorus of boos rained down on Murphy—seemingly from a very pro-Emmett crowd in attendance at the UFC APEX—and he had no problem reminding them who actually won the fight.
“Listen, it’s all right. 16-0, what? Easy work,” Murphy said shouting back at the audience. “I just have to fight my game. He’s got one punch knockout power. I couldn’t make any mistakes. Intelligent performance. I was sound defensively. I dropped him with a left hand. It was a quality performance.”
With Emmett searching for an opening to unload a bomb, Murphy continuously circled and picked his shots, which was primarily led from his jab and some solid calf kicks. A clash of heads actually led to a cut with significant bleeding coming down Emmett’s face, but it didn’t seem to affect him much as he kept stalking Murphy across the cage with constant aggression.
While he typically prefers to strike, Emmett actually switched things up with a massive takedown after lifting Murphy in the air and literally tossing him down to the canvas. Unfortunately for Emmett, the highlight-reel takedown didn’t amount to much more with Murphy scrambling back to his feet again.
As for Murphy, he kept chipping away at that lead leg and it was clear his movement was starting to frustrate Emmett, who struggled to cut off the cage. The Brit went low and then launched head kicks up high to keep Emmett guessing.
The speed and variety of strikes coming from Murphy were nearly impossible to predict as he started settling into a rhythm with the fight moving into the fourth round. Murphy was also starting to find an opening for a nasty body kick that reverberated off Emmett’s midsection.
Realizing he was down on the scorecards, Emmett started headhunting with his punches while trying to deliver the knockout blow. Again and again, Murphy found a way to either block or avoid the biggest power shots coming from Emmett, who had to feel the fight slipping away from him.
With the final five minutes ticking away, Emmett desperately tried to find a home for that heat-seeking missile in his right hand, but it was the same story for him as almost the entire fight—he just couldn’t quite connect. In return, Murphy was content to continue kicking away at the legs, stabbing at Emmett with his jab and playing counter fighter until the final horn.
It was a solid yet not exactly spectacular showing from Murphy, who always finds a way to win, but hasn’t scored a finish since knocking out Makwan Amirkhani back in 2021. Still, Murphy continues his slow and steady climb up the ranks and now adds Emmett to his résumeé with his victory on Saturday night.
“Obviously, I want a title but give me anybody in the top 5 or the top 3,” Murphy said about what he wants next. “I want to keep this train going. I want to stay active. Another two fights this year.”