The Ultimate Fighter 32: Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko Episode 5 results

The Ultimate Fighter 32 just gave fans one of the best fights of the year.

In a bout that needed another five minutes, Team Valentina Shevchenko featherweight Zygimantas Ramaska (9-2) out-slugged Team Alexa Grasso’s Bekhzod Usmonov (11-4) to win a decision in an exhilarating two-round contest on the latest TUF 32 episode.

Shevchenko closed the gap between herself and her flyweight rival, snagging a second win of the season to narrow Grasso’s lead to 3-2. Ramaska joins teammate Roedie Roets in the semifinals of the season’s 145-pound tournament.

The taller Ramaska was the aggressor from the start of this week’s fight, as he used his impressive reach to walk Usmonov down and tag him with strikes. Ramaska didn’t hesitate to repeatedly throw head kicks as Usmonov worked to navigate the distance. With Ramaska pushing the pace in the middle of the round, Usmonov caught him with a cracking right hand that dropped Ramaska. He followed with ground-and-pound, but Ramaska recovered and somehow found the will to fire back with more kicks and clinch knees. By the end of Round 1, blood was pouring out of Usmonov’s nose from the sharp techniques.

Ramaska, seemingly fully recovered, didn’t let up in Round 2. He continued to score in the clinch, brutalizing Usmonov with knees and mixing in takedowns. Though Usmonov continued to fire back with heavy leather, Ramaska had a clear advantage in volume. Somehow, neither fighter suffered a knockdown in the second frame several clean shots connecting on both sides.

Despite Usmonov scoring a knockdown in Round 1, all three judges rewarded two rounds to Ramaska, giving him the win. Afterwards, UFC CEO Dana White entered the cage to personally congratulate the fighters for their incredible efforts.

In an odd twist, Ramaska and Usmonov actually ended up competing at a catchweight of 146.5 pounds after both fighters came in slightly heavy and the coaches agreed to just let them fight at the new poundage rather than force them to cut anymore weight.

Next week, the middleweight tournament continues as Team Grasso No. 4 Tom Theocharis fights Team Bullet No. 3 Ryan Loder.

The Ultimate Fighter 32 airs live every Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.

Following the season finale, Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko are expected to face off in a flyweight championship trilogy bout at a date still to be determined.

The finalists of the TUF 32 middleweight and featherweight tournaments will also compete for a six-figure UFC contract at the show’s live finale. A date for that event is also yet to be announced.

Here are the TUF 32 rosters divided by team:

Team Grasso

Featherweights

1. Guillermo Torres (Mexico) (7-1)
2. Kaan Ofli (Australia) (10-2-1)
3. Bekhzod Usmonov (Tajikistan) (11-4)
4. Mairon Santos (Brazil) (13-1)

Middleweights

1. Robert Valentin (Switzerland) (10-3)
2. Paddy McCorry (Ireland) (4-1)
3. Omran Chaaban (Finland) (6-1)
4. Tom Theocharis (Canada) (9-5)

Team Shevchenko

Featherweights

1. Roedie Roets (South Africa) (7-1)
2. Zygimantas Ramaska (Lithuania) (9-2)
3. Nathan Fletcher (England) (8-1)
4. Edwin Cooper Jr. (USA) (6-1)

Middleweights

1. Shamidkhan Magomedov (Russia) (7-1)
2. Mark Hulme (South Africa) (12-3)
3. Ryan Loder (USA) (6-1)
4. Giannis Bachar (Greece) (9-2)

Here are the quarterfinal results so far:

Roedie Roets def. Guillermo Torres via decision

Robert Valentin def. Giannis Bachar via KO (strikes) (R1)

Kaan Ofli def. Nathan Fletcher via decision

Omran Chaaban def. Shamidkhan Magomedov via technical submission (anaconda choke) (R2)

Zygimantas Ramaska def. Bekhzod Usmonov

Advancing to semifinals: Roets, Valentin, Ofli, Chaaban, Ramaska

Eliminated: Torres, Bachar, Fletcher, Magomedov, Usmonov