Medic blitzes Rodriguez, Zepeda claims WBC gold: July 27-August 2 fight recap

July 27-August 2, 2026. Uros Medic needed 30 seconds to turn UFC Belgrade into a homecoming breakthrough, William Zepeda won the vacant WBC lightweight title in Las Vegas, and Mark Chamberlain took Pierce O'Leary's IBO super lightweight belt in Dublin. The next seven days are more title-heavy: a UFC lightweight main event, a vacant IBF middleweight championship, and an undisputed women's bantamweight fight all land on Saturday. 123

Uros Medic stopped Daniel Rodriguez by TKO at 0:30 of Round 1 at Belgrade Arena on August 1. The official UFC card lists the welterweight bout as a finish over Rodriguez, who entered ranked No. 15 while Medic was No. 14. UFC carried the event on Paramount+, with the main card beginning at 1:00 p.m. ET. 1

The sequence was short but decisive: MMA Fighting reported that Medic landed a fast left-right combination, then finished with punches from top position after Rodriguez hit the canvas. The Serbian fighter has now won five straight, all by first-round knockout, and called for Leon Edwards after the fight. That is a meaningful change in his position at 170 pounds: this was not just a home-crowd finish, but the cleanest kind of argument for a higher-level opponent. 4

The co-headliner produced the other major result. Navajo Stirling stopped former light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz at 2:56 of Round 1. Aleksandar Rakic then beat Marcin Tybura by unanimous decision over three rounds. The main card's other finishes were Robert Valentin's first-round submission of Dusko Todorovic, Gilbert Urbina's first-round TKO of Vlasto Cepo, Noah Gugnon's first-round submission of Milos Janicic, and Tofiq Musayev's second-round TKO of Ludovit Klein. 1

The preliminary card kept the same pace. Mateusz Rebecki stopped Kyle Prepolec at 3:41 of Round 1, Nina Milosevic stopped Hailey Cowan at 2:22 of Round 1, and the event finished with ten stoppages across fourteen bouts. The UFC's official results pages confirm the event date and bout outcomes, although the accessible result pages did not expose a complete set of updated post-fight records. 56

UFC Belgrade's bonus distribution was unusually broad. Forbes reported $100,000 Performance of the Night awards for Medic, Urbina, Stirling and Milosevic. The same report said the other stoppage winners received an additional $25,000. UFC's own bonus bulletin is the promotion's official award page, while the accessible independent report supplies the recipient details. 78

William Zepeda beat Lamont Roach Jr. by unanimous decision, 117-111, 117-111 and 118-110, to win the vacant WBC lightweight title at The Theater at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas on August 1. The result listing records Zepeda at 34-1 with 27 knockouts and Roach at 25-2-3 with 10 knockouts. It was a clear scorecard result rather than a late swing: Zepeda controlled the 12-round title fight and left with the belt. 2

Raymond Muratalla also kept his IBF lightweight title on the same card, beating Robson Conceicao by unanimous decision, 118-110, 118-110 and 119-109. Charles Conwell stopped Paul Kroll at 2:38 of Round 9, while Joel Iriarte stopped Jorge Lagunas in Round 8 to retain the WBA Continental Gold welterweight title. Those results made the Las Vegas show more than a single-belt headline: the lightweight division left the weekend with both a new WBC champion and a defending IBF champion. 2

Dublin supplied the week's sharper reversal. Mark Chamberlain knocked out Pierce O'Leary at 1:37 of Round 10 to claim the IBO super lightweight title. Chamberlain entered with a 17-1-1 record and left at 18-1-1 with 13 knockouts; O'Leary moved from 19-0 to 19-1. Chamberlain scored knockdowns in the second and third rounds, was dropped in the seventh, and still finished the fight in the tenth. That combination of damage and recovery is why the bout immediately entered the fight-of-the-year conversation. 3

Royston Barney-Smith added the card's other recorded title change, beating Reece Bellotti by unanimous decision to win the vacant IBO Intercontinental super featherweight title. Gary Cully stopped Lee Reeves at 0:53 of Round 10, and Steven Cairns stopped Senan Kelly in Round 5. 3

All times below are Eastern. The table keeps the headline matchup and the clearest confirmed stakes; undercards can change.

Johnson-Thorslund is the week's closest verified betting market. ProBoxingOdds showed Johnson between -112 and -115 and Thorslund between -103 and -115, with the fight-to-decision market at -650. Those numbers describe a near-even side market but a strong expectation that the bout reaches the cards; they are a snapshot, not a prediction. No numeric line was available in the captured Williamson-Simpson or Gamrot-Salkilld pages. 121718

The Saturday decision is therefore a matter of density, not a single obvious must-watch. Las Vegas offers the UFC's ranked lightweight test and a deep boxing title card; Dublin has the first Zuffa-hosted sanctioning-body world-title fight; Leeds is a genuine upset-rematch; and Orlando puts all four major bantamweight belts on one fight. 101213