Elijah Smith finished Davey Grant in the first round at UFC Vegas 124, scoring a knockout inside the opening minute. The 24-year-old Smith extended his winning streak to nine fights and improved to 11-1, including 4-0 in the UFC, with eight finishes. The 40-year-old Grant, now 18-9, was knocked out for the first time in his career. The two fighters are separated by 16 years in age.
Elijah Smith needed less than a minute to deliver one of the more notable finishes of his career at UFC Vegas 124, knocking out Davey Grant in the first round.
The 24-year-old Smith stretched his winning streak to nine fights and moved to 11-1 overall, including 4-0 inside the UFC. Eight of his wins have come by finish. For Grant, the result carried added weight: it was the first time in his career he had been knocked out.
Smith, an orthodox fighter, stands five-foot-nine with a 71-inch reach. His recent form shows a finisher with range. In March 2026 he submitted SuYoung You in the second round at UFC Fight Night: Emmett vs. Vallejos, and in August 2025 he knocked out Toshiomi Kazama in round one. His database numbers reflect a well-rounded game: 4.18 significant strikes landed per minute at 48 percent accuracy, plus 2.98 takedowns and 1.1 submission attempts per 15 minutes.
Grant, the 40-year-old Englishman from Syndicate MMA, fell to 18-9 with the loss. He is five-foot-eight with a 69-inch reach and has built his career on volume, landing 5.14 significant strikes per minute at 44 percent accuracy. His most recent recorded fight before this one was a unanimous decision win over Adrian Luna Martinetti in April 2026. Before that, he lost by first-round submission to Charles Jourdain in October 2025, so Saturday's defeat is his second first-round loss in his last four recorded outings.
Why it matters
- Smith's nine-fight run and unbeaten UFC record (4-0) make him a rising name in his division at just 24.
- The 16-year age gap between the fighters underlined a youth-versus-experience matchup that Smith settled almost immediately.
- Grant's knockout loss ends a durability streak that had lasted through his entire career, and his two most recent defeats have both ended in the first round.
The numbers also show a clear contrast in approach. Grant out-strikes Smith on volume by roughly a full strike per minute (5.14 to 4.18), but Smith is more accurate by four percentage points and attempts nearly three times as many takedowns per 15 minutes as Grant's 1.03. Against that profile, Smith ended the fight before either man's tendencies could fully develop.
Davey Grant vs Elijah Smith
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