The T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas was ready to welcome UFC fans! The Alen Amedovski vs. Hu Yaozang middleweight bout, which was set to kickoff the early prelims, was cancelled before the event. UFC officials gave no further details other than “COVID-19 protocols in Amedovski’s camp.” This brought the card down to 12 bouts. The commentary and reporting team, as per usual, were on par with seamless transitions and much-appreciated insight.
Early Preliminary Card
The flyweights started off the evening with Zhalgas Zhumagulov taking on Jerome Rivera. Zhumagulov is looking to get his first win in the UFC and he does so in spectacular fashion! Zhumagulov got the win via submission in the first round by way of a standing guillotine choke. This proves to be an exciting fast-paced fight fit to start off the event.
Next up, the middleweights take to the octagon with Omari Akhmedov going up against Brad Tavares. This proves to be quite an explosive fight which goes the entire 15 minutes. Akhmedov starts breathing heavy in the third round and moves slower, which contrasts a fast-moving, calculating Tavares. For his incredible display, Tavares gets the win via split decision.
For the feature bout of the early prelims, Jessica Eye and Jennifer Maia battle it out in the women’s flyweight division. Maia begins with calculated moves but Jessica manages to survive all the tactics. The fight is mainly boxing. An accidental clash of heads causes Eye to have a nasty cut on her forehead – and it immediately starts bleeding quite heavily but it is controlled. Ultimately, Jennifer Maia wins the fight via unanimous decision.
Preliminary Card
To start off the prelims, Dricus du Plessis has a point to prove and he hopes to do so by continuing his win streak. His middleweight bout comes up against Trevin Giles. The two display impressive striking and takedowns. Less than two minutes into the second round, du Plessis manages to perfectly time and get a knockout victory over his competitor. In his post-match speech, he expresses his gratitude to those who support him and those who have given him chances. There is no doubt that South Africa can be put on the UFC map by du Plessis.
Ilia Topuria and Ryan Hall are up next for the featherweight division. Topuria has an impressive resume as he walks into this match undefeated (10-0), with 7 of those wins coming via submission. His opponent is not an easy task though as Hall is the Ultimate Fighter Season 22 winner, and is currently on an 8-fight win streak. The fight, to say the least, starts off with Hall’s unusual fighting style but Topuria remains determined to win. Topuria continues to successfully avoid getting trapped in Hall’s methods. At the end of the first round, Topuria manages to catch Hall and get the victory via knockout. Although an unusual match, Topuria’s streak continues.
The next match-up goes to the welterweight division. Michel Pereira came out to some music that just makes one want to sway and just chill. In the first round, Pereira seemed to have the speed advantage on Price. In the opening moments of the second round, Price found himself in a tricky situation when he fell to the mat – leaving himself exposed to Pereira. Pereira, being his usual self, did a backflip to full mount! The crowd went crazy! Pereira then attempted submissions to no avail, with Price even trying to cinch in his own submission too. The hard-hitting action continued on. Although many questioned the judges, Pereira ultimately won the fight by unanimous decision.
The feature prelim bout saw Carlos Condit taking on Max Griffin at welterweight. Condit almost fell victim to Griffin in the first round but managed to survive. The match continued on with Griffin mostly dominating the majority of the meeting. When it went to the judges, Griffin won by unanimous decision.
Main Card
The main card begins with Sean O’Malley taking on a debuting Kris Moutinho in bantamweight action. In the first round, O’Malley displays a diverse range of strikes but Moutinho manages to survive and stay in the fight. This onslaught continues on for most of the match before O’Malley eventually got the TKO in the third round following an uppercut and a right hand.
Next up, Irene Aldana took to the octagon to take on Yana Kunitskaya. The two fighters ranks dangerously close to each in the women’s bantamweight division. Kunitskaya started off controlling the action on the feet. Aldana was keeping up with her boxing. The fight’s complexion changed when Aldana dropped Kunitskaya with a check left hook, and Aldana was relentless as she unloaded a series of ground-and-pound shots. A mistake on Kunitskaya’s part was turning to her back, allowing Aldana to get the TKO in the first round.
Action continues to roll on as the heavyweights take to the octagon with Greg Hardy and Tai Tuivasa. This match immediately started off explosive with Tuivasa in control. Hardy did, however, manage to stagger his opponent. This fight didn’t last long before Tuivasa got the win via knockout just over a minute into the first round.
The penultimate match was set to be between Stephen Thompson taking on Gilbert Burns in a welterweight bout. Durinho, although being ranked two places higher than Wonderboy, was actually considered the underdog in this match. Burns assumed control quite early but the two were trading devastating shots throughout. Towards the end of the third round, Burns was unleashing hard shots that looked to end Thompson but, before he could get the win, the match ended. This ultimately led to Burns getting the win by unanimous decision.
Finally, the trilogy match we had all been waiting for was upon us. The tension is palpable and, when given the chance, Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier both refuse to even touch gloves. Once the action begins, McGregor immediately gets the action started with two spinning back kicks to the body. Poirier lands a nasty left hand that shakes McGregor. Poirier also manages to land a huge right hand, which he followed up with a series of elbows and punches. McGregor seems to have injured his leg/foot and Poirier tries to take advantage of this and finish the fight. By the end of the first round, doctors come in to assess McGregor whilst replays of the incident play on. The five minutes of this fight saw McGregor in control for the opening half, with Poirier assuming control in the second half. The official decision gave The Diamond the victory via TKO by way of doctor stoppage.
The fight between McGregor and Poirier was anxiously anticipated but the ending was not what many wanted. Poirier seemed to accept the victory for what it is. As for McGregor, he immediately let Poirier know that their war is not over. Dana White has given an update on the situation:
We are probably going to see Dustin Poirier challenging Charles Oliveira for the Lightweight title soon. As for Conor McGregor, he might only resurface next year. Either way, this isn’t the manner in which many expected the rubber match to play out and, with the possibility of the two having another match in the future, the score is yet to be settled. Additionally, the next time they meet, it could very well be for the Lightweight championship.
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