The Armbar

Usman def. Covington

What a fight, this lived up to all the hype. Two wrestlers who respected each other’s high-level grappling ability forgo the ground game and instead kept the fight standing, going shot for shot in the center of the octagon.

Round one started off in the center of the octagon with both fighters standing and trading. Both fighters seemed to respect each other’s grappling skills, essentially agreeing to a kickboxing fight. Colby landed more strikes and controlled the exchanges in the center of the cage. I had Covington winning round one 10-9.

Round two was a similar story. Usman and Covington respected each other’s wrestling and decided to continue to stand and trade. Usman started to find some success in sharp body shots which he continued to utilize for the remainder of the fight. Covington landed the bigger shots in round two and seemed to slightly wobble Usman at least once. The fight was briefly stopped due to a groin kick that many, including the broadcasting team, found questionable. The round ended with another flurry that Covington seemed to win. I had Covington winning round two, again at 10-9.

Round three belonged to Usman. Usman continued to utilize the body shots that visually affected Covington. Usman was connecting with his right hand well, getting the better of the exchanges this round. Both fighters get poked in the eye but nothing too severe to the point that it affected the fight. I think Usman won round three 10-9.

Round four was a close battle. Colby started the round with a wild flurry, connecting on a couple big shots. Covington finds success using the high left kick, a shot that seemed to be open for most of the fight. Usman continues to dig to the body with both punches and kicks. The round ended shortly after Covington landed another high kick, this sealed the round for Covington in my opinion.

Going into the fifth and final round, I had Colby up three rounds over Usman. Great exchanges in the beginning of the round, I again see Colby on the slightly better end of these exchanges but not for long. Usman absolutely takes over the fight, dropping Colby twice and eventually jumping on top and securing the ground and pound TKO at 4:10 remaining in the fifth round. What a finish to an amazing fight.

Congratulations to Usman. His performance displayed what it means to be the champ by finishing Covington at the end of a close fight. Now the question is, who’s next? Is it a fight with the star Jorge Masvidal, previous champ Tyron Woodley, a rematch with Colby, or Leon Edwards? This division is stacked with potential upcoming fights!

Volkanovski def. Holloway

And NEW! Volkanovski stuck to his game plan and fought a perfect fight. We knew this guy was a gamer but did not expect him to perform so well against the reigning champ Max Holloway. From the first round to the fifth, Volkanovski utilized devastating leg kicks. Max was unable to get the angles he wanted and was forced to switch between southpaw and orthodox stances due to the damage Volkanovski put on his legs. Volkanovski was able to move in and out quickly and effectively throughout the fight. I thought Holloway’s longer body and constant hand fighting was going to be difficult to for Volkanovski to handle, but that was not the case. Volkanovski is the real deal.

Nunes def. de Randamie

I think we all expected the female GOAT Amanda Nunes to beat Germaine de Randamie for the second time in her career. This is not a knock-on Germaine, but a testament to how great Nunes is.

Nunes looked sharp coming out in round one, landing an overhand right quickly after the bell. Amanda landed a couple of nice takedowns and attempted a slick Guillotine and a head and arm triangle that almost finished Germaine. Germaine was throwing some wild up kicks, but none connected smoothly. Amanda closed out a dominant round one with some nice ground and pound.

It seemed clear that Nunes was fatigued in round two. Nunes secured a couple of takedowns again, but Germaine began to get some offense of her own going. Germaine landed a solid head kick and then a knee off of the clinch. This got Nunes’ attention. Round two ends with some ground and pound from Nunes after she landed another takedown.

Amanda displayed her high-level grappling skills for the rest of the fight. Securing eight takedowns and keeping Germaine on the ground for most of the final rounds. Germaine had absolutely zero take down defense and could not handle Amanda’s quick level changes. There was only one point where Nunes looked like she could have been in trouble on the ground. In round four, Germaine threw up a slick triangle off her back; Amanda eventually rolled through and shimmied her way out of danger.

Nunes retained her belt, and the title of GOAT, in this matchup versus a very game Germaine de Randamie. Despite a unanimous decision victory, Nunes was not as dominant as she had been in recent victories. This seemed to be due to Nunes gassing herself out early.

Moraes def. Aldo

In our pre fight breakdown, we predicted that Moraes was going to secure the win but expected it to be in a more dominant fashion. Moares won via split decision in a fight where many thought it could have gone either way.

Moraes started the fight extremely hot, landing a high switch kick off of the bell that instantly got Aldo’s attention. Aldo controlled the center of the octagon for almost the entire first round but it seemed as though Moraes was getting the better part of the exchanges. The round ended with a quick flurry where Moraes took a couple of big punches but still managed to hit a beautiful lateral drop throw, securing the first round.

Watching the second round felt like we were watching the Moraes vs Cejudo fight all over. Moraes’ output noticeably slowed down. Aldo again did a great job of controlling the octagon and utilized his jab. Both fighters landed well in round two making it a close round to call. Due to the power of the shots landed, I had Moraes winning round two but could see it going either way.

Round three is where we really saw Moraes slow down. Aldo walked Moraes down the entire round and was getting the better end of the exchanges. Aldo won round three without a question.

The judges saw the fight 29-28 Moraes, 29-28 Aldo, 29-28 Moraes. In Moraes’ post-fight interview he made it a point to state that he would very happily give Aldo an immediate rematch due to the decision.

Dana White shocked many in his post event interview where he stated Jose Aldo may be next up to fight Henry Cejudo for the Bantamweight belt. There is no doubt that Aldo looked great in the split decision loss, but it makes more sense to give the shot to a fighter who is coming off a win; perhaps Petr Yan?

Yan def. Faber

This fight went as predicted as #4 contender Petr Yan took on Urijah Faber.

Yan looked very sharp in his standup game and had a very solid takedown defense throughout the fight. From the start, Yan controlled the center of the octagon. Faber was forced to throw naked high kicks to create space and keep Yan from continually backing him down. Yan was unphased by these missing kicks and relentlessly kept moving forward.

Round two starts in the same fashion. Yan eventually landed a solid right that dropped Faber. The Cali Kid got back to his feet, while waving to his family in the crowd, and gets dropped again by a beautiful elbow that creates a huge cut around Faber’s eye. After a quick look from the doctor, the fight continues. In round three, Yan lands a front kick right down the center ending the fight. It looked like Yan was going for a knee and adjusted mid movement, extending his leg and clipping Faber with the front of his foot and delivering a highlight-reel KO.

In the post-fight interview, Yan called out the current champ, Henry Cejudo. I think this is a great matchup and makes sense after another dominant performance by Cejudo. It is hard to know if Yan will get the title shot after Dana White’s post event press conference where he stated Aldo might be the next in line despite losing via split decision.

Aldana def. Vieira

Aldana shook up the entire division with her perfectly landed left hook KO over #2 ranked Ketlen Vieira in the first round. Aldana looked comfortable on her feet; she found her range quickly and was landing smoothly before connecting with the left hook that put Vieira out. This was the biggest win of Irene’s career and puts her in an interesting position after knocking out the #2 contender in devastating fashion.

Neal def. Perry

What an impressive fight by Geoff Neal! As we predicted in the pre-fight breakdown, Neal finished Perry by TKO. Geoff Neal utilized his reach and sharp technical standup game from the start of the first round. This made it nearly impossible for Perry to get inside and get any offense going. Neal set up the TKO by landing a solid left high kick then swarming Perry. Perry eventually curled up to avoid any additional damage.

A couple things were made clear in this fight: Mike Perry is as tough as they come and will continue to be a great PPV draw whether he wins or loses, and Geoff Neal has proved himself to be a legit contender in the Welterweight division.

Brown def. Saunders

In his return after a long layoff, Matt Brown won in dominant fashion. After a slow paced first round consisting of Brown fighting off a non-threatening triangle choke, The Immortal finished Saunders in round two by Knockout, adding another impressive W to his extensive resume. Brown setup Saunders with a beautifully placed head kick; after stumbling Saunders from the head kick, Brown suffocated Saunders, eventually dropping him. Brown finished with a flurry of punches and elbows. The Immortal now has 11 KO/TKO wins in the UFC. Matt Brown is an absolute legend. I predicted Brown would win in our pre fight breakdown but thought Saunders would have been more competitive in the match up.