MMA
UFC 290: Alexander is still The Great One, the new champion, an opponent for Adesanya and 9 finishes. See the best moments
UFC 290 offered two title fights, the end of a great career, fantastic performances and also nine early finishes. We know the name of the new flyweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski defended again, and the UFC faces a battle for Africa.
UFC 290 offered two title fights, the end of a great career, fantastic performances and also nine early finishes. We know the name of the new flyweight champion, Alexander Volkanovski defended again, and the UFC faces a battle for Africa.
Early Prelims and Prelims
As is tradition, the UFC 290 tournament, which took place in Las Vegas, kicked off with Early Prelims and Prelims cards. While they weren’t as attractive or star-studded by name, with the exception of the last fight before the main card, it was noticeable.
In fact, only two matches ended on points in this portion of the gala. Specifically, it was the opener of the event when Kamuela Kirk was no match for Esteban Ribovics and in the penultimate bout before the main card, Tatsuro Taira defeated Edgar Chairez.
Three finishes in the first minute
Instead, we saw three early terminations in the first minute of the first round. During the second duel of the tournament, Jesus Aguilar hit a great right overhand right to finish Shannon Ross after 17 seconds.
It was the first win for Aguilar in his second fight in the UFC. He fought his way into the organization via Contender, improving his record to a respectable 10-2 at 27. It’s worth noting that he scored his first ever KO/TKO win.
Even better, however, was Denise Gomes. She only needed 20 seconds to win, during which she gave her opponent Sazmin Jauregui no chance. She quickly put a lot of pressure on her and soon it was all over.
It was a battle of two talented fighters. While Gomes improved her UFC record to 2-1 at 23, the year older Jauregui, on the other hand, fell to an identical record, losing for the first time ever in her career after two wins in the organization.
Gomes, by the way, took care of the fastest ever KO in her weight division across UFC history.
Robbie Lawler, the hero of the two cards, shined with his third stoppage in the first minute. The former champion was going into the last fight of his career and was able to end it in 38 seconds by knocking out Nick Price hard.
Cameron Saiman scored the last knockout of the opening two cards, needing three minutes and 10 seconds to finish Terrence Mitchell.
Saaiman is only 22 years old and yet he already has three wins in the UFC after making his way into the organization via Contender. Overall, he boasts a perfect 9-0 record, with only two of his fights coming on points. All the others he finished before the limit.
He’s also been on the undercard
Fans of submissions were also in for a treat, although there were fewer than KO/TKOs. Vitor Petrino shone on the opening card with a successful arm-triangle, finishing Polish fighter Marcin Prachnio in 3:42 of the third round.
The Polish fighter continues his not-so-successful run. He lost his fifth of eight fights in the UFC. Not flattering for him is the fact that the 25-year-old Petrino scored the first ever win against him on a submission in his career. The Brazilian is now 2-0 in the UFC and is undefeated in his career, winning nine fights.
On the prelims card, Alonzo Menifield successfully finished a guillotine for a change. His opponent Jimmy Crute was forced to tap out at 1:55 of the second round.
Menifield thus begins to turn his UFC fortunes in his favor. He entered the organization with two wins, but then lost twice in a row, only to win twice and then lose once more. Now he has three wins in a row.
Crute is much worse off. He’s lost his third fight in a row and is 4-4 in the UFC. However, before Menifield, he was beaten by fighters like current welterweight champion Jamahal Hill and Anthony Smith.
The main card
Another finish in the first minute and a great jab
As the prelims card ended, the main card began. American prospect Bo Nickal faced a last-minute opponent change and was challenged by Val Woodburn, who made a dream come true and scored his UFC debut.
But the difference in the level of the two fighters was evident from the start and Nickal notched his second UFC win and improved his record to 5-0. He showed a clear dominance in the stand-up and after 37 seconds his opponent was down.
Although the next bout didn’t offer an ending, the three-round battle full of shootouts, exchanges and twists and turns was certainly not boring. On the contrary. Jalin Turner was perceived as the favorite, but he did not live up to this role, as Dan Hooker finally managed to defeat him on split-decision.
Statistically, Hooker had the upper hand in all the rounds, with the third round in particular clearly in his control. However, it was all the more surprising that one of the judges saw the third round in Turner’s favour, which resulted in Hooker winning “only” on split-decision.
UFC awaits fight for Africa, legend falls
In one of the most watched fights of the entire gala, Robert Whittaker and Dricus Du Plessis faced off. The result was to decide the next opponent for champion Israel Adesanya. The favourite was Whittaker, who had not found an opponent since 2014 apart from two losses to Adesanya.
After all, if it weren’t for Adesanya in the UFC, Whittaker would probably be the long-time champion. He even held the middleweight title for a while. However, he now faced a challenge in the form of the South African brash. While Du Plessis already wanted Adesanya directly, one more test would come in handy.
It was essentially a battle of technique and power. Whittaker continued to be the more technical fighter in the fight, but the hardness of his opponent’s punches commanded respect. And it was that which made the difference. The Aussie looked the better man for most of the first round, but Du Plessis dominated the finish, causing noticeable damage as well.
As soon as the second round began, the South African began to take full control. He unleashed nearly two and a half minutes of hell, after which Whittaker went down. Adesanya himself subsequently reached the cage and the UFC can look forward to a rather bizarre fight for Africa.
An epic battle dominated by the new champion
The main prelims offered the expected flyweight title fight. Brandon Moreno ended his tetralogy with Deiveson Figueiredo and became champion. The goal was to retain the belt, only his obstacle on that path was now Alexandre Pantoja, a man who had beaten the Mexican twice before.
So the fight had an interesting story. But Moreno was at home in Las Vegas, and he had the crowd on his side. But his opponent clearly dominated the first round. Pantoja was dangerous in the stand-up, the shootouts looked in his favor, he even delivered a knockdown, on the ground he inflicted a cut on his opponent’s face.
But the Mexican looked the better man in the second round. The Brazilian looked tired and Moreno was looking to take advantage. He got to his opponent’s back on the ground as well, but couldn’t find the recipe to end the fight. Once they were both on their feet, the reigning champion had the upper hand again.
Up and down. That’s pretty much how the rest of the fight could be described. It was a stand-up fight, it was a ground fight. One had the upper hand for a while, the other had the upper hand for a while. The duel was very even. Even in the championship rounds. It was clear that one of the fighters would be very disappointed when the result was announced.
And the crowd was also disappointed, wishing Moreno success. The new champion was Pantoja, who is the fifth rightful flyweight king. Moreno defeated the Mexican for the third time in his career and, given the evenness of the fight, the Mexican could have a shot at a second tetralogy.
Alexander is still the Great One! Volkanovski defends his title
The main event brought a featherweight title fight. Reigning champion Alexander Volkanovski faced another defense in his division after a challenge with Islam Makhachev, this time Yair Rodriguez wanted to take the belt from him.
The Mexican fans, who were many in the audience, were thus hoping that their second handcuff in the fire could succeed. But their hopes were dashed rather quickly. Although he was much smaller in the match, Alexander “The Great” showed his greatness.
After about a minute and a half, he took Rodriguez down. What happened before that? The Mexican tried to kick, but Volkanovski controlled the distance well. Although Yair caused his opponent a tear from the bottom position, the round went to the Australian.
Volkanovski delivered three takedowns in the first round alone. He maintained the same pace in the next round, which he completely dominated. He controlled the distance well, timed his punches correctly and when he was able to shake Rodriguez, he delivered a takedown and started the chicane from there.
Rodriguez was taking a lot of pressure. One punch after another. You could see his opponent’s handwriting on his face more than enough. He tried to resist, to stand up, to suggest submission. But Volkanovski lived up to his nickname.
The third round was the best for the Mexican. Kicking a lot, hitting well. He didn’t let Volkanovski near him. But one counter changed everything. The champion landed a good shot, Rodriguez retreated to the canvas, but The Great sent him with a successful combination, capped by a hard shot on the bottom and an uppercut, followed by a great takedown and a flurry of hard shots that Rodriguez couldn’t even defend against.
The bout was stopped, Volkanovski winning in style, Rodriguez immediately conceding defeat. He and his opponent showed mutual respect and it was a beautiful moment of sportsmanship.
After the fight Volkanovski had a staredown with Ilia Topuria, a man who is asking for a title shot with his performances. Will he get it?
Source: UFC, Tapology, Twitter
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