UFC 281 RECAP

Wow, just wow. That might have been the best event of the year, or at the very least the best PPV. London in March could probably rival it, but the fact that 281 was incredibly stacked on paper, and also delivered in abundance might just edge it for me. Two new champions, 11 finishes in 14 fights, devastating KOs and fight of the year contenders, what more could you want? And also, what’s the deal with MSG and belts changing hands? Since, and including, the first MSG event (UFC 205) in 2016, and not including the BMF title (because, obviously), we’ve heard “And new” 7 times while “And still” only 4 times. In other words; Champions, be wary of defending your title at The Garden.

MAIN EVENT

First of all, what does Israel Adesanya have to do in order to beat Alex Pereira? I must admit, I have only briefly watched their two bouts in kickboxing, but the general consensus seems to be that the first fight was incredibly close and could have gone either way, while in the rematch Adesanya had Pereira in deep trouble, and was close to finishing him before being caught himself. Now, I’m not saying that Pereira hit Adesanya with a “lucky shot”, Even Izzy himself would admit that. But to have basically the same thing happen again, who could have predicted that? Adesanya had Pereira badly hurt at the very end of the first round, and had the fight gone on for even 5-10 seconds longer Adesanya would probably have gotten him out of there. Pereira won what was a fairly non-eventful second round, before Adesanyagomedov showed up and grappled Pereira for the next two rounds, putting him 39-37 up before the final round (all 3 judges had it that way too). Then in the final round, it happened again. Pereira had Adesanya up against the fence, and landed a clean left hook followed by an uppercut that had Adesanya wobbled. A good few more shots followed, before referee Marc Goddard stepped in and stopped the fight. A new middleweight king has been crowned, and we will no doubt see the rematch sometime next year.

Immediate rematches is kind of a controversial topic, but in Israel Adesanya’s case, same as in Kamaru Usman’s case, I personally believe it is warranted, as they had dominated their division since 2019, with several defences. If Pereira were to win again though, it will be interesting to see how he does when he faces some of the good grapplers at 185lbs. He will of course improve as a mixed martial artist, and training with Glover Teixeira can only do him the world of good, but being controlled on the ground by Adesanya is not a good sign when potentially facing the likes of Robert Whittaker, Marvin Vettori, Andre Muniz and possible a certain Borz who might be tempted to move up.

CO-MAIN EVENT

Meanwhile, Zhang Weili is starting her second reign as strawweight champion after submitting Carla Esparza in the second round. Overall it was a dominant display by Weili, but the most impressive thing about the performance was how she handled herself on the ground. Everyone was probably in agreement that she would have the advantage on the feet, even though Esparza is no slouch, but when the fight went to the floor Weili showed that her grappling, and especially her scrambling has improved tremendously. Ending up in that crucifix-like position that eventually lead to the finishing sequence was incredible work from Weili, and the way Esparza tapped almost before both hooks were fully sunk in, my god Weili must be incredibly strong and have some squeeze. Strawweight is absolutely a lively division, and I really hope that Amanda Lemos gets the next shot, as the title-shots has basically been passed around between the same mainstays for the past few years, so some new faces are absolutely welcome. I also hope the UFC are eyeing an all Chinese superfight between Zhang Weili and Yan Xiaonan at some point (obviously to take place in China), but Yan might need another win before that comes to fruition.

“PEOPLE’S MAIN EVENT”

Again, just like last year, “the people’s main event” absolutely lived up to the expectations as Dustin Poirier and Michael Chandler went to war for 13 minutes. Chandler said before the fight that he came to win, not necessarily to entertain, but I don’t know, something always seems to change in Michael Chandler whenever the octagon door closes. He lit up Poirier early, but if you look up the word “adversity” in the dictionary, there will probably be a photo of Dustin Poirier bending down and holding his knees. Whenever he seems in trouble, he finds a way to come back and put it on his opponent. He hurt Chandler towards the end of the first round, and finished strongly which probably won him the round. Chandler managed to take down Poirier and control him for the majority of the second round, but he did use some dirty tactics when he tried to fishhook Poirier in order to sink in a choke. Poirier pointed this out both in the post fight interview and the press conference, and it probably made it even sweeter for him to finish Chandler with a rear naked choke of his own. This was also the first time Chandler has been submitted, which is bonkers considering some of the killers he has been in there with. I mean even Charles Oliveira, the guy with the most submissions in UFC history couldn’t submit him even after having his back for a good while.

With Islam Makhachev now reigning supreme in the lightweight division, some of the guys who previously lost to former champ Charles Oliveira, like Dustin Poirier, might be looking at an easier route to another title shot, as Islam hasn’t really fought many of the top guys in the division yet. Obviously, legacy, gold and P4P status is on the line in Perth at UFC 284 when Makhachev squares off with featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski, but beyond that it will be an interesting period for the lightweight division, with a lot of guys looking to get that next title shot. Beneil Dariush is on a huge win streak, and I wouldn’t personally be against him getting the next title shot after Volkanovski, but him vs Poirier could be interesting if he wants to keep busy in the meantime, and Poirier probably needs another win to lay claim on another shot at the belt. In Chandler’s case, he might need to look down the rankings for now, but there’s still a lot of fun matchups for him, none so more than a certain Irishman who could be coming back in 2023, someone Chandler has called out more than once.

REST OF THE CARD

Seeing Frankie Edgar getting KOed that brutally in his last ever fight was heartbreaking, even for someone who has only watched and been familiar with Edgar in the twilight of his career. Nothing but respect for Chris Gutierrez who is on an incredible win streak, but it’s always tough to see a legend go out like that.

Dan Hooker managed to get back in the win column, which is great to see. Again, no slight on Claudio Puelles who had looked great in his previous fights, but this just seemed like a weird game plan that didn’t pay off at all.

Brad Riddell is a weird one. He looked like the next big thing at 155lbs, but after that Fiziev fight it’s all gone downhill. Now don’t get me wrong, Renato Moicano fought a sensational fight and managed to get the submission halfway through the first round. And that promo, COME ON, that’s how you get yourself a big fight next time out!

Is it fair to say that Ryan Spann has got some ridiculous power in his hands? Because wow, his knockout of a returning Dominick Reyes was absolutely devastating. It looked like he hit him with a jab which turned slightly into a right hook, and Reyes was out COLD immediately. Sad for Reyes of course, and it’s not easy to see where he goes from here after three horrible KOs in his last three fights, but Ryan Spann is definitely ready for the top at 205lbs.

Now, as someone who’s not a Brit but lives in the UK, I’m devastated for Molly McCann. It was a tough matchup from the get-go, and Erin Blanchfield made it look easy. She did fine on the feet, but once she got it to the ground, Molly didn’t really manage anything. That being said though, Blanchfield is one of the best prospects in the women's flyweight division and has already shown how good she is against another top prospect in Miranda Maverick, so it didn’t come as a shock that she could dominate on the ground. She is without a doubt ready for the top 10, and she even managed to turn a pro-Molly crowd to cheer for her after getting the finish. Molly is still a fan favourite, and it would surprise me if she isn’t on the UK PPV next year where the fans will root for her to get back in the win column.

What is it that Dominick Cruz says about ring rust not being real? It certainly wasn’t the case for Ottman Azaitar, who after two years out from the sport ran into Matt Frevola. From the first bell, Frevola just looked quicker and slicker that Azaitar, and it only took him to the midway of the first round to land a devastating left hook who separated Azaitar from consciousness. Big win for Frevola, who also called out Paddy Pimblett who’s fighting at UFC 282 next month. If Paddy beats Jared Gordon, him vs. Frevola would be an absolute banger of a fight!

The man who set the standard of this incredible card, was the first CKB boy out, Carlos Ulberg. He took on Nicolae Negumereanu, and made it look relatively easy. Apart from his loss to Kennedy Nzechukwu, he has looked great so far in his UFC-career. He just trashed Negumereanu’s leg early on, and finished him late in the round with a left hook, something that would be somewhat of a theme of this card.

Nevertheless, sensational card. That has usually been the norm ever since 2016 when the UFC first went to Madison Square Garden, and this was no exception. And to think that in less than a month, we are getting a repeat of what was perhaps the fight of the year (in my personal opinion, it is) in the main event at UFC 282, when Jiri Prochazka rematches Glover Teixeira for the light heavyweight title. Can’t wait!

This sport, ey?