UFC 298 results: Sooo … About last night | Volkanovski vs. Topuria

Final night time (Sat., Feb. 17, 2024), Final Preventing Championship (UFC) ventured forth to Honda Middle in Anaheim, California for UFC 298. After just a few weeks of Apex averageness, a high-profile card stuffed with intriguing match ups was simply what the physician ordered! The Featherweight title bout atop the cardboard, which pit longtime champion Alexander Volkanovski reverse undefeated finisher Ilia Topuria, was a must-watch important occasion. The remainder of the cardboard featured well-known names and nice match ups — how may anyone complain about Robert Whittaker vs. Paulo Costa or Henry Cejudo vs. Merab Dvalishvili? That’s the good things!

Let’s have a look again over at UFC 298’s finest performances and strategies:

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A Generational Expertise Arises

Till Ilia Topuria, we’ve by no means had an undefeated UFC Featherweight champion.

There’s a fairly easy motive: divisional depth of expertise. The Featherweight division has distinctive fighters properly exterior the rankings. Most divisions supply a chance to make errors and win anyway, whereas weaknesses are typically found and punished shortly on the undercard.

Topuria is particular. Alexander Volkanovski seemed large within the cage, quick and technical as we’ve ever seen. He had a sensible recreation plan that revolved round establishing kicks to disrupt Topuria’s motion then begin sticking him with jabs as Topuria tried to push by way of the kicking vary. To an extent, it was working!

The Spaniard is simply too harmful although. From his first calf kick to the ultimate proper hand that floored Volkanovski, each shot Topuria threw was simply so punishing. Whilst Volkanovski started to extend the hole in whole photographs landed, the ambiance by no means modified: Topuria was at all times one clear connection away from a sudden shift in fortunes.

Actually, Topuria knocked out Volkanovski the primary time he efficiently cornered him into the fence. It took like a six-punch mixture to take action, however as quickly as Volkanovski had nowhere to go, no angle to chop, no stance to shift … the overhand landed, and it landed arduous.

Ilia Topuria is 27 years outdated, 15-0, Featherweight champion of the world. It is a division with a historical past of nice champions, however we’ve but to see one fairly like “El Matador.”

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An Wonderful Co-Primary Occasion

Robert Whittaker vs. Paulo Costa was such an awesome struggle! Each males got here into the struggle with clear methods and developments to their recreation, which is probably the most fascinating type of struggle in my guide. Whittaker ended up edging the shut determination, however there was nice work throughout.

The Australian lived as much as his pre-fight guarantees, upping the aggression considerably. He stayed within the pocket longer, slipping inside punches and answering with a number of counter photographs. Typically, his combos had been slightly longer than regular. As well as, he performed the jab and calf kick combo greater than at any level beforehand, chewing up Costa’s calf all through the struggle.

Costa seemed rattling good himself! The Brazilian’s personal jab and low kick have by no means seemed higher. Typically, all of his kicks had been so quick, together with the random spinning wheel kick that just about knocked Whittaker chilly on the finish of spherical one. Costa hasn’t been probably the most energetic in recent times, however this efficiency proves he’s nonetheless among the many finest Middleweights on the planet.

As an apart: Whittaker seemed nice previous to the Dricus Du Plessis struggle, and he simply definitively proved that he’s removed from washed. Perhaps it’s time we acknowledge that “DDP” is fairly good at preventing?

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The Machine Doesn’t Cease

Merab Dvalishvili didn’t have any main points within the cage reverse Henry Cejudo. The previous champion landed a pleasant left hook within the first spherical and scored a little bit of high management, but it surely’s hardly the primary time in Dvalishvili’s profession that he’s coughed up the opening 5 minutes.

The second spherical tends to go a complete lot in another way.

Such was the case right here, as Cejudo was slightly winded even after successful the primary. Dvalishvili, in the meantime, was simply getting rolling. His proper hand began touchdown increasingly persistently, and he took Cejudo down by snatching up a single leg and tripping him over similar to some other opponent. Really, Petr Yan and positively Jose Aldo most likely did a greater job of stopping these single legs total, regardless of their comparative lack of Olympic credentials.

As soon as Dvalishvili takes momentum into his nook, the one technique to win is knock him out. Cejudo swung gamely, however his toes and arms had been transferring approach too sluggish to make such an influence. Dvalishvili was in full management and cruised to a victory, showboating all the best way.

Give the person his title shot.

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Fluffy Breaks Down One other Middleweight

Roman Kopylov did lots of issues appropriately towards Anthony Hernandez. His left kicks had been downright nasty. He struck properly off the again foot, circled so much, and ripped the physique usually. He defended the primary 10 or so takedown makes an attempt that got here in his course.

None of that deterred Hernandez. He walked by way of some disagreeable photographs and stored firing, stored taking pictures, and stored pushing till his personal alternatives began to emerge. Halfway by way of the primary, Hernandez discovered success by feinting to attract out a response then stepping ahead with a number of proper fingers towards the Southpaw.

Hernandez’s success along with his fingers began touchdown him within the clinch, the place he constructed upon his offense with arduous elbows and knees. All of the sudden, Kopylov needed to begin worrying about greater than the takedown, and people takedowns started to land.

The momentum moved into the “Fluffy” nook slowly however steadily, leading to a sudden end. He bowled Kopylov over in an ungainly second and instantly jumped his again. The strangle was locked in a minute later, and Hernandez had carried out it but once more! He’s now received 5 in a row, the second longest successful streak at 185-pounds.

A Prime 10 opponent must be subsequent.

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A Wild Strawweight Warfare

Amanda Lemos vs. Mackenzie Dern was an absurd contest that (largely) noticed Lemos beat the life out of Dern. She picked her aside with nasty calf kicks and heinously highly effective punches, although Dern was nonetheless harmful sufficient on the ground to place her on the defensive on a handful of events.

It was an awesome struggle, and I wrote a whole article about it proper HERE!

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Oh Brother …

It’s massively commendable that Junior Tafa stepped as much as substitute his brother Justin Tafa on only a single day’s discover towards Marcos Rogerio de Lima. It was not, nonetheless, the very best thought.

The issue right here is that Tafa had not labored his approach as much as a struggle reverse de Lima. The Brazilian shouldn’t be an elite Heavyweight, however he’s extremely skilled and has lots of cage time towards high Heavyweights. He’s been on the UFC roster for a decade, whereas Tafa entered this cage with simply SIX skilled fights.

It was a mismatch whatever the short-notice circumstance, which solely enhanced the divide. De Lima ran by way of his opponent, chopping his lead leg aside shortly, rocking him with punches, and throwing him to the ground with relative ease. Tafa didn’t land something of significance, and although he survived to see the second spherical, the primary low kick de Lima discovered after the break ended the competition.

It’s bounce again for de Lima, who’s now received three of his final 4, whereas Tafa learns a worthwhile lesson about what it feels prefer to be within the cage with a harmful Heavyweight veteran.

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Further Ideas

• Zhang Mingyang defeats Brendson Ribeiro by way of first-round knockout (HIGHLIGHTS): Neither of those debutants walked into the cage with any intention of seeing the second spherical. Straight away, the 2 knockout artists had been standing within the pocket, firing three- and four-punch combos. Anyone was going to fall, and a crisp 1-2-3 from Mingyang ensured Ribeiro hit the canvas first! It’s arduous to remove an excessive amount of from this fast end, however China’s first Mild Heavyweight consultant now has 11 wins by way of KO and hasn’t misplaced a struggle since October 2019. Perhaps he’s one to observe?
• Danny Barlow defeats Josh Quinlan by way of third-round knockout (HIGHLIGHTS): Barlow matches the mould of a extremely gifted athlete choosing up MMA shortly. A professional for lower than three full years, Barlow has shortly put collectively an undefeated document, counting on quick fingers and good Southpaw fundamentals — a harmful mixture at any stage of the game. In opposition to a strong problem in Quinlan, Barlow earned a clear debut victory. He was persistently in a position to handle distance by way of an energetic jab, permitting him to line up counter photographs and infrequently burst ahead with combos. The injury slowly added up, however Quinlan seemed downright battered when the referee stepped in after a knockdown early within the third.
• Oban Elliott defeats Val Woodburn by way of unanimous determination: This wasn’t an awesome struggle. It wasn’t even a very fascinating one. Woodburn’s grappling is basically subpar, and his kickboxing type isn’t nice both. That mentioned, one change within the first 90 seconds of the struggle deserves point out: Elliott kicks Woodburn FLUSH within the face with an audible thud. Understandably, he fees ahead and swings for the end. Sadly for him, Woodburn didn’t appear in any respect bothered by the top kick and promptly dropped Elliott with a left hook! It didn’t quantity to something, however what a wild scene.

For full UFC 298: “Volkanovski vs. Topuria” outcomes and play-by-play, click on HERE!