It was another thrilling pay-per-view card for the UFC tonight as some of the best fighters in the world came to Salt Lake City. The event was headlined by the unanimous number one pound-for-pound fighter in the world but it was his challenger that shocked the world and stole the show.
Let’s take a look at some of the highlights of the night and break down the three fights we looked at in our UFC 278 preview.
Prelim Highlights
In an early flyweight bout, oft-injured contender Amir Albazi looked as impressive as ever against Francisco Figueiredo, the younger brother of the current flyweight champ, Deiveson Figueiredo. In the early going, Figueiredo found his ranges with some kicks and appeared to be very comfortable striking against the dangerous grappler. It was only a matter of time though before Albazi secured a takedown and showed off the skills that make him one of the best fighters outside of the top 15. After a second takedown, Albazi locked up a rear naked choke and forced Figueiredo to tap. He will likely crack those ranking next week and could easily quickly move up in the near future.
We had a truly bizarre scene in a featherweight bout between Sean Woodson and Luis Saldana. Early in the first, Woodson got dropped by a check left hook, but rather than capitalizing on the opportunity, Saldana celebrated as though he had won the fight. Woodson got back to his feet but never really recovered and quickly got dropped again with a jab. Saldana continued to showboat rather than pouncing and after a brief hesitation, he rocked Woodson with an illegal knee while he was still on the ground. The ref stepped in because of the strike and again Saldana celebrated as though he had won. Instead, he had a point taken away and the fight continued. Neither guy really got a strong upper hand over the next two rounds and the fight ended up going the distance. Due to the deducted point, the scorecards resulted in a draw. It was a huge missed opportunity for Saldana.
It is rare to see a heavyweight manhandle another heavyweight the way Alexander Romanov did to Marcin Tybura in the first round of the final prelim of the night. Twice in that round, Romanov lifted his opponent off of his feet and suplexed him to the ground. It was an impressive performance that would likely result in a 10-8 round. However, after the first, Tybura managed to do a much better job of keeping Romanov at range where he could outstrike him. It was a close fight and amazingly it went the distance. Only one of the three judges actually gave Romanov the 10-8 and the result was a majority decision victory for Tybura. More than anything, this fight will be looked at as the greatest argument for more easily granted 10-8 rounds.
Main Card Highlights
The main card got started with a bang as light heavyweight Tyson Pedro stopped Harry Hunsucker just about a minute into the first round. Pedro overwhelmed Hunsucker with a flurry of punched before landing a straight kick up the middle to the body that buckled him. Pedro pounced and landed a few bombs before the ref jumped in to stop the fight and award him the knockout victory. It was a very impressive performance for Pedro who should find himself with a big opportunity his next time out.
In what appeared to be a very even women’s bantamweight matchup, Lucie Pudilova dominated Wu Yanan for almost two rounds before scoring a big TKO victory. It was the grappling that gave Pudilova almost immediate control over her opponent and she never really let up. Wu managed to escape a few times thanks to some impressive scrambles, but she was never able to really get to an advantageous position herself. Late in the second, Pudilova took the back, got the hooks in and rained down elbows until the ref was forced to step in. It was a great performance for a fighter who has previously been cut form the UFC. Now she’s back and it looks like she’s here to stay.
Merab Dvalishvili def. Jose Aldo
The Salt Lake City crowd was firmly in the corner of UFC legend Jose Aldo in this one. It was clear right from the beginning this was an interesting clash of styles as Aldo is a precision striker while Dvalishvili is an overwhelming grappler with a relentless pace. Aldo got a few good shots in but the story of the fight was Dvalishvili’s cardio and smothering attack. He was never really able to get Aldo to the ground due to his all-time takedown defense, but Dvalishvili constantly pushed his opponent up against the fence and was relentlessly throwing all kinds of attacks. Aldo was never really to get going due to the constant attack of Dvalishvili and that resulted in a decision victory for the latter. It’s a huge win for Dvalishvili who is quickly rising up the rankings. However, with his friend and training partner Aljamain Sterling at the top of the division, he once again said he doesn’t want a title shot right now.
My pick: Dvalishvili via decision
Result: Dvalishvili via decision
Paulo Costa def. Luke Rockhold
Every now and then, the UFC gives us a co-main event that just completely steals the show and this was almost an example of that. Looking at the card, this wasn’t exactly one of those fights that fans got excited about, with Rockhold having been out of the sport for a long time. However, it delivered an unforgettable instant classic. It was clear from the beginning that Costa was the more powerful striker and more athletic fighter and he put both of those to good use early. Rockhold seemed desperate to get the fight to the ground but quickly exhausted himself. It was a sight UFC fans are familiar with – one fighter gassing out before they completely wilt and hand the victory to their opponent. Except Rockhold never wilted. It was obvious he was exhausted. On several occasions, he put his hands on his knees and gasped for air while the fight was still happening. But he never stopped fighting. He continued to throw everything he could at Costa and his strikes still had a lot of speed and power. The former champ truly showed the heart of a champion and made things very interesting as he landed shot after shot in the third round. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough and Costa was able to take the decision victory. After the fight, and emotional Rockhold left his gloves in the octagon. Meanwhile, Costa seems poised for another big fight in the near future.
My pick: Costa via 3rd round knockout
Result: Costa via decision
Kamaru Usman def. Leon Edwards
There have been a handful of truly iconic moments in the history of the UFC and this fight just gave us another one. Kamaru Usman, the dominant champ and top pound-for-pound fighter in the world, faced off against a very worthy challenger riding a 10-fight win streak in Leon Edwards. The result was an unforgettable moment that fight fans are going to talk about for a long time.
Everyone knew coming in that Edwards needed to make this a striking match while Usman was going to look to grapple. The first round surprised everyone when Edwards tripped up the champ and took his back. While he wasn’t able to secure the submission, it was enough to let everyone know this was going to be a fight. That is, until they came back out for the second round and Usman immediately flipped the script and gave us what we expected from the beginning. It was the relentless pressure and smothering grappling of the champ that turned the tide and put him in control for three and a half straight rounds.
And then it happened. The commentary team was literally talking about Edwards accepting the moral victory of not getting finished by Usman. And. Then. It. Happened. Usman started to coast for just a few seconds and Edwards saw a window. He used a beautiful technique where he showed a jab to get Usman to move his head before landing a textbook head kick that put the champ out instantly. Everyone in attendance and everyone watching at home, myself included, were shocked as this fight was seconds away from being a unanimous decision victory for Usman. And then Edwards snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. He was being completely dominated until he landed one kick that change his life and this sport forever. As Daniel Cormier said after the fight “sports!”
My pick: Usman via decision
Result: Edwards via 3rd round knockout
The UFC will return to ESPN+ on Saturday, September 3rd for UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Tuivasa. Be sure to check back for a preview of the event.