That’s another year of numbered UFC cards done and dusted and this one included some shockers. We had former champion Dominic Cruz rolling back the years to show that he’s still game, Sean O’Malley notching up yet another knockout to add to his growing stardom and a major upset in one of the card’s title fights.
Charles Oliveira vs Dustin Poirier
Since Khabib Nurmagomedov’s retirement in late 2020 the top lightweight contenders have been throwing in their hats for the chance of fighting for the belt. After Dustin Poirier’s first win against Conor McGregor at UFC 267, most were calling him the best lightweight in the world. The belt seemed almost destined for Poirier. Instead of fighting for the title, Poirier opted for the rematch against McGregor. While Poirier was preparing for his rematch against McGregor, Charles Oliveira knocked out Michael Chandler to pick up the lightweight belt. Poirier then went on to pick up another win against McGregor and was ready to take on his shot at the title.
That brings us to UFC 269. There were doubts of Oliveira’s heart before the fight, accusations of him being a quitter, that when the fight gets gruelling he looks for a way out. Well, those accusations can be thrown out the window for good because in his last two fights Charles Oliveira proved this version of himself is a different breed. Oliveira completed his first defence of his title when he snatched Poirier’s neck in the third round and submitted Poirier with a standing rear naked choke.
The first round of the title fight was a standing exchange. Poirier was tagging Oliveira with his trademark crunching boxing while Oliveira responded with a variety of strikes including heavy knees to the body. Poirier dealt the most damage in the first round and he looked like he was taking control of the fight after dropping Oliveira a couple of times.
The second round was all Oliveira. He managed to take Poirier down early and controlled him on the ground for most of the round. Oliveira rained down heavy elbows while mixing in some dirty wrestling to wear Poirier down. It was clear Poirier was concerned about the possibility of being submitted as he made no attempt to get back to his feet, almost accepting the punishment from Oliveira.
The third round of a possible five. It was one round a piece. It didn’t take Oliveira long to force Poirier up against the cage. He mounted the back of a standing Poirier and started hunting for his neck. Once he had his arm under Poirier’s chin, Dustin had no other option but to tap. In the end, Oliveira’s wrestling and threat of submission just proved too much.
There are now no question marks over Charles Oliveira. He is the best lightweight in the UFC and deserves every inch of that belt. Next up is Justin Gaethje who will provide another big test for Oliveira. One worrying point about Oliveira’s game is that he ate a lot of big shots from both Michael Chandler and Dustin Poirier. Justin Gaethje has cleaner technique than Chandler and hits harder than Poirier so he could be a real problem for Oliveira.
You can’t help but feel for Dustin Poirier. He’s done everything the right way, worked hard and paid his dues. It looked like everything was shaping up for him to add the final piece to his collection. Based on what we’ve seen of him so far, he’ll dust himself down and start working towards another run. For now though, Charles Oliveira continues to reign over the lightweight division.
Amanda Nunes vs Julianna Pena
Heading into the fight, it seemed like this would be another inevitable win for the bantamweight champion, Amanda ‘The Lioness’ Nunes. If there was a pre-match survey predicting how this fight would go, no one would have guessed that Julianna Pena would outgun Amanda Nunes in the second round and then force her to tap to a rear-naked choke. But that’s the thing about MMA. The sport likes to throw up some surprises.
Pena laid out her game plan before the fight. In the build, she let everyone know that she had the perfect style to take out Nunes. She’d make the fight dirty and gritty, force Nunes to wrestle and tire her out. The common response to her was probably a mental roll of the eyes. No one was taking out Nunes anytime soon. She had become a dominant force in the women’s mixed martial arts sport.
The bout turned out exactly how Pena predicted. Even though Nunes won the first round, Pena forced her to wrestle for long periods of time. The second round is when things started to swing in Pena’s favour. Both fighters got caught in a heavy gun fight as they swung for the fences reminiscent of Nunes’ win over Cris Cyborg. Only this time, Nunes couldn’t seem to land a clean blow with one of her notorious power punches. It was Pena’s punches that were catching Nunes.
With Nunes pushed back up along the cage, Pena dragged her to the ground and dug in the rear naked choke. The tap came soon after and to everyone’s literal shock there was a new champion at the helm of the women’s bantamweight division.
Pena has now surely etched her name into UFC folklore. This is and will be seen as one of the biggest upsets in sporting history let alone UFC history. Think Buster Douglas against Mike Tyson, Andy Ruiz against Anthony Joshua or Liverpool’s 4-0 comeback against FC Barcelona for the football fans.
Pena deserves every bit of the credit. This was more than just your average puncher’s chance type of upset. Pena controlled Nunes in the second round and played her game perfectly.
There will be talk about why Nunes couldn’t dominate the way she normally does. Her training camp will be called in to question. Was she carrying an injury? Was she distracted or did her reign at the top of the women’s game finally get to her?
Chael Sonnen once said ‘Fatigue will make a coward out of any man’. Now I’m not calling Amanda a coward. You’ve got to respect any person who steps into the cage and puts their health on the line. But she was visibly tired as the fight went on and her gameplan looked to fly out the window. There was a moment in the second round where her whole demeanour changed and after that it seemed like she didn’t want to be in there any longer.
Given Amanda Nunes’ dominance, an immediate rematch looks likely. The Lioness has proved she’s game as ever and already called out for the rematch. There were very few who had confidence in Pena going into this fight. Those doubters won’t be so vocal in the rematch, that’s for sure.
Other talking points
Kai Kara France welcomed Cody Garbrandt to the flyweight division. Kai put out a destructive display knocking Cody down several times over before getting the knockout. This fight was difficult to call going in but that dominant display from Kai will have him knocking on the door of a championship fight.
Sean O’Malley put in another striking masterclass in his fight against Raulian Paiva. A knockout win for ‘The Suga Show’ is now becoming a regular occurrence as her climbs up the bantwamweight division. This win will surely put a number next to his name in the rankings. The UFC have a potential gem in their hands with O’Malley and he could be pivotal in attracting a new generation of UFC viewers. He’ll be looking out for a big name in his next fight to really start bulking up his resume.
Dominick Cruz looked back to his slick best in his bantamweight clash against Pedro Munhoz. Since his return Cruz has been hit and miss but this convincing display against Munhoz will put him right back up there in the big time. After getting rocked in the first round, Cruz turned it on in the second and third to ‘cruise’ to a unanimous decision. He showed he was the superior technical fighting and managed the distant perfectly. Cruz was just way too fast for Munhoz who could barely land a glove on his counterpart let alone a knockout blow. What next for Cruz? A possible rematch of the championship fight against Cody Garbrandt or perhaps a fight with fellow UFC legend Jose Aldo? Rob Font would also be an interesting name to throw in the mixer.
Another win for Bam Bam Tai Tuivasa means one thing. Another shooey. Tuivasa got it done in the second round via knockout against the dangerous Augusto Sakai. That puts him on a four-fight winning strike, all by knockout. With his knockout style and his penchant for drinking beer out of sweaty worn shoes to celebrate, Tuivasa is fast becoming a fan favourite. If it’s good enough for the Stone Cold Steve Austin, who are we to complain?
The White Belts 