10 Things We Learned at UFC 262
A new champion was crowned and new contenders emerged on Saturday night in Las Vegas
Charles Oliveira, UFC Champion
Charles Oliveira is your new UFC lightweight champion, claiming the vacant title with a second-round stoppage win over Michael Chandler in a wildly entertaining battle to close out UFC 262.
Early in the fight, Chandler hurt Oliveira with a left hand, only to end up with the Brazilian on his back, searching for chokes. Chandler defended well, exploded to his feet, and took the fight to Oliveira, stinging him again and closing out the round with all the momentum in his favor. But out of the gate to start the second, “do Bronx” pressed forward, cracking Chandler with a clean right hand that sent the former Bellator champion staggering into the fence. When the follow-up blows landed clean and undefended, referee Dan Miragliotta stepped in, causing Oliveira to scale the fence and celebrate in the crowd, reminiscent of Jose Aldo at UFC 140.
This is an incredible moment for Oliveira, who began his career in the UFC when he was 20 and has the most fights in UFC history before earning a champion opportunity. The 31-year-old has now earned nine straight victories, while showing more resilience and toughness than he’s exhibited in the past, battling through the first round adversity to earn another stoppage win and claim UFC gold.
It’s been a long, winding road for Oliveira, one that has carried him to the top of the UFC lightweight division.
Plenty More to Come
This is just the start of what should be an electric run of matchups in the 155-pound weight class over the next 12-18 months, with the new champ standing as one of the youngest fighters in the Top 10 and plenty of standouts already queuing up for their chance to battle for the belt.
Dustin Poirier and Conor McGregor are already inked to fight in a couple months, and the winner is likely to be the frontrunner to face Oliveira first, but there are multiple other options beyond them that should create an incredible collection of entertaining, crucial matchups over the next year-plus.
Justin Gaethje is very much in the mix, while fighters like Chandler, Beneil Dariush, and Rafael Dos Anjos are already close, and others like Islam Makhachev, Gregor Gillespie, and Dan Hooker are too far off either. There are a ton of intriguing options there and no matter how things shake out, we should have two, three, four terrific championship fight options and an equal number of compelling contender bouts on the horizon, which is outstanding to think about given how slowed and sluggish things have been at the top of the division at times.
There was a lot of talk about this not being a matchup of the best lightweights in the world, but after that showing, I’m not sure anyone would say that with as much confidence.
More importantly, we’re likely to find out for sure over the next 12-18 months.
Big Win for Beneil Dariush
Beneil Dariush delivered an intelligent, sharp performance in Saturday night’s co-main event, out-hustling Tony Ferguson over the course of 15 minutes to secure the biggest victory of his career.
From the outset, Dariush wisely neutralized Ferguson’s weapons, putting him on the canvas and controlling him on the canvas, avoiding submission offerings, attacking with a nasty heel hook of his own, and simply dominating from top position. Ferguson simply had no answers — he couldn’t avoid the takedowns, much like in his fight with Oliveira, and couldn’t get Dariush off of him once it hit the ground — and it showed conclusively that the best days of his career are behind him.
Dariush sought out a big fight following his win over Carlos Diego Ferreira earlier in the year and got his wish with this bout against Ferguson, turning it into a breakout performance on a big card to put himself in the title conversation. As for Ferguson, this is now three straight losses after a 12-fight winning streak, and at 37 years old, it’s almost impossible to see a way back to relevance in the division for the long-time contender.
It’s going to be interesting to see what comes next for Dariush, as this victory pushes his winning streak to seven and stamps him as a real threat in the lightweight division, while still being a win or two away from a title shot; it’s crazy.
He said he wanted to take time off to spend time with his daughter, who will be born next month, and I get it, but it might also limit his options and cool his momentum a little because more than any other division, the lightweight ranks never stop moving forward, and a four month break, five month break can mean two, three, or four guys could make their case for a Top 10 spot in the interim.
We’ll see what happens, but for now, Dariush deserves all the credit in the world for a tremendous run of success and an excellent effort on Saturday.
Chookagian Keeps Churning Out Wins
In 10 Things on Thursday, I called Katlyn Chookagian the flyweight division equivalent of the Bar Exam — she’s the test you have to pass in order to be consider a title contender — and on Saturday night, Viviane Araujo failed to pass the Bar.
The female flyweights went shot-for-shot in the opening stanza, Chookagian throwing her trademark volume, while Araujo countered with few shots carrying more power. In the second, the Brazilian got the fight to the floor and attacked a mounted guillotine, leading to a sequence where some thought Chookagian tapped. When she couldn’t finish and they got back to the feet, the American came out firing, regaining the momentum heading into the final stanza, where she out-paced Araujo to claim the unanimous decision win.
This was a vintage Chookagian effort — a show of patience, footwork, pace, and volume that Araujo couldn’t continue to match into the latter rounds. The 32-year-old has now earned back-to-back quality wins since her loss to Jessica Andrade to further cement her standing as the top-end litmus test for championship hopefuls in the flyweight division, and keep her entrenched in the thick of the title chase in the 125-pound weight class.
Even Better Than Advertised
Everyone expected the featherweight main card opener between Edson Barboza and Shane Burgos to be a Fight of the Night contender and wildly entertaining, and somehow, these two men still exceeded expectations, with Barboza coming away with a third-round stoppage victory.
The longtime lightweight came out of the gate quickly, attacking Burgos’ legs and getting a read on his timing, picking him apart on the feet. In the second, Burgos was more successful, attacking with more combinations and varied attacks, while Barboza stayed in there, matching his foe shot-for-shot. Early in the third, Barboza hit Burgos with a right hand over the top that the New Yorker appeared to handle, but seconds later, Burgos started to backpedal and crashed into the cage, falling to the canvas unconscious.
It was a strange ending to an outstanding fight, one that should elevate Barboza into the Top 10 in the featherweight division, and that cements his status as one of the most entertaining, all-action fighters of the last decade.
The Brazilian has now earned consecutive victories, but could be on a four-fight winning streak, as his two most recent setbacks each came in split decisions against Dan Ige and Paul Felder where the majority of the media scores were in his favor. He’s show no real issues moving down in weight and remains lightning quick with his strikes, which makes him a very dangerous assignment for anyone stationed ahead of him in the rankings heading into the second half of the year.
Another Gruesome Middleweight Finish
Each of the last two pay-per-view events have feature a longstanding middleweight standout exiting the cage with a broken appendage.
Saturday night, Andre Muniz trapped Jacare Souza’s right arm against his body in an armbar attempt, and when he torqued back, Souza’s arm audibly popped, resulting in an immediate stoppage and the biggest win of the Contender Series graduate’s career. Souza’s broken arm comes less than a month after former champ Chris Weidman was taken out of the Octagon on a stretcher after suffering a broken leg in his fight with Uriah Hall.
Prior to the injury-induced finish, Muniz was making good on his pre-fight boasts of being the superior grappler, matching Souza in takedowns and taking his back to kick off the finishing scramble. That’s now three straight wins in as many UFC appearances for the 31-year-old Muniz, who has won seven straight overall, and the kind of performance that should elevate him into position to face a Top 15 talent next time out.
Unfortunately, it could very well be the end of the line for Souza, who has now lost four straight, five of his last six, and six of his last seven. The 41-year-old never quite made it to the top of the heap in the UFC, but he was a tenured contender for the majority of his career and one of the top middleweights of the last dozen years, and it really sucks when it ends like this.
An Interesting Addition to the Featherweight Fold
Lando Vannata made his first appearance in the featherweight division on Saturday night, registering a split decision win over British wrestler Mike Grundy, showcasing outstanding takedown defense, fluid movement, and quality striking throughout.
After an entertaining run at lightweight that produced a middling 3-5-2 record, Vannata made the decision to shift down a division, and it paid immediate dividends. He looked fresh throughout, mixing his strikes, moving freely, and landing the most high amplitude takedown of the night in the third, when he countered Grundy’s attempt by elevating the Commonwealth Games bronze medalist and driving him into the canvas with force.
Vannata went about this divisional change the right way, altering his lifestyle and approach, rather than simply making a dramatic weight cut, and this effort makes him someone to keep close tabs on going forward. He’s aways been fun to watch and full of potential, but he looked like he’s found a home and given himself the best chance to maximize his skills, so it will be really fun to see what the UFC has in store for him in the second half of the year.
Andrea Lee Shines at Home in Texas
Entering on a three-fight skid, Andrea Lee delivered the best performance of her UFC career — perhaps her career as a whole — submitting Antonina Shevchenko after a lengthy stay in a triangle choke late in the second round.
The former LFA and Invicta FC standout had long been considered a potential contender, but three consecutive decision losses bumped her out of the Top 10 in the flyweight division and made you question where the 32-year-old Lee fit in the divisional hierarchy. On Saturday night, she played to her advantages, taking the fight to the floor and working through various submission looks before finally hyper-extending Shevchenko’s arm to secure the tap, the finish, and the victory.
Not only does this win get Lee’s back off the wall, but it also establishes her as the gatekeeper to the Top 10 in the division for the foreseeable future. If those three fights against Joanne Calderwood, Lauren Murphy, and Roxanne Modafferi didn’t come one after the other, there wouldn’t be as many questions about her place in the weight class. This victory, combined with her early wins over Veronica Macedo, Ashlee Evans-Smith, and Montana De La Rosa, make it clear that she’s a Top 10 talent and that it takes a skilled fighter to get by her.
Back in the win column, it will be interesting to see how the UFC matches up Lee next time out — does she get hustle in against another opponent ahead of her in the rankings or does she become a litmus test for emerging hopefuls?
Welcome to the UFC, Tucker Lutz
Tucker Lutz needed two attempts to land a contract on the Contender Series last year, following up his win over Chase Gibson in August with a second decision victory over Sherrard Blackledge in November to secure the opportunity to compete inside the Octagon.
Saturday night, “Top Gun” made his debut, securing a unanimous decision win over durable hometown veteran Kevin Aguilar, showcasing smooth, crisp hands and timely takedowns through the first two rounds before slowing a little in the third. Lutz controlled things as both the aggressor and a counter fighter in his debut, piecing up Aguilar on the feet, stinging him with a sharp left hook repeatedly throughout the contest.
I cover the Contender Series for the UFC website, writing the previews and the live event recaps, and though Lutz won both of his appearances, there was nothing about either fight that really jumped off the page to me; he looked like a solid, well-rounded fighter that would need some time to make some noise. Instead, he showed up on Saturday looking like a legitimate prospect, grabbing a very good win in his first appearance to extend his winning streak to a dozen and putting himself on a path to bigger and better things going forward.
The Highs and Lows of Fighting
The opener between Christos Giagos and Sean Soriano highlighted the big swings in momentum and highs and lows that can come every time these athletes step into the Octagon.
Back in the UFC for the first time in six years, Soriano started well, landing smooth, crisp strikes throughout the opening round to get out to an early lead in his short-notice return to the big leagues. When the second round started, Giagos looked to wrestle, and after rolling through a scramble to land in top position, the California native laced up a D’arce choke and put Soriano to sleep quickly.
It went from clearly Soriano’s fight to being a finish for Giagos in less than three minutes.
This was a massive victory for Giagos in that he’s now 4-1 in his last five and finally secured a finish after going the distance in each of his last five.
And if there is any silver lining to this disappointing result for Soriano, it’s that Giagos traveled a similar road, initially washing out of the UFC quickly and losing by submission in his return, only to put together a nice little run. He’s bound to get another opportunity after taking this one on short notice, most likely back down to featherweight, and from there, all it takes is one.