UFC 294: 10 Things We Learned (Extended Edition)
A 13-fight card capped by a fascinating championship rematch gave us plenty to discuss on Saturday
And Still
Islam Makhachev made sure there were no more questions about who reigns supreme in the 155-pound weight class, needing just over three minutes to dispatch Alexander Volkanovski in their championship rematch to close out UFC 294.
The two men battled in the clinch in the initial moments of the contest, with Makhachev landing good knees along the fence. Once they broke into space, Makhachev went high with a left kick that bounced off Volkanovski’s head and brought about the end of the fight. There were questions about the scoring of the first meeting between the two earlier this year and Makhachev seemed annoyed that Volkanovski garnered more praise in defeat than he earned in victory, but he made sure there would be none of that following this one.
This is the kind of performance that makes you believe Makhachev is capable of ruling this division for a long time. He knocked out Volkanovski with a head kick, in the first round, after accepting the fight on 12 days notice, and has now won 13 straight fights inside the Octagon, with eight finishes.
We laud his teammate and now coach Khabib Nurmagomedov for his undefeated career, understandably, but I think Makhachev has already passed him as the top lightweight in UFC history, and he’s still got plenty of time to add to his resume.
Good Start, But…
Khamzat Chimaev maintained his unbeaten record with a majority decision win over Kamaru Usman in the UFC 294 co-main event, but it wasn’t the kind of performance the popular standout has typically bee delivering.
The opening round was vintage Chimaev, as he closed the distance quickly, climbed on Usman’s back, and dominated the final four minutes, threatening with chokes and landing sporadic blows throughout. But the second was mostly uneventful and Usman was clearly getting the better of things on the feet in the third, with Chimaev shutting down his momentum with a well-timed takedown, though he did little with it. In the end, two judges scored the fight 29-27 for Chimaev, with the other scoring the bout a draw, all three giving “Borz” a 10-8 round in the first.
I’m not trying to be a downer here, but if that was supposed to be a fight to determine the next title challenger in the middleweight division, I’m gonna need to see more in order to be really impressed. Chimaev looked great in the opening stanza, but didn’t offer much over the final 10 minutes, while Usman rocked up on 12 days notice, with questions about the health of his knees, and landed the better blows throughout.
We’ve been shouting about Chimaev being an unstoppable juggernaut, but in two fights against genuine welterweight standouts, he’s been in tough and barely scraped by. Is it possible that everyone made too much of blistering efforts against good, but not great competition, and now Chimaev has started to plateau?
That’s what it feels like to me.
Foul City, UAE
Something had to be in the water this week in Abu Dhabi because it turned into Foul City, UAE on Saturday.
Midway through the critical light heavyweight clash between Magomed Ankalaev and Johnny Walker, the standout from Dagestan connected with a knee to the head of the Brazilian when he was on a knee along the fence. The fight was paused, the doctor asked Walker a series of questions that he failed to answer properly, and the fight was halted. Walker then tried to get things going again, shoving referee Dan Movahedi and several security officials in an attempt to get at Ankalaev and continue competing.
Thankfully, things settled down when UFC President Dana White got between the two, but this was another bad foul in a night filled with accidental fouls and rules violations in Abu Dhabi.
And just so we’re clear: halting this fight was the correct decision, as Walker took a knee to the chin while he was down and could not articulate where he was or that it was the first round. I get that fighter lose sight of which round it is at times, but we were three minutes into the contest, not deep in the fourth round of a five-round affair.
Aliskerov is a Problem
When you can sit someone down with a jab, you know you have serious power.
Ikram Aliskerov buckled Warlley Alves with a stiff jab early in the opening round of their middleweight main card fixture and never let him back into the fight. Recognizing the Brazilian was dazed, Aliskerov pressed forward, connecting with a flying switch knee that further rocked Alves, creating the opportunity for the Russian to unload and register the finish.
That’s now consecutive first-round stoppage wins in the UFC and seven consecutive victories overall. He’s only lost once in his career, that coming more than four years ago in a fight with Chimaev, and he’s clearly improved since then. Aliskerov should get put on the fast track to contention and looks like someone capable of challenging for championship gold somewhere down the line if things continue progressing as they have.
This was an outstanding performance and he looks like the real deal.
Ninja Choke Nurmagomedov
Said Nurmagomedov is starting to develop a signature finisher, as for the third time in his last four victories, the Russian bantamweight used a ninja choke to secure a submission win.
The 31-year-old took advantage of Muin Gafurov leaving his neck exposed on an early takedown attempt, lacing up the modified guillotine choke to quickly get himself back into the win column. That’s now consecutive victories with the choke for Nurmagomedov, who used the hold to tap veteran Cody Stamann in 47 seconds at the start of last year as well. Simply put, bantamweight needs to make sure not to leave their necks out around Nurmagomedov or they’re going to be dealing with his signature finisher.
Not that we need constant reminders of the depth of talent in the 135-pound weight class, but Nurmagomedov is now 7-2 in the UFC and 18-3 overall, yet stationed outside the Top 15. As I said in the lead to his event, he feels like someone that is under-appreciated because he hasn’t developed into a contender, but he’s an outstanding talent and someone that continue to be a menace on the fringes of the Top 15 or just inside the lower third of the rankings going forward.
Mokaev is The Goods
Whether he breaks Jon Jones’ record for being the youngest champion in UFC history or not, Muhammad Mokaev has shown that he’s the real deal and a genuine threat in the flyweight division.
The 23-year-old standout collected his fifth straight UFC victory and fourth finish on Saturday, closing out the prelims by submitting Tim Elliott in the third round. He showed incredible patience and submission defence through the first two rounds, working out of guillotine choke in the first and a deep triangle choke in the second, using a forceful slam to break free of the latter. In the third, Mokaev hit a gorgeous peak-out to get into top position, and from there, he slowly worked to the finishing position, securing the choke and drawing out the tap soon after.
This was the kind of performance the unbeaten prospect needed in order to take a big step forward in the division. He was already ranked, but now he should climb into the Top 10 and, more importantly, secure himself a date with someone sporting a single digit next to their name. If he can keep improving his striking and build on the grappling and poise he’s shown throughout his ascent, Mokaev will be challenging for championship gold in the not too distant future.
Really Doc?
Despite Victor Henry writhing around in agony for two minutes after getting kicked in the pills, the cage side physician somehow managed to step into the Octagon and tell the veteran bantamweight that he wasn’t kicked low, seemingly trying to urge him to quit faking and continue fighting the way my older brother did whenever he got to tussling as kids.
Javid Basharat and his team were adamant during the stoppage and after the fight that the blow was not low, but I don’t know how you watch Henry in serious pain and suggest you landed clean. Even though it didn’t look like a direct hit, any man that has been struck below the belt will tell you that sometimes the glancing blows and grazing shots hurt more.
Thankfully the bout was rightfully declared a no contest, and hopefully we see them face off again, but for now, I just hope Henry feels better because I felt sick to my stomach watching him in agony and I can only imagine how awful he’s going to feel for the next few hours.
The Most Needed Comeback in Some Time
Mike Breeden desperately needed to finish Anshul Jubli in the third round of their lightweight preliminary card pairing, and “Money Mike” managed to find one.
Down 0-2 on the scorecards and having missed weight by a considerable amount prior to the fight, Breeden was five minutes away from falling to 0-4 in the Octagon and most likely getting released. He came out firing, started jawing and literally barking at Jubli, and the Indian neophyte froze, giving Breeden the opportunity he needed to keep pressing and land the right hand that put Jubli down and ended the fight.
Here’s the thing: this victory feels more like a stay of execution than the start of something real, as Breeden remains, in my opinion, a “Quad A” fighter. He got sparked out by Alexander Hernandez and Terrance McKinney, with a decision loss to Natan Levy in between, and he’s going to face more of those types going forward.
This was a perfect storm situation and while he deserves full marks for getting the job done, I’ll eat my hat if Breeden manages to parlay this into a prolonged stay and consistent success in the UFC 155-pound weight class going forward.
Points Must Be Taken
The fight between Muhammad Naimov and Nathaniel Wood was plagued by fouls and violations that went unpenalized and clearly had an impact on the outcome of the fight.
In the first, Naimov buried a heavy knee low that caused Wood to double over. At the start of the second, he grazed the cut again, resulting in another pause and an understandably annoyed reaction from the Brit. Later in that frame, Wood was working for a takedown from a back waist lock, and Naimov grabbed the fence, keeping himself upright. Soon after, he reversed the position and put Wood on the deck. And then, in the final moments of the third, when Wood was pouring on the offence, Naimov was cautioned for grabbing the inside of the glove.
None of these fouls or violations produced a point deduction, and with Naimov earning the 29-28 victory on all three scorecards, you have to feel for Wood.
I get that referees don’t want to insert themselves into the fight and impact the outcome, but they’re not — the athlete committing the fouls and violations are bringing them into it to do their job, and it’s high time these officials take points right away when this stuff happens. This was a close fight and Naimov’s actions absolutely influenced the outcome, and it feels strange that he’s heading home with a victory after multiple fouls and violations.
Dudakova Still Undefeated
It wasn’t easy, but Viktoriia Dudakova kept her perfect record intact with a unanimous decision win over Jinh Yu Frey on Saturday’s prelims.
The Russian, who missed weight by 0.6 pounds, won the first and third on all three scorecards, dropping Frey late in the opening frame before being the more active, fresher fighter in the decisive final stanza. Even in the second, when Frey was able to put Dudakova on her back, she showed positive elements, doing well to re-guard and attack without taking too much damage.
People are likely to diminish this effort given that Frey is 38, has now lost four straight, and is just 2-6 in the UFC, but this is a very good win for the 24-year-old prospect and the kind of fight that is going to help her improve. I talk all the time about the importance of quality tests, and that’s what this was, regardless of what the records suggest. It’s better to be pushed by someone with as much experience as Frey than to run through a relatively inexperienced foe, and Dudakova will be better having gone through this pairing.
Welcome to the UFC, ‘Shara Bullet’
Shara Magomedov collected a clean sweep of the scorecards in his UFC debut against Bruno Silva to maintain his unbeaten record.
The highly regarded middleweight showcased his diverse and impressive kicking game in the opening half of the fight, battering Silva’s legs while mixing in attacks to the other levels as well. While the Brazilian was able to put him on the canvas multiple times over the second half of the fight, “Shara Bullet” was still the more effective fighter of the two, smashing him elbows off his back and landing upkicks whenever Silva rose to his feet and looked to re-engage.
Getting things started with a victory is always key and Magomedov has now ticked that box. What’s going to be interesting to see going forward is how much he can improve his takedown defence, as that will be what determines how high he can climb in the 185-pound weight class. His striking will keep him as an all-action addition to the division and fun watch each time he steps into the Octagon, as there are going to be loads of quality grapplers chomping at the bit to further test him on the canvas going forward.