UFC 221 was a solid card.
The UFC was on Pay Per View Saturday night and after a missed weight we had one fighter with a chance at the Interim Middleweight Champion. We had a snafu with the main event as Yoel “Soldier of God” Romero (12-2 #1 Ranked Middleweight) missed weight and was not eligible to win the Middleweight Title. Luke Rockhold (16-3 #2 Ranked Middleweight) however was still eligible to win the title heading into the main event. Prior to that though we had 11 fights to get through. The debut of former Bellator color commentary man Jimmy Smith was a welcomed addition at the side of Jon Anik on the night. This night was filled with everything a UFC fan could ask for. We had finishes up and down the card, and it was a really entertaining night. Most of the fights that went to the judges were also very entertaining. With 12 fights on the card let’s dive right in and recap the night from Perth.
At 170lbs on UFC Fight Pass we started the night with Luke “The Jedi” Jumeau (13-4) taking on Daichi Abe (6-1). Abe was moving forward early and landed a nice hard leg kick. Abe continued to land leg kicks and tried to follow them up. Jumeau landed a hard left hand that appeared to stumble Abe and back him off. Jumeau stayed patient and tried to keep landing his left hand. Abe threw a kick that was caught, but landed a hard right hand that hurt Jumeau briefly. Abe came back with another hard right hand that forced Jumeau to cover up, and Jumeau backed him off and then motioned to him to bring more on. Jumeau tried to come in with a shot, but Abe landed a hard right hand that stopped Jumeau. Abe pounced and was landing hammer fists, but Jumeau survived and got back to his feet. Abe ended the round with some more flurries of shots that were landing clean until Jumeau finally covered up and got out of harm’s way as the round ended. Jumeau immediately came out with a big left hand that connected. Jumeau then immediately went for the takedown and had him down briefly. Abe was able to get back to his feet where he could go to work. Abe had Jumeau’s face busted up, but Jumeau was continuing to come back with shots including a hard body kick. Jumeau landed a body-head combination and avoided a big swinging hook from Abe. Jumeau was able to land a hard hook while moving backwards. Abe had clearly started slowing and his output was very down from round 1. Abe tried to rush forward, but Jumeau avoided easily as the round ended. Abe landed a body kick early to start round 2. Jumeau landed a hard leg kick, and then a head kick that was partially blocked, but found a home. There was a hard right hand from Abe that opened up an immediate cut on Jumeau’s eye that caused a brief doctor stoppage. Abe tried to start fast after the restart and attack the left side of Jumeau’s face. Jumeau however was staying in the fight and landed a leg kick, and then another head kick. Jumeau missed with a left hook and then landed an uppercut on a ducking Abe. Jumeau landed a hard leg kick that buckled the leg of Abe. Jumeau landed a late leg kick that buckled Abe again, and Jumeau bounced on him throwing multiple punches to his downed foe as the round and fight ended. The judges scored this one 29-28, 29-27, and 28-27 for Luke Jumeau. After a tough first round Luke Jumeau came on strong. Jumeau was able to just control this fight on the feet and his striking was much crisper in the 2nd and 3rd round. Jumeau is a fun fighter, and it’ll be fun to keep seeing him going forward.
A really fun matchup at 135lbs was next as Teruto “Yashabo” Ishihara (11-5-2) took on Jose “Teco” Quinonez (8-2). Quinonez immediately came out and scored a takedown just 30 seconds into the fight. Ishihara got back to his feet very quickly, and was trying to fight his way out of the clinch against the cage. Quinonez just kept working on Ishihara and got him to the mat. Quinonez eventually to Ishihara’s back and was searching for a rear naked choke. Quinonez had a body triangle locked in, but Ishihara was eventually able to roll out of the triangle and get back to his feet. Quinonez cup fell out, and he had to replace it and that delayed it briefly. Quinonez threw a looping head kick that missed. Ishihara rushed forward and ripped two hard left hands. Quinonez tried to clinch, but Ishihara threated with a standing guillotine, and we got back to the middle of the cage. Ishihara landed a nice body-head combination, and then right before the round came to an end a hard left hand landed on the temple of Quinonez and took his legs out from him. He was saved by the bell, and wobbled back to his corner. Quinonez was working the legs early of Ishihara. They continued the kickboxing dance for the first 2 minutes or so. Ishihara dove for a takedown, and had him down briefly, but Quinonez made his way back to his feet. Quinonez was ripping leg kicks of his own. Quinonez tried to rush in for a clinch and takedown, but Ishihara was able to stay out of any trouble. Quinonez again tried to move forward, and a late left hand from Ishihara wobbled Quinonez whose legs again gave out and he hit the canvas on his backside. Ishihara dove in and tried to land some shots, but Quinonez was able to recover and get back to his feet before the bell sounded. They hugged it out to start round 3, and it was two leg kicks from Quinonez that followed. Ishihara started coming back with leg kicks of his own. Quinonez then tried to clinch, and they were briefly against the cage, but Ishihara was able to separate. Quinonez landed another hard low kick. Quinonez continued to land leg kicks, and Ishihara returned with one of his own. Ishihara tried to pick his spot with a right hand, and partially blocked a head kick that came back from Quinonez. Ishihara tried for a takedown, but it was pushed aside by Quinonez. The last minute was rather uneventful, and we headed again to the judges. They scored it 30-27, 29-28, and 29-28 all for Jose Quinonez. The 30-27 is puzzling, but the work of Quinonez early in the rounds is what won the fight for him. Ishihara’s big knockdowns at the end of the rounds were not enough. Quinonez now has 4 wins in a row, and we may see a ranked opponent in his future.
Two Lightweights close out the Fight Pass portion of the card as Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson (22-12 1NC) and Mizuto “Pugnus” Hirota (19-9-2) locked horns. Hirota came out looking to land early but ate a hard right hand from Pearson. A hard low leg kick from Pearson followed that up. Hirota couldn’t find a home for his punches early, and Pearson was landing the low kicks, and the jabs. Hirota landed a nice right hand coming back. Hirota landed a nice hook and pulled Pearson’s head down. Hirota followed up with a hard low leg kick. Pearson landed a stiff counter left hook. Hirota hooked Pearson’s arm and had him on the ground briefly, but Pearson got right back to his feet. Hirota dove in with a leaping hook that missed and Pearson followed him to the cage and just missed with a jumping knee as the round ended. Hirota landed a hard loping right hand to start round 2. Hirota was landing jabs, but Pearson came back with a hard left hook. The low leg kicks from Hirota was starting to pile up. Pearson landed a hard left hook that connected. Pearson was landing some serious jabs, but Hirota threw a high kick that grazed the head of Pearson. The left hand of Pearson continued to find a home. Hirota landed a hard right hook and followed it up with a few more power punches backing Pearson up against the cage. Hirota landed a hard right hand that stumbled Pearson for a second, but Hirota could not follow up against the fence. Hirota landed a few leg kicks early in the round. Hirota missed with a hard right hand, and Pearson returned with a nice combination. Hirota landed two left hands that connected. Pearson missed a hard head kick. Pearson came in with two hard left hands entering the last minute of the fight. Hirota landed a few hard shots land in the round. Pearson was returning fire and threw a flying knee that missed wildly. The judges scored this very close fight. 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28 all for Ross Pearson. This was a completely necessary victory for Ross Pearson. He snapped a 4 fight losings skid which was the longest of his career. Pearson showed he could still move and compete in the Octagon, and may find himself rejuvenated after a big win.
We jumped to FS1 and opened it up with a Top 10 Flyweight matchup as Jussier Formiga (20-5 #4 Ranked Flyweight) took on Ben “10” Nguyen (17-6 #8 Ranked Flyweight). Ben Nguyen came right out pressuring Formiga, and had him pressed up against the cage. Formiga tried to reverse the position, but Nguyen got away, and then clinched right back up with Formiga up against the fence. Nguyen was just grinding on Formiga. They were back in the center of the cage, and Nguyen missed with a looping head kick, and Formiga landed a hard short right hand. Formiga latched on and was able to finally grab a takedown into side control. Formiga battled in to mount with over a minute left. Formiga was able to control the position as the round came to an end. Formiga landed a hard right hand early. Formiga was landing nice shots on the feet, and straight punches to the body. Formiga had a cut on the forehead that was running down onto his face. Nguyen was able to avoid the clinch from Formiga. A spinning back kick landed to the body of Nguyen. Formiga landed a single leg takedown with just over 2 minutes left. Nguyen however made his way to his feet and tried to fire off a head kick. Formiga poked Nguyen in the eye late in the round that stopped us for a moment prior to the round ending. We headed to round 3 and Nguyen was swinging hard early. Nguyen landed a short right, and then a longer right hook. Formiga however was really holding his own on the feet. Formiga then out of nowhere landed a hard spinning back fist that floored Ben Nguyen. Formiga dove down and grabbed on for a rear naked choke. Nguyen tried to fight out of it, but Formiga was squeezing until Nguyen went unconscious. Formiga showed a very good standup game. He was able to survive all of the trading with Ben Nguyen, and then closing the fight out in style. Formiga may have just made himself the number one contender at 125lbs.
A matchup between some very talented Featherweights was next as Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski (17-1) took on the undefeated Jeremy “JBC” Kennedy (11-1).Volkanovski came out and landed a hard low leg kick. Volkanovski then latched on and pressed Kennedy up against the cage. Volkanovski took Kennedy down and was now on top. Volkanovski was ripping hard left hands and elbows on the mat. The ground and pound was just on display for Volkanovski. Kennedy finally got back to his feet with under 30 seconds left, but Volkanovski was right in his face landing a hard knee and pushing Kennedy up against the fence. Round 2 was exactly the same beginning as round 1. Volkanovski ate a big punch from Kennedy and then immediately grabbed for a takedown. Volkanovski had him down on the mat, but Kennedy got back up to his feet. Volkanovski landed a hard knee to the body before they separated. The fight went back down to the mat and Volkanovski was just ripping left hands against the cage. More heavy left hands and elbows from Volkanovski. The punches were landing over and over again. Finally, after multiple warnings, the referee stepped in with under 10 seconds left and ended this matchup. Alexander Volkanovski was super impressive tonight. The takedowns were on point, and he did exactly what he had to do against a talented wrestler like Kennedy. The ground and pound was just too much. That type of power at 145lbs is going to be tough to deal with for a lot of fighters going forward.
The Middleweight division was up next as “Razor” Rob Wilkinson (11-2) took on the debuting Israel “The Last Stylebender” Adesanya (12-0). Wilkinson came right out and tried to close the distance to limit the striking of Adesanya. Wilkinson was grinding him up against the fence, and eventually dragged him to the mat. Adesanya was able to get right back to his feet. Wilkinson stayed right on top of him however and was keeping him pressed up against the cage. Adesanya was able to sneak out the back end and finally get some separation. Adesanya went for a kick, but it was caught and Wilkinson tried to turn it into a takedown. Adesanya did a backwards somersault and was able to get free and back to his feet. Wilkinson grabbed back on to him, and was holding him up against the fence. That is where the round ended with Wilkinson holding Adesanya up against the cage. We started round 2 with Adesanya just missing with a very fast head kick. Adesanya was starting to find a home for some jabs, and landed a nice straight punch to the body. Adesanya was moving forward and pulled Wilkinson’s head down right into a knee. Wilkinson however went for a takedown after the knee and had Adesanya down on the mat briefly. Wilkinson stayed attached to Adesanya’s hips against the cage. Wilkinson dropped down to a leg, but Adesanyaescaped. Another big knew from Adesanya, and Wilkinson’s face was really showing some damages. Adesanya landed some really hard shots, and Wilkinson was fading quickly. Adesanya just kept landing hard punches and picking his spots. Eventually Wilkinson dropped down to the mat, and the referee stepped in to save him. Adesanya was as advertised, and his takedown defense shined as well. Making Wilkinson work for the takedowns, tired him out and Adesanya was just so precise on the feet. That makes him 12-0 with all 12 wins being finishes. He is going to be a fun guy to watch as he keeps moving up.
We closed out the FS1 prelims with Damien “Beatdown” Brown (17-12) who faced off with Dong “The Maestro” Hyun Kim (16-8-3).Brown knocked away a front kick right away, and these two were feeling each other out. Brown ripped a hard low leg kick that took out the front leg completely and spun Kim down. Brown landed another one right after. Brown landed a right-left combination as Kim tried to inch forward. Brown kept moving forward, but Kim was landing a few shots in return. Kim was causing some swelling on the left eye of Brown as the round ended. Kim landed some nice kicks early in round 2. Kim was landing at a much better clip than in round 1. Kim landed a hard left hand that certainly got Brown’s attention. Brown was eating a lot of shots, but again a hard leg kick from Brown buckled the lead leg of Kim just prior to the round coming to an end. We headed in to round 3 as the fighters hugged it out. Kim again was landing early with shots. Brown missed with a head kick and avoided some more shots from Kim. There was not a ton of action going back and forth between these guys. Brown landed a hard combination that finished with anther hard leg kick. Brown kept working leg kicks but then ate a nice combination back from Kim on his chin. The uneventful fight came to an end. The judges scored this one 29-28, Kim, 29-28 Brown, and 29-28 for the split decision winner Dong Hyun Kim. This was a very close fight, but Kim just did more in the exchanges. This is 3 straight for Kim, and we will see how he keeps going in the Octagon in a very tough division.
The main card kicked off at 205lbs with Tyson Pedro (7-1 #13 Ranked Heavyweight) and Saparbek Safarov (8-2). Pedro came out looking to land his hands early. Safarov was game, however, landing a hard right hand over the top. Safarov went for and scored a takedown, but could not keep Pedro down. Tyson Pedro was starting to land more and more on the feet. Safarov caught a kick, but Pedro was able to stay on his feet. Safarov went back at Pedro and pressed him up against the cage. While Pedro was in the wizard he grabbed on to the arm of Safarov. Pedro was able to sweep into a kimura, and once he stepped his leg over the face of Safarov the tap was almost immediate. This was an impressive submission victory for the Australian. He is already in the Top 15, and he will have to get a Top 10 opponent his next time out.
Australia’s own Jake “The Celtic Kid” Matthews (13-3) stepped into the cage to take on Li “The Leech” Jingliang (14-5).Matthews came out looking to trade on the feet, and landed a few nice right hands. Jingliang came back with a shot of his own. Matthews floored Jingliang with a right hand left hook, and immediately dove on top of him. Matthews transition to the mount and was trying to pound Jingliang out. Matthews gladly took the back of Jingliang, and was trying to soften him up for a possible rear naked choke. Matthews was unable to get the rear naked choke, but was just peppering him with shots from behind him as the round ended. Almost immediately in round 2 Jingliang rips a big shot onto Matthews, but Matthews came riding forward and ended up grabbing on a tight guillotine. Jingliang was gouging the eyes of Matthews which forced the ref to slap his hands away. Jingliang escaped, and landed big shots opening up a cut on Matthews’s eye. We were back on the feet with Jingliang trying to stalk Matthews. Jingliang landed a nice superman punch, but Matthews was coming back with a counter that landed. The two started absolutely brawling with huge shots back and forth. Matthews was yelling at Jingliang to bring more of that at it him. The replay of the foul showed that it was a very deliberate eye gouge, which should have absolutely had a point taken. Matthews came out strong in round 3, after eating a few counter shots immediately scored a takedown. Jingliang got back to his feet pretty quickly and they clinched up against the cage. Matthews came forward and landed a brutal right hand that crumpled Jingliang. Matthew tried to follow up, but Jingliang recovered very quickly and somehow found himself on top. Matthews battled back to his feet and had Jingliang pressed up against the cage. Matthews was not stopping his forward momentum landing another hard right followed by a flying knee that connected. Matthews landed a late takedown, and when Jingliang got back to his feet he ate a hard left hand from Matthews at the horn. The judges scored this one 29-28, 30-26, and 30-26 for Jake Matthews. This was a really nice win for Matthews over a guy who was on a hot streak. Matthews used his striking to really take this one over, and he has a really bright future in front of him.
We jumped up to Heavyweight as Tai “Bam Bam” Tuivasa (9-0) took on Cyril “Silverback” Asker (9-4).Asker came out with a right hand, and Tuivasa sent one flying back at him. Tuivasa started to rush forward, and he landed hard hands. Tuivasa landed a hard right hand and an elbow that stumbled Asker a bit. Tuivasa saw it and just started unloading on Asker. There was just covering up by Asker for a good period as Tuivasa was ripping lefts rights and elbows. Asker somehow was staying on his feet, but then as Asker tried to clinch Tuivasa pushed Asker away and Asker just face planted. The referee stepped in to stop the fight. Tai Tuivasa is a hard-hitting Heavyweight who swings for the fences. This could be a guy who is the future face of the Australian Heavyweights. He will be getting a Top 15 Heavyweight next, and he deserves it.
A Heavyweight Co-Main Event was next as fan favorite Mark “Super Samoan” Hunt (13-12-1 1NC #5 Ranked Heavyweight) and Curtis “Razor” Blaydes (9-1 1NC #9 Ranked Heavyweight) entered the cage. Blaydes landed the first strike of the fight with a body kick. Blaydes was willing to stand with Hunt, and Hunt missed wildly while Blaydes connected. Hunt just missed with an overhand right. Blaydes decided to come forward and he scored a takedown. Hunt however did not stay down long and made his way back to his feet. Hunt then landed his patented overhand right and had Blaydes stumbled. Hunt kept landing and he stumbled Blaydes to a knee. Hunt was looking to finish, but was unable to avoid a desperation takedown attempt from Blaydes. Blaydes almost ended up in full mount, but Hunt got back to his feet. Blaydes however grabbed and tossed Mark Hunt back to the mat flat on his back. Blaydes was peppering Hunt with shots on the mat, and late in the round Blaydes took Hunt’s back, but ran out of time. Blaydes immediately came out in round 2 looking for a takedown. Hunt was able to stay on his feet, and Blaydes had him pressed up against the cage. Hunt battled his way out and ripped a right hand as he circled away. Blaydes was much more hesitant to really engage on the feet, staying well out of Hunt’s power range. Blaydes tried to shoot again, but Hunt immediately shrugged it off. Hunt went for a big left hand, but Blaydes was able to score a takedown. Hunt looked like he may have pushed Blaydes off, but he recovered and found himself on top of the Super Samoan. Blaydes was not just staying put however on the mat, landing two huge elbows late in the round. They touched gloves to start round 3 and it was an immediate takedown from Blaydes. Hunt got back to his feet briefly, but Blaydes picked up Hunt and slammed him back down. Blaydes found himself in full mount with a lot of time to work. Blaydes was able to control Hunt for a long time, but with 2 minutes left Hunt got back to his feet, to almost immediately be slammed back down by Blaydes. Hunt again got back to his feet, but Blaydes was just overpowering him bring him back to the mat. Hunt got back to his feet with 1 minute left and got some brief separation. Blaydes took him right back down to the mat. Hunt again got back to his feet with 20 seconds left, only to be dragged right back down. Blaydes finished the fight in full mount on top of Hunt laying down elbows as the fight ended. The judges scored this one 30-26, 30-26, and 29-27 all for Curtis Blaydes. This was the biggest win to date for Blaydes. He overcame the early adversity and used his wrestling pedigree to really just control everywhere this fight went. He neutralized the power of Mark Hunt by using his grappling and now is in line for another Top 5 opponent.
The only person eligible to win the title tonight was former Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold (16-4 #2 Ranked Middleweight) as he entered the cage to take on former title challenger Yoel “Soldier of God” Romero (13-2 #1 Ranked Middleweight).Rockhold came out immediately with a low leg kick that landed. Rockhold landed a front kick to the body. He followed that up with a combination that was mostly blocked. Romero missed with a looping overhand right. Rockhold just kept trying to walk down Romero, and connected with a straight left. Romero landed a leg kick of his own. They traded leg kicks back and forth. Romero landed a nice right hand over the top that got the attention of Rockhold. These two were really going at a slow feel it out pace really picking and choosing their spots. Rockhold landed a few good shots up the middle late, and had to eat a big leg kick. We started round two with a burst from Romero where he landed a ton of shots that had Rockhold hurt a bit against the cage. Rockhold grabbed the back of Romero’s head and tied him up before circling away from danger. Romero again had a nice flurry forcing Rockhold to dip and dive his way out of danger. Rockhold landed a flurry of jabs late as the round came to an end. Rockhold was working his right hand early in round 3. Romero was starting to let his hands go as the round was wearing on. Rockhold swung with a right hand, and Romero ripped a left hook that absolutely floored Luke Rockhold. A follow up punch was 100% unnecessary as Rockhold was out. For Romero the win has to be bittersweet because the knockout didn’t earn him the interim title because of the missed weight. Romero is so dangerous, and that powerful striking is just something that is hard to defend against. A rematch with the champ is next.
This was by far the best fight card of 2018 for the UFC. We had a ton of entertaining prelims on FS1 followed by a main card that only saw the judges twice, but both fights had crazy moments. We saw one of the worst fouls that didn’t result in a point deduction and the emergence of a rightful number one contender at 185 belt or no belt. The UFC however as per usual is not resting on their laurels and come right back next week with a special Sunday card on FS1 featuring a heavy hitting Welterweight matchup as Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (32-10 1NC #11 Ranked Welterweight) takes on Yancy Medeiros (15-4 1NC). That should be a fun one, and if that card is half as good as this one it should be a great end of a weekend.
