What mattered most at UFC 300 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas? Here are a few post-fight musings …
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5
Kayla Harrison makes a definitive statement
Kayla Harrison’s octagon debut couldn’t have gone much better. Truly.
The two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time PFL champion came into her first UFC fight against decorated former champion Holly Holm with a ton of hype, anticipation and expectations. Harrison (17-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) lived up to every bit of it, essentially ragdolling Holm before finishing the fight by rear-naked choke in the second round.
Any questions about Harrison’s ability to make women’s bantamweight were answered at Friday’s weigh-ins. She didn’t look the slightest bit affected by the cut in the cage, either, which should be terrifying for every single person in this division.
Harrison automatically shoots to the top after one UFC fight. She needs to fight champion Raquel Pennington next, and if that pisses off Julianna Peña, well, then so be it.
4
Greatest moment in UFC history, courtesy of Max Holloway?
Max Holloway lured Justin Gaethje into his world in the final exchange of their BMF title fight, and it led to Gaethje’s demise in the most violent way possible as “Blessed” scored a hellacious knockout with one tick left on the clock.
I am still in total awe and disbelief of what I witnessed from cageside last night. That was insanely vicious, to the point where I was legitimately worried for Gaethje’s health when he was stretched face-first on the canvas. Thankfully, he’s relayed positive help updates since then.
But on the flip side, you have to be so, so happy for Holloway.
Holloway is one of the genuine good guys in the sport. I’ve been interviewing him since his first UFC fight, and it was sad to see so much of his legacy put into question due to the three losses against Alexander Volkanovski. He put himself in a new stratosphere with this performance, though, becoming the first in history to ever win an interim, undisputed and BMF title under the UFC banner.
This moment is going to play on highlight reels for years to come. It was everything and more. It defined the show. And Holloway should have his pick of the litter of what he wants next. Return to featherweight and fight Ilia Topuria? Sure. Stay at lightweight and challenge the Islam Makhachev vs. Dustin Poirier winner from UFC 302? Certainly. If something else pops up for that BMF belt that makes sense, let’s make it happen.
Holloway delivered a moment people who watched this event live will never, ever forget, and he deserves every penny of the $600,000 in bonus money that came his way.
3
Arman Tsarukyan continues to take strides
Arman Tsarukyan is very good, and at only 26 years old, he’s going to keep getting better. Did he deserve the split decision nod over Charles Oliveira? Watching from cageside I thought so, but it was super competitive.
But even Tsarukyan (22-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) getting this type of signature win over someone of Oliveira’s stature is a huge deal. Whether he’ll be next for the Makhachev vs. Poirier winner remains to be seen, but given he’s 9-1 in his past 10 fights with his only blemish being a narrow decision to Mateusz Gamrot, he certainly warrants the opportunity sooner than later.
2
The end of Charles Oliveira, Justin Gaethje as title threats?
It’s wild to see how quickly the state of the lightweight division has swung.
Charles Oliveira was scheduled to fight Makhachev in October before a last-minute cut in training derailed his participation and led to Alexander Volkanovski stepping in for a short-notice rematch with the champion.
After knocking out Poirier in July, Justin Gaethje was expected to be next for the Makhachev vs. Oliveira 2 winner in February, but then the whole timeline changed and it led him into the BMF title defense against Holloway.
Now that both men lost at UFC 300, it’s hard not to wonder if we’ve already seen the pinnacles of their respective careers.
Gaethje (25-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) is the more concerning of the two, of course, given he was on the receiving end of one of the most brutal knockouts in UFC history. His heart and determination have never been in question, but that kind of damage can alter the durability of a fighter forever, and we’re already talking about a man who has given us a plethora of wars inside the octagon.
There may be reason to be more optimistic about Oliveira’s future prospects. He arguably should’ve gotten the nod against Tsarukyan from the judges, so it’s not like he’s still incapable. His road back to the title likely just went from one fight to at least two, though, and with his 35th birthday on the horizon later this year, time is beginning to become his enemy.
There are a lot of hungry lightweights out there, and they surely see Gaethje and Oliveira as more vulnerable than ever right now.
1
The Alex Pereira anomaly continues
The career arch of Alex Pereira in the UFC is truly one of the most remarkable things that’s ever happened in the history of the company.
Pereira (10-2 MMA, 7-1 UFC) hadn’t even made his debut less than three years ago, and here he was on Saturday, headlining one of the biggest cards the promotional has ever put on and hardly feeling out of place in that spot.
If you’re reading this, you already are aware of Pereira’s rise from two-division GLORY kickboxing champion to two-division UFC champion. He was unable to defend his title in his first UFC championship run at middleweight, but managed to find success in his first light heavyweight defense with an opening-round knockout of Jamahal Hill.
The Brazilian remained calm and composure throughout the week despite Hill’s trash talk, and carried that same attitude into the octagon en route to the win. It was all very impressive, and made me feel quite foolish for picking Hill to get it done.
I’ve officially stopped doubting Pereira forever. Dana White didn’t seem warm to his idea of moving to heavyweight, but who is anyone to tell Pereira what he’s incapable of at this point?
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 300.
