Instant classic. Fight of the year contender. Khamzat Chimaev and Gilbert Burns put on one of the best fights you will ever see at UFC 273. Prior to the event, Chimaev-Burns was hyped even more than the two title fights on the card and it delivered. Read on below for Seattle Fights thoughts on this fantastic clash. Also, Alexander “The Great” Volkanovski defended his featherweight crown for the third time against The Korean Zombie. And Aljamain Sterling earned a measure of redemption in his split decision victory over Petr Yan.
Alexander Volkanovski Impressive in TKO Stoppage of Chan Sung Jung
Alexander “the Great” Volkanovski turned in a dominant performance in securing his third featherweight title defense. Volkanovski was masterful with his striking as he showed fast hands and repeatedly punished The Korean Zombie to the head and body. Spare a thought for Zombie, though, as even though he was outclassed, he never stopped coming forward against Volkanovski looking to take the champ out. However, it was clear that on this night the difference between the two men was significant as Volkanovski repeatedly beat Zombie to the punch and was simply too much.
The end came in the fourth round as Volkanovski absolutely hammered Zombie with a vicious right hook that Jung somehow was able to eat and stay standing. However, referee Herb Dean, who had asked the ringside doctor to look at Jung prior to the start of the round, mercifully had seen enough and called a stop to the bout, giving Volkanovski the well-earned TKO victory.
Volkanovski was excellent in his post-fight, in-cage interview. The Australian was asked by Joe Rogan how he continues to improve and make big leaps in his development as a fighter. “Mate, it’s just drive. Drive to be better, always be better. You can be better everywhere. Have that drive, that motivation. And just keep looking for ways to improve. That’s it. It’s that easy. . . I’m not the most athletically gifted guy, hard work and drive got me to where I am, and look what I’m doing.”
Aljamain Sterling Gains a Measure of Redemption In Split Decision Win Over Petr Yan
Aljamain Sterling rightly took a fair amount of criticism for the way he won the bantamweight strap at UFC 259. In that fight, Sterling started strong but was being soundly beaten as the fight progressed only to win by disqualification when Petr Yan landed an intentional, illegal knee to Sterling’s head. A substantial number of fans agreed with Yan’s contention that it appeared Sterling was acting to be more hurt by the strike than he was and feigning an inability to continue. To make matters worse, Sterling threw down the belt in disgust when it was presented to him after that fight, but was later seen dancing with the belt in celebration at an after-party.
Say what you will about Sterling, but he was much better in this fight, which was very close. And while Dana White has suggested he thinks Yan should have been declared the winner, it was Sterling who had the most dominant moments taking Yan down and controlling him for large portions of rounds two and three, threatening with submissions. Yan was able to turn the tables in the last two rounds, as he landed some effective strikes, repeatedly stymied Sterling’s takedown attempts and even controlled Sterling on the mat in Round 4 after reversing position. Thus it all came down to the first round, which saw little significant action and was close. Sterling, however, did likely rate the slight advantage in that round with his leg kick heavy attack.
Khamzat Chimaev Defeats Gilbert Burns By Unanimous Decision in Fight of the Night
Instant classic. Fight of the year contender. This fight was about as good as it gets. Round 1 was clearly Chimaev’s round. Chimaev’s best moment came late in the round when he landed a hard lead right hand that sent Burns to the mat. Showing incredible fighting spirit, Burns came roaring back in the second round despite being clearly damaged from the first round. While both fighters had their moments in the second round, Burns had Chimaev hurt on several occasions in the second round with strikes and knocked Borz down midway through round two. Round 3 was another incredible round, with the action going back and forth. However, it was Burns who appeared to be throwing harder strikes and was the busier fighter late in the round.
As the oft-used saying goes, “there are levels to this game.” Burns reminded us all of that as Chimaev was not able to overpower the Brazilian as he had done with his previous opponents. Some have taken issue with Chimaev’s perceived arrogance. After the fight Borz said that a lot of his bluster was simply selling his fights, but he continued by falling back into promo mode by talking about how he is going to smash everyone else he fights. But Burns surely took away Chimaev’s sense of invincibility on this night as he made the Chechen look human.
The Chimaev hype train will roll on. Some media outlets are proclaiming that Chimaev will be a champion at either welterweight or middleweight in the not too distant future. I’d venture to say that both the great Kamaru Usman and outstanding Israel Adesanya would take exception to that claim. Chimaev showed some holes in his game, particularly on the feet, and it is difficult to imagine him just steamrolling Usman in the wrestling department when the two meet. As for Adesanya, if he can use his supreme athleticism and takedown defense to keep a fight with Chimaev mostly standing, the Last Stylebender most likely would put the Chechen away with strikes.
Let’s hope Dana White sticks to his pre-fight plan to match Chimaev against Colby Covington next to see if Chimaev can pass another stiff test and earn a title shot with Usman.
Mackenzie Dern Gets Split Decision Victory Against Tecia Torres
Mackenzie Dern was given the split decision victory by the judges in a fight that Seattle Fights scored in favor of Torres. Torres likely earned Round 1 as she mostly got the better of the striking exchanges. Torres was clearly the faster fighter and had displayed better defensive and movement skills. However, Dern was able to crack Torres once late in the round but it was likely not enough to score the round for Dern. In the second round, Dern was able to implement her jiu-jitsu game. Dern jumped guard when the combatants were in the clinch. Torres initially defended well from the standing position but Dern eventually was able to bring Torres to the mat. Torres continued to defend well from the mat, but Dern threated with the kimura, armbar and kneebar submission attempts giving her Round 2. Torres appeared to get the better of the striking exchanges in Round 3 as Dern was unable to get the takedown in this round. Torres was the busier fighter, but at least two of the judges must have scored the round for Dern as she was awarded the split decision.
Mark Madsen Not Very Impressive in Unanimous Decision Victory Over Vinc Pichel
Mark Madsen remained undefeated in this unanimous decision victory but it was hardly a dominant performance or one indicating big things ahead for the Dane. In Round 1, Madsen employed a heavy calf kick attack that seemed designed to play into his wrestling based game plan. In Round 2, Madsen continued attacking the lower leg but Pichel had some success of his own with calf kicks. Pichel also briefly took Madsen down late in the round, which was the first takedown given up by the former Olympian in his career. In Round 3, Madsen secured the fight by converting a sloppy double leg takedown attempt and controlling Pichel for a good portion of the round.