UFC 286 went down on Saturday and there were some great fights and great moments on this card. Leon Edwards proved without a shadow of a doubt that he’s the better man as between him and Kamaru Usman by winning a decision that was not nearly as close as suggested by MMA media. Other highlights of the card include Gunnar Nelson submitting Bryan Barberena with a beautiful armbar, Marvin Vettori outclassing Roman Dolidze and Justin Gaethje engaging in another war, this time with Rafael Fiziev. Read on for Seattle Fights takeaways from the card.
Leon Edwards Outclasses Kamaru Usman
Sometimes the MMA community makes Seattle Fights scratch its head. Somehow the narrative going into this fight was that Kamaru Usman might be the greatest UFC welterweight of all time. The arrogant Usman fed that narrative and had the gall to suggest pre-fight that he dominated all aspects of their encounter at UFC 278 last August. Nevermind the takedown he gave up in the first round and significant control time Edwards amassed. And also apparently nevermind that head kick knockout that sent Usman into the shadow realm.
Leading into the fight Usman seemed to be saying all the wrong things, while Edwards seemed to have counterpart figured out and said as much. Usman incredibly stated that he had broken Edwards in the first fight. Apparently a broken and diminished Edwards was capable of sparking the Nigerian Nightmare to sleep. Usman also did his level best to call Edwards vicious knockout in the second fight a fluke. Paying no mind to Usman’s foolishness, Edwards simply proved he is the better man.
After the fight Edwards was lauded for his brilliant game plan. Edward repeatedly hammered hard left body kicks from his southpaw stance to Usman’s right side. Edwards also repeatedly chipped away at Usman’s lower legs with leg kicks. While Usman had some very limited success in getting takedowns, Edwards repeatedly shucked off most takedown attempts and when the Trevor Whitman charge did get Edwards down, the Jamaican born British fighter wasted little time in resetting things on the feet where he has a massive advantage over Usman.
At least this fight will quiet the silly talk of Usman as a welterweight GOAT. He wasn’t taking that title from GSP in any event, but this fight should put that narrative to rest. After the fight Edwards expressed little interest in another fight with Usman. He seems intent on a fight with either Conor McGregor or Jorge Masvidal. Sign me up for either of those. However, the UFC seems intent on putting Colby Covington in against Rocky next.
Justin Gaethje and Rafael Fiziev Went to War
Seattle Fights isn’t a big fan of Justin Gaethje, but you have to credit the man with incredible toughness and fighting spirit. I don’t think he is my favorite fighter’s favorite fighter by any means, but the man does bring the fight to the Octagon. Rafael Fiziev is a more polished and slick striker and despite this very close loss should be commended for his performance in this Fight of the Night.
Seattle Fights actually scored this bout 29-28 for Fiziev. Fiziev got the better of the striking exchanges in the first two rounds which should have provided a narrow margin of victory for the Kazakhstan native. But the third round was clearly Gaethje’s by a wide margin and “The Highlight” did do more damage in this fight so it is a tough result to dispute. The first round was close, with Fiziev rating a slight edge. Fiziev won the second round by a bigger margin, but the third round was not close.
Gaethje said he is looking to make another run at a title shot after the fight, but warned that he won’t be around for much longer. Gaethje, the former interim UFC Lightweight Champion, seems forever destined to be one of those fighters who puts on fun, wild fights against solid opposition (see the Michael Chandler and Edson Barboza fights) but comes up short against the top of the division (see Khabib and Charles Oliveira).
Gunnar Nelson Makes Quick Work Of Bryan Barberena With Beautiful Armbar
Gunnar Nelson has long been a favorite of Seattle Fights due to his cool demeanor, fighting style and dangerous submission game. Bryan Barberena is a fun fighter to watch, as he always looks to bang ang brings the fight, but this was a bad matchup for the American who was at a distinct disadvantage on the ground and could not keep this fight standing where he needed it to be.
All Nelson needed was one takedown to start the beginning of the end of this fight. Nelson backed Barberena up to the fence and after initially looking for a double leg, Gunni switched to a single leg to convert the takedown. Nelson then landed some hard elbows to Barberena’s face before passing to mount. From there Nelson spun into armbar position, turned Barberena’s thumb to the sky and started extending and cranking Barberena’s arm to get the quick tap.
With the submission victory, Nelson is now tied with Damian Maia and Chris Lytle for most UFC submissions in the welterweight division with sux such finishes.
Jennifer Maia Wins Unanimous Decision Against Casey O’Neil
Jennifer Maia displayed improvement in her boxing skills as she was able to stymie the power strikes of Casey O’Neil. Maia repeatedly unleashed three punch combinations as O’Neil entered to blunt the Scottish fighter’s attacks and frequently threw an uppercut into her combinations. This was O’Neil’s first loss and at 25 years old she has plenty of time to re-group. This was the second straight win for the former flyweight title challenger as she looks to work her way back to another shot at the strap
Marvin Vettori Sends Roman Dolidze Back To The Drawing Board
Prior to this fight Marvin Vettori said that Roman Dolidze had bit off more than he could chew in calling for a shot against the Italian Dream. Vettori said he was a bridge too far for the aggressive Georgian fighter. He was right. Dolidze, who had won three straight bouts as an underdog by either KO or TKO, repeatedly tried to goad Vettori into a dogfight but could not fool the veteran and was unable to deliver his power throughout the fight. During one entertaining sequence, Dolidze tried to aggravate Vettori and motioned for Vettori to clash and bang. Vettori wisely returned the gesture but refused to play the game and simply beat Dolidze repeatedly to the punch. Dolidze time and again would wade forward trying to land the heaviest of shots only to have Vettori get on his bike and use combinations and check hooks to throw Dolidze off.
Vettori also showed an improved kicking game after spending time in Thailand to improve his kicks. After his last fight (a loss to “Bobby Knuckles” aka Robert Whitaker) Vettori said that he needed the time and training to completely re-work his kicks. The hard work paid off as early in each round he blasted his foe repeatedly with leg kicks. Dolidze tried to bully Vettori but you can’t bully a beast like the Italian Dream. After the fight, Vettori said he’s looking to get back into the cage with any of the top middleweights.