Francis Ngannou avenges Stipe Miocic defeat with second-round KO
Calm, poised, powerful. Francis Ngannou avenged his title fight loss to Stipe Miocic in emphatic style as he blew right through the champion in their rematch at UFC 260 in Las Vegas.
Ngannou fought patiently, clearly a lesson learned after his first bout with Miocic, but still seized upon any openings that came his way for as long as the fight lasted.
In the first round, “The Predator” also showed off his improved wrestling defence, sprawling on a Miocic takedown after initially hurting his opponent with a clubbing overhand right. While on the ground, Ngannou was able to spin round the Cleveland native and drive a series of punches into his head to hurt him even more. It was enough to keep Miocic at bay with takedown attempts for the time being.
Going into the second round, Miocic’s corner told their fighter that he needed to come out more aggressive. That he did, but it came at a cost.
Ngannou hurt Miocic with a left hand and sent the champion reeling backwards. A firefight ensued and the pair traded – and landed – big punches.
Cameroon’s Ngannou was hit with a counter right, but unleashed a devastating short left hook that landed flush on Miocic’s jaw and sent his man backwards onto the deck with his leg bent awkwardly underneath him.
Referee Herb Dean couldn’t get to Miocic in time to save him from one thunderous hammerfist on the ground before waving the fight off.
Ngannou is your new UFC heavyweight champion and a big money fight with former UFC light heavyweight king Jon Jones seems to be coming next.
Vicente Luque submits Tyron Woodley in co-main event
Former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley has been accused of being a tad timid and gun-shy in his last three fights that all ended in disappointing defeat.
In Vicente Luque, Woodley saw his opponent as an opportunity to rediscover his old fighting form that made him considered as being one of the finest UFC welterweight champions in history at the time of his reign.
Luque had to weather the Woodley storm and that he did. Woodley appeared to wobble Luque with a series of powerful right hands, but quickly shifted the look of the fight with his smart counterpunching.
While Woodley was swinging wildly with winging hooks, Luque was expertly picking him apart through the middle and had his opponent hurt.
Staggering around in the cage and still trying to fight back, Woodley got lit up with more strikes before the fight hit the deck with less than two minutes remaining in this crazy first round.
From there, Luque immediately worked on synching up a brabo choke. Woodley bravely tried to resist until he was forced to tap at 3:56 of round one.
Luque handed Woodley his first ever submission loss and moves to three contests unbeaten as he ascends up the UFC welterweight rankings.
Spectacular Sean O’Malley knocks out Thomas Almeida
Sean O’Malley got over his loss to Marlon Vera last summer with a stylish striking performance against Thomas Almeida at UFC 260.
Almeida showed plenty of grit and determination in this contest but wasn’t able to muster a sustained attack on his skilful opponent apart from a leg kick-based approach in the second round.
O’Malley, whose losses and more precarious moments inside the Octagon came as a result of leg, foot and ankle injuries, was able to shake off any of his opponent’s attempts to hurt his lower body and land what he wanted, when he wanted with devastating effects.
In the first round, the MMA Lab dominated as he slammed his shin into Almeida’s head and floored him with a left hook. O’Malley was convinced of a quick victory and began to walk away from his opponent before seeing him rise back to his feet.
O’Malley picked up the pace again in the third round and ended the contest with a spectacular sequence. Almeida was knocked to the ground again with a stunning left hand. The Brazilian’s lights were then put out with a massive standing-to-ground right punch that landed clean on his jaw.
Almeida is now on a four-fight losing streak and hasn’t won since 2016 in the days when he was seen as the UFC bantamweight division’s next best thing. As for O’Malley, “Sugar” is now back in the win column after tasting defeat for the first time in his budding MMA career.
Miranda Maverick earns decision win over Gillian Robertson
With solid grappling and a clear striking advantage, Miranda Maverick extended her streak of victories to five following her unanimous decision victory over Gillian Robertson.
Maverick was able to assert her dominance on the feet by winning almost all of those exchanges. When she wasn’t lighting Robertson up with punches, Maverick was able to secure a series of takedowns and land ground-and-pound to pile up the points on the judges’ scorecards.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for the 23-year-old women’s flyweight prospect, though. Robertson was able to show flashes of superiority on the ground in the second and third rounds.
But apart from those flashes of danger from the Canadian, Maverick always appeared in total control of the fight and the judges’ scorecards of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 reflect that.
Jamie Mullarkey gets quick KO win over Khama Worthy
Jamie Mullarkey scored the first win of his UFC run in the opening fight of the UFC 260 main card with a knockout victory over the dangerous Khama Worthy.
This lightweight showcase lasted less than 60 seconds.
Mullarkey secured victory when he connected with a well-timed left hook. Worthy was caught flush and was immediately hurt, stumbling forwards.
Australia’s Mullarkey used that forward momentum from his opponent to land another punch before referee Chris Tognoni intervened to call a stop to the fight.
UFC 260: Miocic vs. Ngannou 2 full results
Heavyweight: Francis Ngannou def. Stipe Miocic (c) by KO (punches) at 0:52 of round two
Welterweight: Vicente Luque def. Tyron Woodley by submission (brabo choke) at 3:56 of round one
Bantamweight: Sean O’Malley def. Thomas Almeida by KO (punch) at 3:52 of round three
Women’s Flyweight: Miranda Maverick def. Gillian Robertson by unanimous decision after three rounds
Lightweight: Jamie Mullarkey def. Khama Worthy by KO (punches) at 0:46 of round one
Catchweight: Alonzo Menifield def. Fabio Cherant by submission (shoulder choke) at 1:11 of round one
Welterweight: Abubakar Nurmagomedov def. Jared Gooden by split decision after three rounds
Featherweight: Omar Morales def. Shane Young by unanimous decision after three rounds
Middleweight: Marc-André Barriault def. Abu Azaitar by TKO (punches) at 4:56 of round three