On Saturday evening, the combined martial arts chief returned for its newest pay-per-view occasion, UFC 305.
For the primary time this 12 months, the UFC was Down Beneath this week, the place Perth’s RAC Enviornment performed host to the promotion’s newest Australian present. And the promotion introduced with it throughout the globe a notable lineup that included a title struggle and a number of intriguing undercard scraps.
The championship conflict on the high of the billing noticed Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya’s heated feud lastly attain the the Octagon, with the South African’s middleweight belt on the road seven months on from his crowning on the expense of Sean Strickland in “The Nice White North.”
Elsewhere, former flyweight title challengers Kai Kara-France and Steve Erceg appeared to stake their claims for a second shot at UFC gold within the co-main occasion, whereas Oceanic fan favorites Dan Hooker and Tai Tuivasa additionally hoped to ship standout triumphs on the primary card.
However did all these names come collectively to placed on an entertaining evening of fights? Let’s discover out with all of the positives and negatives from UFC 305.
Constructive – Don’t Be Foolish…You Know The Relaxation
Jesus Aguilar has two hobbies (amongst different issues, I’m certain. Maybe he’s keen on some ballroom dancing. Who is aware of?) — combating Australians and locking in guillotine chokes. Combining them will need to have been like Christmas at UFC 305.
The Mexican entered the cage as an underdog for the primary struggle of the evening in Perth, which many anticipated to be a popping out get together for Australia’s latest sizzling prospect, the beforehand undefeated Stewart Nicoll.
However the 29-year-old fell to the identical destiny as his fellow countryman Shannon Ross did at UFC 290 in July 2023 — being left unconscious within the very first spherical.
In Las Vegas final 12 months, Ross was completely obliterated on the toes by Aguilar in simply 17 seconds in certainly one of 2023’s most brutal knockouts. Nicoll’s demise got here on the bottom when he had his robust begin rendered null after getting caught in Aguilar’s favourite submission transfer. The Mexican was, certainly, not foolish. When the chance introduced itself, he jumped the gilly and put Nicoll out — not that anyone bar Aguilar really seen.
That left a scary visible of the Aussie wide-eyed as his sleeping physique fell again. On one other be aware, might the referee not have possibly caught his head because it thundered onto the canvas? It seems like we repeatedly see superhero saves from officers in Muay Thai fights over in Asia, however on this event, it appeared just like the ref virtually dodged Nicoll’s head.
Regardless, the end was extremely spectacular from Aguilar, who now has 5 guillotines out of his six fight-ending chokes.
Settle for a bout with Aguilar at your peril, Australian flyweights!
Destructive – What One Burns Can Do, The Different Burns… Nicely, Can’t
With the watering down of the UFC product, there’s been fairly just a few cases of fighters coming into the cage this 12 months who merely aren’t of a enough high quality to be competing on the game’s largest stage.
Herbert Burns, nonetheless, is a veteran of that group.
It’s fascinating to observe again Burns’ knockout of Nate Landwehr in 2020. I attempt to not purchase into ‘fluke’ narratives, however that could be a compelling one. Since then, the Brazilian has misplaced 4 straight by TKO, two of which have been the identical kind of retirement.
In opposition to each Invoice Algeo in 2022 and Jack Jenkins on Saturday evening, “The Blaze” — an apt moniker for somebody whose UFC profession has gone up in smoke — responded to adversity by trying to drag guard and collapsing to his again when desperation takedowns failed.
After some time of doing so in each cases, Keith Peterson and Marc Goddard waved the bouts off. With the reminiscence of the Algeo struggle rising ever clearer as Burns’ UFC 305 bout performed out, I remarked to colleagues, “He’ll do it (fall to his again) sufficient occasions till Goddard stops it.” Like clockwork.
You understand it’s dangerous when your brother’s personal podcast is flaming you on social media, earlier than rapidly deleting…
After all, credit score has to go to Jenkins for his efficiency on residence soil. Whatever the opposition stage, “Phar” appeared on it within the hanging realm. However his crisp boxing wasn’t sufficient to override the unfavorable that’s Burns’ newest disastrous show contained in the Octagon.
Destructive – A Mess
Nicely, the UFC 305 featured prelim when swimmingly, didn’t it?
The place to start. The conflict between Junior Tafa and Valter Walker introduced with it an abundance of negatives — and no, the referee’s decision-making was completely not certainly one of them.
The struggle’s conclusion got here after the Brazilian clutched onto his Aussie counterpart’s leg and locked in a heel hook. Issues immediately got here to an finish, with replays exhibiting that Tafa had yelled out in ache. That stoppage ended up being controversial, not as a result of it was unsuitable, however as a result of the game’s main promotion employs commentators who don’t know the ruleset of what they’re tasked with describing to a world viewers.
It’s outstanding to say, however we had two legendary former champions, Daniel Cormier and Dominick Cruz, questioning the third man contained in the cage. The latter — who by no means shies away from utilizing his agenda in opposition to Keith Peterson to slam referees — even went so far as to group the second with cases of fighters having their probability to compete cruelly taken away.
Guys…Learn. The. Guidelines.
Verbal faucet out: When a contestant verbally declares to the referee that she or he doesn’t want to proceed or makes audible sounds reminiscent of screams indicating ache or discomfort.
The actual fact we needed to sit via 5 minutes of doubting the referee’s resolution earlier than texts from these higher knowledgeable arrived to avoid wasting the day is but additional proof as to why Laura Sanko must be a everlasting fixture on the commentary desk.
The negatives didn’t cease there, nonetheless.
An sad Tafa responded to the struggle’s conclusion by butting heads with Walker earlier than slapping him. The UFC has been fairly inconsistent when it comes with coping with related cases — Khabib Nurmagomedov continued his title reign post-instigating the UFC 229 brawl, whereas Paul Daley was lower and eternally ousted from the promotion for his sucker punch in opposition to Josh Koscheck at UFC 113.
What occurs subsequent within the profession of Tafa stays to be seen, however a launch shouldn’t be out of the query.
Constructive – Nightmare? I’ll Say
The welterweight division all the time appears to have one main prospect establishing himself as one to observe, with latest years seeing Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Garry following profitable arrivals with climbs into title rivalry.
All indicators level towards Carlos Prates becoming a member of them quickly sufficient.
There aren’t sufficient superlatives to do justice to the Brazilian’s efficiency. He turned the primary man to knock out Li Jingliang, however his show was in no way outlined by a sudden fight-ending sequence. Prates frankly beat “The Leech” up for the perfect a part of 9 minutes.
That’s evidently what it was going to take to get the returning Chinese language fighter out of there — soften up what’s lengthy been an iron chin with knockdown after knockdown, earlier than uncorking some of the clubbing hooks in latest reminiscence to complete the job.
Add Prates to the checklist of, “Oh, he’s on the cardboard? Hell yeah,” fighters within the UFC.
Destructive – The Worst Scorecard In UFC Historical past
Contemplating I’m usually leaping to the protection of judges, who often come below fireplace from people with no idea of how combined martial arts fights are scored, it feels good to have the ability to seize a pitchfork this time round.
Even whereas penning this, I’m nonetheless in shock on the scorecard. 30-27 Tai Tuivasa. You’d be exhausting pressed to make an argument for “Bam Bam” getting one spherical over Jairzinho Rozenstruik on Saturday evening, but alone two, but alone three.
“Bigi Boy” was scientific together with his efficiency, piecing Tuivasa up whereas avoiding just about the entire residence favourite’s energy pictures. Choose Howie Sales space, nonetheless, will need to have gotten the purple and blue corners confused as a result of it’s exhausting to see every other clarification for his work at UFC 305.
Fortunately, he was relieved from his duties for the remainder of the evening (not that it mattered anyway given how the co-main occasion completed…extra on that quickly). However, to be trustworthy, that scorecard is so dangerous that Howie most likely shouldn’t be with scorecard in hand ever once more.
Even hours later, I’m nonetheless making an attempt to recall a scorecard that even comes shut. Chris Lee’s 48-47 in favor of Paul Felder over Rafael dos Anjos, maybe?
Constructive – He’s Again
It’s 2024 and Dan Hooker is within the light-weight high 5 (or at the very least ought to be come subsequent week’s replace). Redemption arcs don’t come significantly better than that.
Hooker entered the cage at UFC 305 with an almighty activity forward of him, getting his want to characteristic on the cardboard granted within the type of a showdown with the extremely regarded Mateusz Gamrot. Be it odds, followers, or analysts, mainly each metric had “The Hangman” falling brief to the smothering grappling of “Gamer.”
However the New Zealander’s promise to struggle via relentless takedown makes an attempt and make Gamrot pay together with his hanging weapons got here to fruition. For essentially the most half, although, he really gave pretty much as good as he acquired on the toes.
Spherical one noticed each males trade knockdowns, earlier than the second body was extra a tail of the Polish fighter’s management versus Hooker’s strikes whereas defending Gamrot’s wrestling. And the concluding stanza was only a battle that may be summed up by two-and-a-half minutes of hanging success every.
Choose that.
Two cageside scorers in the end leant the best way of “The Hangman,” and with that he’s rendered the 1-4 run he entered UFC 281 in 2022 driving a distance reminiscence. And with three straight wins and a overcome a reputation like Gamrot, he’s effectively and really again within the combine.
If Dustin Poirier is in search of one final hurrah…rematch, anybody?
Constructive – Did You Blink?
Talking of underdogs who made a mockery of their betting traces…
Steve Erceg was maybe one or two ill-advised takedowns away from a shock title win in Brazil this previous Might. And his efforts left many closely favoring him to bounce again on the expense of the returning Kai Kara-France at UFC 305.
However within the phrases of the New Zealander’s teammate Israel Adesanya, “Y’all will need to have forgot.”
After spending over a 12 months on the sidelines recovering from a concussion and taking all the mandatory precautions to guard his well being, Kara-France made a splash in his comeback by knocking “AstroBoy” out within the very first spherical. You’d be exhausting pressed to discover a bingo card that had that end on it.
With Kai Asakura’s signing and Kara-France’s emphatic efficiency on Saturday evening, Alexandre Pantoja isn’t brief on attainable challenges. And with that, the flyweight division stays among the many most enjoyable, and one through which you completely shouldn’t blink.
Constructive – Respect
it all the time appeared unlikely that the UFC 305 most important occasion would disappoint. It was simply all the time going to ship, wasn’t it? Besides, what we acquired in Perth was particular.
I can’t keep in mind the final time I used to be as enthralled by a headline matchup to the extent I used to be when Dricus Du Plessis defended his middleweight title in opposition to Israel Adesanya. It pitted two high athletes with polar-opposite kinds that got here collectively to be about as evenly matched as attainable.
Add in a little bit of a feud, the story of Adesanya’s return, and Du Plessis’ continued behavior of proving his sizable group of doubters unsuitable, and also you’ve acquired all of the substances for a Battle of the Yr contender.
Via three rounds, I had the champ main 29-28, however that was in no way a transparent and straightforward rating. As has been the case with the South African prior to now, the story was his energy shorts versus his opponents’ quantity.
In the long run, after that had already put him up on the scorecards, “Stillknocks” linked exhausting in a fourth body that had been all Adesanya, finally placing him down and locking in a rear-naked choke.
The positives listed here are throughout, from the entertaining nature of the struggle to the pair’s respectful trade within the Octagon within the aftermath to Adesanya’s humble strategy to a different setback.
Du Plessis, after all, deserves the primary plaudits. He’s starting to amass a largely unequalled résumé within the UFC, together with his 8-0 file together with a knockout of Robert Whittaker and the feat of being the primary to submit one other all-time nice in “The Final Stylebender.”
