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Culminating a slate of three title fights at the UFC's Fight Island in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, Usman nullified the threats of the #3 ranked welterweight to make the second defence of the 170 lbs title.
Earlier in the night, Alexander Volkanovski retained his championship in a close fought encounter with Max Holloway, moments after Petr Yan finished Jose Aldo late to take hold of the bantamweight title.
Amanda Ribas wasted little time in what may have been Paige VanZant's final fight in the organisation, forcing a first-round tap to kick off the main card.
Both fighters made clear adjustments from that night in Brazil last May, where Namajunas' straight punches took some time to land after Andrade employed some heavy head movement. The footwork of "Thug" was allowing her to move out of harm's way as Andrade rushed forward and loaded up on her punches, landing a good elbow and a knee later in the round.
"Blessed" was now brimming with confidence, in a round where Volkanovski showed he remained a persistent threat with some left hooks as he rushed forward. Max was beginning to get good reads on him though as he landed a nice knee up the middle not too long after buzzing the champion with an uppercut and left-hook in close range. Volkanovski went for the inside leg kicks again but Holloway himself was landing his own. As the Australian attempted to catch up and press forward towards the end of the round, he was put down again with a perfect uppercut and it looked like the former champion was two rounds up.
Ribas makes quick work of VanZant
Amanda Ribas def. Paige VanZant via submission (armbar), round 1 (2:21)
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| Image: Getty Images |
Making her debut at flyweight, the Brazilian closed the distance quickly, taking VanZant - who was coming off a layoff spanning more than 18 months - down with a head and arm hip toss, firing down a few elbows to cut PVZ. As Ribas pursued the armbar, her opponent attempted to roll out of it, but when the belly down armbar was in, there was no escaping, forcing a tap.
Could Amanda Ribas be a future champ? 🏆 #UFC251 pic.twitter.com/knixvTsWNE
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) July 12, 2020
Namajunas survives the war for redemption
Rose Namajunas def. Jessica Andrade via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Rose Namajunas exacted revenge over the woman who took her title last summer, edging Jessica Andrade in a thrilling bout.
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| Image: Bloody Elbow |
Both fighters made clear adjustments from that night in Brazil last May, where Namajunas' straight punches took some time to land after Andrade employed some heavy head movement. The footwork of "Thug" was allowing her to move out of harm's way as Andrade rushed forward and loaded up on her punches, landing a good elbow and a knee later in the round.
Andrade's activity began to increase in the second round but the crisp jab of Namajunas kept her at bay. There was confidence to take into the final stanza however as Namajunas finished the round strong, winging her hooks.
It was likely that the Brazilian was trailing on the scorecards - although her corner may have told her otherwise. Andrade began to pour it on, starting with a right uppercut that popped her opponent's head back, before an overhand stumbled Namajunas. Rose refused to back down though and held her ground, seeing out the fight to take the split decision victory.
Rose Namajunas' split decision win over Jessica Andrade tonight is just her 3rd win by decision in her 13 career MMA fights.
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) July 12, 2020
2 of those 3 wins by decision have come in her last 2 victories (tonight over Andrade & at UFC 223 over Joanna Jedrzejczyk). pic.twitter.com/Jm0irYEEE2
No Mercy for Aldo as Yan takes 135 crown
Petr Yan def. Jose Aldo via TKO (punches), round 5
Petr Yan poured it on in the second half of the fight to take the vacated bantamweight crown, brutally stopping Jose Aldo in the final round.
A battle of Russia and Brazil and a showcase of striking credentials, they both got to work with Yan landing a crushing right hand early in the round that backed up the former featherweight king. Aldo did begin to let fly with his patented leg kicks that prior to this fight had been a thing of the past, and they were already beginning to bother his opponent, with one sweeping him off his feet. However, a close first round shifted firmly in favour of Yan when he landed a big body kick that forced Aldo to shoot for a takedown, which was stuffed and left him to the mercy of Yan's ground-and-pound to close out the first five minutes.
Jose Aldo rallied as the second round began, forcing Yan to soon switch to southpaw at the hands of some big leg kicks. The Russian was forced to adapt from the new stance as Aldo continued to move his head and avoid attacks.
Aldo was appearing to go from strength-to-strength however Yan remained a force to be reckoned with throughout the fight, keeping composed even when the veteran was forcing the pressure. A knee up the middle and a couple of crushing hooks to the body were responded to by a big spinning backfist as the two were in close quarters, and Yan finished the round strong, catching Aldo a couple of times although the South American's head movement made him hard to pin down.
The beginning of the championship rounds saw the fight truly swing in favour of "No Mercy", who had none for Aldo who was now beginning to feel the pace of a hard-fought title bout. Anytime Aldo mounted some offense, Yan was right there in the pocket to pop him back with some stinging shots. Youth was prevailing as Yan caught a kick and took Aldo down for some ground-and-pound to close out the round strongly.
The fight was close but it appeared Aldo needed to do much more to take the win - but it was his opponent who did all the talking in the fifth and final round. After a quick embrace between the two sparring partners, Aldo was stunned by a straight left hand, before Yan swarmed him and sneaked in an uppercut to send Aldo crumbling to the canvas. From there, he was subject to some brutal ground-and-pound, which after what seemed like an eternity, was called off by the referee. Aldo had painted the canvas red in his blood by then, and Petr Yan was now the undisputed bantamweight champion of the world.
Volkanovski edges decision against Blessed
Alexander Volkanovski def. Max Holloway via split decision (48-47, 47-48, 48-47)
Alexander Volkanovski made the first defence of his featherweight championship by once again getting the better of Max Holloway, edging "Blessed" over five captivating rounds.
Any feeling out process was quickly put to rest as Volkanovski tried to take Holloway's head off as he charged in early, followed up by an inside leg kick - one of many kicks that reddened the lead leg of the challenger in the opening round. Holloway landed some strikes to the leg of his own and also struck some push kicks to the body as both men went at it. The jab left Volkanovski's face reddened as the fight already was looking much different than the first time round last December. Towards the end of the round Holloway landed clean with a spinning back kick to the body, and then dropped the Aussie with a head kick to close out the round.
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| Image: Jeff Bottari / Zuffa LLC |
"Blessed" was now brimming with confidence, in a round where Volkanovski showed he remained a persistent threat with some left hooks as he rushed forward. Max was beginning to get good reads on him though as he landed a nice knee up the middle not too long after buzzing the champion with an uppercut and left-hook in close range. Volkanovski went for the inside leg kicks again but Holloway himself was landing his own. As the Australian attempted to catch up and press forward towards the end of the round, he was put down again with a perfect uppercut and it looked like the former champion was two rounds up.
The third round was closely contested starting with Holloway landing a knee to split the guard of his opponent, before he would come back with a solid left hook. For the first time in the fight we saw grappling exchanges as Volkanovski aimed to pin Hollloway against the fence and look for a trip, but Holloway was able to get under and push out, landing a knee to the body on the exit. The champion continued to show that he was far from being out of the fight however, stinging the Hawaiian with his jab in the later stages of the third.
As the championship rounds commenced Volkanovski had to turn up the pressure, and he did. He landed some good leg kicks and jabs, but so did his opponent - and Max followed with an excellent uppercut and body kick. Knowing he was losing out on the exchanges on the feet, Volkanovski made a couple of takedown attempts, but they were shrugged off by the contender and both ended the round going after it with strikes.
The champion appeared to be behind going into the fifth and Holloway was brimming confidence, with his hands down, relaxed and going for more head kicks. He landed a great one-two down the middle but Volkanovski continued to fire back which made for some exciting exchanges. Volkanovski managed to get a takedown but Holloway pushed himself back up and the two continued to strike it out. Holloway went for a late takedown but Volkanovski switched it mid-scramble and ended up on top to close out the fight. Volkanovski came on strong late, and it was enough for him to nab the split decision win on the scorecards.
Usman crushes BMF dreams
Kamaru Usman def. Jorge Masvidal via unanimous decision
Kamaru Usman made a successful second defence of his welterweight title, outworking Masvidal over five rounds for the judges' decision.
With animosity running rife between the two welterweights, a frantic pace was set right off the bat as Masvidal teed off with some leg kicks, before one was caught and he was taken down. Usman landed a big elbow that received a smile from Masvidal, who eventually worked his way back up. After a decent left hook landed for Masvidal, he had to use his defensive wrestling again to fend off a takedown as he was pinned against the fence. Masvidal was sporting a cut early after an accidental clash of heads.
Kamaru Usman continued to force the grappling in the second round, smothering Masvidal againstt he fence, ripping shots to the body and also landing a big right hand. Another clash of heads left the forehead of Masvidal cut open, but he continued to smirk away as Usman tried to pour it on. Towards the end of the round they exchanged on the striking front, with both men getting hit but remaining unfazed. After two rounds the intensity was high as they stared each other down at the end of the round.
As the third round began, Masvidal was breathing heavily, and Usman continued to force the clinch and dig in the body shots. An unintentional groin strike caused a break in the action and some breathing time for Masvidal, but when things resumed and he swung the right hand, Usman got under his hips and drove for the takedown with perfect timing. Masvidal tried walking himself up but Usman got another takedown and controlled it for the rest of the round, with a few elbows to worsen the cuts.
The BMF was continuing to fade but he was smiling nonetheless, as Usman continued to rack up the clinch control time and takedown attempts. He ate some big shots including an elbow but Masvidal was still coming forward and fighting.
Usman continued to build and was able to mount takedowns much more easily this time, Masvidal was now shut out and had a mere glimmer of hope in some striking exchanges to close out the fight - a respectable effort but the champion was head and shoulders above. After the fight there was nothing but respect between the two - Fight Island had been saved, Kamaru remained on top.
More to follow including analysis...
