BY AUSTIN DENTON
Saturday night marked the first time that Cris Cyborg has seen a fifth-round in a main event or championship bout. Even though she has never gone the full distance, that didn’t slow her down. Cyborg retained her UFC women’s featherweight championship after defeating Holly Holm by unanimous decision. Let’s recap the main card in detail, including the main event:
Neil Magny def. Carlos Condit by unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 29-28):
Recap: This fight was a long-awaited return of “The Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit. Having not fought since August of 2016 in a fight night main event against Demian Maia, Condit’s first and last fight of 2017 was spoiled. His opponent, Neil Magny, came in with a great gameplan that was fully executed when he stepped foot in the Octagon. Magny secured two out of nine attempted takedowns throughout the fight, which is criteria that judges look for when scoring a fight. He followed that up with his striking, landing more significant strikes than Condit while continuing to put the pressure on him. Condit now rides a three-fight losing streak, Magny bounced back from a loss to Rafael Dos Anjos.
Carla Esparza def. Cynthia Calvillo by unanimous decision (29-28 x3):
Recap: Cynthia Calvillo was the hype train of the women’s strawweight division, entering the fight a perfect 3-0 in her UFC career. She was undefeated in her pro-MMA career, and it seemed like a win would get her in line for the women’s strawweight title contention. That is until Carla Esparza came around. Esparza had one of the best fights of her career against Calvillo, landing 54% of her strikes, securing a takedown, and even attempting a submission while on the ground. Critics think that fans count out Esparza because there is an overshadow cast above her of her title loss to former champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. But nonetheless, Esparza now rides a two-fight winning streak heading into 2018, and Calvillo suffers her first defeat in her pro-MMA and UFC career.
Dan Hooker def. Marc Diakiese by submission at 0:42 of Round 3:
Recap: In what was considered an upset during the night, Dan Hooker pulled off a quick guillotine choke at the beginning of the third round to get the win. The first two rounds of the fight were slow considering the excitement of the other fights. But Hooker got right to work after the bell rang to start the third round, getting Diakiese on the ground and finishing him off with a guillotine choke. Hooker now rides a two-fight winning streak, Diakiese now rides a two-fight losing streak.
Khabib Nurmagomedov def. Edson Barboza by unanimous decision (30-25 x2, 30-24):
Recap: Khabib Nurmagomedov continues to make his case on why he is one of the best lightweight fighters in the sport. Just looking at the scorecards for this fight, it shows the dominance Nurmagomedov put on display. Nurmagomedov threw 154 strikes total in the fight, landing 63% of his total strikes opposite Barboza’s 32%. Nurmagomedov even threw in four takedowns, adding sheer power behind his punches, elbows, kicks, etc. Nurmagomedov improves to a perfect 25-0 in his pro-MMA career, Barboza’s three-fight winning streak was snapped with the loss.
Main Event: Cris Cyborg def. Holly Holm by unanimous decision (48-47 x2, 49-46):
Recap: This was the women’s MMA superfight everyone was looking forward to finally happening. Cris Cyborg, the most dominant female of the sport, taking on Holly Holm, one of the most dangerous strikes in women’s MMA, fans were ready for a show. And they got one. Both ladies exchanged punches throughout the entire fight, Holm even controlling Cyborg in the clinch during the first round. Cyborg’s heavy hands got to Holm early, swelling her left eye after a kick and some punches followed up with it. They continued to exchange and exchange and exchange until the final bell rang. Ultimately, Cyborg was favored on all three scorecards, so she could retain her UFC women’s featherweight title. Cyborg now gets her fourth win in the UFC, Holm has lost her fourth fight in her last five.
The UFC will open their 25th anniversary in 2018 with a fight night in St. Louis, headlined by Jeremy Stephens and Doo Ho Choi.
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