UFC 251 Results and Analysis: Kamaru Usman Superfight Ready
UFC 251 took center stage from Fight Island with three championship fights and a women’s division classic.
Kamaru Usman maintained his Welterweight stranglehold after dominating late replacement Jorge “Gamebred” Masvidal through five rounds. Hard numbers illustrate the main event’s one sided nature as “The Nightmare” outstruck Masvidal 263-88 and landed five unanswered takedowns. It isn’t hyperbole to state Usman toyed with his proven challenger while rising the mythical pound-for-pound rankings.
With Tyron Woodley, Colby Covington and Masvidal erased from immediate title contention, Usman will likely face original opponent Gilbert Burns before exploring champ-champ opportunities.
The gratuitious win places the 33-year-old 11-0 in UFC appearances after waltzing through TUF 21 earlier last decade. Conversely, Jorge Masvidal’s impressive three-fight unbeaten run ends versus arguably the best active MMA practitioner.
One now must wonder if Khabib Nurmagomedov is on tap for superfight billing with Kamaru Usman.
Winner: Kamaru Usman by decision
Transitioning from virtuoso performance to duet shine, Featherweights Alexander Volkanovski and Max Holloway stole the show. It took five heated rounds to re-install Volkanovski as the 145 pound champ via split decision.
After falling behind early in their first meeting, Max Holloway opened the run-back fast while landing pin point strikes to edge the first two rounds. However, “The Great” began overcoming Holloway in frame three. The battered ex champ visibly wore each Volkanovski head strike while being outlanded 98-71 and ragdolled during the final 15 minutes.
In a reversal of their first encounter, Volkanovski came on in the waning rounds. Following a dominant stretch run from the champion, it’s clear Holloway resides in Volkanovski’s rear view. Overall, the Australian outlanded “Blessed” 137-102 and added three loud takedowns to secure a 9-0 UFC record.
Meanwhile, Holloway tastes consecutive defeats for the first time since 2013. Technically one can argue the split verdict is just, but numbers, and Holloway's broken body language after ten rounds with his usurper tell a different story.
Winner: Alexander Volkanovski by split decision
The third and final UFC 251 title matchup saw rising Petr Yan clinically dissect and TKO legend Jose Aldo. Cliche, but some legends die hard in the sporting world. Aldo's chiseled rehydrated physique couldn't mask his gaunt, worn features which repeatedly bore Yan's quicker reflexes. Though "Junior" showed glimpses of his earlier self, a well-placed back mount assault ended Jose Aldo the championship fighter. It's now for the 33-year-old to decide if he'll continue monastic devotion to battle fringe contenders.
As all things evolve, Petr Yan resides where his latest two stoppage victims -Urijah Faber and Aldo- stood for years. The aptly titled "No Mercy" is now 7-0 in his UFC career. It appears top contender Aljamain Sterling awaits the newly minted 135 pound champion Petr Yan.
Winner: Petr Yan by TKO
Fighting spirit poured from Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade as the pair used up all allotted 15 minutes in their anticipated rematch. Without much ground fare, a pugilistic feel harkening back to Ali v Frazier vented from Namajunas' graceful combinations and Andrade's bobbing, weaving power hooks.
The former champions vibed through two rounds with "Thug" Rose holding serve. Yet, after ten minutes spent hunting her circling foe, Andrade caught Namajunas in the final frame leaving the frontrunner's mouth and chin crimson.
The overall striking numbers leaned in Rose Namajunas' favor 82-79, but like Ali & Frazier, a rubber match is likely needed to truly decide matters between these two high-level athletes.
Namajunas avenged her title loss Saturday vs. "Bate Estaca," and is likely to gain another title shot at 115 pounds, however after being knocked around late by pouncing Andrade, expect a trilogy from the top two ranked UFC Women's strawwight players.
Winner: Rose Namajunas by decision
The opening UFC 251 bout saw quick ground annihilation as rising flyweight Amanda Ribas tapped Paige VanZant by armbar at 2:22 of round one.
The backstory here is VanZant, a minor celebrity outside MMA, is unhappy with her UFC salary. During fight week, "12 Guage" stated ad nauseam she could earn higher salary working a "regular job" and would bet on herself vs. Ribas.
Unfortunately for Paige, that gamble failed. As her contract expired Saturday night, VanZant stands 1-3 in her last four Zuffa fights while never meeting expectation. That stated, expect the 26-year-old to explore other non-UFC related career options.
Meanwhile, Ribas has won four straight since her UFC debut last June. Look for Ribas' climb to take another chapter in the near future.
Winner: Amanda Ribas by submission
On a night of champions, Joshua Broom from Winners and Whiners picked a 10-3 UFC 251 card and perfect 5-0 pay-per-view straight up.
