UFC 300 has concluded and it did not disappoint. From beginning to end, almost every fight lived up to the hype. With three submissions and five knockouts the total of finishes on the night is right finishes out of 13 bouts. We will be discussing the fights, going over our predictions and matchmaking some of the fighters’ next fights. It was fireworks from top to bottom, so let’s waste no time getting into our reactions to each fight.
The night started out hot with a bantamweight bout between Cody “no love” Garrbrandt and Deiveson Figueriedo. Cody started out hot but Deiveson quickly took this match to the ground and ended up getting a second round submission. We predicted a Figueiredo round two KO, which wasn’t exactly right but we got a round two finish correct. We think Cody should fight someone right near the top 15 next, a step down in competition and we think Figueirdeo should fight Marlon “Chito” Vera next. Great fight to start the night.
Next we have two old heads going at it in the lightweight division, that being Bobby Green and Jim Miller. Miller concluded his appearances on all UFC 100, 200 and now 300. He was also looking to become the first fighter to win on all three cards. We had predicted a Bobby Green decision and that is exactly what we got. Bobby Green dominated from start to finish just showing that there’s levels to the game no matter what your experience is. Miller’s face was bloodied up the whole fight completely looking like a tomato. We think Bobby Green should fight Benito Saint Denis. Jim Miller should probably retire now.
Wrapping up the early prelims we have another lightweight bout between Jalin Turner and Renato Moicano. Money Moicano gets it done. He was the underdog in this fight and completely dominated and is making a name for himself in the division. He will enter the top 10 with this win. We predicted a Jalin Turner KO in round one, and we couldn’t have been more wrong. We think Moicano should fight #8 Rafael Fizaev. Fizaev is coming off an injury and Moicano looks to move up the rankings.
To start the prelims, we have a featherweight bout between unranked Daniel Lopes and #15 Sodiq Yuseff. Lopes is one of the most hyped prospects of all time. He is very balanced with great striking and great wrestling. The wrestling was unneeded in this one as he finished Yusseff in a minute thirty to find his way into the top 15. We predicted a Lopes round two KO and we were very close to that. We think Lopes should fight Bryce Mitchell next and Yuseff should take a step down in competition.
To open up the main card we have a middleweight bout between unranked Cody Brundage and Bo Nickal. Bo Nickal with his wrestling background was predicted to blow Brundage out of the water. A performance was expected out of Nickal and although he came through with the win, many think he underperformed. Nickal won by submission in round two.
Next up is another featherweight bout. This time we have #8 Calvin Kattar and unranked and moving on from bantamweight we have Aljamain Sterling. The former Bantamweight champ moved up to featherweight to put on the most boring and dominant fight of the night. He took down Kattar eight times and held him on the ground the whole time. Everyone knew how this fight was going to pan out and most of us were right. We predicted an Aljo decision and that is exactly what we got. We think Aljo should fight #4 Yair Rodriguez.
To finish up the free boots of the night and to end the prelims we have a light-heavyweight bout between #2 Jiri Prochzka and #5 Aleksander Rakic. We thought Rakić would win and we couldn’t have been more wrong. Jiri came out looking the best he has ever looked and dominated Rakic for 2 rounds until he ultimately finished the fight with ground and pound in the second round. Jiri is looking scary and is ready for another title fight and we think he should fight the winner of Pereira vs Ankalaev when that fight happens.
My most anticipated fight of the night we had my favorite fighter #1 contender in the lightweight division Charles “Do Bronx” Olivera and #4 Arman Tsarukyan. This fight was going to determine the next lightweight title bout. I can talk about this fight for days but Arman came like we expected with takedowns and heavy striking. Charles came out slowly and didn’t look like himself. Charles locked up three different submissions in this bout and Arman was able to survive every single one. This shows the toughness of Arman and the slow decline of Olivera. Arman will fight for the title next and Olivera should come back soon and fight Mateus Gamrot. We we predicted a Charles Oliveira round two submission and we met with an Arman Tsarykuan decision.
FIGHT OF THE CENTURY. That’s what we were expecting and we got that and more. Lightweight bout between #2 Justin Gaethje and unranked and moving up from featherweight Max Holloway. We predicted a Justin Gaethje decision. Max Holloway told everyone not to doubt him and everyone did. He won the BMF belt in style by knocking out Justin Gatehje cold with one second left in the last round after telling him to stand and bang for the last 10 seconds. Max dominated this fight and showed that the featherweights skills are not to be messed with. Max also set himself up for a fight with basically anyone of his choosing. By moving up and beating a top contender in the division above you can set you up for a title fight in both weight classes. This fight was our favorite fight of all time and if you have somehow not watched this fight yet. Please go watch because it is just an MMA striking masterpiece by both men.
To finish the night off is the main event and a title fight between Light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira and #1 contender Jamahal Hill. We had predicted a Jamahal Hill round four KO. We shouldn’t have doubted Alex. Pereira retained his title by knocking out Jamahal Hill in one of the funniest and nastiest KO’s you will ever see. We thought Hill would come out with confidence and put the pressure on Pereira, but it seemed Hill was on the backfoot the whole time and couldn’t find the momentum and find a combination to hit Alex with. Alex is looking damn near unbeatable and we cannot wait to see how his title reign ends up. Will he move up to heavyweight to fight Tom Aspinall? Only time will tell.
This wraps up one of the biggest cards in UFC history. It absolutely lived up to the hype with three submissions and five knockouts for a total of eight finishes. Wow, what a night. These fighters are the past, present and future of the UFC. We are expecting big things from these fighters in the future and can’t wait to find out what their story holds.
