video review : UFC 309

video review : UFC 309

Jon Jones should’ve retired here. It would’ve been a fairytale ending to his nearly impeccable career. Instead he retires his opponent; heavyweight “goat” Stipe Miocic; and does “the Trump dance” as the former/future president cheers him on from the audience. It is perhaps the event’s most endearing moment and, make no mistake about it, those two; Jon Jones and Donald Trump; are the stars of the show.

The most entertaining fight honor goes to Charles Oliveira and Michael Chandler as expected. Paul Craig and James Llontop do much better than expected, putting a damper on the hype of their prospect victors. The “overrated” Bo Nickal actually gets booed by the finicky crowd. Viviane Araújo also defeats a tired Karine Silva, though Silva scores points on my card every time she lays on her back with her legs open.

my rating : 4 of 5

2024 November 16

UFC 309 Embedded

2024 November 15

ufc.com

video review : UFC 300

video review : UFC 300

If we’re including all the Prelims, 300 is indeed the most stacked UFC event ever. It’s the main card that disappointed fans around the world, particularly the main event. It should’ve been Conor McGregor versus Michael Chandler. An Israel Adesanya title bout against Dricus Du Plessis or Alex Pereira would’ve also sufficed. The announcement of Pereira versus Jamahal Hill was, at best, anticlimactic.

It was also odd to include Bo Nickal; a bout that, though more competitive than expected, rather because of it, disappoints even the prospect himself. Still he remains undefeated. It gets better from there as Arman Tsarukyan and Charles Oliveira provide perhaps the best fight of the night. The best moment happens in the next bout as BMF Max Holloway ends Justin Gaethje in spectacular fashion.

The other best moment; Zhang choking Yan earns an honorable mention; is Jamahal Hill getting knocked out. He claimed, in a prefight interview, that Pereira “is not on my level”. He’s right in a sense as the bout ends with Pereira standing and Hill on his ass. The champ further marks his legacy as a future goat. Hopefully the aforementioned Adesanya trilogy (pentalogy) happens eventually.

my rating : 4 of 5

2024

video review : UFC 299

video review : UFC 299

As far as main card schedules go, UFC 299 is better than 300. Both are exceptional, but the Zhang Weili title bout is a weak link and I looked forward to every fight on 299. They mostly deliver. Petr Yan starts it off on the good foot and ends his partly undeserved losing streak; he beat O’Malley; by defeating Song Yadong.

Jack Della Maddalena, though less dominant, comes off even more impressively with a Hail Mary knockout victory over Gilbert Burns. Kevin Holland versus Michael Page; the fight I anticipated the most beside the main event; ends up being a bit of a letdown as Holland loses handily not via knockout but decision.

The biggest winner of the night, aside from Donald Trump; the most popular attendee judging by crowd reaction; is Dustin Poirier. He knocks out tough guy Benoît Saint Denis in a hard-fought battle, proving he’s “still got it”. The biggest loser is Marlon Vera who’s simply outclassed by champion Sean O’Malley.

my rating : 4 of 5

2024

video review : UFC 300