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Tuivasa has a signature shoey after his knockout win.
Tai Tuivasa is in a shoey after his knockout win. (0:45)
The UFC is capping its year with a celebration of the hard-core fan, a reward for those who have been following the sport of MMA for a long time.
The main event of UFC 269 will feature a lightweight title fight between Charles Oliveira and Dustin Poirier. It's a title fight between two of the top fighters in the world and it's also a battle between two of the most tenured fighters in the promotion.
The second-round TKO win over Michael Chandler was the reason why Oliveira won the belt. The longest journey for a fighter to a UFC title in history was by Oliveira. If he wins Saturday, he'll become the UFC's 27th champion. The pound-for-pound MMA list by ESPN has both of them in the top 6. At lightweight, both Poirier and Oliveira are ranked by the network.
The final UFC pay-per-view will feature two title fights. The UFC lightweight title is on the line when Charles Oliveira defends againstDustin Poirier, and the women's bantamweight title is on the line when Amanda Nunes defends againstJulianna Pena.
You can buy UFC 269 on the pay per view.
The UFC is in Las Vegas.
The main card is at 10 p.m. On the pay per view.
The prelims will be held at 8 p.m. On the ESPYS.
6 p.m. is the earliest prelims. The show is on the Disney channel.
UFC events, weigh-ins, and more are exclusive to ESPN+, as well as Dana White's Contender Series.
He has won nine in a row. The Brazil native has a lot of finishes and submission wins in the UFC. He has a 19-8 record in the UFC going back to his debut in 2010.
The former UFC interim lightweight champ has stopped the Irishman twice this year. In his last 10 fights, a Louisiana native fighting out of Florida has only lost one fight, to a former lightweight champion in a title fight at UFC 242 in September 2019. The UFC lightweight history has eightKO/TKO victories by Poirier.
Follow along as the guys recap the action or watch the fights. You can purchase the PPV here.
The fight is in progress and the winner will be crowned the lightweight title.
The first round in progress.
The results are here.
The women's bantamweight title was won by Julianna Pea. The UFC has 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884 888-349-8884
She swore she would do it. She said she would take out the greatest of all time. No one believed her.
She went out and did it.
Pea scored one of the biggest upsets in mixed martial arts history on Saturday, as she defeated Nunes in the second round of their bantamweight title fight. The finish came at the 3:26 mark, after Pea hurt Nunes on the feet, took her to the ground, and locked in a rear-naked choke.
"I told you," Pea said. Don't ever doubt me again. I asked the commission if it was over. He said that you won. It didn't. It feels crazy. I expected to win. The world is my oyster. You can do anything you want in this life.
A full recap of the event.
Welterweight:Geoff Neal def. Santiago Ponzinibbio won by split decision.
It was not the most stirring fight. The techniques used were similar, as the two people stood in front of each other throwing punches to the face and kicking the legs for three rounds. Neal got the nod on two judges' scorecards to end his two-fight losing streak.
Each fighter received a 29-28 score in his favor, and the other scorecard was 30-27 for Neal. Ponzinibbio started to lose steam in the third round as the Dallas fighter built a 43-30 advantage.
It was a slow-paced fight with some odd moments, with the action paused by a groin strike or eye poke multiple times. Mark Smith warned both fighters but never deducted a point.
Ponzinibbio lost two of his last three fights after a seven-fight winning streak.
Men's flyweight: Kai Kara-France def. Garbrandt won the fight by first-round TKO.
Kai Kara-France knocked out his opponent in the first round.
Garbrandt's move down to flyweight could not have been worse. Kara-France picked up the biggest victory of his career.
Garbrandt was stopped by Kara-France at 3:21 of the first round. He dropped Garbrandt with a right hand, gave chase and then landed several more combinations after shaking off a Garbrandt attempt. A final right hand by Kara-France put Garbrandt down, and the referee stepped in as Kara-France began to celebrate.
This victory could vault Kara-France to instant title-contender status, as he was ranked 8th in the world by ESPN. In his postfight interview, Kara-France said he wanted the winner of the UFC 270 fight between Brandon Moreno and Deiveson Figueiredo.
Kara-France did an amazing performance.
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Kara-France said she answered a lot of questions. I know I'm the best. I think taking on a former champ puts me in a good position for the title shot.
Kara-France hit Garbrandt with a right cross. Garbrandt tried to evade as Kara-France tried to flurry. Garbrandt tried to get Kara-France's back quickly, trying to land a takedown. Kara-France broke free to land another combination and then a big right hand that ended the fight.
Kara-France has won two in a row. The New Zealand native has won six of eight times in the UFC. Garbrandt, a 30-year-old Ohio native fighting out of California and New Jersey, has dropped two in a row and five of six. He was in the UFC at flyweight.
Sean O'Malley (15-1, 7-1 UFC) in the men's bantamweight. The fight is on ESPRIT and can be watched on the website.
Sean O'Malley won his first-round fight at UFC 269.
On Saturday, Sean O'Malley did it again. The sport has known a lot about him in his short UFC career.
O'Malley made it look easy against Paiva, who was 21-4). The bantamweight contest ended at the 4:42 mark of the opening round, when O'Malley dropped Paiva with right hands along the fence and followed with hammerfists until the referee stopped the fight.
It's a great way to end the year. He finished all three of his opponents by knockout in the UFC.
"I think he's one of the toughest guys I've fought," O'Malley said. I'm going to take you out when I land those big shots. That's what happened.
O'Malley's coach, Tim Welch, said he suffered a rib injury during camp. He said he almost pulled out of the contest.
Another easy one for Sean. Move him up.
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"I haven't fought in three weeks," O'Malley said. I was laying in bed one night and I was certain that I was out of the fight. I knew how many people were going to come out to watch me fight, and I just couldn't pull out.
The injury did not affect O'Malley's performance. He confused Paiva with stance switches. He fought with his usual hands down style. Paiva never really landed a significant strike, while O'Malley had his way with body kicks and boxing combinations.
The quality of his competition has been the subject of some criticism of O'Malley's UFC career. The Paiva test was considered the toughest by many, but O'Malley still went into the fight as a big favorite. O'Malley referred to himself as the "Unranked Champ" in light of the criticism.
O'Malley suffered a nerve injury in the first round of his fight against Vera in 2020, but he was able to continue.
Josh Emmett (17-2, 8-2 UFC) def. Dan Ige won by unanimous decision.
Josh Emmett defeated Dan Ige by decision at UFC 269.
The fight between two 145-pounds that lived up to their reputations was a close one, with Ige weathering a bounce-back by Emmett that made it a close fight.
He has won four in a row. He tied Jeremy Stephens for the most in division history with 11 in his UFC career after he was knocked out in the first round. Emmett has had seven fights, while Stephens has 18.
Ige has lost two in a row and three in a row. He fought his way back into the fight, controlling much of Round 2 and giving as much as he could in the final five minutes, despite the fact that he looked like he could be a goner after that early knockdown.
The war between monsters is beautiful.
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One judge scored the bout 30-27 for Emmett, while the other two had it a bit more reasonable.
The men's bantamweight is held by Dominick Cruz. Pedro Munhoz won the fight by unanimous decision.
At UFC 269, Cruz defeated Munhoz by unanimous decision.
Cruz is one of the most difficult fighters to figure out after winning his first major title.
Cruz came back after nearly getting finished in the first round. In the second and third rounds, Cruz looked like vintage Cruz, as he was able to potshot Munhoz with combinations and get out before taking damage.
Cruz was dropped by Munhoz in the first round. Munhoz was not able to close the deal. Cruz was 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 Cruz said in his postfight interview that he thought he slipped. "That tells you where I am."
Cruz was able to perform in the last two rounds. Only a few fighters in the history of MMA have the ability to create angles out of nowhere and then disappear before an opponent can counter. Cruz cut Munhoz on the right side of his face after landing big combinations on him.
Cruz lost to Henry Cejudo in a bantamweight title fight at UFC 249 in May 2020 but has since won two straight. The California native is a two-time former UFC bantamweight champion who is known for coming back from injuries and still remaining in top form. Cruz has the most wins in UFC/WEC bantamweight history with 14.
Munhoz has dropped four of five, but his strength of schedule is the toughest in the bantamweight division. Munhoz has fought five former or current UFC champion in his past six fights, and coming in, he was ranked 10th in the world at bantamweight. The Brazil native lost to Jose Aldo in the UFC.
Tai Tuivasa def. Augusto Sakai won the fight by second-round knockout.
Tuivasa's knockouts or his shoeys are appreciated by a live UFC crowd.
Tuivasa gave the Las Vegas crowd both on Saturday. He knocked out Sakai, of Brazil, in the second round with punches to the fence. Immediately after the knockout, he jumped onto the cage and downed his trademark shoey -- a beer, poured into a sneaker.
Tuivasa said he is getting better and better. The corner said that the lefthook is opening up. I had to stand on my edge and hunt him down. I've said before that I'm from Western Sydney and I'll bang with anyone.
The man should get his SHOE.
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The end was violent, but it was planned for Tuivasa. He took the center of the cage and pursued Sakai. The early exchanges were dominated by Tuivasa's boxing and Sakai landing some good knees to the body.
After rocking Sakai with a left hook out in the open, Tuivasa followed him to the fence and attacked with right hands until he scored one down the middle to finish the fight. After a four-fight win streak, Sakai has lost three in a row.
Bruno Silva (22-6, 2-0 UFC) def. Jordan Wright won the fight by first-round TKO.
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Bruno Silva hit Jordan Wright with a couple of punches and ended the fight early.
Wright was connecting early with kicks to the body and head, then had Silva trapped against the cage and was landing knees to the body. Silva even welcomed the onslaught. He fought himself away from the cage with a flurry of punches, and when he landed a crisp right- left combination he had Wright wobbled, leading to the finish at 1:28 of the round.
Silva has won seven in a row by knockout. He used resilience and accuracy to get the job done. He is the fifth UFC fighter to start their career with three knockouts.
Now you know.
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Wright started his career with a no contest and has lost two of his past three. Both losses were knockouts.
Middleweight: Andre Muniz (22-4, 4-0 UFC) def. Eryk Anders won the fight by first-round submission.
The beginning of the end of the fight was when Eryk Anders was taken down by Andre Muniz in the first round. Shortly after, Muniz won by submission.
The UFC has parted ways with two of their players, including Demian Maia and Jacare Souza. A new grappling specialist is in the middleweight division.
The grappling exchange resulted in a submission by Muniz at 3:13 of the first round. It was similar to the sequence that led to Souza breaking his arm. Afterwards, he said his prowess had nothing to do with luck.
In his postfight interview, he said that they train a lot. I dominate that position.
He's a new age Maia.
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Belal Muhammad is on December 12, 2021.
Early in the fight, Muniz shot for a big take down. After being able to get back to his feet, Anders was able to get his back up and then transitioned to the armbar as things went back down to the ground.
He has won eight in a row, including his first four in the UFC. The Brazil native has three straight submission finishes, including an armbar win over Souza at UFC 262 in May, and has won four of his past five via tap.
The Alabama resident has just one win in his past four fights.
The women's flyweight is won by Erin Blanchfield (8-1, 2-0 UFC). Miranda Maverick won by unanimous decision.
The future of the UFC's 125-pound division was on display in a battle of two women, and the 22-year-old Blanchfield was thoroughly dominant.
Blanchfield, who fights out of New Jersey, won her fifth fight in a row, including her first two in the UFC, by tying the flyweight record with seven takedowns. She spent most of the fight in dominant positions, while Maverick played defense for 15 minutes.
The judges made it seem like it was closer than it was.
After a five-fight winning streak, Maverick lost two in a row. Her July defeat against Maycee Barber was close.
Ryan Hall (9-2, 5-1 UFC) def. Darrick Minner won by unanimous decision.
Ryan Hall's relentless pressure on the ground led him to victory over Darrick Minner.
It wasn't an easy victory for Hall, but he was able to rely on his bread and butter in a three-round decision over a veteran in Minner.
Hall outclassed Minner on the floor to win his fifth UFC fight. Minner did a good job of defending Hall's attempts at chokes and leg attacks, but he lost a lot of battles in grappling exchanges. Hall was 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217 800-273-3217
Minner had some success on the feet, but he was willing to engage with Hall on the ground. The action hit the mat in every frame, which favored Hall's style.
In his last bout, Hall rebounded from a knockout loss.
Jiujitsu and elite level grappling are exciting fights.
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Tony Kelley (8-2, 2-1 UFC) def. Randy Costa won the fight by second-round TKO.
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Tony Kelley won the biggest fight of his UFC career with a win over Randy Costa.
Kelley had a plan and executed it perfectly.
Kelley put a relentless pace on Costa in the first round. In the second, Kelley won by a score of 4:15 of the round. Kelley dropped Costa with a knee to the body and then fired off a flurry of ground-and-pound until referee Mark Smith stepped in to stop it.
Kelley said in his postfight interview that he was happy. I'm not surprised.
Kelley lost in his UFC debut in August 2020. The Louisiana native picked up his first victory in the UFC here. Costa had a two-fight winning streak snapped.
The women's flyweight is held by Gillian Robertson. Priscila Cachoeira won the fight by first-round submission.
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The submission win over Priscila Cachoeira was the first win of the year for Gillian Robertson.
Robertson was at her best when grappling, and she put that on display in the evening's opener, dominating Cachoeira before getting the tap out with one second to go in Round 1.
It was the sixth submission for Robertson, a Canadian who fights out of Port Saint Lucie, Florida. The two-fight losing streak was broken by this win.
The two-fight winning streak of Cachoeira came to an end. She gave up 30% of her purse to Robertson because she missed weight.
