Alexander
Volkanovski once again sits at the head of the table.
The City Kickboxing Star called upon a piercing jab and astute
lateral movement, as he earned a unanimous decision over Diego Lopes
and captured the undisputed
Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight crown for a second
time in the
UFC 314 headliner on Saturday at the Kasey Center in Miami.
Volkanovski (27-4, 14-3 UFC) swept the scorecards with 48-47, 49-46
and 49-46 marks from the cageside judges.
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Lopes (26-7, 5-2 UFC) struggled to find an offensive flow but
nevertheless had his moments. He knocked down Volkanovski with a
chopping overhand right in the second round and later opened a pair
of cuts near the Australian’s right eye. Lopes pushed a steady
pace, doing everything he could to keep his shifty counterpart in
his line of sight. The Volkanovski jab was the separator. He sent
it crashing into Lopes’ face over and over again, using it as both
a damaging weapon and as a means to halt momentum. Ultimately, the
Brazilian had no answer for it.
Meanwhile, former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder
Paddy
Pimblett took care of business and left little to the
imagination while doing so, as he disposed of Michael
Chandler with elbows and punches in the third round of their
lightweight co-main event. Chandler (23-10, 2-5 UFC) succumbed to
blows 3:07 into Round 3, suffering his third consecutive
defeat.
Pimblett (23-3, 7-0 UFC) worked his way into the match with
damaging leg kicks in the first round, then turned up the heat in
the second. There, he scrambled into top position and put Chandler
in immediate peril, floating from the back to full mount, all while
piling up damage with elbow-laced ground-and-pound. Pimblett opened
a deep horizontal gash under the three-time Bellator MMA champion’s
left eye with a jumping knee in the third round, executed a
takedown and proceeded to put a horrendous beating on the onetime
NCAA All-American wrestler. He once again transitioned from the
back to full mount and let fly with unanswered punches and elbows
until Chandler was cooked.
The 30-year-old Pimblett has won nine fights in a row, seven of
them finishes.
Further down the card, “The Ultimate Fighter Latin America” winner
Yair
Rodriguez outstruck and outmaneuvered four-time Bellator
champion Patricio
Freire to a unanimous decision in their three-round
featherweight showcase. All three members of the assigned judiciary
scored it the same: 30-27 for Rodriguez (20-5, 11-4 UFC), who
bounced back from consecutive losses to the aforementioned
Volkanovski and Brian
Ortega.
The 37-year-old Freire (36-8, 0-1 UFC) never seemed comfortable in
his long-awaited promotional debut. Rodriguez pinned him on the
perimeter with kicks to all levels and cut off the majority of his
takedown attempts. He floored Freire with a crackling one-two in
the third round, swarmed for a potential finish and managed to shed
a well-conceived armbar from the Brazilian. They closed out their
ground exchange with dueling leglocks, then returned to their feet
and circled one another in the waning moments.
Freire has lost three of his past four bouts.
Elsewhere, fast-rising Fighting Nerds star Jean Silva
put away “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 27 semifinalist Bryce
Mitchell with a ninja choke in the second round of their
featherweight attraction. Mitchell (17-3, 8-3 UFC) checked out 3:52
into Round 2, losing for the third time in five outings.
Silva (16-2, 5-0 UFC) slowly but surely imposed his will. Mitchell
enjoyed some success with leg kicks but proved utterly ineffective
in the grappling exchanges. Silva stonewalled his takedown
attempts, trapped him on the feet and tore into him with punches,
standing elbows and crushing body kicks. He caught the choke along
the fence, powered Mitchell to the canvas and let his squeeze do
the rest. The Arkansas native tapped, then lost consciousness.
The 28-year-old Silva now finds himself on a remarkable 13-fight
winning streak.
Finally, a resurgent Dominick
Reyes punched out former Fight Nights Global champion Nikita
Krylov in the first round of their light heavyweight appetizer.
Reyes (15-4, 9-4 UFC) drew the curtain 2:24 into Round 1, as he
posted his third consecutive victory—all by knockout—at 205
pounds.
Krylov (30-10, 11-8 UFC) employed a kick-heavy attack but too often
overextended on his punches. Reyes slipped a straight right and
clipped the Ukrainian with a slashing counter left hook. Krylov
collapsed to the canvas, where he was met with a pair of jarring
hammerfists before referee Marc Goddard
could arrive on the scene.
It marked the first time that Krylov had been stopped by strikes in
more than a decade.
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