The brutality was beautiful.
Ciryl
Gane strengthened his position as the top contender in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight division, as he took
out Tai
Tuivasa with punches in the third round of their
UFC Fight Night 209 headliner on Saturday at Accor Arena in
Paris. Tuivasa (14-4, 8-4 UFC) succumbed to blows 4:23 into Round
3, suffering his first defeat in nearly three years.
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Gane (11-1, 8-1 UFC) did not escape unscathed. Tuivasa floored him
with a clubbing right hand to touch off a remarkable sequence in
the second round that saw both men badly hurt on multiple
occasions. Gane worked over the Aussie’s midsection and forced him
to double over more than once with savage kicks, knees and hooks to
the cut. From there, the Frenchman found another gear in what
turned into a potentially star-making performance. He once again
zeroed in on the body with a series of front kicks, slipped a
counterpunch and connected with a crushing right hand that had
Tuivasa out on his feet.
A searing combination followed, as Gane drove his counterpart to
the canvas and finished the job with unanswered punches.
THE HOMETOWN HERO JUST TORE THE ROOF OFF THE
@ACCOR_ARENA!!!!
🇫🇷[ @Ciryl_Gane
|
#UFCParis ] pic.twitter.com/8jTZ5ndYqa
— UFC (@ufc)
September 3, 2022
Polished Whittaker Routs Vettori
Robert
Whittaker ran circles around Marvin
Vettori on his way to a three-round unanimous decision in the
middleweight co-main event. All three cageside judges scored it for
Whittaker (24-6, 15-4 UFC): 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28).
The gulf between the two men in terms of overall skill was wider
than many anticipated. Whittaker connected with a variety of
strikes—crisp right hands, front kicks to the body and knees from
short range—and used sublime footwork and head movement to stay out
of range. More often than not, Vettori (18-6-1, 8-4-1 UFC) was left
swinging at air in what became an exercise of futility for the
Italian. Whittaker buzzed the tower with a head kick in the third
round and incorporated a few takedowns to amuse himself.
The 31-year-old Whittaker has won 13 of his past 15 bouts, losing
only to reigning middleweight champion Israel
Adesanya.
Imavov Denies Knockout-Minded Buckley
MMA Factory’s Nassourdine
Imavov skilled and willed his way to a unanimous decision over
Joaquin
Buckley in a three-round middleweight grudge match. An emerging
threat at 185 pounds, Imavov (12-3, 4-1 UFC) swept the scorecards
with 30-27, 29-28 and 30-27 marks from the cageside judges.
Buckley (15-5, 5-3 UFC) mostly just survived through 10 minutes.
Imavov powered into mount and paired it with ground-and-pound in
the first round, then executed a takedown and progressed to the
back before threatening with the rear-naked choke in the second.
Fatigue set in on the favorite in Round 3, opening the door for a
potential Buckley comeback. “New Mansa” ate a few uppercuts for his
troubles but continued to swing for the fences with power punches
and even snuck in a knee from the clinch in a bid to spring the
late upset. Those efforts ultimately failed.
Imavov, 27, will carry a three-fight winning streak into his next
assignment.
Kopylov Burst Fells Di Chirico
Former Fight Nights Global champion Roman
Kopylov wiped out Alessio
Di Chirico with punches in the third round of their featured
middleweight attraction. Kopylov (9-2, 1-2 UFC) drew the curtain 69
seconds into Round 3, posting his first victory since Dec. 27,
2018.
Di Chirico (13-7, 4-7 UFC) appeared to turn the corner in the
middle stanza, where he took a chunk out of the Russian’s nose, got
his right hand in gear and worked behind strong jab. Kopylov
re-established himself in the third, as he zeroed in on the body
with kicks and targeted the head with clean one-twos. He
eventually backed Di Chirico to the fence and let fly with a
devastating burst of punches that sent the Italian faceplanting to
the canvas.
The 32-year-old Di Chirico has come up short in five of his last
six appearances.
Gomis Edges Errens on Scorecards
MMA Factory prospect William
Gomis did enough to get by in his Octagon debut, as he laid
claim to a majority decision over Jarno
Errens in a three-round featherweight feature between talented
newcomers at 145 pounds. Scores from the cageside judiciary were
29-28, 29-28 and 29-29, sending Gomis (11-2, 1-0 UFC) to the
winner’s circle.
Errens (13-4-1, 0-1 UFC) was never out of it but struggled to
address the strength and speed discrepancies with which he was
confronted. Gomis operated behind sneaky kicks and occasional
combinations but did his best work with takedowns and suffocating
top control. The French sanda stylist wandered into a triangle
choke in the third round but managed to free himself after a few
harrowing moments.
Gomis has recorded nine straight wins.
Wood Outstrikes Jourdain to Decision
Strategic takedowns, efficient standup and superior short-range
tactics carried former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship
titleholder Nathaniel
Wood to a unanimous decision over Charles
Jourdain in their three-round featherweight showcase. All three
cageside judges scored it for Wood (19-5, 6-2 UFC): 30-27, 30-27
and 29-28.
Speed and output worked against Jourdain (13-6-1, 4-5-1 UFC). Wood
buckled him with a right hook in the first round, executed
beautiful foot-sweep takedowns on multiple occasions and piled up
points with short punches, elbows and knee strikes to the body in
close quarters. Jourdain stayed competitive from start to finish
but always seemed to be a step behind the Great Britain Top Team
representative.
Wood, 29, has recorded back-to-back victories since moving to 145
pounds.
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