UFC Fight Night 216 + Weekly MMA Report
UFC 282 was definitively an event to remember. Ten finishes, two very controversial decisions, and the UFC 205-pound division remain without a champion because Ankalaev vs Blachowicz ended in a split draw. But we’ve seen ten high-level stoppages, so Dana was having a hard time choosing the POTN and FOTN awards.
Yet, Dana White’s “good will” netted every single finisher with an extra 50k, and he almost called Jared Gordon vs Paddy Pimblett fight a robbery. The list of the award winners includes:
Cameron Saaiman for a high-level third-round stoppage of Steven Koslow;
Taking the judges out of the equation! ❌@Cameron_Saaiman making good on the debut and staying undefeated in the process! #UFC282 pic.twitter.com/MuJqefivGo
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) December 11, 2022
TJ Brown, who defeated Erik Silva with a great arm-triangle choke;
肩固めできめる前にパームトゥパームだけじゃなく、肘の内側と手のひらでギュってするのマカチェフもオリヴェイラ戦の時やってましたよね？
UFC 282: TJ Brown vs. Erik Silva pic.twitter.com/0yY6I3VDyF— オリベイラの謎石 (@oliveira_stone) December 11, 2022
Billy Quarantillo for the second-round standing TKO win over Alexander Hernandez;
Down but never out, @BillyQMMA is leaving #UFC282 with the W! pic.twitter.com/vksmKvknHp
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
Chris Curtis for the big left hand that floored Joaquin Buckley;
THAT is how you bounce back from a loss 👊
Huge night for @Actionman513! #UFC282 pic.twitter.com/h6NKpCvFgz
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
Edmen Shahbazyan for an excellent second-round finish of Dalcha Lungiambula;
The layoff paid off, @EdmenShahbazyan is back in the win column! #UFC282 pic.twitter.com/9WtpykOpGT
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
Jairzinho Rozenstruik and his 23-second sprinting punch that put Daukaus out cold;
It doesn’t get bigger from Bigi Boy!!@JairRozenstruik DELIVERED at #UFC282 👊 pic.twitter.com/o4tH5Ju1Dx
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
Raul Rosas with a quick submission win over Jay Perrin;
What were you doing at 18 years old? #UFC282 pic.twitter.com/eyuYF91waB
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
Ilia Topuria for a second-round stoppage of Bryce Mitchell;
STILL UNDEFEATED!
WHAT a performance by @TopuriaIlia! 🙌 #UFC282 pic.twitter.com/PHi5Cn5ywk
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
Santiago Ponzinibbio for the third-round finish over Alex Morono.
SANTIAGO PONZINIBBIO COMES ALL THE WAY BACK 😱 #UFC282 pic.twitter.com/T3wcLg2kUt
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
The remaining finish, Darren Till vs Dricus du Plessis, brought an extra 50k to both fighters for their Performance of the Night award (the South African former KSW champion submitted the Liverpoolian in the third).
A statement submission for @DricusduPlessis!
[ #UFC282 | Live on ESPN+ PPV: https://t.co/vZGZfAJS5g ] pic.twitter.com/8pPhdoV8Qk
— UFC (@ufc) December 11, 2022
This was a fabulous card, but let’s focus on the next weekend. The promotion stays in Sin City, Nevada, but the card is going to start a bit earlier (4 PM ET, 1 PM PT). This time, the UFC Fight Night 216 is headlined by a stunning combat between Sean Strickland and Jared Cannonier.
Image source: @UFCBrasil Twitter
Cannonier is a master of powerful kicks and punches and a huge fan of gym workouts. His leg kick win over Anderson Silva showed the real power of his strikes. Sean Strickland’s iron chin myth was crumbled by Alex Pereira, who destroyed him via left hook, so the controversial head movement expert is trying to bounce back from a loss.
Cannonier is way slower than Pereira so it should be a nice fight for Sean. Oh, this is Sean’s Instagram number 3, as his previous two were banned due to his big mouth and controversial statements.
Prediction: Strickland to win (-115)
The co-main event of the evening brings the combat between a high-level wrestler with lightning-fast punches Arman Tsarukyan and a lovely all-around fighter Damir Ismagulov. Tsarukyan nearly defeated division champ Makhachev in the past, his scrambles might be too much for Damir.
Prediction: Arman to win (-180)
Here is the whole fight card but please check this link too as there is a possibility of last-minute changes.
Main Card (ESPN+, UFC on Fight Pass, 7 PM ET, midnight UK time)
Middleweight: Jared Cannonier (15-6-0) vs. Sean Strickland (25-4-0)
Lightweight: Arman Tsarukyan (18-3-0) vs. Damir Ismagulov (24-1-0)
Flyweight: Amir Albazi (15-1-0) vs. Alessandro Costa (12-2-0)
Featherweight: Alex Caceres (19-13-0) vs. Julian Erosa (28-9-0)
Lightweight: Drew Dober (25-11-0) vs. Bobby Green (29-13-1)
Middleweight: Cody Brundage (8-2-0) vs. Michał Oleksiejczuk (17-5-0)
Preliminary Card (ESPN+, UFC on Fight Pass, 4 PM ET, 9 PM UK time)
Strawweight: Cheyanne Vlismas (7-2-0) vs. Cory McKenna (7-2-0)
Welterweight: Jake Matthews (18-5-0) vs. Matt Semelsberger (10-4-0)
Middleweight: Julian Marquez (9-3-0) vs. Deron Winn (7-3-0)
Bantamweight: Said Nurmagomedov (16-2-0) vs. Saidyokub Kakhramonov (10-2-0)
Lightweight: Maheshate (9-1-0) vs. Rafa García (14-3-0)
Welterweight: Bryan Battle (8-1-0) vs. Rinat Fakhretdinov (20-2-0)
Flyweight: David Dvořák (20-4-0) vs. Manel Kape (17-6-0)
Bantamweight: Sergey Morozov (18-5-0) vs. Journey Newson (10-3-0)
Here are my predictions for the upcoming UFC fight night:
This is the last UFC fight night of the year 2022, let’s go lads, sit next to your device and enjoy the upcoming fight card on Saturday!
[…] were many great combats at the last UFC event of 2022 (UFC Vegas 66). Unfortunately, the main event ended in a very controversial split draw between Sean […]