-
Andreas Hell
multiple authors
When? max holloway And Charles Oliveira The bout for the BMF title at UFC 326 in Las Vegas was expected to be a Fight of the Year candidate.
Instead of getting a memorable throwdown between the two fighters, Allergic was subjected to a grappling clinic by Oliveira to protect the fans. Win in a lackluster main event Which was created on the basis of entertainment.
Unfortunately, the rest of the card also failed to impress with fights that lacked fireworks or drama. separately gregory rodrigues‘ Revenge, Alberto Montes‘Impressive UFC debut and drew dober Extending his UFC lightweight record for most knockouts, UFC 326 was a tremendous experience.
But how bad was it?
After each UFC numbered event, we assess the quality of each fight and fight card based on the skill displayed, competitiveness and what is at stake.
Feather Weight: Ricky Tursios vs. alberto montes
Result: Montes defeats Turcios by submission in the second round
Category: B+
Montes’ UFC debut was impressive. His striking was exceptional and Turcios was the ideal dance partner for him to showcase all his skills. Turcios was aggressive and met Montes in the center of the Octagon, but he soon learned that “The Promise” was too hyped to come to the UFC. Montes knocked down Turcios in round 1 and forced Turcios to change his strategy. However, this was exactly what Montes was waiting for as he thwarted a takedown attempt early in round 2 and immediately applied his signature Anaconda Choke, putting Turcios to sleep before he could tap out. Montes will be one to keep an eye on after an impressive debut.
Middleweight: Gregory Rodriguez vs. bruno ferreira
Result: Rodriguez defeated Ferreira by knockout in the first round
Category: B+
Rodriguez landed two punches: one to the body and one to the head. The punch to the head wiped out Ferreira’s clock and avenged Rodriguez’s knockout loss to Ferreira in 2023 in devastating fashion. It was violent and beautiful. Rodriguez recognized Ferreira adopting a southpaw stance and took advantage with a powerful right hand. In a night of below-average fights, UFC 326 desperately needed this.
Lightweight: Drew Dober vs. michael johnson
Result: Dober defeated Johnson by TKO in the second round
Category: b
Dober collected his lightweight division-leading 11th knockout by devastatingly crushing Johnson with a straight left hand in Round 2. Dober had to navigate Johnson’s fast hands and sharp jabs in the early rounds before settling in to deliver a jaw-dropping finish. Even though both fighters respected each other’s strength, they were still busy and it felt like the end could come at any moment. Ultimately, that’s when Dober’s left hand connected with Johnson’s chin and dropped him to the canvas. Follow-up strikes were not needed, but added another impressive knockout victory for Dober.
light heavyweight: rodolfo bellato versus Luke Fernandez
Result: Bellato defeated Fernandez by TKO in the first round
Category: b
Bellato spent the first three minutes getting hurt by punches and knees from the previously unbeaten Fernandez, who was making his UFC debut. Bellato looked like he was about to suffer his fourth consecutive defeat, but then he caught Fernandez sleeping. While emerging from the clinch, Bellato hit Fernandez with a left hook that sent him falling to the mat. Bellato followed and pummeled his defeated opponent with rapid-fire hammer blows until he forced the referee to end the bout. The left hook looked like it surprised Fernandez more than actually hurting him, but before he could even think of it, Bellato’s fist was bouncing off his head. A solid win and a great way to end a losing streak for the Brazilians.
Middleweight: caio borralho versus Reinier De Ridder
Result: Boralho defeats De Ridder via unanimous decision
Category: C+
What started quickly ended in a hurry, as Borralho fought hard to take the unanimous decision. It wasn’t entirely his fault. Boralho performed brilliantly in the first round and knocked down De Ridder with regular punches. The Dutch fighter slowed things down in Round 2, locking Boralho in the clinch whenever he got close and sought a takedown. This strategy gave De Ridder a win in the second round but ended the energy battle. Borralho flipped the script and knocked out De Ridder in the final round and did enough to leave the Octagon with a victory.
Men’s flyweight: cody durden versus Nyamjargal Tumendemberel
Result: Tumendemberel defeated Durden via unanimous decision
Category: C
It was another fight devoid of fireworks, as Tumtemberrel was consistently a step ahead of Durden throughout his 15 Octagon minutes. There was a lot of melee in which Tumendemberel surprisingly got the better of Durden as his wrestling was not good enough to control his opponent. The eight total strikes landed by Durden should tell you everything you need to know about how the fight went for him.
Men’s Bantamweight: Rob Font versus Raul Rojas Jr.
Result: Rosas defeated Font via unanimous decision.
Category: C-
Rosas got the biggest win of his young career with a shutout of Font, but the fight was not successful from an entertainment standpoint. Give Rosas credit for scoring 16 takedowns, but he never threatened a finish at any time. Instead, it was a display of control by an extremely alert 21-year-old. Although Rosas should improve up the bantamweight rankings, this won’t go down as a memorable performance.
light heavyweight: rafael tobias versus Diyar Nargojhay
Result: Nargojhay defeated Tobias via unanimous decision
Category: C-
This fight symbolized a C grade for the first two rounds. The action was solid, with Nargozay taking charge early and Tobias rallying in the second round. The fight then slowed to a crawl in the final frames, with very little action and a lot of winning. Nargojhay did enough to win, but it was not a performance that deserves to be watched again and again.
Men’s flyweight: sumudarji versus jesus aguilar
Result: Sumuderji defeated Aguilar via unanimous decision
Category: C-
It was not a particularly exciting affair, but Sumuderji effectively used his height and reach to neutralize Aguilar for almost every minute of the fight. Aguilar tried to move in but found himself on the receiving end of Sumuderji’s punches and kicks. It ended like a sparring session, until both fighters released their hands for the last 10 seconds of the fight. Sumuderji did what he had to do and can’t be blamed for Aguilar’s shortcomings in a fight that lacked highlight-reel material.
Middleweight: Donte Johnson versus cody brundage
Result: Johnson defeats Brundage via split decision
Category: D+
Brundage made every effort to subdue the explosive Johnson, but it was not enough to win the fight, which felt like it was full of false starts. Johnson tried to get his eighth consecutive victory by knockout or submission, but Brundage repeatedly prevented him from grappling and disrupted his striking with counters and jabs. It didn’t amount to a victory or much excitement. Instead, it was Johnson’s activity – even though he hurt Brundage with a total of 84 strikes – that earned him the victory. There are better days ahead for Johnson, but he needs to learn how to better set up his attacks against future opponents.
Men’s Bantamweight: cody garbrandt versus xiao long
Result: Garbrandt defeated Gio via unanimous decision
Category: D-
It was difficult to watch. The fighting featured more consequential light blows than meaningful attacks. Xiao outshot Garbrandt 61-19 in the total strikeouts department and still managed to take the loss. How? Well, Gio repeatedly landed low blows, including one in Round 3 that caused Garbrandt to vomit into a bucket. When the action resumed, Garbrandt looked angry… then did nothing. He avoided Gio for most of the remainder of the fight, but the two-point deduction was enough to give Garbrandt the win in a frustrating fight.
BMF Title Fight: Max Holloway vs. Charles Oliveira
Result: Oliveira defeated Holloway via unanimous decision
Category: F
Had it not been a BMF title fight the level of this fight would have been higher. But because it was supposed to be a fight in which the worst player loses, it failed miserably as Oliveira put Holloway in a grappling blender for five rounds. The match was so one-sided that fans were waiting for the exit even before the decision was read. Apart from the early rounds in which Oliveira threatened with several rear-naked choke attempts, the fight was all about maintaining control and minimizing risk. In a fight in which the BMF title was not on the line, much praise will be given to how Oliveira scored five takedowns and maintained control for over 20 minutes. But this is not the fight anyone signed up for. This was the worst BMF title fight ever. A very disappointing result to a highly anticipated fight.
UFC 326 Grade: D-
When the highly anticipated BMF title fight between two of the UFC’s most exciting fighters falls through, it all ends with that. Unfortunately, UFC 326 lacked memorable moments as it crawled to eight decisions, with the final three bouts resulting in lopsided clean sweeps that failed to entertain. Such bad nights rarely happen in the UFC, but UFC 326 set the bar for futility.
