It may not have been as exciting as they hoped, but Rose Namajunas’ performance did no wrong for her hometown Denver crowd.
In the flyweight main event at UFC on ESPN 59 at Ball Arena, former strawweight champion Namajunas (13-6 MMA, 11-5 UFC) faced off against newcomer Tracy Cortez (11-2 MMA, 5-1 UFC) for a shot at a title in her new weight class. “Thug Rose” dominated the first round, fending off Cortez’s attacks, denying her clinch and takedown opportunities, and catching her with a number of clean punches, including a clean left hook that sent Cortez down midway through the round, but she quickly recovered. Cortez had the slight advantage in the second round, scrambling to get behind Namajunas and briefly threatening, only for Namajunas to rock her from above. Still, the first half of the bout featured Cortes struggling to find Namajunas consistently, while Namajunas used her superior footwork and speed to pick off Cortes almost at will.
As the fourth round began, Cortez was clearly behind three rounds to none, but she fought back, landing powerful punches, forcing clinches and trying to take Namajunas to the ground. As in the previous round, Namajunas blocked takedown attempts and got out of danger, but at least she wasn’t left completely alone. Cortez’s offensive power was no match for Namajunas’ talent and technique. Namajunas dutifully followed her corner’s instructions for the final ten minutes, touching Cortez with jabs, staying out of danger and disrupting her opponent’s rhythm with perfectly timed takedowns. Still, given Namajunas’s deliberately low-power approach in the stand-up, Cortez may have won the final round with pure aggression.
As expected, after five rounds, the cageside judges awarded Namajunas a unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47). The victory gave “Thug Rose” her second consecutive win in a new weight class and makes flyweight champion Alexa Grasso’s next title defense, likely against Valentina Shevchenko, intriguing to watch. Cortez’s 11-fight win streak was ended with the loss.
Salikhov beats Ponzinibbio in veteran welterweight bout
With the clock looming over the cage like an unofficial third competitor, 37-year-old Santiago Ponzinibbio and 40-year-old Muslim Salikhov looked surprisingly healthy in the welterweight co-main event at UFC Denver. The battle between the two longtime knockout artists looked like it had the potential for fireworks, and while it was entertaining for the most part, it was also a strategic and measured fight by two aging veterans who both stepped into the cage with records of 1-3 in their previous four bouts. Age, altitude, and fear of a redemption notice largely replaced Ponzinibbio’s trademark ultra-aggressive barrage of punches and Salikhov’s customary flurry of spin kicks with a flurry of spurts of kicks, mostly accented by the Argentine’s surprisingly tenacious wrestling. That doesn’t mean they completely abandoned what they came to dance for. In the first round, the two men traded head kicks, but Ponzinibbio probably only got the upper hand thanks to a late knockdown. The second round seemed to go in the Russian’s hands, hurting Ponzinibbio with a left hand, then finishing him off with a takedown himself, and generally being the sharper and more accurate striker.
With the outcome still largely unclear, the two welterweight veterans went back and forth in the final round, but the Denver crowd was not pleased with the moderate pace of the striking and Ponzinibbio’s takedown attempts. The judges scored the fight by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) in favor of Salikhov, who stopped a two-fight losing streak and improved to 20-5 (7-4 UFC). Ponzinibbio (29-8, 11-7 UFC) has now lost two straight and is 2-5 since returning from a lengthy injury layoff in 2021.
Silva defeats Dober by cut TKO in sensational brawl
In just two weeks, Jean Silva has risen to prominence in the UFC perhaps not seen since Khamzat Chimaev’s lightning-like entrance into the Octagon four years ago. Coming off a highlight knockout of Charles Jardine at UFC 303, Silva (14-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) moved up a weight class to face Drew Dober (27-14 MMA, 1 NK, 13-10 MMA, 1 NK) in the lightweight division. Facing Dober, a longtime Denver resident and fan favorite, Silva didn’t seem particularly scared of his opponent’s renowned knockout power. He frustratingly frustrating the local favorite with multiple quick and precise counters in the first round, leaving a cut near his right eye. Dober adjusted between rounds, set up kicks with punches, and made a good separation from the cage in the second round. The result was positive, as Dober landed some hard leg kicks and right punches that wobbled Silva for a moment, and also landed some uppercuts against the fence that sent “The Lord” ducking. The second half of the round was a bit rougher as Dober hurt Silva with a superman punch, then slipped on a follow-up attack and nearly received a fatal uppercut as he got to his feet, but Silva may have won the round with a hard spinning back elbow in the closing seconds, which wobbled Dober and would have been the finish had there been more time left.
Referee Herb Dean had the cageside doctor check Dober’s right eye between rounds, but the bout continued, to the delight of the Denver crowd. After nearly losing the second round, Dober changed tack and went for a takedown early in the third, but Silva defended with a guillotine. When the two separated, Dober’s cuts were noticeably worse, and Dean again called for the doctor. This time, Dean opined that the bout should not continue for Dober’s safety. The win, Silva’s second in 14 days, puts him on the list of UFC’s shortest time between wins in the post-tournament era, along with Chimaev and former middleweight champion Sean Strickland, and solidifies him as a must-watch fighter, whether his next bout is at 155 or 145 pounds.
Bonfim defeats Roosa in a brawl
In a welterweight brawl that was smoldering and smoking but never really ignited, Gabriel Bonfim (16-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC) held a commanding lead over Ange Rossa (10-4 MMA, 1 NC; 2-2 MMA, 1 NC UFC) over three hard-fought rounds. Coming into the bout after his first professional loss, “Maletinha” implemented a simple but effective strategy to secure another win against Rossa: landing strikes, avoiding the big punches that bounced back at him, and blocking takedown attempts. Rossa didn’t make it easy on Bonfim, landing a beautiful double blast in the first round that lifted him and sent him to the canvas, but Bonfim was soon back on his feet and on the offensive again. The pattern in this bout was that both fighters had effective offensive moments, especially when trading knees and punches in the clinch, but Bonfim held a slight advantage in all three rounds. This dynamic became more evident as the bout progressed, with both fighters tiring, but Roosa more so, and takedowns seemed increasingly easier for the Brazilian to avoid. After the final horn sounded, Bonfim emerged victorious by scores of 30-27, 30-27, 29-28, putting him back on track after his loss to Nicolas Dalby last November. Roosa has one loss and a no contest due to a disqualification since his last win in the Octagon 10 months ago.
Erosa Guillotine Rodriguez
Julian Erosa reaffirmed his status as one of UFC’s most reliable action fighters, dominating Christian Rodriguez (11-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) late in the first round of their featherweight clash for a crucial win. Erosa (30-11 MMA, 8-7 UFC) has made a name for himself by providing equal opportunities for highlights on his opponent’s reel as well as his own, and the bout got off to a characteristically wild start with both fighters trading punches at will. “C-Rod” seemed to be leading late in the round thanks to an unblocked head kick and enough punches to bloody Erosa’s nose, but “Juicy J” caught the kick and slammed Rodriguez to the canvas. As Rodriguez swept into top position, Erosa grabbed a lightning-fast guillotine choke, cinching in a body triangle from underneath. Erosa tightened the hold, using his long arms to bend Rodriguez’s neck at a dangerous angle, forcing Rodriguez to forfeit the bout at 4:49 of the first round. The stunning finish ended Rodriguez’s four-fight winning streak. Rodriguez is now 1-1 at featherweight since beginning his UFC career at 135 pounds. Erosa’s second straight win comes after consecutive losses to Alex Caceres and Fernando Padilla.
Alhassan and Brundage end in early no contest
The main card of UFC on ESPN 59 got off to a strange start, as the hard-fought Denver middleweight bout between Abdul Razak Alhassan and Cody Brundage ended in a no contest after just 38 seconds. Things didn’t take long to escalate when Alhassan (12-6, 1 no contest; 6-6, 1 no contest at UFC) blocked a takedown attempt and landed elbows to the head of Brundage (10-6, 1 no contest; 4-5, 1 no contest at UFC) as he dropped to his knees and tried to attack again. The elbows began to deflect into the back of Brundage’s head, prompting a warning from referee Dan Miragliotta without stopping the bout. A few minutes later, several more elbows landed on the back of Brundage’s head, forcing Miragliotta to stop the bout. Brundage was dazed from the blows and initially appeared to think the stoppage was a TKO. The cageside doctor was called, and after a lengthy question-and-answer session with Brundage, Miragliotta declared the bout a no contest due to an inadvertent illegal blow to the back of the head.
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