LAS VEGAS, NV – APRIL 27: (Right) Dontare Mays defeats Brazil’s Caio Machado in a heavyweight bout at the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on April 27, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. hit. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Heavyweight Dontare Mays defeated Brazil’s Caio Machado by decision in the preliminary round of UFC Vegas 91.
The pairing made sense since both men have overcome losses. This fight was extremely important for both men, as Mays is 3-4 (1 NC) in the UFC and Machado is 0-1. If they win, their winning percentage will be .500, but their jobs will be lost. It is dangerous. In a matchup between “Lord Kong” Mays and “Bigfoot” Machado, the cryptids can only win one, him.
Mays came out aggressive and turned Caio’s head back early, but quickly returned to a comfortable medium-paced batting rhythm. Machado briefly surprised Mays with a southpaw overhand left, but Don’Tale quickly recovered. He did a better job from distance, throwing right hand combos from open side body kicks and lead uppercuts multiple times. His pace slowed considerably with two minutes left in the round, but this may be typical of heavyweights. After a short recovery period, Mays attacked again and dropped Machado with a punch in the final 30 seconds of the round, causing Machado to finish on top, while Caio continued to take charge of the defense at the back.
Machado moved forward aggressively at the start of the second round, snapping Mays’ head several times. Midway through the round, Mays fought back and regained his momentum, landing some good body shots to put Caio on the back foot again. In the final 20 seconds, there was a fierce battle, with both players landing big blows. However, Machado started to feel unwell and he retreated to recover in the final 10 seconds.
Machado had to go all out in the third round as Mays could have stolen the first two rounds in the final moments, but Don Terre couldn’t afford to rest on his laurels. In fact, Caio Machado got a second wind and came forward again, but was unable to do much damage until Mays brought him back into a 50-50 striking match. Lord Kong seemed to be more accurate in the second half of the round, but it was a close call. Once again they brawled violently until the final moments, but both men were tired and the sloppy punches never connected cleanly.
When the scorecards were released, Don Tale Maze was victorious with a score of 29-28 from all three judges.
Official Results: Don Taille Maze def. Caio Machado unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
