In a sport where the word “sniper” is used too easily, Alex Pereira wields a once-in-a-lifetime blend of precision and power.
In the main event of UFC 303 on Saturday in Las Vegas, light heavyweight champion Pereira (11-2) faced off against Jiri Prochazka (30-5-1) in a rematch of their title bout seven months earlier, when the Brazilian likely lost in the first round but won by knockout in the second. The first round of the rematch unfolded surprisingly hesitantly, likely because both fighters were well aware of the other’s power. The champion immediately went on the offensive with the brutal leg kicks that had been so effective in the first bout and that had soured Prochazka in his subsequent bout with Aleksandar Rakic. Prochazka managed to get in close and land some single punches, but his attempts to take the fight to the floor went nowhere. That said, the round was close, that is, until the final seconds when “Poitan” along with Horn knocked Prochazka down with a pinpoint left hook. The challenger rose to his feet and returned to his chair, but was still cool a minute into the next round. He didn’t get a chance. Pereira dropped “Denisa” on the spot with a left high kick within the first few seconds of the bout, and then followed it up with a string of extremely brutal ground punches that forced referee Herb Dean to pull him away 13 seconds into the second round. The brutal finish improved Pereira to 8-1 in the Octagon and a perfect 4-0 at light heavyweight, rekindling talk that the 36-year-old might try his luck at heavyweight, perhaps seeking an unprecedented third division title. Prochazka is now 4-2 at UFC.
Diego Lopez and Dan Ige clash in 11th-hour co-main event
In an unprecedented twist, the co-main event at UFC 303 was moved on fight day to include a fighter not previously on the card. The co-main event between Brian Ortega and Diego Lopez had been moved from featherweight to lightweight the day before, but was scrapped entirely when Ortega fell ill after Friday’s weigh-in. Historically, that would have resulted in the bout being canceled outright, but longtime featherweight runner-up Dan Ige, a tough Las Vegas resident, stepped forward on Saturday. The result was a matchup between two featherweight action stars at a catchweight of 165 pounds, which became official at Ige’s weigh-in on Saturday. Lopez had to meet the new weight limit at 161 pounds.
When the bout began, Lopez tried to use his height, reach and speed to get off to a fast start against his sudden opponent. Ige, however, kept his cool and, although he was no match for the Brazilian’s ferocious attack, fought through the first four minutes without sustaining any significant damage, except for a few hard leg kicks from Lopez. Lopez made things interesting late in the first round, jumping into a front headlock and securing a Bravo choke, then rolling towards the finish. Ige survived and escaped, but it was a solid round for Lopez. Lopez landed another low kick in the second round, and just like in the first round, he dragged Ige to the ground at his first opportunity and took the Hawaiian’s back for a rear-naked choke. Ige avoided a choke attempt, but his own offense in the remaining rounds was limited to punches over his shoulder, even if some of those punches were surprisingly effective. Meanwhile, Lopez maintained his dominant position and went for an armbar in the final seconds.
Knowing he was trailing on the scorecards going into the final round, Ige punched hard and advanced with disciplined aggression, looking to land a strike or combination of strikes that would turn defeat into victory. Ige had some good moments, including a right hand that seemed to freeze Lopez for a moment, but Lopez landed a brutal kick to Ige’s already weakened leg, slowing Ige’s momentum. Ige regained his composure and advanced again to rock Lopez with another flurry of punches, and the suddenly tired-looking Brazilian went for a takedown. After a lengthy wrestling sequence, Ige landed on top, but when Lopez closed his guard and controlled Ige’s posture, the fight seemed won, although Ige could have lost the war. Lopez made it to the final horn and won a well-deserved decision by a unanimous score of 29-28. The win improved Lopez to 25-6 overall and 4-1 at UFC, marking his fourth straight win since making his debut as a replacement opponent for top-10 contender Movsar Evloev. Ige fell to 18-8 and 9-7 at UFC but otherwise lost nothing by making the short-term promotion, enhancing his reputation as a true “anyone, anytime, anywhere” fighter of his generation.
Dolidze overpowers Smith in a sudden clash
The originally scheduled UFC 303 co-main event between Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree Jr. was derailed by a string of injuries and withdrawals that saw the names of fighters rotate like a slot machine. The feud finally came to a halt when two late replacements, Anthony Smith and Roman Dolidze, faced off in the light heavyweight feature bout. Both fighters opted to forego caution in the first round, instead alternating between attacking their opponents with leg kick and power punch combinations. Smith could have won a close round by checking a few more kicks than Dolidze, staying mobile, not allowing the clinch or being pushed against the cage. But the Georgian took control of the bout early in the second round, forcing Smith out of a partial slip, taking him to the floor and slamming him with ground strikes. Smith regained his composure in defense, but Dolidze stuck to him and continued to rain punches at the base of the fence. Whether blocked or not, the blows clearly did damage. Whether he was behind or the score was tied at 1-1 going into the final round, Smith was clearly the more tired and damaged fighter, but his trademark “Lionheart” will showed, resulting in a close five minutes of effective offense between two exhausted fighters. The cageside judges deemed the bout a clear favor to Dolidze, who won by scores of 30-27, 29-28, 29-28. Dolidze, who stepped up from middleweight to his first UFC division, improved to 13-3 overall and 7-3 in the Octagon while Smith fell to 38-20 (13-10 UFC).
Chiasson slashes Bueno Silva
A key women’s bantamweight bout went from chess match to bloodbath in the blink of an eye, as Macy Chiasson ripped open Myra Bueno Silva with a brutal elbow strike in the second round. The first round featured a series of kickboxing exchanges at distance, with both fighters finding notable success, especially Silva (10-4-1, 1 NC, 5-4-1, 1 NC UFC) who landed a spinning wheel kick to the head of Chiasson (10-3, 8-3 UFC). A lengthy series of clinches against the fence also failed to do much damage for either. But as the second round began, what was shaping up to be an interesting fight was short-circuited within seconds when Chiasson scored a trip takedown, landed in the Brazilian’s guard and landed a left elbow strike that split Silva’s forehead just above her right eyebrow. The two continued to fight without pause, with Silva threatening an armbar at one point, but it quickly became clear how serious the cut was. Referee Chris Tognoni called a timeout to allow the cageside doctor to examine the injury. Despite Silva’s vociferous protests, the doctor advised Tognoni to end the bout, resulting in a TKO at 1 minute, 58 seconds into the second round. Chiasson has won two straight bouts at bantamweight, improving to 7-1 in the division since joining UFC as the featherweight winner of Season 28 of The Ultimate Fighter. Weight issues are clearly a thing of the past, and the sky seems to be the limit for the 32-year-old Louisiana native. Coming into Saturday’s bout after losing the vacant belt to Raquel Pennington last year, Silva has now lost two straight bouts and will have a tough road ahead of her before she can return to the title fray.
Undefeated Garry surpasses “MVP”
Opening the main card was a clash between two of the UFC welterweight division’s most intriguing talents and personalities, 26-year-old Irish phenom Ian Garry (15-0) taking on recent Bellator MMA recruit Michael Page. Fans were excited for a showdown between Page’s impressive stand-up arsenal and Garry’s more conventional but undeniably effective kickboxing, but Garry avoided a striking contest by catching a kick and taking “MVP” down within the first minute or so. From there, Garry quickly moved to Page’s back, locked in a body triangle and attempted to choke him for the remainder of the round. Page was heavily outmatched on the ground, but was very brave, dodging several rear-naked chokes and landing punches over his shoulders to survive until the end of the round. Page fought back sharply in the second round, escaping a questionable leg lock from the Irishman and landing several blistering punch combinations. The bout is expected to be a one-round stand-up bout, with the two welterweight sensations locked in a wild five minutes with no score to go along with it. Page appeared to have the advantage early on with striking, landing in Garry’s guard after a failed takedown attempt from “The Future,” but Garry brushed him off and got behind him on the ground, sinking hooks but could only hang on as the Brit tried to rock him from above. The bout went to the judges’ hands, with a unanimous decision in favor of Garry (29-28, 29-28, 29-28), marking his eighth straight win since joining UFC from Cage Warriors Fighting Championship a little over three years ago. Page’s loss dropped the 37-year-old to 1-1 with his new organization and stunted his momentum following a debut win over Kevin Holland at UFC 299 in March.
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