Davey Grant and Ramon Taveras at UFC Tampa ceremonial weigh-in at Amalie Arena, December 13, 2024 Credit: Jay Anderson/Cageside Press
Bantamweights Davey Grant and Ramon Taveras met in their second bout of UFC Tampa on Saturday at Amalie Arena.
Grant, known for his action-packed bonus-earning cases, was Taveras’ second stint in the UFC. Taveras, the 2023 Contender Series winner, was looking for his second win in the promotion. Grant fought for the first time this year, coming off a loss to Daniel Marcos.
Round 1 started with Grant leading the dance with a variety of kicks, with Taveras a bit hesitant early on. Grant began attacking the body with hands and kicks. The body kick definitely did some damage and Taveras started having to guess more than he expected.
Taveras started using power thinking Grant was going for volume, but one of his shots was countered with an absolutely disgusting head kick and he ate it up like it was nothing. Shortly after Grant’s nut shot, Taveras was given time to recover and rest.
Taveras applied pressure to keep Grant on the outside, but Grant was fine with it. The round ended with a solid right hand from Grant.
Round two started the same way as the first, but Taveras countered Grant’s kick with a hard right hand that gave Grant something to do with it. The shot dropped Grant, but Taveras refused to go to the ground with Grant and let him stand.
Grant quickly recovered and realized he had better step on the gas to avoid losing to Taveras. Both players lost their rhythm and continued to attack in order to do maximum damage.
In the third round, both men had a chance to take third and win the fight. Grant was throwing every shot with as much force as possible. Taveras used his defense well to limit the damage early, but Grant scored.
Taveras’ boxing style left him a bit limited as Grant continued to land most of the shots he wanted. The activity level of both players was evident, as Grant nearly tripled Taveras’ striking numbers.
At the end of the fight, both fighters emptied their tanks and raised their arms to the appreciative UFC Tampa crowd.
Official result: Davey Grant def. Ramon Taveras unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27×2)
