UFC 326 is in the books.
In the main event, Charles Oliveira definitively avenged a 2015 injury stoppage loss to Max Holloway, dominating the former featheweight champion on the ground for a dominant unanimous decision win. It represented an anticlimactic resolution for fans who had entered the “BMF title bout” expecting fireworks between two of the sport’s most exciting fighters.
In the aftermath, here are three lessons to be learned…
Raul Rosas Jr. notched the biggest win of his career on Saturday, defeating perennial contender Rob Font by a dominant unanimous decision. The fight saw Rosas, “El Niño Problema,” land 16 takedowns and accumulate much control time, as his more experienced opponent struggled to escape the ground and stand back up.
With the win, Rosas is expected enter the rankings on Tuesday, but the UFC has lessons to recall when determining his next move.
Many times has the UFC tried to push fighters before they were ready. Nate Quarry is a particularly infamous example, as he was granted a title shot after two wins over anonymous opposition. Unfortunately, Rich Franklin then demolished him with a monstrous knockout, then he became an aimless journeyman for the rest of his tenure.
Paige VanZant is the person whom the UFC should learn the most from, however. Like Rosas, she joined the promotion at just 20 years of age. After a three-win streak against middling opposition, she was booked against a top-tier fighter in Rose Namajunas and faltered hard, being routed in a headlining submission loss.
Still, the UFC refused to slow down. After rebounding with a highlight-reel knockout of Brec Rawlings, VanZant was given Michelle Waterson, a smaller fighter whom she theoretically could bully. She was instead outmaneuvered and submitted yet again, permanently ending her viability as a top-tier threat at just 22 years of age.
The fortunate thing about Rosas is that after losing his second fight in the Octagon, he has matured very well and is now on a five-win streak. Nevertheless, he is still only 21 years old, and the UFC must carefully plan his next fight lest it render its Mexican prodigy damaged goods too early.
On a night marked by rather dull fights smattered with the occasional finish, two off-cage announcement were made.
First, it was that Weili Zhang’s strawweight defense against Joanna Jedrzejczyk would enter the Fight Wing of the UFC’s Hall of Fame. It is a rightful accolade for what is considered the best fight involving two women ever.
Second was the reveal of which fights would grace the UFC’s highly anticipated White House card. Titled UFC Freedom 250, the event will have only six fights. The main event will be Ilia Topuria and Justin Gaethje looking to unify the lightweight titles, while Ciryl Gane vs. Alex Pereira for the interim heavyweight title will co-headline.
While those two title fights are fantastic on paper, the rest of the card is lackluster. Sean O’Malley deserves better than Aiemann Zahabi. Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler is a glorified squash match. Diego Lopes has yet to settle his grudge with Yair Rodriguez, and Bo Nickal and Kyle Daukaus are prospects who should not be halting each other’s momentum.
If the UFC wanted to make big headlines on President Trump’s birthday, it needed a notorious figure like Conor McGregor, Jon Jones, or even Sean Strickland. Instead, it is offering “just another card”, albeit without prelims…
The BMF Championship is one of the tackiest things ever devised in UFC history.
First created for Jorge Masvidal vs. Nate Diaz at UFC 244, it unofficially served to show the fans who the promotion’s most exciting fighter was. Alas, Masvidal, “Gamebred,” proceeded to lose his next four fights, each in mostly uncompetitive fashion, then retired, vacating the belt in the process.
Since then, the BMF title has had three holders: Gaethje, Holloway, and now Oliveira. Unfortunately, the lackadaisical way Oliveira won the title has seriously hurt its reputation, and it may be time to retire it. For if “lay and pray” is how a “BMF” is decided instead of “stand and bang”, then fans will be deterred from watching that kind of “title fight” again.
Overall, UFC 326 may be considered one of the most disappointing cards of the year. Twelve fights each promised varying levels of action and violence, but ultimately only four ended within the distance. The main event was, as mentioned before, anticlimactic and raised questions about its loser’s credibility as a top-level fighter.
The UFC’s next event is a more subdued Fight Night at the Apex. In its top two fights, Kevin Vallejos and Gillian Robertson look to break through against former title challengers Josh Emmett and Amanda Lemos, respectively. Sometimes, the least-hyped events turn out to be the most electrifying, and this may be just another example…
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