Devastating knockouts, slick submissions and technical battles. It was possibly one of greatest non-PPV cards in recent memory, and one that gave us so many great fights and moments, so let's take a look at some of the biggest points of discussion from the weekend's happenings.
Retirement Looming for Cerrone?
Never have I ever felt so sad to type a sentence before. Okay, that might be a slight exaggeration, but you know where I'm coming from. Cerrone took on another fan favourite in Niko Price this past weekend, in what was a fantastic fight (despite the eye-pokes). The pair put on a great back and forth bout and showed why the two are held in such high regard by fans.
The fight ended in a draw, and despite not losing the bout, this is the fifth fight in a row where Cowboy has failed to register a win, and this is a point on concern for the future Hall of Famer. Without Price's point-deduction for the eye-pokes, Donald would of lost the bout and been in the worst form of his career.
At the post-fight press conference, Dana White stated that he "needed to talk to Cowboy" which is code word for talking about retirement. The thing that is going in Cerrone's favour, is the level of his past five opponents. Losses against Ferguson, Conor and Gaejthe are nothing to be ashamed of, although if Cowboy falls to a lesser opponent, the ball may be taken out of his court as was the case with Chuck Liddell and BJ Penn. Here's hoping we get to see Donald Cerrone compete at least one more time.
Michael Chandler Signs for the UFC
What a signing this is. Last Friday UFC President Dana White announced that the promotion had signed former Bellator Lightweight champion Michael Chandler. This is an exciting signing, and adds yet another world class talent to an already stacked lightweight division.
White also announced that Chandler will be the back-up for the Khabib vs Justin fight next month, meaning the UFC President obviously thinks highly of him to put him straight into the title picture. The new signing will shake up the top of the division, and it'll certainly be exciting to see how the former Bellator star does in the "big leagues".
Chandler is currently 21-5 in his professional MMA career, beating the likes of Benson Henderson and Eddie Alvarez along the way.
Chimaev is the Real Deal
Ho-lee shit. I'll hold my hands up and admit I was sceptical as to whether Khamzat was just another hype-train or if he was the real deal. I think we got our answer on Saturday night. Chimaev KO'd Meerschaert in 17 seconds with a lightning fast right hand, further cementing his claim for Rookie of the Year.
This was a massive step up in competition and one that many, including myself, had doubts about him being able to overcome. How wrong we were. If I was to sit here and list all of the records/accomplishments the Swedish national has earned the article would be about 10,000 words long, so let's just take a look at a few. Shortest time to three victories in the UFC at 66 days, absorbed a total of two strikes in three fights and has currently less than seven minutes of fight time in the promotion. Insane.
I think I speak for everyone in saying that I am extremely excited to see that Chimaev can do in the UFC, and if he can live up to his sky-high potential.
Colby Dominates Woodley
Colby Covington put one yet another dominant display in the main event of last weekend's UFC card. Colby looked comfortable throughout the bout, and put a pace on Tyron that he simply had no answer for. This was Covington's first bout since his TKO loss to current champion Kamaru Usman in December of last year.
Whilst Chaos looked fantastic (as is normally the case), Woodley looked out of his depth and added to the calls for him to retire. The Chosen One once against looked hesitant to throw any meaningful strikes and was taken down repeatedly with ease.
This is Woodley's third consecutive loss, but even more concerning is that he has failed to win a round in his past 15. For a champion who was so feared and had a habit of shutting people's lights out, this is concerning.
As far as Colby is concerned, I'm afraid we have listen to his idiotic ramblings and nonsensical statements for at least a little bit longer.
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