The contract issues in question? In Miocic’s first two title defenses (his only two to date), his opponent has earned more than him on each occasion. Those two fights came against Alistair Overeem at UFC 203 and Junior dos Santos at UFC 211. Overeem, for his part, took home $800,000 U.S. for a first round loss to the champ at UFC 203 in September. For winning that same fight, Miocic earned $600,000, per the Ohio Athletic Commission (via MMA Junkie). UFC 211 was hosted in Dallas, Texas, and the state of Texas does not disclose fighter pay, but it’s easy to imagine a similar situation.

In any case, this contract kerfuffle puts talk of a potential fight with Cain Velasquez on hold, at least for now. That fight was further complicated by Velasquez’s injured shoulder, which is still healing after surgery this year.

Miocic (17–2) won the title in May 2016 at UFC 198, shocking local fans in Brazil by knocking out Fabricio Werdum in the first round of their main event fight. This dispute makes him yet another UFC athlete unhappy about fighter pay in the promotion. Numerous fighters have been vocal about the issue over the years, which has driven some to the competition.

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While it faced some issues, UFC 211 is still easily the best pay-per-view (PPV) card of 2017. Facing weak competition, the bar wasn’t set very high. But the timing couldn’t have been better, for the promotion and fans alike. Heading into a summer with quality cards coming throughout June and July, 211 reminded us all what the UFC is capable of when things go (mostly) according to plan.

Despite facing frustrating issues regularly associated with professional mixed martial arts, UFC 211 was able to persevere, unlike other events. The card had extraordinary depth, and while it wasn’t the most exciting main card, the top-tier of the card went off without a hitch.

There was no snoozefest main event like at UFC 208 with Holm-de Randamie or UFC 209 with Woodley-Wonderboy 2. None of the major fights were canceled like Khabib Nurmagomedov’s interim lightweight title bout against Tony Ferguson at UFC 209. Even at it’s most controversial, the messy finish of Alvarez-Poirier at UFC 211 has nothing on the Weidman-Mousasi disaster from UFC 210.

Yeah, neither the of the two title fights in Dallas were very competitive. But we did get to watch two of the sport’s best champions perform at their highest level. The way Joanna Jedrzejczyk dispatched of Jessica Andrade and Stipe Miocic knocked out Junior Dos Santos are things that committed MMA fans will appreciate. After what we’ve been treated to in recent title fights, both bouts were more than welcome.

Yeah, we lost the fantastic flyweight main card matchup between Henry Cejudo and Sergio Pettis the week of the fight. Thanks to the great card they’d put together, the promotion was able to fill the slot with the intriguing return of former two-division World Series of Fighting champion David Branch. The fight with Krzysztof Jotko wasn’t exactly entertaining, but in that scenario, it’s hard to ask for much more. (Except, maybe Alvarez-Poirier…)

And yeah, we still got the necessary dramatic weigh-in story, too, this time coming courtesy of Jared Gordon. Announcing he would be unable to make weight, Gordon’s feel-good story came to an abrupt and melancholy halt as his bout with Michel Quinones was canceled.

Even then, the 12 fights fans prepared for Saturday night were as appetizing as any card all year. And those 12 fights delivered. Veterans Demian Maia and Frankie Edgar put on classic performances, showcasing their value at the top of their respective divisions. Up-and-comers James Vick and Jason Knight highlighted their improvements, ensuring solid spots on future cards with impressive TKO victories. There was something for everyone at UFC 211, from top-to-bottom.

Being able to enjoy and reflect on these great fights and quality performances, without the cloud of a major disappointment, was a nice change of pace from recent UFC PPVs. Fans will put up with a lot to enjoy a sport they love, and MMA fans will put up with more than most. But people don’t have time for consistently crappy PPVs, something recent buyrates will support.

Luckily, the quality of the cards, purely on matchmaking, looks to be improving this summer compared to the first few PPV events of the year. The PPVs in July alone, 213 and 214, are set to be a couple of the best of the inarguably lackluster year. The events in Oklahoma City, Singapore, and Glasgow also boast fan-friendly fights that should do a solid job of keeping spectators entertained and interested throughout June and July.

So, thank you, UFC 211. We were excited for you, like we were for UFC 209. But this time, you delivered. Yeah, it wasn’t perfect. But it didn’t need to be. We don’t want perfect, we just want the UFC we know and love. We’re in a bit of a rough patch, but things are looking up.

*checks phone*

They canceled Garbrandt-Dillashaw?

F*$%.

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UFC 211 makes you wonder: do you really need a “beef” to sell a fight, or even a card? Was anyone, after the impressive fights put on by the likes of Chase Sherman and Rashad Coulter, or Frankie Edgar and Yair Rodriguez, or Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Jessica Andrade, left wondering “where’s the beef?”

You get brownie points if you remember that commercial, by the way.

Not every bout needs to be the bromance that was Stipe Miocic vs. Junior dos Santos (though there’s no doubt both won even more fans in the buildup to UFC 211). Yet the noticeable lack of trash talk at UFC 211 allowed fans to focus on the fights, not a circus sideshow. The sport shone through, which is perfect on a night where Joanna Jedrzejczyk beat her own record for significant strikes in a title fight.

It was a refreshing change. Because let’s be honest: there are very few decent trash talkers in MMA at this point. In fact, arguably there’s only two, those being Chael Sonnen and Conor McGregor. Yes, Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier went at it again at the UFC Summer Kickoff press conference on Friday, but they barely count as trash talking at this point. They’re more like a bickering married couple who keep putting off an inevitable divorce.

Back to the point of all this: the noticeable lack of hostility in the buildup to UFC 211 was remarkable. It also had an added benefit: none of the fights felt like they failed to live up to some sort of unattainable, lofty expectation. You simply went into the card just hoping for good, fun fights, and for the most part, that’s exactly what fans got (Branch vs. Jotko aside).

Maybe the UFC could take note of this. Because while Michael Chiesa and Kevin Lee got people talking Friday, did anyone think it was anything short of ridiculous? UFC fighters are, after all, professional athletes. There’s no beef needed to sell a fight between the best of the best, in all but the rarest of cases. UFC 211 taught us that, at least for those who had forgotten it.

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Closing the show in the main event, heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic wasted little time securing his claim to the title of baddest man on the planet. After a couple of early leg kicks from challenger Junior dos Santos seemed to phase him, Miocic connected with a right hand that sent “Cigano” crashing to the canvas. A flurry of punches to the downed Brazilian followed, and that was all she wrote. With the win, Miocic moved to 17-2.

After finishing opponent Chas Skelly in the third round of their prelim card fight, Jason Knight (17-2) actually called for Dana White to grant him a bonus. Wish granted.

Fight of the Night honors, meanwhile, went to heavyweights Chase Sherman (10-3) and Rashad Coulter (8-2). Both men were added to the card late as injury replacements, and made the most of their opportunity. Sherman picked up the victory in the second round, finishing Coulter with an elbow. Yet not before Coulter, a Dallas local, showed a ton of heart, battling back from adversity multiple times to wobble Sherman. With the win, Sherman likely staved off an exit from the UFC, as he had lost two straight coming into the event.

Coulter, meanwhile, was making his UFC debut. Despite the loss, he certainly wasn’t a loser, leaving quite the impression on the hometown crowd.

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Miocic (16–2), an Ohio native, made the most of his opportunity, upsetting Werdum in his native Brazil at UFC 198. He then returned to wow his hometown crowd by defending the belt in Cleveland last September against Alistair Overeem at UFC 203.

With Miocic as champ, and an injury to Stefan Struve bumping dos Santos (18–4) out of the main event of February’s UFC Halifax, a collision course was set for these two heavy-handed heavyweights to meet again. Saturday night at UFC 211, that collision finally went down.

In the first round, Miocic had dos Santos against the fence, but the Brazilian challenger managed to land a couple of strong kicks that seemed to slow Miocic a step. However, in the moments to come, the champ would manage to connect with a few shots then later land a solid right hand with “Cigano” against the cage. As dos Santos went down, Miocic swarmed and finished with a barrage of punches from the top. It didn’t take long, and Miocic retains!

Full Results

Main Card

Stipe Miocic (c) def. Junior dos Santos by TKO (punches) Round 1, 2:22
Joanna Jędrzejczyk (c) def. Jéssica Andrade by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-44)
Demian Maia def. Jorge Masvidal by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Frankie Edgar def. Yair Rodríguez by TKO (doctor stoppage) Round 2, 5:00
David Branch def. Krzysztof Jotko by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Preliminary Card

Eddie Alvarez vs. Dustin Poirier ends in a No Contest (illegal knees), Round 2,    4:12
Jason Knight def. Chas Skelly by TKO (punches), Round 3, 0:39
Chase Sherman def. Rashad Coulter by KO (elbow), Round 2, 3:36
James Vick def. Marco Polo Reyes by TKO (punches) Round 1, 2:39

Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)

Cortney Casey def. Jessica Aguilar by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Enrique Barzola def. Gabriel Benítez by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Gadzhimurad Antigulov def. Joachim Christensen by Submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 2:21

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American Top Team’s Joanna Jędrzejczyk has been reigning over the women’s strawweight division ever since she first captured the belt back at UFC 185. Tonight she returned to the place of possibly her best ever performance to once again show the world why she is called Joanna Champion.

Jéssica Andrade stepped into the cage tonight riding a three fight winning streak and with a new found confidence coming off of her most recent decision win over Invicta Champion Angela Hill at UFC Fight Night: Bermudez vs. Korean Zombie. The Brazilian was looking to put her mark on womens Strawweight division.

Joanna Jędrzejczyk put on a clinic tonight in Dallas against a very tough, powerful and determined Jéssica Andrade. This was a contest of pure power and toughness versus
speed and technique. From the very first round it appeared that Joanna had a game plan to attack Andrade’s legs and limit her mobility. Andrade was able to showcase her power
with multiple takedowns throughout the rounds, however Joanna was able to quick pop back to her feet and continue the assault. By the end of the fourth Joanna was landing shots at will and to her credit Andrade kept trying to press the fight and continued moving forward. This fight highlighted both fighters, for Joanna it further showcased her world class striking ability and for Andrade it highlighted her toughness, power and will to win.

The final decision was (50-45, 50-45, 50-44) with Joanna Jędrzejczyk taking the unanimous decision

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Heading into the event, Masvidal (32-11) was coming off three straight wins, including a TKO finish of the always game Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. Maia (24–6), meanwhile, entered the night on a six fight win streak. Many had already tabbed him next in line for a title shot at 170lbs. Would he live to regret agreeing to the Masvidal bout?

Maia shot in early to start the bout but Masvidal was able to stuff it, and tried for a guillotine. He used that to defend another takedown, while Maia persisted. Maia worked to take the back less than two minutes in and secured it with a body lock. No small task as Masvidal remained standing, carrying Maia’s weight. Masvidal worked to keep Maia’s hands apart, but couldn’t get him off his back. In the final thirty seconds, Masvidal managed to shake free, reverse position and unload a flurry of strikes from the top, but Maia was able to avoid the worst of it. Possibly from tired legs after holding a body triangle most of the round, he seemed a little ginger on his legs heading back to his stool.

In the second round, Masvidal wanted to keep things standing – without his foe on his back. Maia shot in early, which Masvidal deftly avoided with a sprawl. A second shot was avoided as well, and you could see Masvidal’s confidence grow. Hard leg kicks followed from Masvidal. Maia attempted what seemed like a desperation shot, but held on and after wrapping up Masvidal’s legs finally managed to get his opponent to the ground. A much better round for Masvidal, but Maia finished the round riding his back

The third saw Masvidal land some solid leg kicks and possibly buckle Maia’s knee, however by round’s ended Maia once again had the back, body triangle locked, looking for the rear naked choke and softening Masvidal up with punches. Masvidal survived the round, but Maia had far more time in control for the fight.

The official decision was split, going to Demian Maia (29-28, 28-29, 29-28). After the bout, Maia went to Dana White (cageside) and said he wanted a shot at the belt. Per Maia, Dana White said he’ll get it.

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‘The Answer’ came into the fight fresh off a decision victory over Jeremy Stephens at UFC 205 last November. Fighting his twenty-eighth professional bout on the end, it really was a case of ‘The Veteran vs. The Newcomer.’

‘El Pantera’ was on the other end of the spectrum, coming into this UFC 211 bout with only eleven professional fights under his belt; his most recent was a one-sided mauling over the UFC hall of famer BJ Penn.

The Mexican felt that Edgar was disrespecting him in the lead up to this fight, as the New Jersey native stated it was a “win win” situation for Rodriguez regardless of the result.

Straight away Edgar put Rodriguez on the back foot, forcing him against the cage and landing an early takedown. Posturing up and landing some strikes from Yair’s open guard, the onslaught continued for the rest of the first round.

Huge shots by @FrankieEdgar land on Yair! #UFC211 pic.twitter.com/IvXwHZJfup

— UFC (@ufc) May 14, 2017

The left eye of ‘El Pantera’ was instantly swollen up at the end of the first round. After Edgar landed another takedown in the second round, Rodriguez threatened a knee-bar attempt but ‘The Answer’ did a good job of breaking free and securing a dominant position on the ground.

After the end of the second round, Rodriguez’s eye was unbelievable swollen that the referee decided to call a stop the action, granting Edgar the 22nd win of his professional MMA career.

It’s unclear what is next for Edgar. The featherweight division’s current champion Jose Aldo is scheduled to defend his belt against interim champion Max Holloway at UFC 212 next month. Whether Edgar will be granted the next shot against the victor is yet unknown.

Official result: Frankie Edgar def. Yair Rodriguez via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 5:00 of R2

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Krzysztof Jotko has been on fire colleting wins in his last five fighs including a crushing KO victory of Tamdan McCrory. His latest victory came over a game Thales Leites at UFC Fight Night: Bader vs. Nogueira 2 in São Paulo, Brazil. The Polish prospect was looking to extend his streak with a win over the returning David Branch.

David Branch returned to the UFC after an extended run in the World Series of Fighting that saw him collect a perfect 10-0 record with wins over the likes of Yushin Okami and
Jesse Taylor. Branch walked away from the WSOF having captured and defended both the Light Heavyweight and Middleweight titles in his time there. He was looking to build on
that success in the UFC starting starting Saturday night when he stepped into the cage versus Krzysztof Jotko in Dallas at UFC 211.

Both fighters seemed a little tentative on this one. With few punches thrown and most of the action taking place against the cage or during the few take downs that transitioned things to the ground. Branch got the better of Jotko on his first take down early into the bout when he was able to work some ground and pound. Jotko was able work his way back to his feet by utilizing the cage and took Branch down, with Branch popping back to his feet quickly. The theme stayed the same throughout the fight with both fighters trading cage control and few strikes. Branch’s three take downs sealed the victory for him for the evening.

The final decision was (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) with Branch taking the split decision.

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Dustin Poirier is another victim of the McGregor train, albeit a little further back. He was finished by the current lightweight champion at UFC 178 back in 2014. It took McGregor just a minute and a half to dispatch “Diamond.”

Poirier (21–5) had lost just once since then entering into UFC 211. His return to the lightweight division has been generally positive; the Louisiana native has looked a healthier, stronger fighter at 155lbs. Alvarez (28–5), meanwhile, was looking to put that disheartening UFC 205 loss behind him.

Anchoring the Fox Preliminary card, Poirier vs. Alvarez didn’t go as anyone expected. In the first, Alvarez came right out across the cage to meet Poirier early, looking ready to erase the memory of the McGregor loss. While it took a while for the fighters to find their distance, soon enough they had their rhythm down. Eddie Alvarez was seen targeting the body and feigning the takedown, and eventually landed a solid left. Poirier displayed some crisp kicks and punches as well, with things being pretty close in the first.

In the second, fans were treated to a barn burner. Early on, Poirier stuffed several takedown attempts, and later wobbled Alvarez halfway through the round. Alvarez was forced back against the cage, and started swinging in defense out of sheer desperation. After an insane exchange, the former champ shot forward, poorly, and wound up in a front choke, but survived. Alvarez showed incredible heart during the sequence.

The momentum shifted back to Alvarez just as suddenly, with Alvarez tuning up Poirier alongside the fence, wobbling “Diamond.” Poirier would survive but Alvarez finally scored a takedown. However, as Poirier came back to the feet, Alvarez landed a pair of knees that were illegal, which ref Herb Dean later ruled accidentally illegal. The fight was waved after Poirier informed the cageside doctor of vision problems. Alvarez plainly didn’t have a clear view, and while the fight ended in a No Contest, Poirier admonished the fans for booing Alvarez, saying he respected the former champion. Alvarez for his part apologized, and asked to run the fight back.

Hopefully they do run it back, as it was becoming a heck of an exciting fight to end off the UFC 211 preliminary card.

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