Bellator NYC. KSW 39. UFC 217. The MMA world saw a number of huge events go down in 2017 — but who did we choose as Event of the Year? In the end, it wasn’t even close. In fact, across our entire MMA Year in Review series for 2017, it was the only unanimous selection.

You’ve probably guessed the answer already, but read on to see what our writers chose as the Event of the Year 2017 in MMA.

Event of the Year 2017

Heath Harshman: UFC 218 was a ton of fun, but the history made at UFC 217, along with the performances, is unmatched in MMA this year. Featuring the return of GSP, the grudge match between Cody Garbrandt and TJ Dillashaw, and the rise of Rose Namajunas, UFC 217 is tough to beat. The fact that it all took place at Madison Square Garden is icing the cake of the best event of the year.

Paarth Pande: UFC217. There were three “and new” moments. Three major upsets. Almost all fights ended in finishes. UFC 217 was amazing

Jay Anderson: Probably the easiest call of the year-end selections I’ve had to make. KSW 39 was big, breaking attendance records. Bellator NYC was big, but ultimately bizarre. UFC 213 and 214 pretty much fell apart. In fact, it was a rather rough year for the world’s leading MMA promotion. UFC 217 was one of the few bright spots for the company — but what a bright spot it was. Three titles changed hands that night, an unprecedented occurrence we may not see again. TJ Dillashaw reclaimed his bantamweight title by finishing arch-rival Cody Garbrandt. Rose Namajunas shocked the world by usurping strawweight Queen Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Finally, Georges St. Pierre returned from a four-year hiatus to choke out Michael Bisping and claim the UFC middleweight champion.

Mike Straus: UFC 217 (no explanation necessary!).

Gabriel Gonzalez: UFC 217. While the event lacked the sheer star power of UFC 200 last year, this year’s Madison Square Garden card changed the courses of three divisions. Three belts changed hands, and each champion is set for an incredible 2018. GSP will be the top story regardless of his next move, Namajunas appears to have a rematch in the pipeline, and Dillashaw is set for a super fight. To have all that in one night makes this card the clear winner.

Mike McClory: UFC 217 – 3 title fights, 3 finishes and 3 title changes. The UFC could only hope for more events like this one.

Dan Doherty: Gotta be the night that three titles shifted hands in spectacular fashion. From bottom to top this event had it all: A spinning back elbow KO, referee controversies, a spectacular head kick, and that was just the prelims. Although the main card started out with Johny Hendricks simply surviving for 8 minutes against Paulo Costa, Wonderboy picked things up with a prime performance against Jorge Masvidal. Then we got to the title fights. Rose Freakin’ Namajunas knocked Joanna Jedrzejczyk out in what was the biggest upset of the night, maybe the year given how unstoppable Jedrzejczyk looked prior to UFC 217. Then TJ Dillashaw washes off a rough first round by knocking out his former teammate Cody Garbrandt to reclaim his bantamweight title. Lastly, Georges St. Pierre ends his four-year hiatus by casually winning the middleweight title over Michael Bisping, effectively fixing a great weight class. I have to say, seeing GSP win the title the way he did may have been the most amazing moment I’ve witnessed in MMA. Unbelievable.

Eddie Law: UFC 217. Three belts change hands, all three lost by the trash talkers. It was a win for takers of that “high road” everywhere.

The end result: there’s no doubt about it, UFC 217 was the Event of the Year 2017!

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In a year that saw some big finishes in big fights, picking a Knockout of the Year was no easy task. Do you judge based on sheer skill and execution? Do you factor in the significance of a big finish in a title fight?

Our writers were split on this. They were split on just about everything. Except on the fact that Francis Ngannou is one scary dude in the heavyweight division. On that, there was little debate.

Who did we select for Knockout of the Year 2017? Read on!

Knockout of the Year 2017

Heath Harshman: I’m still having nightmares from watching frighteningly violent prospect Francis Ngannou turn Alistair Overeem, one of MMA’s most talented strikers, into a giant-sized Pez Dispenser at UFC 218. No other knockout in 2017 had me covering my mouth in shock and awe longer than that brutal left from Ngannou.

Gabriel Gonzalez: Alistair Overeem vs. Francis Ngannou. Ngannou has a lot of hype around him, deservedly so. But considering Overeem was the clear #2 contender in the division and a decorated striker, Ngannou’s devastating KO made this one a no brainer for me. *Shout-out to Tywan Claxton however.

Jay Anderson: Ngannou’s soul-crushing knockout of Overeem is up there. Paul Daley’s flying knee KO of Brennan Ward is as well. But for my money, Tywan Claxton’s flying knee KO at Bellator 186 takes the cake. The air he got on that pushed it past Daley. Disclaimer: I’m a sucker for flying knee knockouts.

Dan Doherty: Galore Bofando vs. Charlie Ward. Francis Ngannou was too obvious and everyone else probably went with him so I wanted to shine some light on something I hadn’t seen before. Sure there have been slams that rattle a fighter but Bofando literally threw Ward to the canvas and knocked him out. It happened so quickly we were left wondering if he was caught with something but no, just the strength of Bofando throwing a grown man down like a sack of potatoes.

Mike Straus: This was much harder, so many great KO’s this year. I have to go with Francis Ngannou’s KO of Alistair Overeem at UFC 218. Because of the violence, and speed at which he threw it.

Paarth Pande: UFC 218 — Francis Ngannou’s knockout of Alistair Overeem. I wasn’t expecting him to win. Instead, his knockout was absolutely brutal.

Eddie Law: John Moraga KO’s Magomed Bibulatov – Maybe not the most vicious KO we’ve seen this year but certainly one of the most meaningful for the winner. Moraga had lost 3 of his last 4 fights and was clearly on the chopping block. Everything he had was riding on the outcome of this fight, his roster spot and way of making a living was on the line and he delivered with a beautiful left hook KO of Bibulatov. The post-fight interview, a very emotional one, makes this the KO of the year.

Mike McClory: I imagine that at this point Matt Brown sees himself as a walking hammer. And every other human on this planet is a nail to be driven into a board. That’s very similar to what he did to Diego Sanchez at UFC Fight Night 120, with an elbow strike that I won’t even try describing.

The end result: Francis Ngannou’s soul destroying knockout of Alistair Overeem gets the nod as Knockout of the Year 2017.

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And he’s not done yet.

Detroit, Michigan was the backdrop to one of the best night of fights in the UFC’s short history. It’s fair to say UFC 218 lived up to all the hype and more; we have a true number one contender in the heavyweight division now. Alvarez and Gaejthe went toe-to-toe in an instant classic. And Max Holloway continues to impress.

One thing that the UFC has always done a fantastic job with is making sure that local fighters end up competing on cards in their hometowns. Last weekend was no exception. Michigan native Amanda Cooper took home a convincing second round TKO victory over Angela Magana, and David Teymur halted the rising Drakkar Klose in a hard-fought decision win.

Maybe it’s something in the water. Michigan has produced some of the most memorable hard-nosed fighters the sport of mixed martial arts has ever seen.

When you think of Michigan men and the sport of MMA, one name comes to mind first and foremost: Dan ‘The Beast’ Severn.

Cageside Press recently caught up with the HOF pioneer to talk about what ‘The Beast’ is up to nowadays, his pro wrasslin days, and if we will get a ‘Beast’ come back.

Severn is a man of many interests; you can add successful business owner to the already impressive list of his many accomplishments. “I have many exciting things in the works for next year,” said Severn regarding some of his new projects. “That’s just the tip of the iceberg.”

‘The Beast’ sure knows how to peak your interest. I pressed for more, and Severn assured me that “it’s truly cutting-edge stuff.” I for one can’t wait.

Although Severn has several endeavors, he still finds time for his passion. “I love teaching” the UFC Hall of Famer said. “First it was amateur wrestling, then so many guys needed help with pro wrestling, then it evolved to MMA.”

Not a bad guy to learn the trade from if I do say so myself.

In my experience, there are two types of fans: the ones that enjoy mixed martial arts and the fans that are crazy about pro wrestling. For whatever reason, it seems that most fans don’t enjoy both UFC and WWE.

Many MMA proponents call wrestling ‘Fake’, but don’t tell ‘The Beast’ that. “I have been hurt worse in professional wrestling than all of my mixed martial arts fights combined,” said Severn regarding the validity of pro wrestling.

Severn added, “That’s why you see a lot of wrestlers get hooked on pain pills. And eventually many of them succumb to their illness.”

Whether you’re the biggest WWE fan or the most hard-core MMA purist, athlete safety should always be everyone’s priority.

There are inherent risks in any sport. Like always, ‘The Beast’ seems to be one step ahead of the curve. “I would’ve been against marijuana at one point,” Severn said. “But we are getting into the CBD oils, the extract from the plant that has tremendous healing properties, and it has no narcotic effect.”

Perhaps ‘The Beast’ is dropping a subtle hint here about some of his new and exciting things to come for 2018.

Heading into the new year, Severn shows no signs of slowing down. But is there any chance of a ‘Beast’ comeback? “Don’t count ‘The Beast’ out just yet,” Severn stated emphatically.

“You may see me in some athletic competitions or showmanships, and I’m going to be stepping into the squared circle, and possibly a new ring of competition, I’ll leave it at that.”

It appears this small-town Michigan man has big time plans for 2018.

However, for the doubters, Severn leaves them with a piece of advice, “Don’t bet against ‘The Beast”.

The post Don’t Bet Against The Beast: A Conversation With Dan Severn appeared first on Cageside Press.

Finding the proper response to much of the news finding its way into our social media feeds is becoming a tougher task every day. Nothing is surprising, and there’s always more to the story. Leaving us with one reply: “huh?”.

Last week, UFC President Dana White questioned how featherweight contender Frankie Edgar broke his orbital in training, UFC middleweight champion Georges St. Pierre revealed he has ulcerative colitis, and the Detroit Free Press did a hilariously horrible job at recapping the action from UFC 218.

The reason “huh?”, in its various forms, is such a quality reply is simple. The word is as versatile as a response gets, and while it may require some explanation, “huh?” is sometimes the only way to react to the news of today. Defined by Merriam-Webster as an interjection that’s “used to express surprise, disbelief, or confusion, or as an inquiry inviting affirmative reply”, “huh” or “huh?” can mean a lot of different things.

Despite some of the follies of human evolution (see: Implosion Fail), the development and growth of “huh” is something we should embrace. To be the change we want to see in the world, here are a few MMA stories last week that made us go “huh?”.

Dana White questions Frankie Edgar’s training practices

Ahead of UFC 218 in Detroit last weekend, Dana White took a shot at would-be featherweight title-challenger Frankie Edgar. The UFC President had plenty of time on his hands to throw stars under the bus, apparently. Huh?

Edgar was pulled from his scheduled bout with featherweight champion Max Holloway a few weeks prior to the event. Suffering a broken orbital in training, he was replaced by former 145-pound champ Jose Aldo. Changes like this are always tough on the promotion, but the switch didn’t harm excitement for the event; ticket sales were still on track to sell-out.

That didn’t stop White from going out of his way to question just how Edgar suffered such an injury in training.

“My question for Frankie – and I haven’t talked to Frankie yet, Frankie is in Russia or something right now, I think – but how do you break your orbital in training?” White said. “Unless it was a freak knee to the eye in wrestling or something like that.” – via MMA Junkie

White, and others, should know something fairly simple about fighting and training: stuff happens. This isn’t the first weird injury to happen to a major fighter prior to a major bout. Nor will it be the last. It’s impossible to always control all of the variables, especially when it comes to fighting.

The weirder part is figuring out what White thinks the promotion has to gain from questioning such an injury. Much less when it concerns a fighter like Frankie Edgar. The former UFC lightweight champion is as tough as they come, and has been chasing a second title at 145-pounds for years. He wouldn’t be pulled from the fight if it weren’t serious, and a broken orbital is just that.

Why that’s so hard for White to understand is odd. But, it probably shouldn’t be.

Georges St. Pierre has ulcerative colitis, return put on hold

A few weeks after becoming middleweight champion at UFC 217, Georges St. Pierre revealed he has been diagnosed with ulcerative colitis. Huh.

Taking to Facebook last week, GSP said he’d been dealing with the chronic disease which causes inflammation in the digestive tract. Ulcerative colitis is relatively common, with hundreds of thousands of cases in the United States each year.

This is a bummer. St. Pierre was impressive in his return after nearly four years away from the Octagon. He’s an all-time great, and MMA is better when GSP is around. What this means for his plans in 2018 remains to be seen, but we (and the UFC) are hoping for a quick return from the two-division champion.

Journalist goes to UFC 218, has no idea what he’s looking at

UFC 218 was one of the best MMA events of the year. But, you wouldn’t know that by reading the recap from the Detroit Free Press. Huh?

This article doesn’t deserve the amount of attention it has already received by MMA fans, so we’ll keep this quick. A reporter who has no background covering the sport was sent to the event by his employer, and returned with an incredibly off-base summation of the night’s happenings.

Comparing the event to UFC 217 at Madison Square Garden, the reporter failed to have a proper framing of UFC 218 from the start. Citing a lack of celebrities in the crowd (like Kid Rock and Eminem), fights stalling when they went to the ground, and a lack of mainstream stars on the card, the reporter showcased his hilariously horrible grasp on modern-day MMA throughout the piece.

The real gem though, comes near the end.

“This fight, and maybe the UFC, needs more stars… Truthfully, the UFC needs Conor McGregor. Or a Rhonda Rousey. Or another star everyone wants to see — especially a star other stars want to see.” – via Detroit Free Press

No, that egregious spelling mistake isn’t ours. That’s what’s in the actual article (twice). There are numerous grammatical errors throughout as well, but that’s the least of the article’s problems.

Yeah, the promotion could use another Conor McGregor or two (duh), but that had no impact on the quality of UFC 218. If you’re going to claim an event is boring, and the promotion putting on the event needs more stars, some research or evidence would be a good way to back-up those claims.

Instead, the Detroit Free Press looks bad. It’s paying an alleged journalist to do a job he clearly can’t handle. The worlds of MMA and journalism are facing their own struggles right now, and we don’t need pieces like this making them look worse.

Dana White questioned the training of one of the UFC’s all-time greats in Frankie Edgar for no reason, while another legend in Georges St. Pierre revealed he may not be back for a while due to health issues. Neither of those things ruined UFC 218, one of the best events of the year, despite what you may read in the Detroit Free Press.

Huh? for the road

Strongest dab game alive?@BlessedMMA's son has the moves. 😎 #UFC218 pic.twitter.com/o8umVbECRc

— UFC (@ufc) December 3, 2017

The post Three “Huh?” Moments in MMA Last Week: Frankie Edgar’s Face, GSP’s Health, and Bad Journalism appeared first on Cageside Press.

Sometimes, you get a chance to set things right. That’s what happened Saturday at UFC 218. Immediately following the event, which took place at Detroit’s Little Caesars Arena, UFC President Dana White announced that one of the evening’s preliminary card bouts had been rebooked. That, of course, was the welterweight bout between Sabah Homasi and Abdul Razak Alhassan.

Homasi vs. Alhassan started out as an entertaining enough affair, the second fight in on the UFC Fight Pass prelims. Homasi was the aggressor early, but both men managed to hurt the other. When Homasi initiated a Thai clinch and rocked Alhassan with knees to the body, the fight seemed to be going in his favor. However, a glancing blow from the Ghanaian fighter later dropped Homasi. He immediately latched on to a leg, but ref Herb Dean inexplicably called the fight off.

Dean, who did not appear to have a clear line of sight to see exactly what was conspiring when he waved the fight off, was looking to prevent any damage to the downed fighter. Homasi, however, was quite clearly intelligently defending himself, and immediately protested the stoppage. Given Dean’s normally above average performance as a ref, it was a shockingly bad call, but with no other option, Alhassan was awarded the first round TKO victory.

While Homasi could likely appeal the outcome, an immediate rematch leaves a better taste. Homasi vs. Alhassan looked like it was going to be a great fight, so why not do it over?

When asked about the fight being rebooked, White confirmed it would appear at UFC 219, saying “It’s official.”

UFC 219 takes place on December 30 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV.

The post After Iffy Stoppage at UFC 218, Alhassan vs. Homasi Immediately Rebooked for UFC 219 appeared first on Cageside Press.

UFC 218 may not have lived up to last month’s New York City card, but it came awfully close. With a number of stellar bouts on the card, including a slugfest in the main event that saw Max Holloway stop Jose Aldo in the third round again, there were lost of bouts with the potential to take Fight of the Night. The UFC, however, couldn’t pick just one. Alvarez vs. Gaethje? The main event? Medeiros vs. Oliveira?

So, instead of picking one, the UFC awarded two. Fight of the Night honors went to both Eddie Alvarez vs. Justin Gaethje and Yancy Medeiros vs. Alex Oliveira. The UFC announced the news following Saturday’s card.

On the televised preliminary portion of the event, Hawaii’s Yancy Medeiros and Brazil’s Alex Oliveira battled it out in an off-the-wall, back-and-forth war that saw both men knock down the other. Repeatedly. While Oliveira would seem to have the edge early, Medeiros held on. Not only did he old on, he then battled back, finishing Brazil’s ‘Cowboy’ in the third.

Like Medeiros vs. Oliveira, Alvarez vs. Gaethje also ended in the third. In a bout that promised to be a violent classic, it delivered from the outset. Gaethje worked the legs of Alvarez, while the former lightweight champ found a home for his hands. In the end, Alvarez was forced to switch stances, while a bloodied Gaethje was pummeled. Gaethje looked like he might turn things around in the third, with his opponent’s leg giving out. However, Alvarez connected with a knee to the head of the ex-WSOF champ, dropping him. That sealed the deal: Alvarez had the win, and Gaethje had his first professional loss.

With two Fight of the Night awards handed out, no Performance of the Night bonuses were awarded. All bonus winners will receive $50,000 for their efforts.

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Thanks to an injury suffered by Frankie Edgar in training, the main event of UFC 218 became a rematch. Jose Aldo, the twice-dethroned featherweight king, would get another shot at gold. To climb back atop the mountain, however, he had to best Max Holloway. Holloway had become the second man to take Aldo’s UFC featherweight championship at UFC 212 in April.

Heading into UFC 218, Holloway was riding an eleven fight win streak, and had not lost since a 2013 fight against Conor McGregor. Aldo, meanwhile, was getting back in the cage for the first time since Holloway had finished him at UFC 212.

At the start of their five-round featherweight title fight, Max Holloway worked the jab. Aldo backed out of harm’s way often in the early going. He seemed keen to conserve energy, perhaps a lesson from the pair’s first bout. Aldo would get a leg kick off; the absence of those kicks in their first meeting was a common criticism of the ex-champ. Holloway did an excellent job of slipping Aldo’s punches in round one, but after taunting the Brazilian towards the end of the round, he was caught with an uppercut.

Round two, Aldo was more offensively minded early. He looked to land the uppercut again, and went to the body. Holloway came over the top in answer. Aldo would begin chopping at the champion’s legs, at least one kick did enough damage to trip Holloway up. The kicks continued, and Holloway would need to check them, or move. In the striking exchanges, Holloway had a slight margin; towards the end of the second, he turned it up, and the damage was showing on the face of Aldo. A jump knee from Holloway missed to end the round.

Would Holloway’s legs hold up as the fight went on? They would. Holloway pressed forward in the third. Aldo would unleash another patented leg kick, but they weren’t enough. Max Holloway showed superior cardio, while Aldo was punching himself out with powerful shots. Max would launch a kick upstairs more than once. Jose Aldo would try to get his jab going, and both men were connecting. Holloway, however, was looking much fresher. Soon he was landing combos, then a standing elbow.

Aldo was being lit up. The brawl was well underway, and Aldo was bloodied. Crumbling under fire, Aldo shot for a desperation takedown, but wound up on his back. Holloway began raining punches as the Brazilian covered up. Aldo gave the thumb’s up to signal he was okay, but he wasn’t. After a few more unanswered strikes, it was clear Aldo had broken. The ref came in to wave it off, and still… Max Holloway retained his UFC featherweight championship!

Max Holloway def. Jose Aldo by TKO, Round 3, 4:51

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At UFC 218 on Saturday night, the heavyweight division’s future met its storied past. Francis Ngannou, one of the few bright spots among the big men, met Alistair Overeem on the night. ‘The Reem’ was a former Dream and Strikeforce champion, not to mention having captured gold in K-1. One of the deadliest strikers in heavyweight history, he’d have the speed, power, and yes, fighting smarts of Ngannou to contend with.

Overeem had dropped a title challenge to champ Stipe Miocic last year, but was back on track, having won two straight. Ngannou, meanwhile, came in on a formidable five fight win streak in the UFC. Stopping Andrei Arlovski in his last outing, he’d take a step up against another veteran in Overeem.

It didn’t take long for Francis Ngannou to get the job done. And in doing so, he made a huge statement. Overeem came out and immediately charged forward, looking to land a left hook. He’d miss, and the pair would clinch against the fence. Ngannou would drop a foot stomp, and control his opponent. With not much going on, however, ref Big Dan came in and broke the pair up.

Restarting the action in the middle, they engaged again, and in the blink of an eye it was over. Overeem fanned on a punch, while Ngannou launched a left uppercut (almost a hook) that landed clean. It sent Alistair Overeem sailing back, crashing to the canvas. Ngannou added a followup strike on the ground, but ‘The Reem’ was out cold. Ngannou had made a statement: he was the clear number one contender in the UFC’s heavyweight division.

Francis Ngannou def. Alistair Ovreem by knockout, Round 1, 1:42

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Henry Cejudo had failed in his first shot at flyweight king Demetrious Johnson, but there was no question that he was looking for a second. Opposite him Saturday in Detroit at UFC 218 was Sergio Pettis. The younger Pettis brother had a huge opportunity ahead of him, with the possibility of a title shot against ‘Mighty Mouse’ with a strong performance.

Could he pull it off? Pettis opened things with a kick early, but it wasn’t long before Cejudo did what he does best. The Olympic wrestler took the fight to the ground, easily rolling Pettis onto his back. Pettis was able to defend admirably, but was unable to escape, or really threaten with any submissions. Cejudo controlled the round, but struggled to score damage.

Round two saw a Cejudo body kick answered by a couple of kicks of Pettis’ own. He got off a couple of strikes on the feet, but would later slip, falling back. Cejudo dove into full guard and worked to pass. He’d control on the ground for several minutes, with Pettis hanging on, perhaps hoping for a standup. He wouldn’t get it, but would get up on his own, only to have Cejudo hanging off him. They’d go to a third round with Henry Cejudo firmly in control of the fight.

The third round did not go much better for Sergio Pettis. Despite needing a finish, he was on his back soon enough. Worse, he was unable to stand up despite his corner urging him back to his feet. Finally, with little over a minute to go Pettis made his way back up. He’d throw a high kick, and work his jab, looking for an opening. In the final seconds Pettis shot in for a takedown, not that it would have mattered. Henry Cejudo had already sailed to a one-sided decision.

The only problem – with a rather dull performance, would the UFC want to see Cejudo against Demetrious Johnson again?

Henry Cejudo def. Sergio Pettis by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

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Call it the All-Violence Classic. Eddie Alvarez and Justin Gaethje coached opposite one another on The Ultimate Fighter 26. With the TUF 26 Finale going down last night, the UFC saved one of the most promising coaches fights in years for UFC 218. Unfolding tonight in Detroit, fans were finally treated to a dream bout between ex-Bellator and UFC lightweight champion Alvarez, and ex-WSOF lightweight champ Gaethje.

Both men were decorated fighters, and Gaethje had yet to face defeat in his professional career. With no beef between the two on the show, and both capable of putting on exciting, violent fights, Alvarez vs. Gaethje was a strong contender for fight of the night heading into UFC 218.

In the first round, Justin Gaethje worked the legs of Eddie Alvarez, as expected. Alvarez, however, was showing solid head movement, and was getting the better of the action on the feet. Both men ate some heavy shots, but Gaethje almost certainly took more damage. Alvarez seemed to be enjoying himself, getting creative towards the end of the round with a rolling kick. The big story in round one, however, wasn’t the leg kick of Gaethje but the body shots of Alvarez, which were doing some serious harm.

Round two saw a bloody war continue, with Alvarez more often then not getting the better of the striking. Gaethje would cover up, and at times look stunned, but never really seemed in danger of being finished. Neither did Alvarez, who had his jab going at times. He continued to work the body; the pair would trade knees. As the round wore on, however, Gaethje’s leg kicks were becoming more of a factor, with Alvarez switching stances for the first time. At round’s end, a slip by Gaethje saw him flip over backwards and eat a kick on the way up.

Round three saw further damage to Alvarez’s leg; he switched stances again, and even pulled guard. Gaethje would work the leg, and Alvarez would try to take the back mid-round. The momentum seemed to shift, as Alvarez was having a hard time with his movement. Alvarez had his leg kicked out from under him, but came back with a number of uppercuts. Then, out of nowhere with ninety seconds to go, a huge knee from Alvarez connected to the head of Gaethje. The former WSOF champ dropped, and Alvarez added a shot or two before Herb Dean waved it off. After the bout, Alvarez was showing some serious swelling on the face — but he survived and walked away with the win!

Eddie Alvarez def. Justin Gaethje by TKO, Round 3, 3:59

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