With Volkanovski moving up to try and claim a second belt, that left his natural division of featherweight needing a temporary throne sitter. Yair Rodriguez took on Josh Emmett for the interim 145lb title, with the winner booking their ticket with the aforementioned champion.

Let’s take a look at what could be next for the stand-out winners of the night.

Islam Makhachev

The Dagestani champion once again exemplified a beautiful well-roundedness for Mixed Martial Arts, putting a stop to any criticism from naysayers.

Coming into this monumentally significant bout there were question marks surrounding both fighters and their ability to deal with the opposing fighter’s strengths. As far as Makhachev is concerned, the questions were whether he could deal with Volkanovski’s striking if the Australian managed to keep the fight standing.

Fortunately for the featherweight champion, he did a great job of doing just that, with Makhachev only securing four of his nine takedown attempts and only controlling for seven minutes on the mat. Despite that, the Russian champion proved extremely slick on the feet. Throughout the opening rounds, he caused Volkanovski several problems on the feet even with a reach disadvantage.

Going under the radar is how difficult it is to fight someone as awkward as Alexander Volkanovski. Especially with him being of small stature but holding a long reach.

With the two elite fighters being so evenly matched, the fight came with its share of controversy due to the judges’ scorecards. For what it’s worth, I think they came to the correct conclusion determining that Makhachev edged the fight narrowly.

Although they won’t fight again immediately, I have no doubt we will see the two lock horns at least once more in the not so distant future. Now though, Makhachev must realign his focus back to the contenders in his division as there are a few knocking on the door. Selfishly, I want to see Rafael Fiziev get the next shot if he beats Justin Gaethje in March, but the next shot should be given to the winner of Charles Oliveira versus Beneil Dariush when that fight finally gets booked.

Makhachev’s Next Fight: Winner of Oliveira vs Dariush

Yair Rodriguez

The aforementioned Alexander Volkanovski now knows who his next opponent in the featherweight division will be.

The ever impressive Rodriguez secured the submission win over Josh Emmett to become the UFC interim featherweight champion. With that, he became the second active Mexican champion, behind Brandon Moreno.

The 30-year-old will stand as the most unique fighter Volkanovski will face so far in his UFC tenure. The style that Rodriguez possesses is enough to cause the current champion problems and it will be an extremely exciting fight.

Not only that, but it will be refreshing seeing Volkanovski face off against a different contender at featherweight, and a dangerous one at that.

Yair Rodriguez’ Next Fight: Alexander Volkanovski

Jack Della Maddalena

The rising Aussie continues to knock it out of the park, this time against the toughest opponent he’s faced so far in his career in Randy Brown. Leading up to this fight, everyone was under the same understanding that this should be a relatively difficult fight for Jack Della Maddalena, as Brown’s awkwardness is enough to cause anyone problems.

Despite that, the 26-year-old cut through Brown like a hot knife through butter. He showcased a side to his game that we had yet seen, once again proving he is the real deal.

I’m not one to want to rush prospects into fights with proven contenders, but in this case, I have no doubt Della Maddalena is ready for the top 15. Although the man I’m about to name is rank #9 and on a slight skid, I believe it would be an extremely competitive fight against Vicente Luque. If Della Maddalena overcame the task then we’d know for sure we have a star on our hands.

Della Maddalena’s Next Fight: Vincente Luque

Justin Tafa

Justin Tafa channelled his inner Mark Hunt whilst at UFC 284, scoring a beautiful walk-off KO over Parker Porter.

That makes it back-to-back first round finishes for the “Bad Man” after finding his confidence and form again. A heavyweight who has had an unfortunate rub recently is Tanner Boser. A match-up between those two could be a fun one.

Justin Tafa’s Next Fight: Tanner Boser 

Jimmy Crute and Alonzo Menifield

With this fight ending in a draw, I will play matchmaker for both of the light heavyweights. The home country fighter, Crute, was coming into this one full of confidence and ready to show a new side to his game. Menifield on the other hand was coming in off the back of consecutive first round finishes, solidifying that this fight was going to be bonkers.

It was exactly that, and by the end of it both fighters were utterly exhausted. During the Octagon interviews with both men, they both outlined their desires to run it back as soon as possible with their being no clear victor in this one.

Having said that, the only reason it ended in a majority draw was because the referee in charge, Marc Goddard, deducted a point from Alonzo Menifield in the final round.

With the two eager to run it back, I say why not?

Crute and Menifield’s next fight: rematch

The post What’s Next: UFC 284 Winners appeared first on Cageside Press.

Josh Emmett’s night ended early in the co-main event, as he was submitted by Yair Rodriguez. Here’s what could be next for Volkanovski, Emmett, and the rest of the main card’s losing side.

Alexander Volkanovski

Alexander ‘The Great’ fought an amazing fight Saturday night against the best lightweight in the world, but now he returns to his own lands to defend his throne. The man up next is clear; Yair Rodriguez had interesting circumstances to get to the interim title fight but he silenced any dissent with his brutal beat-down and stoppage over Josh Emmett. The Mexican kickboxer will face Volkanovski next to unify the belts in what will likely be a highly entertaining bout.

Volkanovski’s Next Opponent: Yair Rodriguez

Josh Emmett

Emmett lost his bid for the interim featherweight belt to Yair Rodriguez and thus falls back to earth, aka the featherweight contender picture. He will have to fight down a bit now, and the only available fighter in the top 10 who is in a position to fight up is Ilia Topuria. Topuria demolished Bryce Mitchell last year. The Spaniard has demolished everyone he has faced up until now, but Emmett is a credentialed wrestler who Ilia will not be able to just take down and submit, as well as being a tough, skilled striker who Topuria will not just be able to break and knock out. This type of fight is a massive step on the road to forging a young star like Ilia, and Josh Emmett is the perfect hammer to test his mettle.

Emmett’s Next Opponent: Ilia Topuria

Randy Brown

After another first round stoppage win, Jack Della Maddalena has reached new heights in his career. Randy Brown, meanwhile, had a very tough night at the office at UFC 284, falling inside of a round — knocked down, then submitted.

This setback snaps a four-fight winning streak for Brown, whose last loss had come against Vicente Luque in 2020. Another welterweight coming off a loss to a surging prospect is Mounir Lazzez, who was finished by Gabriel Bonfim last month.

Brown’s next opponent: Mounir Lazzez

Parker Porter

Just Tafa marked his return to fighting in his home country with a bang, as he smashed Parker Porter unconscious in just over a minute. The loss leaves Porter on a two-fight skid after he lost to prospect Jailton Almeida last May.

That said, Porter is 3-3 in the UFC and should get a chance to bounce back later this year. With the UFC’s heavyweight division a bit thin, there are a couple of ways this could go: an incoming fighter is one solution. Heavyweight legend Andrei Arlovski has been fighting a lot of unranked UFC heavyweights in recent years, and had a four-fight win streak snapped in his last fight. He’d probably be game. But the loser of Lukasz Brzeski vs. Karl Williams in March might make the most sense.

Porter’s Next Opponent: Brzeski vs. Williams loser

The post What’s Next: UFC 284 Losers appeared first on Cageside Press.

Less than 48 hours removed from the event, where Makhachev was awarded a decision win over featherweight champ Alexander Volkanovski, Hooker publicly posted his claim on social media.

While the initial message did not specify who he was accusing of cheating, Hooker made clear that it was Makhachev in subsequent statements.

“Dumb c*nt thinks he can fly to Australia hire a nurse to give him an I.V and we won’t find out. Cheating dog,” Hooker wrote in his initial statement. Several shorter messages would follow. “USADA doing f*ck all,” read one. “He doesn’t cheat, he doesn’t win,” Hooker wrote in another.

“Islam is a cheat,” Hooker’s most recent statement read. That came in response to a fan asking Hooker to clarify who he was speaking of.

Despite winning a unanimous decision on the scorecards in the UFC 284 main event, Islam Makhachev endured what most see as his toughest test to date. In the final round, the Dagestani fighter was knocked down by featherweight champ Volkanovski, who moved into Makhachev’s guard and began working him over.

Makhachev could be seen checking the clock, and was noticeably banged up following the bout. But he took the fight three rounds to two on two judges’ scorecards, and four to one on the third. The fourth round proved crucial, as an early takedown by Makhachev allowed him to control the bulk of the round — though he was unable to make use of the position, and endured a fair number of strikes despite having control of Volkanovski’s back.

Hooker is a teammate of Volkanovski at City Kickboxing in New Zealand.

Cageside Press reached out to USADA for comment in regards to Hooker’s allegations. A spokesperson for the anti-doping organization stated that “USADA takes all reports of possible violations seriously and we actively follow up on all information we receive.”

In regards to the use of IVs by UFC athletes, “Under the UFC Prohibited List, all IV infusions and/or injections of more than 100 mL per 12-hour period are prohibited at all times, except for those legitimately received in the course of hospital admissions, surgical procedures or clinical diagnostic investigations, and/or those received in-competition or out-of-competition that are determined to be medically-justified and within the standard of care by a licensed physician and administered by a licensed medical professional, without an approved Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE). If a prohibited substance of any amount is administered intravenously by infusion or injection, a TUE is required for this prohibited substance regardless of the volume of the infusion or injection or the circumstances of administration.”

Story updated at 1:45PM ET to include USADA’s response.

The post “Islam Is A Cheat” — Dan Hooker Accuses Makhachev of Illegal IV Use Following UFC 284 appeared first on Cageside Press.

A champ versus champ showdown that saw featherweight kingpin Alexander Volkanovski head north in search of a second title against Islam Makhachev, the Perth card’s headliner was a far more competitive affair than many had anticipated. While the Dagestani lightweight had success early, especially with his takedowns, he could not hold the Australian down — and as the fight progressed, Volkanovski’s gas tank became a difference maker.

While both men rocked the other early, in the fifth and final round, it was the featherweight champ dropping Makhachev, finishing the fight on top, raining down punches to the body and head. It wasn’t enough to get the nod on the scorecards, however, especially after Makhachev had finally managed to drag Volkanovski down in the fourth — only for the fired up Australian to deliver punch after punch back towards his foe.

Two scorecards had it 48-47 for Makhachev, the third 49-46. But those who had dismissed Volkanovski’s chances were proven wrong nonetheless: he had given the lightweight champion the toughest test of his career when all was said and done. Another round, and it felt like there might have been a very different outcome.

The bout picked up Fight of the Night honors, and while Volkanovski will face Yair Rodriguez moving forward, it would not be a surprise to see him run it back with Makhachev some day.

Speaking of Rodriguez, the Mexican featherweight put on a strong, well-rounded performance in the night’s co-main event, submitting Josh Emmett with a triangle to claim interim featherweight gold. That earned the Mexican standout one of two Performance of the Night bonuses at UFC 284. The other, deservedly, went to Jack Della Maddalena, who scored his fourth first-round finish in four fights with a submission of Randy Brown. That makes it three straight performance bonuses for JDM.

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Standing in the way of that historic feat was Islam Makhachev, looked upon by many as Khabib 2.0. Makhachev was of course a close friend and training partner of Khabib Nurmagomedov, the former UFC lightweight champ and Hall of Famer. Now it was Makhachev’s turn in the sun, as he looked to defend his own lightweight title for the first time on Saturday in Perth, Australia.

It was not a warm welcome for the Dagestani fighter at the RAC Arena, needless to say.

Just three fighters in UFC history have held gold in two weight classes simultaneously: Conor McGregor, Daniel Cormier, and Amanda Nunes. Volkanovski’s quest to be double-champ number four happened to be pitting the #1 and #2-ranked pound-for-pound fighters in the UFC against one-another, in a rare but welcome occurrence.

Early on, every Volkanovski move was meet with cheers from the highly partisan crowd. The featherweight champ switched stances frequently, and Makhachev remained outside. A right hand rocked Makhachev roughly two minutes in; Volkanovski stayed patient, refusing to charge in carelessly. Just when you thought the crowd couldn’t get any louder, they turned it up a notch.

In the second half, it was Makhachev turning up the heat. He dropped Volkanovski down to one knee with a punch, and fired a head kick that the Australian ate. Makhachev then closed the distance, latching on with a body lock. Ninety seconds still sat on the clock, as Volkanovski fought the hands. But Makhachev would not be denied, completing the takedown and taking the back in a scene reminiscent of Khabib vs. McGregor, or Khabib vs. Poirier. With thirty seconds left in the round, Makhachev worked on a rear-naked choke while Volkanovski fought the hands.

Both men raised their hands at the end of five minutes. There were up to twenty remaining, of course.

More stance switches from Volkanovski started round two, but he was noticeably more stationary. Closing the distance, Volkanovski connected, hurting Makhachev — but a minor mistake, with the Australian thinking about grabbing the neck for a choke, led to a Makhachev takedown. Volkanovski got back up, only to be taken down again. Again, Volkanovski returned to his feet, eliciting a cheer from the crowd. He reversed, and broke free of Makhachev, putting some much-needed distance between them. Much-needed if you were Alexander Volkanovski at least.

Again, in the later part of the round, Makhachev turned up the heat. He rocked Volkanovski, and had him retreating. A jab by the lightweight champ was trailed by a left hand. Volkanovski chopped Makhachev’s lead leg. The pair finished the round tied up along the fence, though it was Makhachev’s back pressed against it.

Early in the third, Makhachev fired a kick, while Volkanovski landed his right hand. In a clinch, they traded knees. Makhachev ripped a kick to the body. A Volkanovski leg kick wobbled the lightweight champ. Another clinch, with knees from Makhachev before he dragged Volkanovski down. Volkanovski used to fence to keep his balance, wall walking up then reversing. Back at center, Volkanovski continued to switch stances, and Makhachev, uncharacteristically, was taking steps backward. Volkanovski went on the attack, Makhachev slipped, and the Australian looked to take advantage — but ultimately couldn’t, though he would get off a couple of punches before the end of the frame.

Round four opened with some early exchanges, both men firing. Makhachev fired a left. Volkanovski closed the distance for a combination. Makhachev then timed a takedown perfectly, landing it; Volkanovski scrambled to the fence, but Makhachev took the back and had a body lock on tight. Jammed up by the fence, Volkanovski didn’t have much room to move. He fought the hands, and punched back at Makhachev. The pair were handed a warning by the ref; someone had their fingers in the other’s gloves. But the position remained the same; Makhachev never came close to a finish, and seemed content maintaining the position.

Volkanovski, meanwhile, began wailing on Makhachev with punches despite having his back mounted, literally screaming at the Dagestani and getting the crowd going.

The fifth and final frame opened with a touch of the gloves and a hug, before they got back down to business. Makhachev landed a left, later, Volkanovski ate a hard knee. Undeterred, he walked Makhachecv down, but in a clinch, ate more knees. Makhachev landed another takedown, but Volkanovski nearly reversed, and was able to scramble back to his feet regardless. Another takedown attempt by Makhachev was countered by Volkanovski, who wound up in dominant position momentarily after stepping across Makhachev’s leg. They were back on the feet with two minutes remaining, and Volkanovski almost landed a throw.

The end of the affair was certainly dramatic. A right hand by Volkanovski hurt Makhachev with a minute to go, dropping him! Volkanovski loaded up and ripped the body from guard. He went body-head. Makhachev was in a bad spot, on his back, hurt and tired, but the clock was his friend. Volkanovski loaded up on a few big ground strikes before the horn sounded — the pair going the full 25 minutes!

In what was unquestionably a close, highly competitive and highly entertaining fight, all three judges awarded the victory to Islam Makhachev. The crowd didn’t like it, and Makhachev had his toughest test to date — coming away with the win, as well as the possibility that the pair could meet again some day.

Retaining his lightweight title, Islam Makhachev will now have contenders like Beneil Dariush to contend with, and perhaps the winner of Conor McGregor vs. Michael Chandler. Volkanovski, meanwhile, will have Yair Rodriguez to face, the Mexican featherweight having won an interim title earlier in the night.

Official Result: Islam Makhachev def. Alexander Volkanovski by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)

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The belt was on the line because of champ Alexander Volkanovski moving up to fight Islam Makhachev at lightweight, and the winner of this fight would face him regardless of the result in the main event. Many saw this fight as being a match-up between the thrilling, creative kickboxing of Yair Rodriguez and the knockout power in boxing from Josh Emmett. Each man’s resume was littered with thrilling fights and this fight was likely to be no different.

Both men came out round one in orthodox stance. They felt each other out for a bit; Yair threw some leg kicks and front kicks to the belly while Josh Emmett pressured forward. A big round body kick from southpaw from Rodriguez hurt Emmett a bit and made him back off. Yair was kicking so much and tagging Emmett, mostly to the body, that Emmett could not even get a strike attempt off; he had thrown zero strikes two minutes into the round. After that he did land his first strike, a right hand while Yair circled out from the cage.

Emmett would sometimes corner Rodriguez against the fence but then only had a moment to take advantage of it as the slick footwork of the Mexican was able to get him back to open space. Emmett was not doing well enough to head him off, rather he was charging forward with big straight shots. Then, with ninety seconds left in round one, a big right hand from Emmett hurt Yair. Rodriguez retreated backwards and eventually fell to his back when being off-balanced during another exchange with Emmett. Emmett rained down hammerfists and elbows while Yair looked to throw up triangles instead of trying to stand up. But in the last fifteen seconds of the round Rodriguez did land some good elbows off of his back. No matter what position he was put in he would clearly fight like a caged tiger.

Round two saw an early trade in the pocket w here both men landed massive shots. Yair then got back to working the body of Emmett, who responded by swinging massive overhands at first. Then he switched lanes, catching a kick and looking for a takedown after entering the clinch. But Yair was able to get back to striking after breaking the clinch. He slammed southpaw round kicks into the arms of Josh Emmett, then an elbow seemed to rock Emmett, who was showing signs of fading due to the heavy attritional damage he had taken to the body in so short a time. Emmett went back to massive explosions from outside with no setup which Yair was able to just slide out of the way of.

With two minutes left in the round Rodriguez did a jump knee that Emmett caught and used to dump him to his back. He was in the full guard of Yair as he tried to get off ground and pound. Yair threw up armbars and triangles and with fifty seconds left in the round locked one up. He tightened the triangle rapidly and Emmett, already depleted from body shots, was forced to tap.

#AndNEW interim featherweight world champion, @PanteraUFC! 🏆 #UFC284 pic.twitter.com/lTxaCA6txd

— UFC (@ufc) February 12, 2023

This performance was incredibly impressive from Rodriguez, who dominated Emmett on the feet for almost the whole fight, and then won the fight on the ground, which has been a weakness of his in the past. Brandon Moreno got a title for Mexico in January, so Yair winning now earns Mexico its second UFC title at the moment, with another one potentially coming soon from Alexa Grasso.

Official Result: Yair Rodriguez def. Josh Emmett by Submission (triangle choke) Round 2, 4:19

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Maddalena had been one of the breakout stars of 2022, getting the nod as Newcomer of the Year (tied with Jailton Almeida) from this publication and others. Three fights, three wins, all in the first round made Maddalena someone the UFC wanted to promote.

Randy Brown, on a four-fight wins streak of his own, wanted to play spoiler on Saturday, with the card going down in Perth, Australia — making it a hometown fight for JDM, born in Perth.

In the opening minute of the fight, Brown got a “warm welcome” from fans at the RAC Arena, with an “F-You Randy” chant breaking out. Brown, undeterred, started the fight pressing forward, using his reach well. He mixed in some kicks, and sidestepped out of the way when Maddalena closed the distance. But a moment later, Brown was caught with a right hand to the jaw!! He went down, and Jack Della Maddalena piled on with hammerfists! Brown somehow survived, with the ref taking a good luck. JDM then jumped on Brown’s back, got his hooks in, and wrapped up a rear-naked choke! Already hurt, Brown had no choice but to tap.

If Randy Brown was a test, Jack Della Maddalena passed with flying colors. “I want someone in the top 15 midway through the year,” Maddalena said following the victory. He may just get it.

ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED (AGAIN)!? #UFC284 pic.twitter.com/eTtrV0y7cz

— UFC (@ufc) February 12, 2023

Official result: Jack Della Maddalena def. Randy Brown by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 2:13

The post UFC 284: Jack Della Maddalena Taps Randy Brown, Earns Another First Round Finish appeared first on Cageside Press.

In his way stood Parker Porter, who entered with a record of 3-2 in the UFC as he looked to play spoiler.

There would be no spoiling “Bad Man” Tafa’s parade on Saturday night in Perth, however.

Tafa began the fight in his usual southpaw stance while Porter came out orthodox. Porter came forward early on and the pair exchanged blows in the pocket a few times. Parker Porter seemed to get the better of the exchanges in that first minute, but then right as the second minute of the fight began Justin Tafa landed an absolutely insane straight left hand while backstepping. That was followed by a right hook that laid Porter out. Tafa did not even bend down to think about follow up shots, he just stood looking down at his opponent before doing a little dance and walking off.

JUSTIN TAFA IS BAAAAAAD MAN 🤯@Justin_Tafa with the knockout in one minute! #UFC284 pic.twitter.com/oKbVGQKfvT

— UFC (@ufc) February 12, 2023

This was a massive win for Justin Tafa. A crushing knockout, at home, in the UFC’s first trip to Australia since 2019. The night could not have gone better for Justin Tafa.

Official Result: Justin Tafa def. Parker Porter by KO (punches) Round 1, 1:06

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Australia’s own Crute would have the crowd behind him, and was badly in need of a win having lost two straight. Menifield was on the opposite trajectory of late, having won his last two fights by KO/TKO.

The X-factor in the fight was arguably Crute’s time off, as he missed all of 2022, while Menifield picked up his two wins.

The light heavyweight duo opened the fight trading, wasting no time slinging leather. Crute ducked a punch and blasted through a takedown a little under 90 seconds in, though Menifield quickly got to one knee. He could not make it all the way up, however, as Crute piled on with knees to the thighs and continued to control his opponent, finally moving back to a single-leg takedown, planting Menifield on his back.

In a scramble, Menifield made it back up, leading to Crute changing levels again. This time, Crute used a well-placed trip to get the job done. When Menifield again returned to an upright position, it wasn’t long before the crowd erupted as another takedown from Crute was landed. Crute then went after a choke; Menifield popped free, got up, and landed a hard left hook, hurting Crute! A kick from Menifield was blocked, but Crute wound up going down off a slip. Menifield began landing some bombs as Crute covered up on his knees. Crute would make it up with all of 15 seconds remaining — which turned out to be a bad idea.

Crute landed a head kick that didn’t phase Menifield, but Alonzo landed a bomb that dropped Crute! Technically, an elbow, right hand, and a couple more shots! All heavy. While eating hammerfists, Crute somehow landed a desperation takedown, surviving the round.

How compromised was Jimmy Crute heading into round two? He went down in the opening exchange, rocked. He immediately went into a single-leg shot, but Menifield stuffed. He looked for an opening as Crute scrambled to the fence. Crute made it to one knee, powered up, but ate an elbow in the clinch. Crute fired a knee, and pushed off his opponent. Menifield landed a jab, and another. A left landed for Menifield. Crute backed up to the fence, changed levels, but looked to be in slow motion. Crute landed a knee, and a head kick, getting in his own shots, but Menifield showed them no respect.

Menifield’s every punch landed with power, and Crute was a tired, cornered animal. Crute did his best to clinch up and earn some recovery time. He did just that, landing a massive takedown with just over a minute remaining. This time, it was Crute controlling Menifield along the fence. With one hook in, he wrapped up a rear-naked choke, but lost it almost immediately. The thirty seconds remaining in the round were not enough to get the job done, as Menifield gave the thumbs up on a second choke attempt.

Round three opened with both men winded; the round was going to test who had more in the tank, and who wanted it more. Crute moved in for a takedown, and Menifield used the fence to stay upright. That led ref Marc Goddard to take a point from Menifield, a decision that seemed to take the wind out of Menifield’s sails. The fight restarted in a 50/50 position along the fence, allowing Crute to once again pursue a takedown. Menifield would reverse, but Crute hung on to a leg, getting his opponent down a good ways away from the fence.

With half a round remaining, Jimmy Crute went to work in half-guard. He soon passed to mount, and Menifield turned, but reclaimed the half-guard position again. Again, Crute moved to mount. Menifield sat up, trying to scramble, with no success. Crute looked for a keylock, also with no success. Menifield worked to his knees, but Crute was able to take the back, controlling with his grappling while dropping punches.

Ultimately Jimmy Crute could not put Alonzo Menifield away. And when it came to the scorecards, with the point deduction in mind, two judges ruled the fight a draw.

Official Result: Jimmy Crute vs. Alonzo Menifield ends in majority draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)

The post UFC 284: Roller Coaster Ride, Point Deduction Sees Jimmy Crute vs. Alonzo Menifield End in Draw appeared first on Cageside Press.

Pedro had been on a two-fight first round finish streak since his return from a four-year hiatus last year. The UFC’s return to Australia was a perfect opportunity for him to showcase his skills in front of his fellow countrymen. Meanwhile, Bukauskas had been cut from the UFC after a horrific knee injury caused by a kick from Khalil Rountree. Outside the promotion, the ‘Baltic Gladiator’ won back his old belt, the Cage Warriors light heavyweight title and then got his ticket back into the UFC when Tyson Pedro needed an opponent on short notice.

There was a feeling that anything could happen when these two warriors collided.

The first round began with a wild missed spinning kick from Modestas. He switched stances constantly while standing across from the orthodox Pedro. One minute in Bukauskas landed a clean left hook, and then a few seconds later another, bigger one. He was landing clean shots while Pedro hardly landed much of anything.

Bukauskas’ footwork on the outside was able to keep Pedro from trapping him, mostly. Eventually Pedro did get him in the clinch against the fence though. He used his leverage to twist and lift Modestas to the mat, settling in side control. When he tried to elevate to pass the guard, Bukauskas twisted and got to his knees, but Pedro threatened a front choke which he used to put his foe back on the mat. Modestas got to his feet soon after, though Pedro tried to do a fancy trick to get a flying leglock of some sort and failed. Not much happened in the remaining minute until the last five seconds when Bukauskas landed a spinning back kick to the chest and then a big left hand, the biggest strike of the fight thus far.

Round two kicked off with Tyson Pedro breathing heavy and looking tired. Still he came out and landed a leg kick, a tool that had won him his last two fights at least in part. The pace was similar to the first round, careful and considered, but Pedro was landing more strikes now that he was going to the leg kicks. Both fighters only landed upstairs periodically until halfway through the round Pedro threw a teep kick to the belly while Bukauskas was coming forward. The result was a brutal groin strike which crippled the ‘Baltic Gladiator’ momentarily.

Living up to his nickname, Bukauskas only took about thirty seconds to recover before indicating he could continue. He got back to it with a left body kick, but Pedro returned with two body kicks of his own. With a minute left in the round Pedro got into the clinch but Bukauskas did a good job framing off and getting underhooks to keep from being taken down. He reversed the clinch and got outside position, which he used to land while breaking the clinch with twenty seconds left. Bukauskas landed some last few decent shots before the bell sounded.

Both of the first two rounds were close, meaning the scorecards could have been all over the place, so both fighters really needed to take the final round. Pedro opened with a right hand but Bukauskas responded with a cleaner counter shot that snapped the Aussie’s head back. One minute in Pedro came forward with a right hand which he used to enter the clinch in an over/under position. Bukauskas was able to defend the takedown and separate with only slight difficulty.

Bukauskas seemed to have a slight edge on the feet once more, as Pedro by that point had largely gotten away from the leg kicks which made him more competitive in early round two. With two minutes left Pedro did not seem to be going for it much, despite needing to have some urgency in order to win. Bukauskas was somewhat urgent, as he kept a higher pace and kept throwing big 1-2s. With one minute left Pedro clinched up again but Bukauskas got the outside position by the time they got to the fence and landed some knees while there. The clinch broke with twenty seconds left and Bukauskas threw big shots, all of which missed at first. Then, after a clinch initiated by Pedro broke, Bukauskas opened up once more with punches and this time landed. Tyson Pedro circled out to avoid them and thus the clock ran out on the fifteen minutes of fight time.

15 HARD minutes in the books! @tyson_pedro_ and @BalticGladiator take it to the score cards in our #UFC284 Featured Prelim! pic.twitter.com/dzkQ93Ztsp

— UFC (@ufc) February 12, 2023

Bruce Buffer’s reading of the scorecards revealed that all three were unanimous for Modestas Bukauskas. After facing massive adversity with his injury and being cut from the UFC, the ‘Baltic Gladiator’ stayed true to his warrior name and returned at UFC 284 to get a win as an underdog against a highly touted prospect.

Official Result: Modestas Bukauskas def. Tyson Pedro by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

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