Aljamain Sterling, arguably the greatest bantamweight of all time, defends his title against Sean O’Malley, who is coming off an impressive victory over Petr Yan. Read below for a recap of UFC 292’s main card in Boston, Massachusetts.
Marlon Vera VS. Pedro Munhoz
Vera has the most finishes in bantamweight history and hopes to put himself in contention for a title shot with a victory. Tonight is the twentieth UFC fight for Munhoz, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt.
Round 1
Vera has started slow, which is typical for him. Munhoz lands a couple of stiff jabs and targets the legs of ‘Chito.’
Round 2
Vera settles into the fight, begins to land more jabs, and narrowly misses Munhoz’s head with a crescent kick.
Both men are having the most success with their jabs. As we reach the halfway point of the fight, there’s not much in this so far, a tough one to score: great left and right combo by Munhoz to end the round.
Round 3
Vera hurts Munhoz with numerous jabs that land clean.
A piercing body shot hurts Munhoz, but he just keeps coming. Both men have landed similar amounts of strikes. However, Munhoz looks to have come off worse.
A typical Vera fight – slow start but strong finish. It’s always a risky approach; will it be enough this time?
Marlon Vera wins via unanimous decision, 30-27 x2, 29-28.
Da’Mon Blackshear Vs. Mario Bautista
Blackshear won a grappling contest only seven days ago and looks to continue his impressive 2023. Bautista has won four fights in a row and has excellent submission skills, along with an impressive 75% finish rate.
Round 1
There are strong knees from Blackshear against the fence as Bautista displays great takedown defense until finally succumbing to Blackshear’s attempt.
Bautista is taking some time to adjust to a late change in opponent. He was initially due to fight Cody Garbrandt, a smaller boxer, instead of a tall grappler.
Blackshear escapes a guillotine towards the end of the round.
Round 2
Blackshear eats an elbow as they separate from the clinch.
Bautista grows into the round and begins to turn the tide in this fight. Blackshear has surprised many with how well he’s fought so far. He certainly doesn’t look like an underdog.
Round 3
Din Thomas makes a good point – when the men separate from the clinch, Bautista always seems to land a shot that could influence the judges.
Bautista looks to have better cardio and is constantly pressuring Blackshear. He lands a takedown and keeps his opponent down for most of the round.
Mario Bautista wins via unanimous decision, 29-28 x2, 30-27
Ian Garry Vs. Neil Magny
The former Cage Warriors welterweight champion, Ian Garry, looks to make it 13-0 against the late replacement Neil Magny, who had the most UFC wins in welterweight history.
Round 1
Garry’s first leg kick puts Magny on the floor, but he soon gets back to his feet. He continues to eat kicks as Garry’s nimble movement allows him to avoid strikes.
Magny could be compromised; he looks uncomfortable throwing kicks and is swept off his feet for the second time.
A front kick from Garry lands on Magny’s face. A dominant round from ‘The Future.’
Round 2
Garry is targeting the left leg of Magny, whose winces get more animated the more kicks he eats.
A head kick from Garry knocks out Magny’s mouthpiece. It’s becoming uncomfortable to watch as the left leg of Magny is clearly injured, and he’s struggling to put any weight on it.
Round 3
Garry can do whatever he wants to Magny at this point, as he can’t move. ‘The Future’ is taking his time as he looks for a highlight reel finish.
The final bell goes, and Garry flips off his opponent.
Ian Garry wins via unanimous decision, 30-26 x2, 30-24
Zhang Weili Vs Amanda Lemos
Co-main event for the UFC Strawweight Championship.
Round 1
Zhang catches a leg kick and takes the fight to the ground. She gains side control and lands some big right hands on the face.
Lemos secures a D’arce! Zhang escapes and takes the back of Lemos. Unbelievable. Lemos survives the ground-and-pound onslaught—wild round.
Round 2
Cracking right hand from Lemos. Smelling blood, she gets excited, but it goes against her as Zhang takes her down.
Zhang takes her back before moving into side control. Lemos does excellent to get back to her feet, but it’s not long before Zhang returns her to the canvas.
Round 3
Lemos goes for a takedown early on. In the clinch, Zhang lands short, snappy elbows and scores another takedown on the Brazilian.
Another dominant round for the champion. Lemos will have to throw the kitchen sink in the championship rounds if she wants to emerge as the victor.
Round 4
Lemos tries a choke from her back, but Zhang remains calm and weathers the storm. The champion is showing some signs of fatigue, which is hardly surprising given her current output.
Lemos connects with a lovely right hand—a better round for the Brazilian. We go into the final round.
Round 5
Huge right hand from Zhang floors Lemos. She’s hurt but still conscious. Zhang tries to finish the fight with ground and pound, but Lemos is able to hang on.
The broadcast shows 265 significant strikes from the champion to just 21 from the challenger. It’s the largest strike differential in women’s UFC history. Lemos is a warrior; there’s no quit in her. She goes for a guillotine at the end.
Zhang Weili wins via unanimous decision, 50-43, 50-44, 49-45.
Aljamain Sterling Vs. Sean O’Malley
Main event for the UFC Bantamweight title.
Round 1
Sterling is putting pressure on right away, trying to get O’Malley to commit so that he can look for openings.
Good inside low kicks from the champ follow a front kick from O’Malley.
Round 2
O’Malley drops Sterling with a straight right hand! Ground and pound follow, and we have a new Bantamweight Champion. Wow.
Sean O’Malley wins via TKO. And New!
Discussion about this post