UFC 262 crowned a new lightweight champion with Charles “Do Bronx” Oliveira. It also was the second event that had fans in attendance. This time, the Toyota Center in Houston Texas to another sold-out crowd, and if more proof was needed after UFC 261 that fans can fuel fighters, UFC 262 proved to be just that.
There was a lot to take away from UFC 262, here are some things that stood out.
Bonuses Courtesy of El Cucuy
Tony Ferguson always makes for fun fights, training videos, and press conferences. One thing he did that all the fighters on the UFC roster should thank him for is bringing up $75k dollar bonuses. Previously it was $50k, but Ferguson’s plea to Dana White on Thursday looks to have changed that.
Here We Go!
The first fight of the night had a short notice, Sean Soriano face Christos Giagos. When a situation like this happens history has shown that the fighter with a full camp will usually come out on top. That did happen here, but not without Soriano nearly finishing Giagos before getting caught in a very well set-up D’arce choke off of a scramble. So, yes Soriano lost, but give him a full camp and maybe he finishes the near KO’s he started. Check out, Giagos submission win:
Ninjas Waste No Time
Jordan Wright wasted no time getting a first-round knockout over Jamie Pickett. As viscous as he was getting the win, the display of sportsmanship shown by Wright afterward never gets enough attention. See his quick work here:
Young Eating The Old
Even though this would not be the first time Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza would have his arm broken in competition, it is not something fans thought they would see happen in MMA. His opponent, Andre Muniz seemed to think he was better than Souza in the grappling department and it turned out, he was right. The armbar submission would break the arm of the multiple-time ADCC and World Jiu-jitsu champion. This sport is rough but as legendary as Souza is, it’s a young man’s game.
Barboza Sends a Message
Shane Burgos is one of the toughest products out of Team Tiger Schulmann in New York and he gave Edson Barboza a run for his money. He ate the Brazilian’s vicious leg kicks and gave back a few heavy shots of his own before Barboza did what he does best, which is wear-out tough fighters. Barboza let the rest of the featherweight division know after this win, he is gunning for the title.
El Cucuy
Tony Ferguson lost his third fight in a row. Something about the way he fights still shows the same intensity he has always brought to the cage but at 37-years old it might be time to consider that the run of “El Cucuy” seems to be coming to an end. See, “Young Eating The Old” takeaway above, but what makes this sad about Ferguson is that we never got to see him at his best against Khabib Nurmagomedov. During the post-fight press conference, Dana White said, “time gets us all,” when commenting on Ferguson and in MMA, it’s never been more true.
And New…
Charles Oliveira took some hard shots from the former Bellator lightweight champion, but he did have his moments in round one too when he took Chandler’s back. Whether or not that wore Chandler out, remains to be seen but the left hook Oliveira landed in the second round was the beginning of a new chapter for the UFC lightweights. Oliveira is the new 155 pound King, but “Justin Gaethje has entered the chat.”
There’s obviously more to take away from this event than what is listed here. The lightweight division is one of the most historically entertaining divisions in all of MMA. Chandler lost, but still has proven to be one of the best lightweights in the world, and he had moments where the fight could have been his. Lots of fights to make.
What did you take away from the event?
