Jan Blachowicz looked to show he can still be considered a top light heavyweight in the world, while Bogdan Guskov looked for his biggest win. Instead, their fight that opened the UFC 323 pay-per-view card ended in a draw.
The first round was a fairly quiet one, with the most notable part being the number of leg kicks Blachowicz was landing on Guskov.
Blachowicz looked to continue to work leg kicks, along with his jab, in the second. But Guskov answered with a right hand that dropped Blachowicz, with Guskov doing more damage with ground-and-pound from top position.
Despite a leg lock attempt from Blachowicz, Guskov continued to hunt for the finish, busting Blachowicz open in the process. The third round, however, saw Blachowicz show off some of his power on the feet once again. He snapped Guskov's head back a couple of times, coming forward with pressure. Blachowicz ended the fight with a flurry that briefly dropped Guskov.
Despite Blachowicz's strong performance, two judges scored the second round 10-8 in Guskov's favor, ending the fight with a majority draw.
Jan Blachowicz And Bogdan Guskov Battle To A Draw At UFC 323
Blachowicz's sole win since dropping the UFC light heavyweight title came against Aleksandar Rakic in May 2022. Since that fight, Blachowicz is 0-2-2.
Guskov is now 4-1-1 in the UFC, having not tasted defeat since dropping his UFC debut against Volkan Oezdemir.