Combat sports fans enjoyed a busy weekend with events across the globe. There are dozens of things to talk about, but here are just 10 takeaways for every fight fan to chew on.
10 Takeaways From Weekend of Fights
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Clay Collard Is Quietly Really Good
PFL 4 (held on Thursday, but close enough) saw a lightweight co-main event between “Cassius” Clay Collard and Joilton Lutterbach. Collard, a veteran of both boxing and MMA, picked up his fourth straight win inside the cage with a split decision victory. Currently leading the PFL Lightweight Playoff Race, Collard knocked off Anthony Pettis less than two months ago.
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Claressa Shields Is Here to Fight
The 2x Olympic Boxing Gold Medalist, Claressa Shields, headlined PFL 4 in a women’s lightweight contest against Brittney Elkin. The international boxing superstar survived a scary ground and pound attack from Elkin in the first round and bounced back with a ground and pound attack of her own in the third round to win her mixed martial arts debut. It will be interesting to see what “T-Rex” has next.
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Jason Jackson Has the IQ of a Champion
On Friday, Bellator 260 saw Paul “Semtex” Daley take on Jason Jackson in a 175-lb. catchweight contest that had serious implications for the welterweight division. Jackson, understanding Daley’s dangerous striking ability. was able to successfully take down the Englishman and fight his fight. This performance, although not appreciated by the live fans at the Mohegan Sun Arena, earned him a unanimous decision victory (30-27, x3). Jackson, ranked #3 in the division as of May 26, put in his bid for a shot at Bellator gold.
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Yaroslav Amosov Is a Problem
In the main event of Bellator 260, Douglas Lima put his welterweight title on the line against undefeated Ukrainian, Yaroslav Amosov. Lima, a veteran of 15 years, looked to test the legitimacy of Amosov’s perfect 25-0 record. In the 5 round contest, Lima struggled to find any success on the feet and was outwrestled on the mat. Once all said and done, Amosov earned a unanimous decision victory (50-45, x3) and won the welterweight title. With such a dominant performance, it’s hard to see “Dynamo” slowing down any time soon.
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Jose Pedraza Is a Legitimate 140-lber.
Top Rank Boxing saw a 140-lb. match-up between Jose Pedraza and Julian Rodriguez. Pedraza made his 140-lb. debut in 2019 after earning titles in both the 130 and 135-lb division. In his debut, he lost to Jose Zepeda in a ten-round decision. However, Pedraza had locked in two in a row since the loss and made it three in a row with the TKO finish on Saturday night.
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Bryce Hall Does Not Need to Box.
If it was not already blatantly obvious, Bryce Hall does not need to box—ever again. In a social media star boxing event (if that’s a thing?), Hall fought ‘rival’ social media star Austin McBroom. The fight did not go over too well for the TikTok star as the fight was waved off in the third round in favor of McBroom.
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Deji (Also) Does Not Need to Box
YouTube “star” Deji stepped into the ring on Saturday night as well, where he squared off against Vinnie Hacker. Deji, who looked quite out of shape, was stopped in the third round and should never fight again.
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Drew Dober Has a Chin of Steel
Although Drew Dober did not see his hand raised at the end of his fight with Brad Riddell, he did prove one thing—he can sure take a shot. The featured prelim fight of UFC 263 earned the Fight of the Night accolade after three hard-hitting rounds. Riddell landed 89 strikes, most of which ended up snapping Dober’s head back.
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Figueiredo vs. Moreno 3 May Not Happen (Anytime Soon Anyway)
Even before the bout began, it was hard not to think about a possible trilogy fight between Deiveson Figueiredo and Brandon Moreno for the UFC flyweight title. Although a trilogy fight may still be down the line, Moreno’s definite submission victory over Figueiredo may stall such a booking. The fight provided a couple of new questions: Who is Moreno’s first title defense against? Where does Figueiredo go from here?
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Robert Whittaker Has to be Next for Adesanya
With Marvin Vettori offering very little in his main event rematch against Israel Adesanya for the UFC middleweight championship, Robert Whittaker quickly made his claim for a rematch from their 2019 showdown. Adesanya, thinking the same, also called for the fight in his post-fight interview. This fight makes the most sense for the division since Whittaker has pieced together three straight wins since the loss.
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