UFC Vegas 67: Five Things We Learned
The UFC finally returned from its holiday break with UFC Vegas 67. The card featured a main event between Sean Strickland and Nassourdine Imavov, impressive performances from elite up-and-comers, and a boatload of UFC news.
Here are five things we learned at UFC Vegas 67.
Sean Strickland is trying to get into fun fights
Strickland just wants to have fun. In his UFC Vegas 67 main event against Imavov, Strickland fought much more aggressively than he had in the past.
Throughout the fight, Strickland stuck to his jab-heavy approach, but he expanded upon it by mixing in more hooks and heavy straights. At the same time, he was still able to keep up his traditional high striking volume. This increase in aggression helped Strickland land increasingly powerful shots which ultimately resulted in a decision victory.
This was a great way to get back in the win column in consecutive losses. When you take into consideration that he took the fight on less than a week’s notice, it is an even better victory.
The UFC had news to break
Apparently, the UFC brass did not take much of a holiday break. At the UFC Vegas 67 post-fight press conference, Dana White broke a bunch of news. In short, Francis Ngannou was released, Jon Jones signed a new contract and is going to fight Ciryl Gane at UFC 285, and Leon Edwards will look to defend the welterweight title against Kamaru Usman at UFC 286.
We did not learn any of this during the fights, but that is a pretty memorable post-fight press conference. You can learn quite a bit if you sit and listen to White talk about the future of the UFC.
Dan Ige earned his nickname
Dan “50k” Ige showed how he got his nickname. After dominating for the majority of the fight, “50k” landed a short hook that brutally ended Jackson’s night and paid him $50,000 for a performance bonus.
Not only did Ige get $50,000 richer, but he got back in the win column. After losing his last three bouts, Ige desperately needed a win to keep him ranked inside the top-15. He was able to get that job done and looked good in the process.
Umar Nurmagomedov is improving
Nurmagomedov is only getting better. At UFC Vegas 67, he showed another layer to his game as he knocked out Raoni Barcelos. Nurmagomedov is not known for his hands. Sure, he has great striking, but it is centered around his kicks and distance striking. The improvements that he showed with his hands are notable. If Nurmagomedov can continue to add knockout power to his skillset he will be a special talent.
Nurmagomedov has already established himself as the best prospect in the bantamweight division. At just 26, if he continues to improve, he will shed his prospect status and become an elite contender.
Javid Basharat deserves a ranked opponent
At UFC Vegas 67, Javid Basharat continued to show that he is legit. His win over Mateus Mendonca only proved that further.
Mendonca is not an easy fight for anyone; he has very good grappling, quick hands, and lots of power. Basharat was able to able to deal with the pressure and aggressiveness of Mendonca while staying technical and landing more strikes. On the ground, he avoided submissions and spent a lot of time in top position.
This impressive performance showed that it is time for Basharat to get an opportunity against a ranked opponent. If the UFC were to book Basharat against any bantamweight ranked between 10 and 15 it would be a great fight.
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