UFC 295 Post Fight Analysis

Hello fight fans! UFC 295 took place this weekend on Veteran’s Day at Madison Square Garden in New York City, NY and these fights were insane!

Special thank you to all those who fought for our amazing country!

Trivia (answer at end)

How many fights did it take Poatan to become a two division UFC champion?

Diego Lopes vs. Pat Sabatini

Recap: What a big win for Diego Lopes, the slight underdog.  He said he wanted an exciting fight and a finish and he sure got it.  Sabatini was switching up his stances at the start of the round and within the first 30 seconds he threw an aggressive combo that landed.  Then as Lopes was coming in, Sabatini went for the takedown which was defended and proceeded to go for another takedown that led to his demise.  Lopes, a BJJ black belt, reversed it and as Sabatini was getting up Lopes caught him with a right uppercut followed by a right over the top that clipped the side of his head.  Sabatini was hurt and was trying to get space from Lopes who ran at him with punches that made Sabatini fall to the ground.  Lopes finished him in 1:30.

What’s Next: If Pat Sabatini won this, he would have been in position to fight someone in the top 15.  That will probably be put on hold now and he’ll need another competitor to prove himself.  As for Diego Lopes, I think he’s ready to be headlining some fight nights and get a top 15 opponent.  He said he wants a 5 round fight with Bryce Mitchell and that would be a banger!  Mitchell doesn’t have a fight lined up so let’s see this!!! As mentioned before, Lopes is a black belt in BJJ and his striking is incredible.  It’s rare for a guy to have both when just starting off in the UFC so keep a lookout for him next year!

Matt Frevola vs. Benoît Saint Denis

Recap: What a fight between these two veterans (Frevola - United States Army Reserve and Saint Denis - French Army Special Forces) on Veteran’s Day.  Both came out striking and 40 seconds in, Saint Denis dropped Frevola with a left kick.  Since Frevola was down and Saint Denis was still standing, Frevola lifted Saint Denis up and slammed him to the ground for the takedown.  Saint Denis reversed the takedown and Frevola rolled out.  The two made it to their feet and then Frevola picked up Saint Denis and slammed him on the ground again.  The two returned to their feet, separated, and then SMACK!  As Frevola was repositioning and backing up, Saint Denis threw a left kick where his foot landed on Frevola’s right temple and DROPPED him.  This high kick was a thing of beauty.  The God of War moved in and got the knockout at 1:31.

What’s Next: Frevola will fight next year and stay in the top 15.  Saint Denis is a special force to be reckoned with (see what I did there? 😉 ) and will move in the top 15. After his first loss in the UFC, he has been on a tear.  He has a unique mindset that will take him far in this division.  I HIGHLY recommend going back and watching his first fight in the UFC, even though he lost, to get a sense of what this man is capable of.  Disclaimer, this fight was hard for me to watch but by seeing how he responded to that adversity, you’ll see there’s something special in this fighter. I’ve been watching this guy since his first UFC fight and I’ve been very bullish on him that I need to start betting. I CANNOT wait to see who he fights next! He called out Gamrot, Poirier, and Gaethje.  Love the big call outs but I’d like to see one fight in the top 10 before he gets those big guys and I want him to headline a fight night.

Jéssica Andrade vs. Mackenzie Dern

Recap: This fight between these two Strawweights was for the divorce money and Andrade came out on top.  Dern came out aggressive in the first round and showed us that she worked on her striking which she found success with, but she really needed to keep her chin down.  Andrade found success attacking Dern’s lead leg and with her counters.  At the end of the first round, Andrade dropped Dern with her right but the horn saved her.  In the second round, the two stayed on their feet which was the best scenario for Andrade.  With 2:42 left in the second round, Andrade dropped Dern with a left hook.  Andrade made Dern stand up and then forced her to the cage where Dern was flailing her arms to save herself.  Then around 30 seconds after the drop, Dern landed a right jab as she was rushing in but Andrade dropped her again with a counter.  Dern stood up, was wobbly, and clearly not functioning properly and Andrade dropped her for the 3rd time with a hook and right straight in the round (4th in the fight).  This time Dern fell against the cage and Keith Peterson had enough.  He called the fight and Andrade won by TKO at 3:15 in round 2.

What’s Next: This was a significant win for Andrade as she came off 2 losses in the Strawweight division and 3 losses total.  She also gave Dern her first finish in the UFC.  She has faced everyone above her except the champion and Esparza.  I think we need to see where the division goes after some of the women in the higher ranks fight.  Although Dern has incredible BJJ, she really needs to work on her striking if she wants to fight any of the girls ahead of her in the ranks.  Previously her striking coach was Jason Parillo, one of the best striking coaches around. He’s trained Michael Bisbing, José Aldo, Marlon Vera, and Mike Tyson. I’m not sure why she got rid of him but it was evident she needs to get him back. Her striking looked sloppy as her chin was up, she was rushing in, she was rushing in with her chin up, and her arms were flailing.  I hope to see improvement in her next fight and hear that she has Parillo back or a better striking coach.

Sergei Pavlovich vs. Tom Aspinall

Recap: Congratulations to Tom Aspinall the NEW INTERIM CHAMPION!!!  What an insane and quick fight.  The two felt one another out in the first 30 seconds and Pavlovich had a great combo that landed on Aspinall.  Then, with 3:55 left in the first round, Aspinall came in with a left to the body, a HARD right to the temple, another left hook, and then an even HARDER right to the temple.  Pavlovich went down and Aspinall came out with the bigger dick (pre fight press conference) and a belt after 1:09.

What’s Next: The Heavyweight division now has two champions.  Aspinall will fight the winner of Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic if both don’t retire after. As for Pavlovich, I think we’re going to have to see where the division goes. If I had to choose someone the most logical would be Gane. There’s a push for Gane vs. Almeida but I don’t think Almeida deserves a shot at Gane. I think he needs to fight Blaydes first. Also, if Gane waits for the winner of Aspinall vs. Jones/Miocic, he won’t be active for quite some time next year. Personally, I think Jones should have relinquished the title. I get that these fighters have worked hard to get it but if you’re going to be out for 8 months give or take, don’t hold up the division. The show must go on.

Jiří Procházka vs. Alex “Poatan” Pereira

Recap: AAAANNNNNDDDDD NEWWWWW UNDISPUTED UFC LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE WORLD ALEX POATAN PEREIRA!!!  So let’s get to it.  The Warrior and Samurai started off the round feeling one another out with leg kicks and Procházka felt the strength of Pereira a minute in when Pereira dropped him with his infamous leg kick (it’s infamous because you can’t see it coming, he doesn’t turn his hip over, and there’s A LOT of power behind it).  Pereira continued to attack Procházka with kicks and halfway through the round, Procházka got him in a clinch and took him down.  Smart strategy as you could see the damage done to Procházka’s leg.  Procházka continued to control the round and get in some punches and with less than a minute remaining in round 1, Pereira got to his feet.  

In round 2, Procházka was switching his stances and doing a lot of feints while Pereira continued with the leg kicks.  Procházka worked hard to control and push Pereira to the outside of the octagon where he found success almost halfway in where he unleashed a lot of punches and was trying to make it dirty (in my opinion to beat Pereira you need to push him to the fence and make it dirty as you’re pushing him backwards).  Pereira survived that exchange and with a minute left of the round, Procházka attacked Pereira with a big right hand.  Pereira countered with a right then left hook that dropped Procházka to his knees.  It looked like Procházka was trying to get a double leg takedown as his hands were wrapped around Pereira’s legs, but Pereira just let it rain with MULTIPLE punches and elbows to Procházka’s head who then fell backwards.  Marc Goddard stopped the fight right away once Procházka fell back at 4:08.

The commentators, fans, and I thought the stoppage was early.  I do think the refs should give the fighters a little more time especially for a championship fight.  At the same time, us viewers have every angle to look at and the ref could be seeing something different than us. Maybe Goddard saw that Procházka was knocked out as he mentioned in his octagon interview. I’m not sure but Pereira came out ahead.

What’s Next: We’ll see where the division goes for Procházka.  I know I’ve said that a lot, but there’s a lot in the works.  There’s a rematch between Błachowicz and Rakić, Krylov is coming off a big win, and Ankalaev and Walker NEEDS to be rerun.  What a career thus far for Pereira.  I hope a comedy is made about him.  Beat Izzy twice in kickboxing.  Chase Izzy down in the UFC.  Beat Izzy.  Move up a division.  Get revenge on Procházka for beating his mentor to take the title.  Become a 2 division champion.  Call out Izzy for the hell of it.  Ruthless buttttt Jamal Hill is most likely going to be next if his recovery goes well.  

Trivia Answer

7 fights

Until next time fight fans!

BMF

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