In their rematch to retain the bantamweight title, Merab Dvalishvili defeated Sean O’Malley with ease in the main event of UFC 316 in Newark, New Jersey.
Dvalishvili (20-4 MMA) made an argument as one of the sport’s best bantamweights, perhaps of all time, while United States President Donald Trump watched from cageside on Saturday night.
Dvalishvili, who won his 13th victory in a row in the third round, expressed his delight at his upcoming title defense against Cory Sandhagen (18-5 MMA), who has won four of his last five fights.
Dvalishvili said, “You’re the man, let’s go,” adding that he was interested in fighting Sandhagen next.
O’Malley (18-3 MMA) lost to Dvalishvili by unanimous decision in September. O’Malley assured readers that the loss was a minor setback and that it would be gradual.
“100 percent, thank you guys for coming out,” O’Malley said.
In the co-main event, Kayla Harrison submitted Julianna Pena with a second-round kimura, a form of submission known as the double wristlock or reverse keylock, to change hands.
After the 34-year-old had control over every aspect of the fight, Harrison and Pena embraced in the Octagon and showed the most class in it.
Given that the majority of MMA fighters do not win a UFC title, Harrison claimed during her post-fight interview that her weight loss on Thursday night was “worrying.”
Amanda Nunes, Pena’s 13-year-old former opponent, was called out by Harrison (19-1 MMA). Nunes, a former two-division champion, retired in 2023. She made a comeback as time went on. As the Prudential Center crowd beamed as Harrison and Nunes posed for a face-off and discussed a fight later this year, it now seems inevitable.
At 1:03 of the second round, Vicente Luque defeated Kevin Holland to claim a D’Arce choke.
Holland, who is currently 28-13 in MMA, has now won three of his final five, underscoring the need to maintain a leading welterweight position. Luque, a 23-11-1 MMA fighter who moves from Brazil to New Jersey, has lost three of his matches.
By unanimous decision, middleweight Joe Pyfer defeated TUF alumnus Kelvin Gastelum on November 29, 28 and 29, respectively.
Gastelum (19-10 MMA) is currently in the midst of a slump, while Pyfer (14-3 MMA) has won his previous two matches.
Source: Aljazeera
Leave a Reply