UFC 299 just wrapped a long night of combat in Miami, and following a hellishly long boxing card in Knockout Chaos: Joshua vs. Ngannou so closely, we’re welcoming a Sunday respite from face punching. But first, we’re going to get into the action from the event, both the highs and the lows.
The main event put Sean O’Malley’s remarkable striking on display, showcasing crisp, accurate boxing, excellent footwork and last, but certainly not least, durability. It took a ridiculous amount of time before Vera realized that oblique and low kicks couldn’t win him the fight, especially with the volume that O’Malley was continuously peppering him with.
Sean’s jab was money. His combinations were surgical. His footwork was incredible—he seemed to be in perfect position 100% of the time. ‘Suga’ fought the perfect fight against a chronically tough veteran and made it look easy. Vera had but one saving grace tonight, and that’s his durability. The sheer volume of punishment he absorbed was massive.
If only he’d get his aggression off sooner, the results would almost assuredly be better. But to achieve that, he has to actually engage, and sadly, he just takes too long to going. By the time he’s confident enough to close the distance, he’s eaten so much damage that whatever he’s throwing can’t possibly be at full capacity. Timidity is certainly his most glaring failing.
In the sharpest contrast, Dustin Poirier and Benoit Saint-Denis both put on excellent performances, but it would be Poirier’s grit and power that would shine brightest. The entire card was excellent overall, but this contest was worth the price of admission. And yes, in case you were wondering, it won Fight of the Night.
There were about 4832 moments where Poirier gave fans reason to fret, most concerningly his determination to land a guillotine, often taking unnecessary risks on the ground. His corner even warned him to stop jumping guillotines and within the first minute of the following round, guess what he did? Jumped a gilly. Dustin, if you’re reading this, please stop giving us palpitations!
In the end, Dustin’s patience and crispy boxing had its intended effect, and even though he’s one of the nicest guys in the game with a heart of gold, he’s mean as all get out in that cage. He’s like a shark in freshly chummed waters and he’s relentless. Saint-Denis got brutalized. And once it was over, Poirier switched right back into good guy mode, sending the other guy—Mr. Violence—back to the ether until he’s summoned again.
From here, you’ll just have to listen to the show. But I will leave you with the results before turning you over to Zane and Eddie.
UFC 299 Results
Sean O'Malley def Marlon Vera Unanimous Dec
Dustin Poirier def B. Saint-Denis KO/TKO, 2:32 R2
Michael Page def Kevin Holland Unanimous Dec
J. Maddalena def Gilbert Burns KO/TKO, 3:43 R3
Petr Yan def Yadong Song Unanimous Dec
Curtis Blaydes def Jailton Almeida KO/TKO, 0:36 R2
Maycee Barber def Katlyn Cerminara Unanimous Dec
Mateusz Gamrot def Rafael dos Anjos Unanimous Dec
Kyler Phillips def Pedro Munhoz Unanimous Dec
Philipe Lins def Ion Cutelaba Unanimous Dec
Michel Pereira def M. Oleksiejczuk Sub, 1:01 R1
Robelis Despaigne def Josh Parisian KO/TKO, 0:18 R1
Asu Almabaev def CJ Vergara Unanimous Dec
Joanne Wood def Maryna Moroz Split Dec
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UFC 299: I hate to admit it