Note- A few weeks ago there was a UFC show headlined by Justin Gaethje vs. Edson Barboza that I referred to as UFC Fight Night 149. I guess that was technically UFC on ESPN 2 and this show is actually UFC Fight Night 149. I regret the error and have fined myself an undisclosed sum.
Also, I’ve been busy with life and the NBA playoffs and it was a slow week in MMA so this will be a little shorter than usual.
UFC St. Petersburg was this past weekend. Let’s get right to the rundown.
UFC St. Petersburg
GOOD- Krzysztof Jotko vs. Alen Amedovski
This fight was solid and fine. Jotko controlled Amedovski with takedowns and landed some nice ground-and-pound on route to the decision win. Nice win for Jotko.
GOOD- Roxanne Modafferi vs. Antonia Shevchenko
Like the previous fight, Modafferi just completely controlled Shevchenko here with multiple takedowns and clearly won the fight. However, one of the judges scored it for Shevchenko somehow. I don’t know how, but it’s possible I missed something because I was exercising as I watched the show. Good win for Modafferi.
GOOD- Sergei Pavlovich stops Marcelo Golm
Pavlovich stunned Golm with some early shots, then drops him and pummels him to force the ref stoppage. Good win for Pavlovich in a little over a minute total.
GOOD- Islam Makhachev vs. Arman Tsarukyan
There was some really good grappling going on in this fight, as both guys showed what they could do. Tsarukyan started off strong but then faded as the fight wore on. Makhachev was tenacious and that paid off for him as he pulled away at the end of the fight to get the decision win. Good win for Makhachev.
GOOD- Alistair Overeem stops Alexei Oleinik
They went to the ground early but that didn’t last long. On the feet, Oleinik started throwing big shots. He landed some, but Overeem was able to take it. Overeem returned fire but really struck gold when they got in the clinch. Overeem started landing knees and Oleinik could only take so much before he went down and the ref had to jump in. Good win for Overeem.
NEXT: WHAT THE FUNK? WHY YOU SHOULD CARE ABOUT BEN ASKREN
This is Overeem’s second win in a row (this and a victory over the winning Sergei Pavlovich last November) and while I don’t think he’s in line for a title shot, he’s not that far from one. Both wins have been TKO stoppages in the first round and, of course, the heavyweight division is seemingly always wide open. Another big win like this and Overeem has a case for a title shot. We’ll have to wait to see what happens and how things play out at the top of the division, but this is a possibility. Never say never, I guess.
Comments and suggestions can be emailed to me at hydenfrank@gmail.com and you can follow me on Twitter at @hydenfrank
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