By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch Senior Columnist
UFC 298 was this past weekend and featured some exciting fights. Who
won and who lost? Let’s get to the rundown.
UFC 298
GOOD- Anthony Hernandez submits Roman Kopylov
They trade punches to start before mixing in some kicks. Hernandez
nearly gets the fight to the ground but Kopylov regains his feet.
Hernandez keeps trying for the takedown but can’t get it as the first
round ends. The second round begins with some striking exchanges.
Hernandez gets a takedown and they grapple for a while before
Hernandez secures the rear-naked choke and gets the tap not quite
three and a half minutes into the second round. Hernandez improves to
12-2 with 1 No Contest and has won 5 straight fights while Kopylov
drops to 12-3 and has his 4 fight winning streak snapped. Good win for
Hernandez.
GOOD- Merab Dvalishvili vs. Henry Cejudo
They start off with some striking exchanges until Dvalishvili gets a
takedown. Cejudo is right back to his feet, though, and he denies
another Dvalishvili takedown and sends him onto his back. Dvalishvili
fights back to his feet and they exchange a few strikes before the
first round ends. The second round begins with Cejudo getting an early
takedown. Dvalishvili quickly gets back to his feet and both men start
winging punches. Dvalishvili gets another takedown but Cejudo is
trying to fight back to his feet. They scramble a bit before the
second round ends. The third round starts with some nice striking
exchanges. Dvalishvili gets a big slam but Cejudo scrambles back to a
knee. They separate shortly before the fight ends. We go to the judges
to render their verdict. Dvalishvili wins the decision to improve to
17-4 and has won 10 straight fights while Cejudo drops to 16-4. Good
win for Dvalishvili.
GOOD- Ian Machado Garry vs. Geoff Neal
Both men are throwing a lot of kicks early. They mix in some punches
and fight on the fence for a moment. They return to the kicks before
the first round ends. The second round begins with some good striking.
They’re mixing things up well and they fight on the fence before the
second round ends. The third round starts with more striking
exchanges. Garry’s throwing a lot of volume and in a close fight like
this that could be the difference. Some more nice combinations and
this close fight ends. We go to the judges to render their verdict.
Garry wins the Split Decision to improve to a perfect 14-0 while Neal
drops to 15-6. Good win for Garry.
GOOD- Robert Whittaker vs. Paulo Costa
They start off with some striking exchanges. They’re both mixing up
their punches and kicks well. They slug it out until the first round
ends. The second round begins with the fighters trading kicks.
Whittaker’s pulling ahead but Costa keeps fighting. Whittaker keeps
landing big strike after big strike but Costa’s taking it. He’s having
a little success with the low kicks but not much else. On the other
hand, Whittaker is having a lot of success with his punches and
landing some hard ones before the second round ends. The third round
starts with more heavy striking exchanges. Whittaker’s still having
more success but Costa’s still fighting. Whittaker continues to do
damage until the fight ends. We go to the judges to render their
verdict. Whittaker wins the decision to improve to 25-7 while Costa
drops to 14-3, with those 3 losses coming in his last 4 fights. Good
win for Whittaker.
GOOD- Ilia Topuria stops Alexander Volkanovski
Volkanovski was looking to defend his UFC Featherweight Championship
for the 6th time here. Topuria is pushing forward so Volkanovski is
relying on a lot of kicks early. That continues throughout the first
round and Volkanovski seems to be doing well and avoiding damage. The
second round begins with more of the same, with Volkanovski sticking
and moving around. Both men start landing some heavy strikes. However,
Topuria pushes Volkanovski back to the fence and crushes Volk with a
huge overhand right that knocks him out immediately three and a half
minutes into the second round. Ilia Topuria is your new UFC
Featherweight Champion and improves to a perfect 15-0 while
Volkanovski drops to 26-4. Good win for Topuria.
*************
The main event of UFC 300 will be UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex
Pereira (9-2) defending against the former UFC Light Heavyweight
Champion who had to vacate the title due to injury, Jamahal Hill
(21-1, 1 No Contest). Hill ruptured his Achilles tendon back in July
2023 so he’s making a great recovery to be fighting 9 months later. I
wish him good health, I wish both fighters good health.
*************
Wanderlei Silva (35-14-1, 1 No Contest) will be inducted into the UFC
Hall of Fame this summer. Silva had a great career with a lot of
achievements. He was a PRIDE Middleweight Champion with 4 successful
defenses, with the most Knockouts, most wins in PRIDE history, and won
a PRIDE World Grand Prix tournament. He has a lot of big wins and
highlight reel moments so this is well deserved. He joins another
deserving man who will also be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame,
Frankie Edgar (24-11-1).
My new epic fantasy book is out. It’s called Kingdom of Zarias: The End’s
Beginning. The exciting epic fantasy series Kingdom of Zarias
returns with the 4th book in the series. After the harrowing events of
Book 3 the residents of the Kingdom of Zarias continue on their paths.
Serena Summers continues to learn and grow as a fighter, desperately
seeking to become stronger before she loses anyone else in her life.
Daniel Summers discovers new parts of the world that open his eyes to
just how little he truly knows. A new hero, Lamar Abeers, arrives to
join the fight against evil. Plus, Zach Summers, Tiana Highsmith, and
Xavien Ekens continue their journeys with their friends, and a new
ruler of Vhaharen is crowned. The world has found a little peace.
However, that peace is only temporary. In a shocking act of violence,
the monstrous villain Galren strikes from the shadows and changes the
world forever. This is Book 4 in the series. There’s lots of action,
magic, and monsters in the Kingdom of Zarias. It’s like a tabletop
game in novel form. It’s on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and many other
places. If you’re interested, I would greatly appreciate it if you
would check it out and support me. Also, here’s the link to my
Compendium book about the Kingdom of Zarias series- KoZ Compendium Thank you
very much, have a good day.
Comments and suggestions can be emailed to me at
hydenfrank@gmail.com and you can follow me on Twitter at @hydenfrank.
Thanks for reading and have a good day.
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