By: Frank Hyden, MMATorch Senor Columnist
UFC 304 was this past weekend and featured two title fights and some
exciting fights and finishes. Who won and who lost? Let’s get to the
rundown.
UFC 304
GOOD- Arnold Allen vs. Giga Chikadze
Chikadze is throwing a lot of kicks early. Not many are landing but they’re keeping Allen from getting in close and being able to fire off
any offense of his own. That continues until the first round ends. The
second round begins with Chikadze pumping his jab over and over.
Allen’s having a lot more success here as he connects with some really good strikes before the second round ends. The third round starts with
Allen landing some good strikes as Chikadze seems to be less active this round. Allen is just pushing forward now and connecting at will.
Chikadze is fading and barely throwing anything as the fight ends. We
go to the judges to render their verdict. Allen wins the decision to improve to 20-3 while Chikadze drops to 15-4. Good win for Allen.
Note- Chikadze said he suffered a right shoulder tear at the end of the first round and will likely require surgery. I wish him a speedy
recovery.
GOOD- Christian Leroy Duncan vs. Gregory Rodrigues
Duncan is on his horse early as he tries to keep the fight at a
distance. Rodrigues chases him for a while before getting a takedown.
Rodrigues works his ground-and-pound and causes a large bump to form
on Duncan’s head. They grapple more until the first round ends. The
second round begins with Rodrigues landing some combinations before
they start clinching on the fence. Duncan opens a big cut on Rodrigues
with an elbow strike while Rodrigues lands some heavy strikes before
getting a takedown before the second round ends. The third round starts with some striking exchanges before Rodrigues gets another takedown. Duncan is right back up, though, and they fight on the fence
for a bit before Rodrigues gets another takedown and the fight ends.
We go to the judges to render their verdict. Rodrigues wins the
decision to improve to 16-5 and has won 3 straight fights while Duncan
drops to 10-2. Good win for Rodrigues.
GOOD- Paddy Pimblett submits King Green
They exchange a few strikes as Green taunts Pimblett repeatedly. Green
shoots in for a takedown but Pimblett slaps on a guillotine that he turns into a triangle and puts Green to sleep nearly three and a half
minutes into the first round. Not a smart decision by Green there.
Pimblett improves to 22-3 and has won 8 straight fights while Green drops to 32-16-1 with 1 No Contest. Good win for Pimblett.
GOOD- Tom Aspinall stops Curtis Blaydes
Aspinall successfully defended his Interim UFC Heavyweight
Championship here. Blaydes lands a good right hand early before
getting dropped by Aspinall and pounded out exactly one minute into
the first round. Aspinall is on a super hot streak right now and
improves to 15-3 and has won 3 straight fights while Blaydes drops to 18-5 with 1 No Contest. Aspinall has only gone past the first round in
3 of his 18 fights. Good win for Aspinall.
GOOD- Leon Edwards vs. Belal Muhammad
Edwards was looking to successfully defend his UFC Welterweight
Championship for the third time here. Muhammad gets an immediate
takedown but Edwards quickly gets to his feet. They scramble and fight
on the fence. Edwards lands some nice strikes but Muhammad gets another takedown and the first round ends. The second round begins
with several striking exchanges before Muhammad gets a takedown and
works a little ground-and-pound before the second round ends. The third round starts with more striking exchanges before Muhammad gets
another takedown. Edwards is quickly back up and he starts hunting for
a submission. This continues until the third round ends.
The fourth round starts with more striking exchanges until Muhammad
gets a takedown. He’s landing a lot of short strikes but not doing a
lot of damage and the fourth round ends. The fifth round begins with Edwards stuffing multiple takedown attempts before landing a big elbow
that cuts Muhammad open. It’s not enough, though, as Muhammad had a
lot more takedowns and control time and landed a lot more strikes. We
go to the judges to render their verdict. Belal Muhammad is the new UFC Welterweight Champion and improves to 24-3 with 1 No Contest and
has won 6 straight fights while Edwards drops to 22-4 with 1 No
Contest and has his 4 fight winning streak snapped. Good win for Muhammad.
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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