After one month of UFC 268, UFC brought its final PPV of the 2021 campaign with another stellar event. The PPV might just have topped all the PPV’s of 2021 with incredible performances and shocking upsets through the night. So without further ado, let’s have a look at some of the highlights from UFC 269.
▶ CRUZing up the division
View this post on Instagram
From headlining PPVs to fighting in the prelims, the journey has been tough for Dominick Cruz. At UFC 269, the UFC veteran had to survive an early takedown in the opening round. After escaping from the ground, it was Cruz’s aggression that secured him the final two rounds of the fight where he landed continuously on Munhoz, sitting down on jabs and throwing in combinations. This fight result takes The Dominator to #9 in the division and extends his win streak to two fights.
▶ The Sugar Show goes on
View this post on Instagram
Still unranked in the Bantamweight division, Sean O’Malley kept things concise against Rualian Paiva with a first-round TKO win to light up the first fight of the PPV. “The Sugar” landed heavily in his striking game, confusing Paiva with his long-range jabs and one-two combinations. O’Malley pressed forward patiently and hurt Paiva constantly before he dropped down to the canvas and the referee waved off the fight.
▶ Kai Kara France goes all out
View this post on Instagram
Like I said before, IFC 269 was full of surprises and one of the biggest ones was Kai Kara France knocking out Coby Garbrandt in the opening round of their fight. Kara France started off the fight in aggression, pressing towards his opponent which resulted in him scoring two knockdowns early in round 1. Garbrandt then scored a takedown which delayed the fight end but the kickboxer scored yet another knockdown which gave referee Herb Dean no other option apart from stopping the fight after just 3:21 of round 1.
▶ Julianna Pena tames the lioness
View this post on Instagram
Juliana Pena did the unthinkable at UFC 269 by out-striking and submitting the great Amanda Nunes in the co-main event for the Women’s Bantamweight title. In the opening round of the fight, Nunes landed harder and Pena did well to get away and secure a takedown and hold the former champ until the end of the round. The second round turned into a slugfest with both fighters exchanging punches to the face and this time it was Pena who was landing better punches which frustrated The Lioness. After a brilliant combination, The Venezuelan Vixen secured a takedown and got Nunes’ back which she transitioned into a rear-naked choke which ended the fight at 3:26 of round 2.
▶ The Oliveira era continues
View this post on Instagram
The main event of UFC 269 certainly lived up to its hype. Lightweight champion Charles Oliveira retained his title with a third-round submission of Dustin Poirier. The Diamond came out firing in the opening round of the fight and it looked as if the fight was going to go Poirier’s way before the Brazilian secured a takedown and held him there until the end of the fight. The same was the case in the following rounds before Oliviera jumped on Poirier’s back in round three and locked in a rear-naked choke for the win. The victory took the champ’s winning streak to ten fights and became the fighter with the most number of wins by submission (15) in the promotion.
[Featured Image Credit: Charles Oliveira]
Shashank Iyer