Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was back at it again last night (Sat., Dec. 7, 2019) as UFC on ESPN 7 went down from inside inside Capital One Arena in Washington D.C.
In the headlining act, Jairzinho Rozenstruik scored a memorable come-from-behind knockout finish over Alistair Overeem in the final seconds of the fight (see it again here). In the co-main event, Cynthia Calvillo and Marina Rodriguez fought to split draw after 15 minutes of action.
Biggest Winner: Jairzinho Rozenstruik
“Bigi Boy” was down big on all three of the judges scorecards and well on his way to suffering the first loss of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career. That was until he reached down deep and clipped “The Reem” with an hard strike that dropped him and put an end to the fight with just four seconds left. While a visibly hurt Overeem tried to stumble back to his feet, “Bigi Boy” was already celebrating the win, his tenth straight. Jairzinho has now won all four of his UFC bouts, all this year, all via knockout. Indeed, the big man has put every Heavyweight on notice, proving that he can take a licking all night and still pull a rabbit out of his hat in the blink of an eye.
Runner Up: Bryce Mitchell
Mitchell improved to a perfect 12-0, 3-0 UFC after defeating Matt Sayles in the very first round. And he did it in very impressive fashion, too. Indeed, “Thug Nasty” executed the rare twister submission on his foe, becoming only the second man to ever pull it off inside the Octagon. The first was Chan Sung Jung against Leonard Garcia quite a ways back.
The victory also secured Bryce a $50,000 post-fight bonus check. Not a bad way to go into the Christmas holiday. Mitchell’s stock definitely went up a few notches, and instead of being known more for almost having his nuts ripped open in a freak power drill accident, people will start recognizing for his legit skills inside the Octagon. At least the ones who haven’t already.
Biggest Loser: Thiago Alves
Coming into his fight against Tim Means, Thiago was looking to get back on track and get back on the win column in order to up his stock once he hit the free agent market. Indeed, “The Pitbull’s” UFC contract ran out in D.C., which means he is free and clear to sign elsewhere. The problem is, his stock didn’t get a huge bump, if anything it took a big hit. After getting starched by “The Dirty Bird” in the very first round, Thiago will be going into the office of promoters trying to get a gig coming off two straight losses. Not exactly a great selling point. Look, Thiago did good things in his UFC career, that cant be denied. But coming off two straight losses and having lost six of your last eight is a hard sell.
For complete UFC on ESPN 7 results and coverage click here.