UFC 278 live stream results, play-by-play updates: Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards rematch takes center stage TONIGHT (Sat., Aug. 20, 2022) inside Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, a five-round welterweight title fight that will see “The Nigerian Nightmare” defend his 170-pound strap against longtime nemesis Leon Edwards. Before that clash of styles gets underway in “The Beehive State,” former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold looks to turn back the clock against Brazilian bruiser and one-time title challenger Paulo Costa. In addition, ex-featherweight champion Jose Aldo takes on bantamweight wrestling powerhouse Merab Dvalishvili, a 15-minute contest with serious title implications for the 135-pound division. Veteran bangers Wu Yanan, Lucie Pudilova, Tyson Pedro and Harry Hunsucker round out the ESPN+ main card PPV action.
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 278 fight card below, starting with the early ESPN+ “Prelims” matches scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. ET, followed by the remaining undercard balance on ABC/ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET, before the PPV main card start time at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+ PPV.
Keep in mind that we will also be the spot for the latest news, recaps, and post-fight analysis following “Usman vs. Edwards 2.” Without further delay, see below for the latest UFC 278 results. (Note: This will go from the bottom up; therefore, scroll toward the bottom for the latest detailed round-by-round action.)
UFC 278 QUICK RESULTS:
Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards — Edwards def. Usman via KO (head kick) at 4:04 of Round Five
Paulo Costa vs. Luke Rockhold — Costa def. Rockhold via unanimous decision (30-27 x3) — HIGHLIGHTS
Jose Aldo vs. Merab Dvalishvili — Dvalishvili def. Aldo via unanimous decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)
Wu Yanan vs. Lucie Pudilova — Pudilova def. Wu via TKO (elbows) at 4:04 of Round Two
Tyson Pedro vs. Harry Hunsucker — Pedro def. Hunsucker via TKO (body kick and punches) at 1:05 of Round One
Marcin Tybura vs. Alexandr Romanov — Tybura def. Romanov via majority decision (29-28 x2, 28-28)
Leonardo Santos vs. Jared Gordon — Gordon def. Santos via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Luis Saldana vs. Sean Woodson — Split draw (27-29, 29-27, 28-28)
A.J. Fletcher vs. Ange Loosa — Loosa def. Fletcher via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28 x2)
Amir Albazi vs. Francisco Figueiredo — Albazi def. Figueiredo via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:34 of Round One
Aori Qileng vs. Jay Perrin — Qileng def. Perrin via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
Victor Altamirano vs. Daniel Da Silva — Altamirano def. da Silva via technical knockout (strikes) in round one — HIGHLIGHTS
UFC 278 LIVE PLAY-BY-PLAY:
170 lbs.: UFC Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards
Round 1: Edwards looks for an early body kick. Low kicks around the one-minute mark. Usman fires a low kick and shoots a double. Good defense from Edwards. He goes for a front headlock, but ends up on his back. Usman follows him down and lands elbows. Good right hand. Rear waist lock as Edwards gets to his feet. Knees to the thigh two minutes in. Trying to wrench Edwards down, can’t do so, still has his hands locked. Slick trip from Edwards and now he’s on top in mount with two minutes to go.
Edwards moves to the back and cinches up the body triangle. Looking for the RNC with a minute to go. Short strikes. 10-9 Edwards.
Round 2: Usman opens with some big swings. Solid right hand into the clinch. Solid defense from Edwards as Usman tries to tee off against the fence. One minute in. Low kick from Edwards. Usman continues to advance and takes a finger in the eye. Edwards tossing out kicks two minutes in. Nice counter knee. Jab from Usman, looping left by Edwards. They trade body kicks. Usman straight right, Edwards body kick. Counter left by Edwards to answer a low kick, body jab behind it. Usman ties up with two minutes to go.
They separate. Edwards shoots, gets sprawled on. Nice drive through, lands a knee before they separate with a minute to go. Usman again looks to open up on the fence. Nice body shots. He changes levels and drags Edwards to the ground. Solid shots from guard. 10-9 Usman.
Round 3: Fighting at range for now. Sneaky off-speed shot by Usman puts him on top a minute in. Edwards works his way up, eats knees to the thigh. Jockeying for position two minutes in. Separation. Combo from Edwards capped by a knee. Usman with a flurry against the fence, then another double-leg. Usman using one hook to control on the mat with two minutes to go.
Ref wants more action. One minute to go. Front headlock for Usman, then short punches. He opens up in the final seconds. 10-9 Usman.
Round 4: Jab lands for Usman. Edwards snap kick, Usman low kick. Edwards grabs a rear waist lock and tries to take the back a minute in. Pressing Usman against the fence. They separate without too much damage done. Usman swings a right hand and hits another double-leg. Dropping punches two minutes in. Continuing to work from guard. Two minutes to go.
Edwards working his way up against the fence. He separates, gets taken right back down with a minute to go. Good switch from Edwards, who grabs the fence to get to his feet. Herb Dean pauses and resets them. Usman clubs him with some heavy punches on the break. 10-9 Usman.
Round 5: Jabs from Usman, low kick from Edwards. Things slow down for a bit. One minute in. Heavy swings from Usman, then another double-leg that Edwards manages to defend. Grinding against the fence. Two minutes in. Usman changes levels, no luck. Ref separates them for lack of action. Snap kick from Edwards, good 1-2. Two minutes to go.
Edwards body kick strays low. Usman lands his own body kick when they resume. Nobody pushing the pace at the moment. One minute to go. Out of absolutely nowhere, Edwards uncorks a left high kick that hits like a cannonball. Usman’s out before he hits the mat, and Leon “Rocky” Edwards is your new UFC Welterweight Champion.
Final result: Edwards def. Usman via KO (head kick)
185 lbs.: Paulo Costa vs. Luke Rockhold
Round 1: Rockhold appears to sting Costa with a left hand in the first exchange. Solid kicks from Rockhold. He shoots, eats punches as Costa defends. Body kick to two-piece from Costa, eats a body kick. Hard 2-3, then a single-leg a minute in. Costa on top in guard. Short punches as he moves to half guard. Two minutes in. Staying heavy, looking for mount. Rockhold denies it, back to half guard. Body punches from Costa. Full mount with two minutes to go.
Rockhold slips free, stands, and lands on the break. Brazilian kick attempt, quadruple body kick. Spinning back kick attempt. Costa ties up with a minute to go. Rockhold tries a whizzer kick, denied. Good body kick. Straight left. Nice check hook. 10-9 Rockhold.
Round 2: Rockhold looks absolutely spent in the corner. That said, he starts the round by hurting Costa with a straight left. Rockhold continues to pressure, hits a takedown, can’t take the back. Costa grabs a body lock, lands a hard elbow. Rockhold’s exhausted. Body shot from Costa, big left hook. One minute in. Clean check hook by Rockhold, eats a body kick in return. Left hook downstairs from Costa. Spinning back kick by Rockhold. Tornado kick to the body of all things. Big left cross inside. Low-high 1-2 from Costa. He blcoks a head kick two minutes in. Head kick from Costa, right hook from Rockhold. Rockhold body and low kicks. Costa body kick, takes an eye poke. Body kick from Rockhold. Costa jabs the body. Two minutes to go.
Costa tries a wheel kick, then punches Rockhold in the balls against the fence. Costa thinks he’s got the finish, but Rockhold gets time to recover and takes advantage of it. Hard low kick. Lead left met by a Costa left hook. Costa body kick. One minute to go. Low kick from Rockhold, tries to spin. Hard low kick by Costa, then a right to the body. Another heavy body kick from Costa. 10-9 Rockhold.
Round 3: Body kick from Costa to start. Continuing to stalk. He tries to spin and ends up on his back. Rockhold tries to pass right to mount and loses position. Body shots from Costa. 1-2. Hard straight left by Rockhold in return. One minute in. Body kick lands for Costa. Stiff jab. 2-3. Huge straight left by Rockhold in return but he’s too tired to capitalize. Crescent kick to 1-2. Two minutes in. Rockhold shoots, denied. Side control for Costa. Two minutes to go.
Costa looking for mount. Now the back. They’re talking to each other. Right hand by Costa with a minute to go. Looking for the RNC, tries an arm triangle transition, ends up on the bottom. 10-9 Costa.
Final result: Costa def. Rockhold via unanimous decision
135 lbs.: Jose Aldo vs. Merab Dvalishvili
Round 1: Spinning back kick from Dvalishvili. Aldo constantly raising the lead knee to ward off takedowns. Lots of feints from both. One minute in. Dvalishvili tries a 1-2. He shoots against the fence, denied. Aldo sends out jabs. Two minutes in. Dvalishvili lands a low kick, eats a way heavier one in return. Counter knee by Aldo, body jab. Aldo low kick with two minutes to go.
Dvalishvili barrels in for another takedown attempt. Knees to the thigh as Aldo looks for punches. Nice left hook by Dvalishvili, who slips on the break. Nice body shot from Aldo, another counter knee to the body. One minute to go. Dvalishvili tries to spin. Low kicks. Spinning back kick attempt, avoids a two-piece from Aldo. Aldo looks to jump on him late. 10-9 Aldo.
Round 2: Aldo low kick, Dvalishvili overhand. Stiff jab from Aldo. Dvalishvili shoots under a right hand and takes him do the fence, landing knees to the thigh. One minute in. More knees from Dvalishvili. Continuing to knee the thigh. Two minutes in. More knees to the thigh. Aldo shoves him away. He rips the body, just misses on a head kick. Dvalishvili shoots again and puts him on the fence. Looking for elbows. Two minutes to go.
He tries shoulder strikes, eats a left hook on the break. He shoots again, puts him on the fence again. They separate with a minute to go. Lead right from Aldo, who stuffs a takedown. Body jab. Low kick. Dvalishvili again puts him on the fence, both swing on the break. Nice knee from Aldo. He blocks a spinning back fist, gets put on the fence again. 10-9 Dvalishvili.
Round 3: Dvalishvili shoots yet again, denied yet again. Nice overhand right lands clean. He tries to spin. Brief clinch. One minute in. Aldo yet to throw a strike this round. Dvalishvili leg kick. Nice knee by Aldo. Stiff jab. Brief clinch. Dvalishvili shoots again, denied again. Two minutes in. Jab by Aldo, flurry by Dvalishvili. Aldo knee, Dvalishvili overhand. Dvalishvili combos blocked. Two minutes to go.
Body shots from Aldo, tries a left hook upstairs. Dvalishvili shoots again, denied again. Shoots again, denied again. Just can’t get Aldo down. One minute to go. Knees to the thigh from Dvalishvili. Aldo stuck against the fence. More knees to the thigh from Dvalishvili. 10-9 Dvalishvili.
Final result: Dvalishvili def. Aldo via unanimous decision
135 lbs.: Wu Yanan vs. Lucie Pudilova
Round 1: Low kicks from Wu to start. Pudilova shoots, denied. Wu moving well a minute in, picking away with leg kicks. Pudilova falling short with her offerings so far. Nice double-leg as I type that. Big diving right, avoids an armbar and settles in half guard two minutes in. Side control for Pudilova. Ref wants more action with two minutes to go.
Elbow from Pudilova. Occasional hammerfist. One minute to go. Looking for the back, can’t get the hooks in, stays attached. 10-9 Pudilova.
Round 2: Quick exchange in the early going. 1-2 from Pudilova. Wu two-piece falls short. They trade low kicks. One minute in. This is considerably less electric than I expected. Neither landing clean when they exchange. Wu low kick. Pudilova puts her on the fence, lands a knee before they separate. Pudilova 1-2 falls short two minutes in. Pure sparring session this round. They tie up and Pudilova muscles her down with a head-and-arm throw. She jumps on Wu’s back as she tries to stand and looks to wrap up the RNC with two minutes to go.
Hard hammerfists from Pudilova after Wu slips free. Side control. Now the back, dropping big elbows. Absolute torrent of elbows from Pudilova and the ref steps in.
Final result: Pudilova def. Wu via TKO (elbows)
205 lbs.: Tyson Pedro vs. Harry Hunsucker
Round 1: Tentative start. Counter jab from Pedro buzzes Hunsucker, and Pedro follows with a body kick that folds Hunsucker against the fence. A few more punches and in comes the ref.
Final result: Pedro def. Hunsucker via TKO (body kick and punches)
265 lbs.: Marcin Tybura vs. Alexandr Romanov
Round 1: Romanov ties up early and takes Tybura to the fence. Can’t get the outside trip, elects to just slam him instead. Tybura on his knees, trying to work his way up. One minute in. Stuck on one knee against the fence. Romanov staying heavy, lands a series of short right hands. Tybura gets to his feet two minutes in. Romanov holding onto the body lock, drives knees into the thighs. Geeze, these look like they hurt. Another high-amplitude slam by Romanov. Two minutes to go.
Romanov landing good punches as Tybura tries to rise. Tybura waits it out on one knee. One minute to go. Romanov maintains control, continues to land punches. Knees to the thigh. 10-9 Romanov.
Round 2: Tybura denies an attempt to tie up. Spinning elbow by Romanov, counter elbow by Tybura. Romanov takes him to the fence. They separate a minute in. Lead right from Tybura. Overhand left falls short. Overhand left lands for Romanov, who eats a body kick in return. Hard left by Tybura, his best of the fight two minutes in. Good right hook by Romanov, shoots, denied. Tybura pops him with a jab, then lands a low blow soon after. 1-2-1 connects, Romanov comes back with hard lefts and an unsuccessful shot. Two minutes to go.
Romanov slips throwing a kick and ends up on his back. North-south for Tybura. Side control. Romanov holding on as Tybura lands short punches to the body. One minute to go. Romanov turns to his knees and Tybura takes the back. Romanov slips out and drops punches before attempting a last-second choke. 10-9 Tybura.
Round 3: Low kick by Romanov. 1-2 from Tybura. Romanov taunts with some shuffle-steps, lands a body kick. Romanov unable to tie up a minute in. Low kick. 2-1 by Tybura lands clean. 3-2 from Romanov in return, eats the same. Two minutes in. He eats a low kick, tries a couple spins. Tybura uppercut. Low kick. Two-piece. Right hook by Romanov with two minutes to go.
Low-high combo from Tybura. Romanov straight left. Knee to the body. Tybura lands a straight after eating a leg kick. One minute to go. Romanov taunting but not actually doing anything. Falling short with big swings. Tybura straight left. Straight right. Overhand left and Superman punch from Romanov. 10-9 Tybura.
Final result: Tybura def. Romanov via majority decision
155 lbs.: Leonardo Santos vs. Jared Gordon
Round 1: Gordon tries a 2-1. Tentative start. One minute in. Silva falls short with a body kick. Hard low kick lands for him. Ref pauses to warn Santos about keeping his fingers extended. Two minutes in. Gordon tries to blitz, eats a knee to the body coming in. Two-piece falls short, jabs and low kick do not. Good little blitz with two minutes to go.
Santos trying to catch him coming in with knees and elbows. Some heavy kicks from him, eats an overhand right inside. Gordon much busier with his hands, nice low-high two-piece. Vicious flurry to the body and head against the fence with a minute to go. Clinch. More body work by Gordon, knee from Santos. Gordon keeping the pressure on, striking in the clinch. 10-9 Gordon.
Round 2: Low kicks from Gordon. Solid knee by Santos. Gordon ties up and hauls him to the fence. Separation, back in, separation. Clinch knee from Santos a minute in. They’re working well for him so far, but Gordon’s landing all the good punches. More brief clinches. Gordon flurry, Santos head kick attempt. Nasty elbow by Santos as he eats punches two minutes in. Santos blasts in with a shot and wraps up the body lock. Looking to pull Gordon down to take the back. Gordon turns to face him and presses him against the fence. Knees to the thigh. Two minutes to go.
Body work from Gordon. He’s doing a nice job of getting just a little space and landing a few shots to the gut before tying back up. Separation with a minute to go. Again Gordon enters with punches, absorbing a knee on the way. Separation. Solid cross by Santos, who looks like he’s starting to feel the pace. Gordon marches after him until the bell. 10-9 Gordon.
Round 3: Santos lands a low kick, eats an overhand right. Low kicks from Gordon. Lead right downstairs. One minute in. Gordon continuing to push forward. Flurry on the fence. Santos not offering a whole lot in return. Trading jabs. Two minutes in. Another flurry from Gordon. Santos’ only consistent offense has been his knees inside and those are getting rarer. Gordon digs another body shot as he enters the clinch and continues to go to work with short punches. Nice right downstairs, then another and some head shots behind it. Two minutes to go.
Gordon just marching after him, slams another right to the midsection and clinches. Punches on the break. Another right body shot into the clinch. He’s in cruise control. Well-timed double-leg by Santos, can’t drive through. Gordon landing punches from sprawl position with a minute to go. Hammerfists piling up. Santos gets him to the fence, tries to spin, eats punches at the bell. 10-9 Gordon.
Final result: Gordon def. Santos via unanimous decision
145 lbs.: Luis Saldana vs. Sean Woodson
Round 1: Trading kicks at a distance to start. Nobody landing clean yet. Woodson tries a 1-2 behind a spin. One minute in. Saldana to the body, trips him up with a low kick. Woodson stalking. Saldana catches a kick, can’t use it, lands a low kick. Check left hook and body kick. Woodson lands a jab, absorbs a spinning back fist, lands a body kick two minutes in. Straight left. Low kick by Saldana. Check hook. He’s moving well so far, eats a body kick, then appears to knock Woodson senseless with a check hook. Saldana tries a walkoff, but Woodson makes it to his feet, clearly still affected. Another jab sends Woodson to the mat, and a taunting Saldana runs in and blasts him with an illegal knee before knocking him unconscious with punches. The ref pauses and, unbelievably, lets Woodson continue, electing to just take a point. Two minutes to go.
More kicks from Saldana, Woodson still advancing. Woodson punches into the clinch. Saldana tries an elbow on the break. Low kick, left hook. One minute to go. Low kick trips Woodson up. Saldana tries a Superman punch off the cage. 9-9.
Round 2: Body kick from Saldana. Low kicks. His movement still looks good. Body kick, counter right. One minute in. Jab from Woodson lands well. Clean 1-2, his first major connection of the fight. Saldana spins, falls short, lands a combo. Low kick. Woodson sends out volleys, doesn’t land clean. Two minutes in. Saldana loads up, can’t connect. Low kick. Body kick blocked. Nice double-leg puts Saldana on top in guard. Two minutes to go.
Woodson tries an omoplata, then wraps up a buggy choke when Saldana takes side control. One minute to go. I mean, 10-9 Woodson? Striking was close this round and he had Saldana in a submission for two full minutes.
Round 3: Woodson continuing to advance. Solid left hand after eating low kicks. Nice jabs. Clean straight left. Cross counter to combination a minute in. Reactive shot from Saldana, eats elbows, gets the body lock. Woodson holding onto a kimura grip. Saldana tries a spinning back fist on the break two minutes in. Counter right by Woodson. Another level change by Saldana, lands a knee before separating. Both land combos. Two minutes to go.
Low kick by Saldana. Woodson counter right, jab upstairs. More Saldana low kicks. They trade rear hands. More Saldana low kicks, counters from Woodson. Saldana shoots, denied. One minute to go. Saldana tries to spin again. Both connect with right hands, then lefts. Looping uppercut by Saldana, tries to spin again. Woodson counters a takedown, then grabs a front headlock. 10-9 Woodson? Not a lot of clean hits but he landed them.
Final result: Split draw
170 lbs.: A.J. Fletcher vs. Ange Loosa
Round 1: Solid 1-2 from Fletcher. Loosa low kick and jab. Hard right cross by Fletcher, then an elbow behind it. One minute in. Wheel kick attempt just misses. Loosa answers with a leg kick. Check hook by Fletcher, eats a body kick in return. Loosa shoots, denied. Uppercut and front kick land for Fletcher, then a counter right to answer a body kick. He’s looking sharp tonight. Two minutes in. Nice body shot by Loosa, low kick soon after. Fletcher lands his own body shots. Another right downstairs. Head kick attempts from both. Hard right downstairs lands for Fletcher. Two minutes to go.
Jab-elbow attempt, Loosa looks for his own level elbow. Body jab. Fletcher sneaks in a head kick as Loosa throws. Body kick met by a Loosa body shot. Big right cross from Loosa, then another that rattles Fletcher. Fletcher appears to get his wits back, absorbs another two clean right hands not long after. One minute to go. Loosa starting to open up, answers a body kick with more right hands and puts him on the fence. Knee and right hand by Loosa on the break. 1-2, then another heavy right cross. Uppercut to takedown at the bell. 10-9 Loosa.
Round 2: Fletcher low kick, Loosa right hands. Loosa just can’t miss with that punch right now. Now as a jab. He’s really found his groove but Fletcher’s still coming. Nice exchanges a minute in. Loosa 1-1-2. Fletcher body shot. Continuing to trade at close range. Both land good body kicks and Loosa responds with a takedown. Good scramble by Fletcher to get back to his feet two minutes in. Clean rights from both, Loosa getting the better of it. Continuing to land well. Fletcher marching through all of it. There’s some nice pocket work by Fletcher. Two minutes to go.
Fletcher suddenly finds momentum and Loosa’s reeling. Fletcher emptying the tank against the fence. Loosa somehow manages to survive and fights off a level change. One minute to go. Front headlock for Loosa. Stalemate. Short right hands from Loosa. 10-9 Fletcher.
Round 3: Fletcher looks like the more tired of the two. He slips throwing a kick, tries to shoot, denied. Shots from Loosa on the way up. 1-2. Combinations landing. Fletcher shoots a minute in, no dice. Loosa pounding from turtle, takes half guard after an ugly roll attempt. Brutal elbows. Fletcher’s completely gassed. Loosa settles down, continues to chip away from half guard. Two minutes to go.
More hard shots by Loosa. Not looking for the finish, just continuing to work. Fletcher tries to sit up but he’s got nothing left with a minute to go. This continues until the bell. 10-8 Loosa.
Final result: Loosa def. Fletcher via unanimous decision
125 lbs.: Amir Albazi vs. Francisco Figueiredo
Round 1: Figueiredo opens with body kicks. Keeping Albazi at bay early. More low kicks, more body kicks. One minute in. Albazi catches an inside low kick for a takedown into guard. Solid elbow, looking for half guard against the fence. Figueiredo regains guard. Elbow by Albazi two minutes in. He briefly considers an arm triangle before Figueiredo regains guard again. Brutal right hands by Albazi, but Figueiredo uses the opportunity to stand. Albazi tries an inside trip, denied. Two minutes to go.
Stiff jab by Figueiredo, then a straight left. Albazi ties up and puts him on the fence, then takes him down despite Figueiredo grabbing the fence. On top in half guard. Figueiredo turns for a leg, no dice. Albazi looking for the back with a minute to go. One hook in and he immediately wraps up the RNC to force the tap.
Final result: Albazi def. Figueiredo via submission (rear naked choke)
135 lbs.: Aori Qileng vs. Jay Perrin
Round 1: Qileng opens with a low kick the misses, with Perrin countering with a front kick. Perrin tries another front kick and Qileng catches it, with Perrin rolling backward to break free. Nice shot to the body from Perrin, with Qileng trying to initiate a clinch but it wasn’t there. Overhand right from Qileng finds a home, then a counter left hook that wobbled Perrin. Qileng trying to pour it on with a flying knee, but Perrin grabs him and turns him into the fence, giving him time to recover. Qileng gets off the fence, then drills him with a nice uppercut on the break. Big left, then another over hand right from Qileng that did some damage. Low kick from Perrin, with a hard right hand from Qileng and then a hard low kick from the Mongolian. Left hook from Qileng, who seems to be finding his rhythm. Perrin could sense it and scored a nice takedown with about 20 seconds to go in the round. 10-9 Qileng.
Round 2: Both fighters come out swinging to start the second, with Qileng drilling that overhand right then a flying knee that Perrin somehow ate without buckling. Qileng launched a kick along the fence, which Perrin caught and turned into a takedown. Working from half guard, Perrin landing rabbit punches to Qileng’s face. Qileng was able to get into full guard and start to work his way up the fence. On the restart, Qileng kept firing that overhand right, which he drilled Perrin with repeatedly. Perrin waived it off like they didn’t hurt, a clear sign that they did. Low kick from Qileng, with Perrin getting deep on a double-leg takedown in transition, but he was unable to get it to the ground. Perrin with a nice elbow on the break, then a hard left hand, with Qileng countering with that right hand. 10-9 Perrin, but it was real close.
Round 3: Hard right from Qileng to start the third and final frame, with Perrin showing a sense of urgency straight out the gate. He mushed Qileng up against the fence and unloaded some hard elbow upstairs. Both fighters miss with high kicks. Nice left hook from Perrin, but a better overhand right from Qileng right after. Perrin with a solid combination, which he turned into a sweet takedown, but Qileng got right back up to his feet. Perrin doing some nice work with knees to the body along the cage, angling for another takedown, which he got, sorta, briefly before Qileng was back up on his feet. Another nice elbow from Perrin in the clinch, and another, as Qileng seems to be content to just stand with his back up against the fence. One minute two go and both fighters started to swang and bang in the middle of the Octagon. Nice spinning backfist from Perrin, then a front kick that sucked the wind out of a visibly-winded Qileng. With 15 seconds to go, both fighters just said screw it and went Rock ‘Em, Sock ‘Em robots until the final bell. A more clear round for Perrin 10-9. Will come down to round two on the judges scorecards.
Final result: Qileng def. Perrin via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
125 lbs.: Victor Altamirano vs. Daniel Da Silva
El Magnifico opens things up with a bang
Stream #UFC278 tonight on @ESPNPlus ?? https://t.co/pxRev9nc4A pic.twitter.com/wSbqh4NDvS
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 20, 2022
Round 1: Both fighters touch gloves and we are off, with Altamirano attacking early with a flying strike. The pair trade hard shots in the middle of the cage and we are off. da Silva connects with a huge right hand that drops Altamirano, he followed it up with another shot but he popped off the canvas like toast. da Silva chasing Altamirano, who appears still a little shook from the shots he’s eaten. Big body shot from Altamirano folds da Silva, most likely a liver shot. He weathers some major ground-and-pound, threatens with an armbar to escape danger. Altamirano starts to unload with hard elbows from top position, with da Silva trying to submit him off his back but it’s not working. da Silva is now a bloody mess as Altamirano continues to pour it on. The referee continues to warn da Silva, and after about 100 unanswered strikes, the referee finally steps in to stop it. da Silva was looking good until the liver shot, then Altamirano was just too much to fend off from the top.
Final result: Altamirano def. da Silva via technical knockout (strikes) in round one
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