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A super rare flub occurred at UFC 301.

Anthony Smith scored a massive upset win at UFC 301 last night (Sat., May 4, 2024), tapping Vitor Petrino in the first round with a guillotine choke — and taking the young Brazilian’s undefeated record in the process — from inside Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (watch highlights).

However, the win was quickly overshadowed because Bruce Buffer made a rare mistake live during the pay-per-view (PPV) broadcast, announcing the wrong winner (Petrino) just moments after the 205-pound showdown concluded.

Buffer made his usual post-fight announcement, “The referee called a stop to this contest at two minutes of the very first round. Declaring the winner by submission due to a guillotine choke and still undefeated … Vitor … excuse me! Anthony ‘Lionheart’ Smith!!!”

Watch the flub below:

Smith was asked about the rare mistake during his post-fight interview with the media.

“I feel really bad for Buffer,” Smith said. “I know how serious and how much he loves his job and how professional he is. He is really hard on himself…. Me and Bruce are friends, like we work together a lot. So, he takes his job so serious. He takes it to the heart; he puts his heart and soul into this job.

“I feel bad because he’s probably bummed out about it,” Smith concluded. “I hope I get to talk to him after. I’m good with it — people make mistakes. It’s no big deal. I just hope he’s not beating himself up too bad.”

Buffer hasn’t addressed his mistake yet, but when he does, MMAmania.com will share his response.

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For complete UFC 301 results, coverage and highlights click HERE.

UFC 301 went down last night (Sat., May 4, 2024) inside Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In the main event of the evening, Alexandre Pantoja defeated Steve Erceg via unanimous decision to retain his flyweight title. In the co-main event, Jose Aldo won a unanimous decision over Jonathan Martinez (recap here).

Photo by Alexandre Loureiro/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Biggest Winner: Anthony Smith

“Lionheart” hadn’t exactly looked great in his last few outings, losing three of four heading into his fight against Vitor Petrino. But the former light heavyweight title contender turned his luck around by pulling off a massive upset over the previously-undefeated Brazilian powerhouse, choking him out in the very first round with a slick guillotine choke (highlights). The win will give Smith some much-needed confidence moving forward after handing Petrino his first-ever defeat, which means he will now have more reason to continue calling out division king, Alex Pereira. Still, not many gave Smith a chance in this fight seeing as how he was the massive underdog, but he proved the bookies and doubters wrong in a very convincing way.

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Photo by Alexandre Loureiro/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Runner Up: Jose Aldo

The former featherweight champion turned back the hands of time with an all-time performance against Jonathan Martinez, reminding fight fans of the Brazilian bomber of old who ruled the division with an iron fist. “The King of Rio” was on point in every aspect of the fight game, out-striking and out-wrestling the much younger contender. But experience prevailed tonight and Aldo proved that he still has plenty left in the tank. And by the sound of it he doesn’t plan on leaving the Octagon anytime soon. Whether or not he can make another run at the title, however, remains to be seen. For now, the former 145-pound champion can enjoy his victory, one he earned after nearly two years on the sidelines.

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Photo by Alexandre Loureiro/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Honorable Mention: Michel Pereira

Is it time for Pereira to earn a spot in the rankings? After last night’s explosive win voters need to seriously consider it. The back-flipping striker took it to Ihor Potieria, sinking in a fight-ending guillotine choke in just 54 seconds. With the win not only did he earn a $50,000 post-fight bonus award (his fourth in a row), but he has now won eight straight fights. Pereira is a marketable fighter since he is always in entertainer mode, and another win or two will set him up for bigger fights and the bigger paydays that come with it.

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Photo by Alexandre Loureiro/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Biggest Loser: Paul Craig

Craig felt he was being sent to Brazil like a lamb to slaughter against legit middleweight contender, Caio Borralho. But even if the promotion was using him as a stepping stone, “Bearjew” had the power to spoil the party by flipping the script. He didn’t. Instead, Craig fell victim to a barrage of strikes from “The Natural,” who stopped him via strikes in the second round. For Craig, that is now his second straight defeat, fourth in last five fights, three of them stoppages. Saying he is going through a slump would be an understatement, but he is digging himself into a hole that will be tough to climb out of. If he suffers another loss there is no telling what will happen to his spot on the bloated UFC roster.

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For complete UFC 301 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.

Here’s what you may have missed!

Jose Aldo defies logic.

The Brazilian made his professional debut in 2004 — that’s 20 years ago. Elite mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters are looking to last a decade in the sport, and they only spend a handful of those years actually being particularly good. Even for the best, windows at the top are short, which is why contenders and champions alike tend to hit their stride, achieve their peaks, and fade away within a few short years.

Prior to UFC 301 last night (Sat., May 4, 2024) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Aldo had proven himself an athlete of exceptional longevity. It’s especially extraordinary when we remember that Aldo came up through the Nova Uniao gym, notorious for hard sparring. Remember Renan Barao, Aldo’s team mate and former UFC Bantamweight king? Barao won his interim belt eight years into his professional career, scored three defenses, and lost two fights with T.J. Dillashaw about 10 years deep into his pro career.

He would then finish his UFC career with a 1-7 run. That’s far closer to the typical career cycle of an elite, gifted fighter.

Aldo, conversely, has seen wave after wave of talented opponents. Jonathan Martinez is what, his fourth generation of opponent at the top level? There’s his World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) come up, UFC title defenses, then various post-title victories. That’s three different generations of oppositions, but Martinez is supposed to be the future, a 30-year-old contender just now riding a big win streak and coming into his own.

By all rights, this should have been a wash. That’s because 37-year-old cage fighters do not win at Bantamweight, the most talent-rich division in the sport. Again, let’s compare Aldo to a peer: Rani Yahya. The 39-year-old Brazilian looks more like what we expect from a late 30s Bantamweight two decades into his career: vulnerable. Flawed. Fatigued. Yahya is a gamer in his own right, but Victor Henry put him out to pasture last weekend (watch highlights), because that’s what was supposed to happen.

Aldo was preparing for a boxing match, nearly two years into his retirement from MMA when UFC called him up to save the desperate UFC 301 card — which, as predicted, was fun to watch even if not particularly worth the price tag. That’s another knock against his chances, and it didn’t matter in the least.

There were real moments of vintage Aldo in the cage last night, far more than any rational fan could have expected. Sure, Aldo’s timing on the counter isn’t as sharp as it used to be, but the Brazilian still fires nasty combinations of power punches in response to his opponent’s aggression. The torque on his body shots are lovely, and Aldo’s kicks and knees were tremendously effective here.

Martinez has a reputation as the best kicker at Bantamweight right now, and Aldo shut all that down with his checks and pressure (recap here). Fighters at the top of their game cannot stop half-decent low kicks, but 37-year-old Aldo checked so many that I can practically guarantee Martinez is the man limping this morning.

It’s just unreasonable.

Aldo has been a champion or Top 5 fighter in one division or another since 2009. His longevity is unheard of, and last night, Aldo proved that not even retirement is enough to slow him down.

Whatever his next move is, I can’t wait to watch.

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For complete UFC 301: “Pantoja vs. Erceg” results and play-by-play, click HERE.

Canelo Alvarez got the last laugh on Cince de Mayo weekend.

Alvarez cruised to an impressive unanimous decision last night (Sat., May 4, 2024) when he defended his Super Middleweight against a tough Jaime Munguia from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada (watch highlights).

While the main focus was on the massive fight this weekend, a firey storyline haunted the boxing match and fight week: Alvarez vs. his old promotor, Oscar De La Hoya.

Alvarez and Del La Hoya got into it during the pre-fight press conference on Wednesday (watch it here). However, it was Alvarez who got the last laugh on Saturday.

After the post-fight press conference, Alvarez did a quick scrum with reporters and mocked “The Golden Boy” when asked about him.

“Yeah, that girl looks beautiful today,” Alvarez said with a smile.

The super Middleweight champion was referencing De La Hoya’s fight night outfit.
Check it out below.

Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images

The beef between Alvarez and De La Hoya will not go away anytime soon, but for now, the heat will sizzle out until next time. Although “Golden Boy” sent a subtle shot.

Alvarez, 33, is riding a four-fight win streak and will most likely return later this year for Mexican Independence Day in Sept … hopefully against David Benavidez.

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For complete Canelo vs. Munguia results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.