Check out which fighters won performance bonuses from UFC 274: Oliveira vs. Gaethje
The Footprint Center in Phoenix, AZ was home to a great evening of fights at UFC 274: Oliveira vs. Gaethje. The card saw two (T)KOs, two submissions, and nine decisions, including five split-decisions.
POTN: Andre Fialho, Michael Chandler
FOTN: Brandon Royval vs. Matt Schnell
The early portion of the undercard opened with Journey Newson notching a dominant performance over newcomer Fernie Garcia. Newson would take the unanimous decision, breaking a three-fight losing skid. Loopy Godinez would follow that up with a sensational grappling performance, issuing a brutal, lopsided beatdown to Ariane Carnelossi, snatching the unanimous decision with ease. C.J. Vergara defeated Kleydson Rodrigues by split decision in a tense, back-and-forth battle that could’ve gone either way. What a display of grit and toughness! Tracy Cortez had the superior grappling tonight, exercising plenty of top control and getting the better of the scrambles. She takes the unanimous decision and put the first strike on Melissa Gatto’s previously undefeated record. Andre Fialho is lethal. Full stop. The left hook he slammed into Cameron VanCamp put that poor dude into another dimension. Absolutely mollywhopped.
Preliminary Card (5:30 PM ET, ESPN+)
- Andre Fialho def. Cameron VanCamp via KO (punch) at 2:35 of Round 1
- Tracy Cortez def. Melissa Gatto via UD (29-28×3)
- C.J. Vergara def. Kleydson Rodrigues by split-decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Loopy Godinez def. Ariane Carnelossi by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
- Journey Newson def. Fernie Garcia by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
The regular prelims started off with Blagoy Ivanov getting the unanimous decision over Marcos Rogerio de Lima. It was a close contest, and one where Ivanov flagrantly grabbed the fence to avoid a takedown, but de Lima would give up the win to Blagoy. After a wild first few moments with punches flying and Royval getting dropped, adjustments were made on the ground where the fight ended up after the knockdown. Schnell was too aggressive for his own good and ended up in a guillotine that would end his night early. After a tense grinder, Macy Chiasson was able to snag the split-decision victory away from Norma Dumont, breaking her three-fight winning streak. Francisco Trinaldo fought a smart, tactical fight, besting Danny Roberts on the scorecards by a substantial margin on two of the three cards and ending Roberts’ two-fight win streak. Trinaldo is still looking strong at 43 years of age.
Preliminary Card (8 PM ET, ESPN/ESPN+)
- Francisco Trinaldo def. Danny Roberts via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 29-28
- Macy Chiasson def. Norma Dumont via split-decision (30-27×2, 28-29)
- Brandon Royval def. Matt Schnell via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:14 of Round 1
- Blagoy Ivanov def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima via unanimous decision (29-28×3)
Main Card (10 PM ET/7PM PT ESPN+ PPV)
- Charles Oliveira def. Justin Gaethje via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:22 of Round one
- Carla Esparza def. Rose Namajunas via split-decision (47–48, 49–46, 48–47)
- Michael Chandler def. Tony Ferguson via KO (kick) at 0:17 of Round 2
- Ovince Saint Preux def Mauricio Rua via split-decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
- Randy Brown def. Khaos Williams via split-decision (29-28×2, 28-29 )
Randy Brown and Khaos Williams left it all in the cage, having had a tremendous back-and-forth battle that saw both men have big moments, with Brown having been dropped in the third and Williams wobbled, also in the third. In the end it would be the Rude Boy taking the split-decision. Ovince Saint-Preux and Mauricio Rua had a fight that happened. OSP won via split-decision. The end. Tony Ferguson looked good in the early goings, landing a huge shot that wobbled Chandler and doing well from the bottom, landing heavy shots from his back, possibly taking the round. The next stanza would be the nail in the coffin, though. Chandler landed a front kick to Ferguson’s jaw that planted him face down. So nasty.
The co-main event was awful. There is no other way to describe it. The ladies punched an invisible woman in between them, refused to engage for long stretches…it was just terrible. This fight was the result of someone saying “I wonder if any fight will ever eclipse Shogun/OSP as worst ever?” In the end, we’d get another split-decision and Carla Esparza would emerge victorious, claiming the strawweight belt for a second time.
The main event was an outstanding display of sanctioned violence that made up for the paltry overall nature of the card as a whole. We saw Gaethje stunned, Oliveira dropped, Gaethje stunned again, then the fight ended up on the ground after Chuckie Olives drops Justin. From there it was like watching an anaconda with a baby animal, only a matter of time. The rear-naked choke that forced the tap came at just 3:22 of the first round, but an hour’s worth of violence and carnage was packed in that space. Round of the year, for sure.
Crypto.com Fan Bonus of the Night Winners for UFC 274:
1st Place $30K in bitcoin – Rose Namajunas
2nd Place $20K in bitcoin – Michael Chandler
3rd Place $10K in bitcoin – Charles Oliveria