The UFC Fight Night 30 co-main event was the heavy favorite to take the Fight of the Night bonus, as Ultimate Fighter winner Ross Pearson of the UK took on heavy-handed American Melvin Guillard. In addition to being a favorite for the best fight of the afternoon, many thought this bout would end in a knockout.
But the fight went down in controversial fashion, as a perceived illegal knee halted the bout. The fight was ruled a no contest, which was a huge letdown for the fans in attendance and at home, for whom this represented the most intriguing bout on the card.
Here is what we learned from the co-main event of the afternoon.
What We’ll Remember About This Fight
The stoppage. The first knee that Guillard threw was legal, but on the second knee, it looked like Pearson was grounded, making the strike illegal.
As stated, this was a heavy favorite for Fight of the Night, but the early foul dismissed that notion. Unfortunate, but these things happen.
What We Learned About Guillard
This is tough to write because the fight didn’t develop long enough to learn much. We all know Melvin is one of the hardest-hitting lightweights in the world, which shows with those brutal knees.
Had he not landed that illegal knee, he may have been on his way to a stoppage win. He had tagged Pearson hard, but followed it up with the bad strike.
What We Learned About Pearson
Like Guillard, we really couldn’t learn a lot from that fight. Pearson is tough and can take a shot, as seen by those two knees he absorbed.
What’s Next for Guillard and Pearson
Obviously, the next move is a rematch between these two. This was probably the most anticipated fight on the card and it was ruined from the foul.
Since neither man took much damage, they could rematch in the near future, if possible. It continues to have Fight of the Night potential.
This will definitely happen. Hopefully in the aftermath of this, MMA changes the rules on knees to head of a grounded opponent.
That’s what really should be next following this fight.
The UFC Fight Night 30 main card kicked off in the flyweight division, as British veteran Phil Harris took on Brazilian slugger John Lineker. Many thought the bout had the potential to claim the Fight of the Night bonus check.
Lineker came in controversially, as he missed weight for the third time in the UFC. Harris took the bout anyway, as well as 25 percent of Lineker’s purse.
As for the fight,
Here is what we learned from this flyweight bout.
What We’ll Remember About This Fight
What We Learned About Lineker
What We Learned About Harris
What’s Next for Lineker
What’s Next for Harris
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