Almost everything about UFC 234 was disappointing. The one exception was the amazing show of respect between Israel Adesanya and Anderson Silva after the former took a unanimous-decision victory in the makeshift main event in Melbourne, Australia.
Hours before the event started, UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker had to pull out of his title defense against Kelvin Gastelum. That elevated Adesanya-Silva to the main event spot, which wouldn’t have been too bad if the card had other strong bouts.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. This was one of the weaker lineups of fights you’ll ever see for a pay-per-view. Evidence of the event’s frailty is in seeing the Lando Vannata-Marcos Mariano bout elevated to co-main event.
In any case, Adesanya tussled in a main event that featured almost as much posing and posturing as it did action. There was tons of showmanship and respect, which is admirable, but it was like watching too friends fight and it’s clear neither man wants to truly hurt the other one.
I’m not Silva could have if he even wanted to. While he looked good considering he’s 43 and will turn 44 in April, but he still looked 40-something. Adesanya didn’t have much to gain from a status standpoint. He was promised a title shot if he won, and he did by outstriking Silva 65-31, but if we’re being totally truthful, Adesanya didn’t look great.
Perhaps he had too much respect for Silva to show any ruthless aggression, but the end result was a bland fight that saw Adesanya touched to the chin a few times and taken the distance by a man nearly 15 years his senior.
The fact that the UFC awarded this bout as the Fight of the Night is perplexing. There is no way, this was more entertaining than the all-out brawl we saw from Kyung Ho Kang and Teruto Ishihara during the prelims. There was more action in that four-minute fight than the entire 15-minute scrap between Adesanya and Silva. As is the case often, fights on the prelims get overlooked.
Here is a look at all of the results from the evening.
Main Card
- Israel Adesanya def. Anderson Silva via unanimous decision (30-27×2, 29-28) – FOTN
- Lando Vannata def. Marcos Mariano via sub (kimura)
- Ricky Simon def. Rani Yahya via unanimous decision (30-27×2, 30-25)
- Montana De La Rosa def. Nadia Kassem via sub (armbar) (R2, 2:37) – POTN
- Jim Crute def. Sam Alvey via first-round TKO (2:49)
Undercard
- Devonte Smith def. Dong Hyun Ma via first-round TKO (3:53) – POTN
- Shane Young def. Austin Arnett via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
- Kai Kara-France def. Raulian Paiva via split decision (28-29, 29-28 x2)
- Kyung Ho Kang def. Teruto Ishihara via submission (RNC) (R1, 3:59)
- Jalin Turner def. Callan Potter via first-round KO (0:53)
- Jonathan Martinez def. Wuliji Buren via UD (30-27 x2, 29-28)
B O N U S E S
POTN: @MontanaMarie211 & @K_O_E_KINGKAGE
FOTN: @Stylebender vs @SpiderAnderson pic.twitter.com/dTPWeBJAkT
— UFC (@ufc) February 10, 2019
De La Rosa Subs Pesky Kassem
She doesn’t get a lot of attention, but Montana De La Rosa is a terror on the ground. She showed it again on Saturday as she masterfully deconstructed the previously unbeaten Nadia Kassem with a second-round submission win.
De La Rosa knew Kassem’s only chance to win would come if the fight was kept standing, so she made sure the two women spent very little time on their feet. De La Rosa took Kassem down at will and in the second round, she forced the stubborn, flexible and tough 23-year-old to verbally submit to an armbar.
Montana De La Rosa (10-4) has now tapped four straight, submitting Nadia Kassem with a triangle armbar after a lengthy, second-round struggle. The TUF alum has finished eight of 10 wins by submission, five via armbar. #UFC234 pic.twitter.com/tCS0mQki8a
— Bulgogi Jones (@Hamderlei) February 10, 2019
De La Rosa is one to watch over the next 12 months. She is a legitimate title contender at women’s flyweight. Her performance was worthy of a bonus.
Smith Smashes Ma
In the featured prelim, promising newcomer Devonte Smith put on a show during and after his first-round TKO win over Dong Hyun Ma. Accurate striking on the feet and in ground and pound led to the victory.
His post-fight interview was one of the most entertaining aspects of the evening.
Devonte Smith doing play by play on his own KO is pretty classic #UFC234 pic.twitter.com/2t06q7xl65
— Brandon Radcliffe (@BrandonWhatsill) February 10, 2019
The lightweight division is stacked with contenders and big names so Smith might have to wait awhile before he gets a prominent opponent across the cage.
In any case, Smith should have fans intrigued.
