The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday reacquainted itself with Vancouver, British Columbia, as UFC Fight Night 158 brought a pivotal lightweight battle between Donald Cerrone and former World Series of Fighting titleholder Justin Gaethje. While there were a number of memorable performances, five stood out.
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UFC Fight Night 158
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1. Misha Cirkunov
Cirkunov spun his wheels in a four-fight stretch that saw him go 1-3, with knockout losses to Johnny Walker, Glover Teixeira and Volkan Oezdemir sandwiched around a submission win over Patrick Cummins. However, the Canada-based Latvian steadied his footing in the 205-pound weight class by executing just the second successful Peruvian necktie—C.B. Dollaway authored the first in 2008—in UFC history, as he finished Jim Crute with the maneuver 3:38 into the first round of their light heavyweight showcase. Cirkunov, 32, has compiled a 6-3 record since joining the UFC roster a little more than four years ago.
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2. Justin Gaethje
A case can be made for Gaethje as the most entertaining fighter in the sport, and he did nothing to diminish his reputation with a first-round technical knockout of Cerrone in the main event. He made certain the bout was contested on his terms, focused on his counterpart’s lead leg with kicks and fired off hooks and uppercuts to the head. Cerrone charged forward late in the first round, only to be blindsided by a counter right hook from the brick-fisted Arizona native. The blow dropped and dazed “Cowboy,” leaving him vulnerable to a follow-up attack. The opportunistic Gaethje closed the distance, cut loose with two right uppercuts and drove Cerrone to a kneeling position with another sweeping right hook. More punches followed, forcing referee Jerin Valel to intervene 4:18 into Round 1.
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3. Tristan Connelly
Not much was expected from Connelly, a short-notice replacement for Sergey Khandozhko who entered the cage as a substantial underdog against the flashy and charismatic Michel Pereira. However, the Canadian surprised onlookers with his grit and guile, withstood Pereira’s initial high-risk, low-reward assault and waited for fatigue to exact its toll. Connelly did his best work in the third round, where he nearly finished it with a guillotine choke, forced a frenetic scramble that further depleted “Demolidor” and stuffed a subsequent takedown. He then moved into top position, settled in half guard and battered Pereira with steady ground-and-pound. All three cageside judges scored it for Connelly: 29-28, 29-27 and 29-27.
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4. Augusto Sakai
The often-overlooked Sakai does not figure to fly under the radar for long. The 28-year-old Brazilian heavyweight improved to 3-0 in the UFC and 14-1-1 overall, as he needed less than a minute to knock out former M-1 Global champion Marcin Tybura on the undercard. Tybura succumbed to punches just 59 seconds into Round 1. Sakai dazed his opponent with a clubbing right hook, pressed him against the fence and unleashed uppercuts and hooks until the 6-foot-3, 250-pound Pole collapsed. In a division starved for new blood, he figures to climb the ladder quickly.
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5. Uriah Hall
The supremely talented but maddeningly inconsistent Hall sprang yet another upset with his split decision over The Ultimate Fighter Brazil 3 winner Antonio Carlos Jr. in a three-round middleweight feature. Having shifted his training to the Fortis MMA camp in Texas, the former Ring of Combat champion made use of speed and skill advantages in the stand-up exchanges. Hall, 35, bloodied the Brazilian jiujitsu black belt’s nose with a lightning-bolt jab, wobbled him with a right hand in the first round and floored him with a crisp two-punch combination in the second. Carlos Jr. dragged him to the canvas in the third round and consolidated back mount with a tight body triangle. From there, he hunted rear-naked chokes and cranks, though Hall was wise to his advances, managed to steer clear of danger and eked out a close decision.
Photo: Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC (Getty Images)
