December 8th 2024.
On a Saturday night in Las Vegas, Alexandre Pantoja successfully defended his flyweight title against Kai Asakura in a thrilling match. Pantoja, who had previously won the title with a split decision over Brandon Moreno at UFC 290 in 2023, used a rear naked choke to put Asakura to sleep at the 2:05 mark of the second round.
Despite it being Asakura's UFC debut, he was no match for Pantoja, who was favored to win with -275 odds at BetMGM Sportsbook. Pantoja's superior skills on the mat were too much for Asakura's hard-hitting reputation, as he quickly took control of the fight. After a brief scramble, Pantoja secured Asakura's back, wrapped him in a body triangle, and choked him out.
Originally scheduled as the main event, the welterweight champion Belal Muhammad had to pull out due to a foot injury. This gave way for No. 3 ranked Shavkat Rakhmonov to face off against seventh-ranked replacement fighter Ian Machado Garry in the co-main event. Rakhmonov, who was heavily favored with -400 odds, went on to win by unanimous decision, marking the first time he had to go to a decision in his career.
In the heavyweight division, No. 2 contender Ciryl Gane was the clear favorite with odds of 4-to-1. However, he had to battle it out with No. 3 contender Alexander Volkov in a close split decision win.
Another exciting match of the night was between No. 13 ranked featherweight Bryce Mitchell and Kron Gracie. Mitchell, who closed as a massive -1000 favorite, delivered a powerful body slam followed by a thunderous forearm to Gracie's head, ending the fight just 39 seconds into the third round.
The underdog Dooho Choi, who was originally given +115 odds, proved the betting market wrong with a stoppage at 3:21 of the third round against Nate Landwehr. After putting Landwehr in a crucifix position, referee Chris Tognoni stopped the scheduled three-round featherweight bout.
Earlier in the night, two former champions faced off in notable matches. Bantamweight Aljamain Sterling lost by decision to Movsar Evloev, who currently holds the longest active streak in the UFC featherweight division with eight wins. In the middleweight division, Eryk Anders delivered a TKO against Chris Weidman at 4:51 of the second round. The night was filled with intense matchups and impressive performances from some of the top fighters in the UFC.
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