UFC 225 Podcast Notes, Analysis From Sean Ross Sapp

Dan Ige defeated Mike Santiago via KO R1

Ige immediately drops Santiago. Okay wow, Dan Ige had one hell of a performance. Outstanding ground control. Really tough ground and pound. Great accuracy and power on that ground and pound. Ige doesn’t get a great reaction because he just beat up the hometown guy.

Charles Oliveira defeated Clay Guida, R1 Submission

“My brother is half my size, let me give him CTE before this fight”- Jason Guida, all the time. This is a really sloppy fight that sees Guida eating a lot of strikes. He seems like a superstar in his hometown of Chicago. Guida gets really wild and gets caught in a guillotine choke. Guida has to tap. Oliveira had busted Guida open with a jab before this happened. Charles Oliveira ties Royce Grace for most submission wins in UFC history. Oliveira keeps saying he wants to go back to 145, and he should really give up on that shit.

#5 Sergio Pettis SD’s #1 Joseph Benavidez

Benavidez could be the second greatest flyweight of all-time, and here he is on the Fight Pass prelims, and facing Sergio Pettis. Pettis drops Benavidez twice early, but gets taken down. Bad news for Pettis, his size advantage doesn’t exist on your back. Benavidez is getting caught with his chin straight up. I’m giving Pettis round one. Pettis’ takedown defense is so much better, and Benavidez can’t make it happen. Pettis is like a matador. A lot of great strikes land in round three, but most of Benavidez’ are wild shots, while Pettis is still mastering him technically. Pettis feigns a guillotine to set up knees and escape off the cage, which is really nice. 

Anthony Smith KTFOs Rashad Evans

That’s it. Rashad gotta go. That was horrifying. Anthony Smith is way bigger than Rashad and catches him with a huge, disgusting knee. Anthony Smith has now won four out of his last five, and looked really great at Light Heavyweight. He wants to fight Alvey in Nebraska. More history made tonight at #UFC225, as for the first time ever someone indicated that they wanted to be in Nebraska.

Chris De La Rocha defeated Rashad Coulter

Coulter is hitting hard, but he slips and De La Rocha takes advantage. That’s a big boy To have on your back. Coulter stands up and SLUGS CDLR. 265 pound Ken Marino has a CHIN. This first round was amazing. Even the ref was marking out for this fight. The second round isn’t nearly as impressive, but CDLR drags Coulter down and controls him and unleashes some light GNP. The ref finally sees enough and stops it. CDLR was up against the wall.

#11 Mirsad Bektic defeated #7 Ricardo Lamas via SD

Lamas has never lost two fights in a row. Tonight would be the first time, if it happened. Bektic’s control of Lamas’ legs on the ground was great. Lamas tried to force the guillotine almost to a fault, and is soundly outscored in the first. Also, I don’t think Lamas has ever landed a spin kick. This fight isn’t going to win any Fight of the Night awards. Bektic ends up taking home the split decision win that he was favored in, even though he was ranked lower. 

#3 Claudia Gadleha defeated #6 Carla Esparza via SD

Claudia Gadelha big brothers Carla Esparza for lack of a better term, but Esparza manages to crack Gadelha with an overhand and actually headbutts Gadelha. In round two, Esparza is looking to box. It doesn’t work out for her. Okay wrestling took Esparza to an early UFC title and about a three month reign. It hasn’t evolved, and Gadelha took advantage of it. Esparza’s boxing evolved, but her grappling didn’t — much like Gadelha’s gas tank. Lol at the incredulous look on Gadelha’s face when Esparza got a card given to her.

#4 Curtis Blaydes KTFO’d #2 Alistair Overeem

Blaydes has great timing on a takedown after nothing happens in the first two minutes. Early in the second round the two play chicken, but Overeem lands punches and knees. Blaydes has a chin of granite and takes Overeem down. Overeem got faked out on a feigned takedown attempt and looked like he rolled his ankle early in the round. Go listen to one of @LynchOnSports interviews with Curtis Blaydes. You’ll be amazed such violence can come from a soft spoken, mild mannered guy. The second round was more wrestling, and the third round saw Blaydes open up his striking to set up the takedown. He then elbowed Alistair Overeem, nearly to death. This was a grisly site. Blaydes wants a title shot next!

Mike Jackson defeats CM Punk in an all-time terrible fight

Punk throws some ugly leg kicks and gets punched, but returns fire and presses Jackson against the cage. This is an ugly ass 0-1 vs. 0-1 fight and I’m on the edge of my seat. This is bowling shoe ugly, hard to break down MMA. Punk looks exhausted halfway through the round but gets a takedown. Jackson works up and gets an elbow. So much for Mike Jackson having “so much experience that Punk couldn’t overcome it.” Him saying that was the biggest crock of shit I heard all week.

Punk lands some strikes, but often gives up on takedowns against the cage, and Jackson is not a good wrestler. Jackson lands some good strikes, and I’m surprised that Punk is still here. Punk goes for the most miserable guillotine attempt in the UFC’s history, and they end up on the ground. MMA is not for CM Punk. Or Mike Jackson for that matter. Jackson is in control on top and shucks off a triangle attempt. 

Punk never tried to gain underhooks, never drops his hips, never makes any real attempt to secure a takedown up against the cage. Punk is dead tired. Embarrassingly tired. Incredible heart, but no common sense.

#12 Tai Tuivasa defeated #9 Andrei Arlovski via UD

Tai Tuivasa finds success with strikes, but is exposed in a sense. He’s limited to single strikes, while Arlovski is able to land combos with regularity. Tuivasa is likely to see a big jump in rankings because of this win, but I don’t think Arlovski’s spot in the division is hurt too badly. Tuivasa really needs to refine his uppercut, because there’s no reason he shouldn’t have knocked out Arlovski with some of them he threw.

#1 BW Holly Holm dominates Megan Anderson

This was a dominant, one-sided performance, besides the “every fight starts on the feet” aspect of each round. Holly Holm muscled around the much larger Anderson, pinned her to the mat, worked for position and ground and pound. This was a clinic of evolution vs. “not quite there yet.” After the fight, Holm says she has no plans to retire and wants to fight at 135 if she can. 

UFC Interim Welterweight Championship
#4 Colby Covington grinds out #1 Rafael Dos Anjos via UD

Man, Colby Covington just took down RDA like it was nothing twice out of the body lock with a wild ass strike setup. RDA is finding holes to land strikes wherever he can. He just keeps getting better. Rafael dos Anjos is owning the clinch. The takedowns Colby Covington opened each of the first two rounds with were nice. He bulled his way in to get them, which is ballsy.RDA’s right hook to the body is a work of art, and he finds a home for it often. 

Covington has some fundamental flaws in his striking, but for a wrestler that started as recently as he did, he is much more accurate than I would have thought. He uses it to set up his grinding wrestling style. Also, he kicks RDA in the penis really hard. 

RDA finds great success in round four with a blitz early, and a takedown. Colby makes it up, and RDA drags him back down and makes Colby look tired. In ten UFC fights, only Rafael Dos Anjos and Dong Hyun Kim have taken Colby Covington down. Covington has taken down every UFC opponent, except Demian Maia..

Covington blocks RDA’s far leg, which really stalls him out. Objective piece of shit Colby Covington backed up all of his shit talk tonight. He earned that win. 

Robert Whittaker (c) defeated #1 Yoel Romero

Whittaker has developed a really, really fast oblique kick. He finds success with about every technique he tries, but you can tell he doesn’t want to fall victim to a huge counter shot. After swelling Romero’s eye shut after two rounds, Romero goes for broke in round 3, per usual. He lands a big hook and swarms Whittaker, but eats a lot of nasty elbows. Round 3 was a round of the year contender.

Whittaker opens round four catching Romero with head kicks whenever he wants. A low blow serves to give Romero time, as Whittaker had stopped throwing his right hand after an apparent injury. Whittaker instead pummels Romero with front kicks, elbows and jabs. Romero landed two big strikes, but were virtually the only ones he landed in that round. That changes in round five, when Whittaker gets dropped and swarmed again, but somehow survives it. 

Yoel Romero has come up without a title in three straight opportunities. Very much time to move on in my estimation.