Justin Gaethje scored arguably the most dynamic and memorable KO win of the year on Saturday night in Salt Lake City in the UFC 291 main event. Gaethje landed a perfectly orchestrated head kick to knock his rival Dustin Poirier out, and even their head-to-head series at 1-1.
After the fight, the two were gracious toward each other. Poirier even tweeted at his rival, complimenting Gaethje on his work.
Fighters are built different.
In case you missed it, MMA Orbit tweeted this video from Octagon side view of the finish.
Even after this savage finish in such a high-stakes bout, Poirier and Gaethje had this respectful exchange ahead of the post-event press conference.
As the tweet mentions, it is very likely we see a trilogy between the two future hall-of-famers. Both men seemed open to it, although Gaethje is understandably focused on getting a rematch with the winner of the bout between UFC lightweight champion Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira. Gaethje has lost to Oliveira already, and he figures to be an underdog against the winner.
It might be a better move for Gaethje to have a high-paid third fight with Poirier before trying to climb that mountain again. You would be hard pressed to find anyone in the MMA community who wouldn’t be excited about Gaethje-Poirier III.
If it doesn’t headline a pay-per-view later this year, it could land as the co-main event on a stacked upcoming show with an official title belt on the line.
Meanwhile, the UFC’s most polarizing and popular fighter, Conor McGregor didn’t waste an opportunity to inject himself into the main storyline of the evening in MMA. He repeatedly launched shots at Gaethje from social media after the fight.
When asked about the possibilities of facing McGregor in the Octagon, Gaethje implied the former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion may be partaking in performance-enhancing drugs.
McGregor responded with a typical-McGregor, four-word reply.
McGregor making 155 pounds seems unlikely at this stage of his career, but even still, it would appear Gaethje’s win has positioned him for some high-profile and potentially lucrative fights in the near future.
Here is a look at all of the results from the UFC 291 card that featured nine finishes in 11 fights.
UFC 291 Main Card
- Justin Gaethje defeats Dustin Poirier by KO (right high kick) at 1:00 of Round 2 for BMF title
- Alex Pereira defeats Jan Blachowicz by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Derrick Lewis defeats Marcos Rogerio de Lima by TKO (strikes) at 0:33 of Round 1
- Bobby Green defeats Tony Ferguson by technical submission (arm-triangle choke) at 4:54 of Round 3
- Kevin Holland defeats Michael Chiesa by submission (D’arce choke) at 2:39 of Round 1
UFC 291 Prelims
- Gabriel Bonfim def. Trevin Giles by submission (guillotine choke) at 1:13 of Round 1
- CJ Vergara defeats Vinicius Salvador by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28
- Roman Kopylov defeats Claudio Ribeiro by KO (left high kick) at 0:33 of Round 2
- Jake Matthews defeats Darrius Flowers by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:37 of Round 2
- Uros Medic defeats Matthew Semelsberger by TKO (strikes) at 2:36 of Round 3
- Miranda Maverick defeats Priscila Cachoeira by submission (armbar) at 2:11 of Round 3
Gabriel Bonfim Looks Like a Star
Without getting too far ahead off ourselves, it seems safe to say the UFC welterweight division has a legitimately scary new contender in Brazil’s Gabriel Bonfim.
The 25-year-old submitted Trevin Giles in the first minute of their prelim fight on Saturday, and ran his record to a perfect 15-0. The former LFA champion has the look of a fighter who might be three or four fights away from making mentions of a title shot, and possibly five wins away from getting it.
MMA Underground Editor-in-Chief John Morgan called Bonfim “an emerging force.”
Had No. 15 Michel Pereira not missed weight, leading to the cancellation of his fight with No. 7 Stephen Thompson, and the former lost the bout, it might have cleared the way for Bonfim to debut at No. 15 in the next rankings.
That might still happen considering Pereira missed weight by three pounds. Stay tuned.
Roman Kopylov Might Have Had the Best Head Kick of the Night
Gaethje’s head-kick KO is getting all of the attention because he and Poirier main-evented the show. However, those of us who watched the prelims saw Roman Kopylov detonate this left head kick on Claudio Ribeiro’s chin to score a definitive second-round KO win.
MMA Fighting called the shot “picture-perfect,” and it was:
Kevin Holland Urges Michael Chiesa to Retire
It’s one thing to rather easily submit a guy in the opening bout of a major pay-per-view show. It’s another to tell the same fella to retire in the post-fight presser. That’s exactly what Kevin Holland did after he scored a first-round submission victory over Michael Chiesa on Saturday night via the D’Arce Choke.
Listen as Holland tells Chiesa he’s never going to get a title, the game has passed him by, stop while he can, and to focus on commentating and his family.
That’s tough.
Bobby Green’s Buzzer Beater
In a matchup of two veterans who might also belong to the group Holland referred to in his candid interview, Bobby Green handed Tony Ferguson his sixth straight loss. Green has never been known as a submission fighter (his last win by that method was in 2013) put Ferguson to sleep with an arm-triangle choke with just six second remaining in the fight.
Ferguson has now been stopped four times in the last three years. Aaron Bronsteter of TSN seemed to share the sentiments of many in the MMA community calling for Ferguson to hang up his gloves.
Perhaps not so surprisingly, Ferguson’s opponent from Saturday night does not agree. Green says he believes Ferguson still has fight left in him.
Derrick Lewis’ Memorable Free-Agency Announcement
Sporting a much-more chiseled physique, heavyweight Derrick Lewis scored a titanic first-round KO win over Marcos Rogerio de Lima. It was set up by a jumping switch knee to de Lima’s chin.
After the unpredictably athletic move, Lewis launched into his signature Black Beast celebration, but he topped it off by removing his shorts, dancing in his underwear and cutting a post-fight interview that should grab the attention of Professional Fighters League, Bellator, and perhaps the WWE and AEW. After all, he did do the DX chop during his celebration. Take a look:
Lewis is now a free agent, but he expressed a desire to remain with the UFC. Former mixed martial artist Ben Askren predicted PFL will make Lewis a “massive offer.”
We’ll see where he goes from here, but Lewis increased his value with his fighting skills and personality.
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