UFC on ESPN 11 was the fourth event hosted at the APEX, and the main event of the evening featured a heavyweight contest between Curtis “Razor” Blaydes (13-2, 1 NC) and Alexander Volkov (31-7). The UFC stacked the deck tonight, and the card did not disappoint fight fans.
Curtis Blaydes stifles Alexander Volkov
Blaydes entered the main event on a three fight winning streak while Volkov entered the Octagon looking for his second consecutive win. This fight was a massive fight for both men as they looked to get closer to a UFC heavyweight title shot. There were no doubts to the strategies in this fight. Volkov wanted to keep the fight standing while Blaydes wanted to get the fight to the ground. Blaydes even Tweeted this week that he plans on ragdolling Volkov. It didn’t take long for Blaydes to get the fight to the ground. Volkov was taken down within ten seconds of the first round. Volkov was able to get back up, but Blaydes got to Volkov’s back, and continued to stay on the Russian. Every time Volkov would get to his feet, Blaydes would drag him right back down. There was no damage done in the first round, but it was a dominant round for Blaydes.
In the second round, Blaydes elected to stand up with Volkov to start. Both men landed some clean shots, but Blaydes got the better of the exchanges. After a solid overhand right, Blaydes took Volkov back to the ground. After not doing much on top, Blaydes unleashed a few nasty elbows with about one minute left in the round. In the third round, Blaydes was not able to get the fight to the ground easily. Volkov successfully defended the first two big time takedown attempts from Blaydes. However, the third time was the charm as Blaydes again got Volkov to the ground. The rest of the round, Blaydes controlled Volkov, but again, Blaydes did no damage on the ground.
The fourth round went the exact same way that the first three did. Blaydes was able to secure a takedown within the first ten seconds of the round. Volkov was able to get back to his feet after spending some time on his back. Volkov landed a nice uppercut, but then Blaydes took him right back down. Blaydes laid in top position doing nothing for a few minutes before Herb Dean stood the fight up. Once it was up, Volkov landed some clean shots and took down Blaydes who looked exhausted. In the fifth round, Volkov landed some big shots, but again, Blaydes was able to land a takedown. Volkov was able to get back up to his feet, but it wouldn’t be for long. Blaydes was able to land another takedown late in the round. Blaydes just laid on Volkov the rest of the round in a fight that didn’t impress anyone. Curtis Blaydes was given the unanimous decision by the judges (
Emmett decisions Burgos in an absolute war
The co-main event of the evening was the fight that everyone was talking about going into the evening. The matchup featured the exciting UFC featherweights Josh Emmett (15-2) and Shane Burgos (13-1). A win for either man would likely mean a shot at someone inside the top five in their next fight. Early on in the fight, Emmett looked like he tweaked his knee, but it didn’t stop him from throwing bombs. Burgos started patient, but Emmett was swinging with everything right from the beginning. Throughout the round, Emmett landed some serious shots up top, but Burgos landed some nasty calf kicks. Emmett appeared to be trying to end things whereas Burgos was playing the long-game. The one thing I was the most impressed with after the first round was Burgos’ chin. Emmett landed some clean haymakers, but Burgos took everything he had.
Early in the second round, it appeared that Emmett was still having issues with his knee. Burgos was landing some clean jabs and leg kicks early. However, Emmett countered with some massive power shots. As the second round went on, Burgos continued to land some really good straight shots. Emmett would explode and land some haymakers, but Burgos landed at a higher clip in the second. In the last minute, Burgos marched forward landing some big straight shots, but Emmett was able to counter with a massive right hand. The chins on both of these men cannot be questioned after this one.
The the third round started with Emmett pushing forward with some big shots. About a minute into the round, a massive left finally put Burgos on the mat. Burgos was able to get back up, but Emmett was doing a fantastic job of going to the body and then the head in this round. With about two and a half minutes left in the round, Emmett dropped Burgos for the second time in the round with a massive left hook. Again, Burgos was able to get back to his feet without being finished. Both men continued to swing for the fences down the stretch. This fight went to the scorecards after exceeding it’s lofty expectations. In the end, the judges gave the fight to Josh Emmett (29-28, 29-28, 29-27). Emmett has now won three in a row and he should be in line for a top five opponent.
Pennington earns a grueling decision
The third fight of the main card featured former UFC title challenger, Raquel Pennington (10-8), and Marion Reneau (9-5-1). Both of these ladies came into the fight needing a win with Pennington losing in her last fight, and Reneau having a two fight losing streak. Early on in the fight, both fighters were exchanging some big shots. Throughout the round, Pennington would engage in a clinch where she was able to land some flush knees. With about a minute left in the round, Reneau was able to get Pennington’s back from the clinch position. The rest of the round saw Reneau control that position.
The action was heating up to start the second round as both ladies were exchanging some big shots before they engaged in another clinch. Reneau was landing some solid shots before a knee went below the belt which stopped the action. When the fight resumed, Pennington went right after Reneau with some big shot. The two once again engaged in the clinch, and Reneau landed some good knees. Pennington was able to secure a Muay Thai clinch, and land some really good knees. Reneau caught one of the knees and used it to secure a takedown. However, a quick scramble saw Pennington end up on top. Reneau worked her way back to the feet, but Pennington immediately shot in again resulting in another clinch. Both ladies exchanged some big shots in the clinch as the round came to an end.
Early in the third round, Reneau came out looking for a takedown. She was able to get Pennington down for a second, but Pennington bounced right up resulting in another clinch. Pennington was able to secure another Thai clinch where she landed some massive knees to the body. Anytime the two separated, Pennington landed some really solid shots, but would immediately look to clinch after. Pennington got another Thai clinch towards the end of the round where she landed some massive knees. It was pretty clear on who won this one. The judges agreed giving the fight to Pennington by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28).
Belal Muhammad takes the UD over Lyman Good
The second fight featured an anticipated UFC welterweight matchup between Belal Muhammad (16-3) and Lyman Good (21-5, 1 NC). Everyone watching this evening had to have their hearts rooting for Good who was fighting the night before Father’s Day after the recent death of his father. Good came out immediately trying to put pressure on Muhammad. Throughout the first round, Good continued to try to put pressure on Muhammad on the feet, but Muhammad was getting the best of the striking exchanges. Muhammad did a fantastic job at constantly switch stances which made it hard for Good to feel comfortable. Muhammad threw combinations while Good was plotting forward throwing one shot at a time. Surprisingly, there were no takedown attempts from Muhammad in the first round.
Muhammad started the second round landing some good shots, then shot for his first takedown about a minute into the round. Good was able to successfully defended a couple of takedown attempts to keep the fight standing. However, Good just seemed very stiff in his striking. Good landed some solid shots in the second, but they were not in succession. Muhammad continued to do a really good job in the second round of throwing combinations while Good was looking for one big shot. Muhammad controlled most of the round, but Good was able to land some massive shots near the end of the round which seemingly rocked Muhammad for a second. Muhammad was winning the round, but those big shots at the end might sway the judges into giving that one to Good.
The shots at the end of the second seemed to click with Good. He started the round throwing a lot more shots finally putting together some combinations. Good was able to drop Muhammad early in the third round. Good finally loosened up after the stiff start. Good appeared to fight the entire third round as if he needed a finish to win the fight. With about 90 seconds left in the round, Muhammad was able to land a takedown, but Good bounced right back up. The two men exchanged some big shots, but Muhammad was able to land another takedown. Muhammad was able to get Good’s back, and that is where he ended the fight. The fight was incredibly close, but I saw the decision going for Muhammad 29-28. In the end, the judges agreed scoring the fight for Muhammad (29-28, 29-28, 29-28). Huge win for Muhammad getting his third win in a row, but your heart has to go out to Lyman Good after that one.
Jim Miller armbars Roosevelt Roberts in the first
The opening fight of the main card was contested at a catchweight between Jim Miller (32-14, 1 NC) and Roosevelt Roberts (10-2). Miller tied Donald Cerrone tonight for the most UFC appearances in history at 35. Roberts just fought three weeks ago where he defeated Brok Weaver at UFC on ESPN 9. Roberts came out looking like he wanted to strike from range, but found himself on his back just a few seconds into the fight after Miller landed a big low kick which swept Roberts off his feet. Miller, who has a great top game, controlled Roberts for the next couple of minutes. After a scramble, Miller found himself on Roberts back before transitioning to an armbar. After initially defending, Roberts was forced to verbally tap from the armbar. With this win, Miller is now 3-1 in his last four fights. It’s a tough loss for Roberts who was looking to break into the top 15 with a win.
Final Takeaways from UFC on ESPN 11
The UFC‘s fourth card at the APEX lived up to the hype. There were great fights all night long from the prelims to the main event. I came away from tonight incredibly impressed with Josh Emmett. I will not deny the fact that I considered him just a power guy before tonight, but he proved me wrong with his performance. Curtis Blaydes dominated the main event, but he really didn’t impress at all. Blaydes is in a very tough spot because if you look at his resume, he’s deserving of a title shot. However, with two losses to top contender, Francis Ngannou, and a performance like he had tonight, I can’t see the UFC giving him a title shot anytime soon. Overall, it was a very solid night of fights, and I’m already counting down the seconds until next weekend’s card.