What mattered most at UFC on ESPN 51 in Las Vegas? Here are a few post-fight musings …
5
An ultra-rare submission finish on the prelims
Da'Mon Blackshear left the event with one of the great submission highlights in recent UFC memory when he tapped out newcomer Jose Johnson with a rarely seen technique.
Blackshear (14-5-1 MMA, 2-1-1 UFC) pulled off just the third twister submission in UFC history and got Johnson (15-8 MMA, 0-1 UFC) out of there less than four minutes into the bantamweight bout. He joined Bryce Mitchell and Chan Sung Jung as the only fighters in company history to win with a twister, and that’s got to be huge for his confidence.
Sure, it wasn’t the most consequential fight of the night, but Blackshear put a lot more attention on his name because of the manner in which he won, and that’s going to offer more advancement for his career than if he’d got it done in a more traditional fashion.
4
Terrance McKinney returns to form
Terrance McKinney needed a win in the worst of ways to keep his career on track, and he was so desperate to do so that he took a short-notice bout with Mike Breeden less than one month after being submitted by Nazim Sadykhov at UFC on ESPN 49 in July.
The risky decision paid off in spades, because McKinney (14-6 MMA, 4-3 UFC) produced a vintage effort in storming through Breeden (10-6 MMA, 0-3 UFC) for a TKO finish in just 85 seconds. He boldly declared, “I’m back” after getting the win, and while that may be true from a confidence perspective, he still has much to prove before he’s taken seriously as a threat to the lightweight rankings.
The power, explosiveness and athleticism that McKinney possesses makes him a danger to any opponent he steps into the octagon with. However, if fighters are able to survive the early onslaught, things have fallen apart for McKinney. If he’s able to rectify that flaw over time, it’s going to lead to much more opportunity to establish consistent success, because the raw talent is certainly there.
3
Khalil Rountree should get his main event chance
After completely dismantling Chris Daukaus en route to a first-round knockout, Khalil Rountree made the out-of-character move of asking for exactly what he wanted next – a UFC main event.
With four straight victories – three of which have come by knockout – in the light heavyweight division, Rountree (12-5 MMA, 8-5 UFC) has more leverage on his side than any point in his more than seven-year tenure with the organization. There’s no better time to make a specific, and this one seems quite reasonable.
Since the depth and quality of what’s expected from UFC cards changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the bar for a headlining fight has changed. Given his recent work and exciting style, Rountree clears it, in my opinion. There are plenty of notable dance partners at 205 pounds he could be matched up against, too, so at this stage it makes sense.
Rountree has been pretty open about his change in dedication and focus toward MMA after years of mixed results in the octagon. His efforts are starting to bare fruit, but we need to see more. Daukaus is on a four-fight losing skid after Rountree dropped him, and a matchup with someone also on the career upswing next would be preferable.
2
Cub Swanson won a bad decision, but not a robbery
Here we go again. The tired old line I’ve trotted out so many times in this column over the years, but will say it once more, and surely many times again: Close fights are not robberies.
Did I think Hakeem Dawodu had beaten Cub Swanson in their featherweight co-main event when it was all done? Yes. I thought he did enough work over three rounds. And it felt pretty straightforward, in fact.
The vibe following the final round was almost one of sadness for Swanson (29-13 MMA, 14-9 UFC), because this resonated like another step toward the end of his career. It would’ve been his third loss in his past four fights, which is not a great sign for a nearly 40-year-old fighter.
But then the decision got announced and Swanson won unanimously. It was jarring at first, especially because he seemed to acknowledge Dawodu as the better man while the scores were being calculated, and was surprised as anyone when his hand was raised. He admitted Dawodu should’ve got the nod, and he was the one in there with him.
Upon further review, the fight was definitely closer than it looked on first watch. Swanson has a case for winning the first round, then the third round was his strongest of all due to his takedown and grappling control. Still, though, Dawodu appeared to deliver the impactful work and deserved to get it, especially from just watching it live for the first time, which is all the judges get a chance at. They don’t have the benefit of multiple viewings, the numerous broadcast angles, etc.
Make no mistake: Dawodu certainly could’ve done more to make it definitive. There’s always a stronger case to be made, and Dawodu left the door open just enough to have his heart broken.
1
Vicente Luque's understandable change in approach
It’s hilarious how quickly a narrative can change in MMA, and how quickly some fans and pundits will switch up on a fighter. Vicente Luque has been one of the most reliably exciting and violent fighters on the UFC roster for the past eight years. He decides to lean on his grappling for one fight, though, and people act as though he’s forever been a stifling grappler.
If you can’t understand why Luque (22-9-1 MMA, 15-5 UFC took the approach he did against Rafael dos Anjos in the welterweight headliner, then you either haven’t been paying attention, or don’t grasp the concept of reality. Not only was he the bigger and stronger man and able to bully dos Anjos around for most of the fight en route to eight takedowns landed and a unanimous decision win, but he did it without taking much damage.
That last part is kind of important, considering Luque nearly had his career brought to an end last summer when Geoff Neal became the first to knock him out, leading to a brain bleed. Yes, a brain bleed. You would think right there that would be the end of a fighter’s career, but somehow Luque was able to recover and get medical clearance to return, which he called a “miracle.”
It’s obvious he had some lingering doubts in the back of his mind, though, and who could blame him? Coming in there and going to war with the chance of being knocked out again or worse, would be pretty idiotic of him. He admitted post-fight he had concerns about being hit again, but felt he was able to vanquish those mental hurdles over time in the octagon.
Would I understand if Luque took this same approach for every fight going forward and devolved away from the highlight-reel machine we’ve come to know and love? Yeah. Absolutely. Given the severity of his brain issue and how close this was to all being taken away from him, who could honestly not get it? I’m sure there will be some critics there, but this is purely speculative. Give Luque the right opponents in the future, and I sense the people craving for violence will be more than satisfied.
For now, though, Luque should be happy he not only found a way to resume his career, but get a very important win to keep himself relevant at 170 pounds after losing his past two fights.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 51.
