Fights are not contested on paper. Holly Holm proved that Saturday night in Australia at UFC 193.
Though most didn't think it was possible, Holm destroyed Ronda Rousey and took her UFC women's bantamweight title via second-round knockout. Perhaps Rousey should have focused more on Holm than a beef with Floyd Mayweather Jr., Metro PCS commercials, flirtations with WWE and other potential distractions. In any case, the UFC's golden champion and human cash machine came tumbling down.
Holm utilized a brilliant game plan based on movement, length and striking prowess to systematically dismantle Rousey en route to the title.
The first round was all Holm. She tagged Rousey with left hands and stayed away from Rousey's clinch. Rousey was able to take Holm down once in the first round, but the challenger remained calm and escaped.
That was the turning point.
She had already proved to be the superior striker. If Rousey couldn't win on the ground, she was in trouble.
As the fight went into the second round, Rousey looked tired and discouraged. Holm took advantage of an overaggressive Rousey and caught her with another strong left hand. The shot dazed her, but Holm's follow-up head kick knocked Rousey out cold.
Holm went in for the finish, and Herb Dean rescued Rousey from further damage. The improbable had become a reality. Like many in the MMA world, Rob Tatum of Combat Press was still shocked:
MMA Fighting's Shaheen Al-Shatti mentioned Rousey's bitter rival Miesha Tate in the aftermath:
MMA Fighting speculated on whether the shocking knockout was the best of the year, or even in the history of the sport:
Joanna Jedrzejczyk Bests a Game Letourneau
Most expected UFC women's strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk to defeat Valerie Letourneau easily, but the challenger refused to go quietly. In the first round, Letourneau managed to take the champion down, but she couldn't keep her there or do any damage.
Letourneau managed to hold her own during stand-up encounters through the first two-and-a-half rounds, but in the third, the champion began to distance herself. A steady diet of leg kicks and a snapping jab led to a 257-117 advantage in striking. That was the story of the bout.
In the post-fight interview, Jedrzejczyk said she expected a five-round fight. Without question, this was the champion's toughest defense.
Bleacher Report's Jonathan Snowden was impressed with Letourneau's toughness:
With a badly bruised face, Letourneau became emotional during her post-fight talk with the UFC's Joe Rogan. She has nothing to be ashamed of; she fought the best fight possible. While Letourneau was unable to dethrone Jedrzejczyk, challengers such as Claudia Gadelha should be encouraged. The champion looked as beatable as she has in her short reign over the strawweight division.
Here's a look at the rest of the results from UFC 193:
Ben Nguyen Storms Through Benoit
In search of his second straight win by stoppage, Ryan Benoit came out aggressive against Ben Nguyen. Benoit's aggression would quickly put him in peril. Nguyen caught him with a hard right hand that sent Benoit to the mat.
Sensing an opportunity for an early finish, Nguyen pounced on Benoit and began raining down hard shots. Benoit did a good job of defending the downward strikes and avoiding the TKO finish, but he couldn't make it back to his feet.
Nguyen changed his focus from strikes to a chase for the rear-naked choke. After a few moments of jostling, Nguyen would get his arm under Benoit's chin and force the tapout.
Nguyen didn't make any mistakes in the fight. Thus, it's fitting the man they call "10" was feeling perfect afterward. Fox Sports UFC shared his post-fight quote:
This was an explosive UFC debut for the 27-year-old from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. With a few more wins, Nguyen could find himself ranked in the top 10 among UFC flyweights quickly.
Moontasri Squashes Zafir with Video Game Combo
Anton Zafir came into his fight with James "Moonwalker" Moontasri known primarily as a grappler. He should've stuck to his bread and butter. Early in the bout, Zafir seemed to want to prove he could handle himself on his feet.
Toward the end of the first round, Moontasri landed a dynamic spinning back kick to Zafir's stomach. In the next motion, Moontasri hit a spinning back fist that would have made Paul from Tekken proud.
There were a few shots landed after Zafir went down, but the fight was called shortly thereafter by referee Steve Perceval. Moontasri's acrobatic attacks drew raves from the MMA community. MMA Fighting kept it simple but poignant:
This was a good rebound performance for Moontasri after he lost to Kevin Lee via submission in his last bout back in July. The Moonwalker's talent is evident. If he can improve his takedown defense, he can be a force.
Walsh Withstands Kennedy's Grappling
Steven Kennedy needed to utilize his grappling to have a chance to beat Richard Walsh. Fighting in front of his home fans, Kennedy secured two takedowns but couldn't do much with the top position once he got it.
Walsh's striking proved to be the difference as he landed 99 significant strikes to just 27 for Kennedy, per UFC.com en route to an easy unanimous-decision win. The victory might have saved Walsh's spot on the UFC roster. He had lost two fights in a row coming into the bout.
This was Kennedy's UFC debut, and he has some things to work on if he hopes to find some success.
Kelly Outlasts Montgomery
In an entertaining and back-and-forth bout, Daniel Kelly took the third and decisive round with some excellent takedown maneuvers and work from the top position. Montgomery was the longer and more refined striker, but Kelly looked to have more heart.
Though his tape showed more of a brawling style, Kelly proved he had some other tricks up his sleeve.
Here's what he said after the fight, per MMA Fighting:
Kelly secured five takedowns, per UFC.com, and when the fight was hanging in the balance, he took it.
The Gremlin Prevails over Vaculik
Danny "The Gremlin" Martinez beat Richie Vaculik in every facet of MMA. Per UFC.com, he landed 82 significant strikes to just 56 for Vaculik. Martinez also secured six takedowns to just three for Vaculik.
Here's one that UFC on Twitter called "textbook."
Martinez showed the more effective aggression throughout the fight. He deserved to sweep all three cards. This was a must-win for him. He had lost three straight fights coming in. The win over Vaculik should breathe some life into his UFC career.
Villante Eradicates Perosh
Everything about this fight looked like a mismatch on paper. It proved to be just as one-sided as most would have expected in the Octagon.
The 30-year-old Gian Villante stalked and teed off on the 43-year-old Anthony Perosh from the beginning of the bout until the crushing right hand to the chin ended the fight.
Perosh face-planted immediately after impact. Fox Sports UFC shared the sequence:
If there's anyone in the UFC who should retire, it's Perosh. He's taken some horrible punishment in his career, and he isn't a serious contender. Villante had a big win over Corey Anderson but was knocked out by Tom Lawlor in his next fight.
Villante has an intriguing future, but we need to see him in the Octagon with better competition.
Noke Kicks Sobotta to the Curb
Kyle Noke was visibly larger than Peter Sobotta in the Octagon. He proved to be the more powerful striker as well. Noke controlled the action early and ended the bout with a dangerous kick to Sobotta's midsection. Rob Tatum described the shot:
The kick doubled Sobotta over and forced him to shriek in pain. Sobotta tried to survive the swarm of shots from Noke that ensued, but he couldn't regain his stamina before the fight was stopped.
The win was Noke's second straight. If he can continue to make 170 pounds, he could be a difficult matchup for several welterweights.
Matthews Stops Arreola
After a rough first round that nearly saw Jake Matthews stopped by a head kick and subsequent flurry, the youngster rebounded to lay a beating on Akbarh Arreola in the second frame.
Matthews almost immediately took Arreola to the mat in the second round, and he bombed away with elbows and punches. Arreola's face was badly bloodied and swollen on both sides, but he survived the round.
Unfortunately for him, the doctor who examined him between rounds didn't like what he saw and called an end to the bout.
Fox Sports' Ariel Helwani hailed Matthews' comeback win:
Some might have taken exception with the stoppage, but Arreola's face was in bad shape after the first round. There's every reason to believe Matthews was going to do even more damage in the third round.
The 21-year-old is now 3-1 in the UFC, as he rebounded well from a submission loss to James Vick in his last fight.
Rosholt Takes Struve Down and Puts Us to Sleep
The Australian crowd was orderly and reserved for most of the night, but even it booed the Jared Rosholt vs. Stefan Struve bout.
Rosholt earned an easy unanimous-decision win by taking Struve down and laying on top of him for most of the time in the rounds. It was agonizing to watch. Per UFC.com, Rosholt spent 6:34 in top control and secured three takedowns.
There's no reason to bore you any further with more punchless details.
Whittaker Outfights Listless Hall
Just when you start to believe in Uriah Hall, he delivers another effort that causes you to question his heart for mixed martial arts. This isn't meant to disrespect Robert Whittaker; he fought a good fight, but Hall's reluctance to throw punches and tendency to turn his back whenever he was hit created a losing posture.
Al-Shatti, MMA History and Chamatkar Sandhu of MMA Junkie all shared their theories on Hall's frustrating inconsistency:
Whittaker hurt Hall with a right hand in the second and third round, and each time it took Hall 30 to 45 seconds to regain an aggressive nature. Whittaker outlanded Hall 82-45 and deserved the clear unanimous-decision win.
Mark Hunt Messes with Bigfoot
Fans were on their way to seeing another horribly boring fight, but Mark Hunt put an end to the waltz in the first round with a hard right hand behind Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva's ear. Silva dropped to his knees and took another shot to the face before the fight was waved off.
This was a far cry from the five-round war the two men fought back in December 2013. That fight ended in a draw and is widely regarded as the greatest heavyweight fight in history. The rematch won't challenge that distinction, but Hunt will take the result.
At 41 years old, he will probably have one more chance to challenge for the UFC heavyweight title. He'll need to win at least three more fights without a loss to reclimb the rankings. Tommy Toe Hold thinks Hunt will be fighting for another decade-and-a-half:
Silva should be standing in the retirement line right behind Perosh. The 36-year-old is 1-4-1 in his last six fights, and he's maximized his talent. There's nothing left to do but take more poundings from some big guys.
That can't be attractive.
What's Next?
If you can catch your breath after the epic UFC 193 main event, there's more action on the way in a week.
The UFC will travel to Monterrey, Mexico, on Saturday, Nov. 21, for its next event. The show will be headlined by a welterweight clash between Neil Magny and Kelvin Gastelum. Both men would love to break into the top 10. The winner could move in.
The co-main event could be a brawl. No. 4-ranked featherweight Ricardo Lamas will takes on the original Ultimate Fighter: Diego Sanchez. You can see the entire card at UFC.com.
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