UFC 266: Review and Results

UFC 266 was a mixed martial arts event held on December 30, 2018 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The ufc 266 results today is a review of UFC 266 which took place on Saturday, December 30th.

UFC 266: Results and Analysis

Volkanovski vs. Ortega | Two-Title Fights and the Return of Nick Diaz

Sports

With UFC 266: Volkanovski vs. Ortega, the UFC’s 9th International Fight Week in Las Vegas came to a close, but first there had a hectic weekend of Hall of Famers and fan activities to go through.

After being postponed for a year due to the government shutdown, the 2020 UFC Hall of Fame class was inducted at the Park MGM on Thursday, September 23rd. The class included three-time welterweight and middleweight champion Georges St-Pierre, a long-time welterweight monarch and one of the all-time greats. Former UFC heavyweight champion Kevin “The Monster” Randleman, a founding member of the pre-Zuffa era and a PRIDE stalwart. Marc Ratner, long-time vice president of regulatory affairs, was eventually entrusted with giving the sport credibility. The induction of particular bouts is unique to the UFC Hall of Fame. The first Jon Jones (who is back in the headlines for… well, being Jon Jones) and Alexander Gustafsson were inducted into the Hall of Fame this year at UFC 165 in 2013.

The acclaimed two-day Fan Experience, which took up two acres of land in “The Park” and “Toshiba Plaza,” occupied the following several days. Dustin Poirier, Tony Ferguson, and Dominick Reyes were among the top candidates, as were Jorge Masvidal and Hall of Famer Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell. Not actually, but you could picture it, couldn’t you? Knocking out some idiots with the overhand right for around $350; not really, but you could imagine it, couldn’t you?

The card, which was supposed to be the highlight of the weekend, largely delivered. Here’s a summary of the major competitions’ results and reviews.

Preliminaries on ESPN+

Featherweight: Jonathan Pearce (11-4, 2-1 UFC) submits Omar Morales (11-2, 3-2 UFC) by rear-naked choke at 3:31 of Round 2.

KTFO’s Martin Sano (4-3-1, 0-1 UFC) vs. Welterweight Matthew Semelsberger (9-3, 3-1 UFC) At 0:15 of Round 1. Sano is Nick Diaz’s primary training partner (foreshadowing?) and was KO’d with a single punch.

Nick Maximov (7-0, 1-0 UFC) wins a majority decision against Cody Brundage (6-2, 0-1 UFC) (x3 29-28).

Uros Medic (7-1, 1-1 UFC) is submitted (rear-naked choke) by Jalin Turner (11-5, 4-2 UFC) at 4:01 of Round 1.

Preliminaries on ESPN News

Talia Santos (#12 ranked, 18-1, 3-1 UFC) wins a unanimous decision against Roxanne Modafferi (#9 ranked, 25-19, 4-7 UFC) (x3 30-27). With the former title contender and Ultimate Fighter 26 finalist, Santos had her way. Modafferi couldn’t get a takedown in the third and didn’t seem to be any more competitive early in the bout. Santos looked fantastic in the clinch and, with a little work on his punches, could be a flyweight contender to watch.

Chris Daukaus (#10 ranked, 12-3, 4-0 UFC) knocked out Shamil Abdurakhimov (#7 ranked, 20-6, 5-4 UFC) at 1:23 of Round 2 to win Performance of the Night. Allow the video to speak for itself.

Chris Daukaus (@ChrisDaukaus) For his birthday, MMA awarded himself a KO win.

[ #UFC266 | NOW ON @ESPNPlus & ESPNews ] [ #UFC266 | NOW ON @ESPNPlus & ESPNews ] pic.twitter.com/1Z7R7MXxeL

September 26, 2021 — UFC (@ufc)

 

Lightweights: Dan Hooker (#8 rated, 21-10, 11-6 UFC) won a unanimous decision against Nasrat Haqparast (13-4, 5-3 UFC) (x2 30-27, 30-26). Nasrat seemed to be out of sorts after being struck with an axe kick in the first round, having his body worked in the second, and almost being finished with a choke in the third. Hooker had a big victory and a dominating performance.

Merab Dvalishvili (#11 ranked, 14-4, 7-2, UFC) TKOs Marlon Moraes (#6 ranked, 23,9-1, 5-5 UFC) at 4:25 of Round 2. Bantamweights (Performance of the Night Winner): Up to this moment, this was easily the best bout of the night. Early in the first, Moraes rocked Dvalishvili; he recovered to clinch, ultimately putting Moraes down and rocking him with brutal ground-and-pound until the bell rang.

Round 2 begins with a huge body punch from Merab, who takes down Marlon and returns to pounding him into the mat. Moraes scrambles to his feet and attempts a weak takedown that fails, only for Merab to begin reducing his life expectancy with undefended punches until the fight is stopped by the official.

Main Event on ESPN+ PPV

Jessica Andrade (ranked #1, 22-9, 13-7 UFC) TKOs Cynthia Calvillo (ranked #5, 9-3-1, 6-3-1 UFC) in the women’s flyweight division. The battle was a messy barroom brawl with more leg kicks than a Street Fighter tournament, with little chance of going to the ground. Calvillo was rocked by an Andrade leg kick towards the conclusion of the round, only for Jessica to swarm and finish the opening. Even though she lost to the champion, Shevchenko (spoilers), in April, she appeared so dominating that a rematch in the new year isn’t impossible.

Heavyweights: Curtis Blaydes (#4, 15-3-1 no contest, 10-3-1 NC UFC) won a unanimous decision against Jairzinho Rozenstruik (#6, 12-3, 6-3 UFC) (x3 30-27). When two heavyweights go the distance, the outcome is almost always a disaster; this was confirmed today. The most intriguing aspect of this battle was Blaydes’ expression afterward. This was a disaster.

@RazorBlaydes265 puts in a dominant effort to win the UD.

[ #UFC266 | TUNE IN NOW | LIVE ON ESPN+ PPV: https://t.co/2qE0lEWxD2 ] [ #UFC266 | TUNE IN NOW | LIVE ON ESPN+ PPV: https://t.co/2qE0lEWxD2 ] pic.twitter.com/1Knre3BrHo

September 26, 2021 — UFC (@ufc)

 

Robbie Lawler (29-15-1, 14-9 UFC) TKOs (retirement) Nick Diaz (26-10-2, 7-7-1 no contest) at 0:44 in Round 3. Diaz hasn’t fought in almost 6 years, since UFC 183 versus Anderson Silva on January 31, 2015, while Lawler hasn’t fought in over a year. With almost 40 years of professional MMA experience between them, it was a strong performance for a pair of “legends” (one more so than the other). Lawler avoided Diaz’s leaping spin kick (must have been inspired by GSP a few nights before), and Diaz was able to hit several huge punches. For the first two rounds, it remained standing and up against the cage, which were very tight, but in the third, Lawler delivered a combination that sent Diaz to the ground in a heap. Diaz, strangely enough, informed the referee that he was OK and that was the end of it. That was the elder Diaz brother’s first stoppage (officially) since 2007, but it was still a doctor’s stoppage against KJ Noons at EliteXC: Uprising on September 15. The last time he was stopped in the middle of a round was in his 5th career fight in 2002, which was 19 years ago (almost to the day).

Valentina Shevchenko (champion, 22-3, 11-2 UFC) TKOs Lauren Murphy (#3 tanked, 15-5, 7-5 UFC) at 4:00 of Round 4 in the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship. “Bullet” wins for the eighth time in a row and defends his championship for the sixth time. For one of the most dominating champions in the UFC today, it was never in question. Given the domination of all their reigns so far, one has to question whether she goes up to fight Amanda Nunes for the Bantamweight title in order to revenge her previous two losses.

Alexander Volkanovski (champion, 23-1, 10-0 UFC) beats Brian Ortega (#2, 15-2 1 no contest, 7-2 1 NC UFC) by majority decision in the UFC Featherweight Championship (Fight of the Night Winner) (49-46, 50-45, 50-44). Don’t be fooled by the odd score; this was an all-timer that had the audience going crazy. (Personal note: lower weight classes usually produce more interesting bouts than the big guys who stand and bash; this is more my pace, but I understand if you like the finishes and spectacle.) I’m more of a techie.) The fight didn’t get to the ground until the third round; the first two were all about establishing range and a long feeling-out process, with both guys hitting excellent kicks and combinations. In the third round, Ortega felled Volkanovski with a left hand and immediately went for a guillotine attempt in-mount. Volkanovski finally escapes and lands on top in a guard position, where he unleashes a barrage of devastating punches. Ortega put up the devil’s gate… triangle choke, which he got in deep, but Volkanovski had amazing submission escapes once again, finishing the third round with some huge hands on top. On the ground, Round 4 looked a lot like Round 3, and the final round went back to the feet with combinations and leg kicks, with Ortega making a strong impression on the judges. But it wasn’t enough, as Volkanovski wins his 20th consecutive match and defends his Featherweight title for the second time. He may keep it for as long as he likes.

 

It was a great night of fighting with just a few duds. On October 30th, 2021, UFC 267: Blachowicz vs. Teixeira will take place in Abu Dhabi, the land of oil and skyscrapers, with the Light Heavyweight Championship on the line.

UFC 266 was a mixed martial arts event that took place on December 30, 2016 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts. The main card aired on Fox Sports 1 while the preliminary card aired on Fox Sports 2. Reference: ufc 266 results twitter.

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