The UFC returned to New York City with a bang for UFC 295 this past weekend. The event saw two new champions crowned in thrilling fashion and all five fights on the main card ended via stoppage. Here are some of my thoughts and biggest takeaways from this one:
Thoughts on Pereira/Prochazka
Alex Pereira joined some elite company on Saturday when he won gold in a second UFC division with his win over Jiri Prochazka. Pereira became the ninth fighter in promotion history to accomplish the feat, and it’s frankly incredible what he has been able to do in such a short amount of time with the company. Pereira already has four wins over current/former UFC champions in just seven fights. He will most likely face Jamahal Hill in his first title defense in early-to-mid 2024. Prochazka will likely be back relatively quickly from the loss, hard to see him sitting out long. I expect him to continue to stay in the title picture for the foreseeable future and would be surprised if he doesn’t earn another shot at the belt.
Thoughts on Aspinall/Pavlovich
Absolutely incredible win for Tom Aspinall to become the interim UFC Heavyweight champion with a beautiful first-round knockout win over Sergei Pavlovich. Aspinall becomes the third UFC champion from the United Kingdom, joining current UFC Welterweight champion Leon Edwards and former middleweight champ Michael Bisping. Aspinall looked amazing in the octagon and Pavlovich was simply unable to handle the speed of Aspinall’s movements and striking. Tough to say what’s next in the short term for Aspinall, with the UFC apparently intent on still running Jon Jones and Stipe Miocic at some point in what will likely be a retirement fight for both. Regardless of that situation, there’s a good chance Aspinall could enjoy a lengthy reign as champ. As for Pavlovich, I think his power is still going to be a big problem for a lot of the division and he could eventually see another shot also.
Thoughts on Diego Lopes
Outside of the two title winners, I’m not sure anyone left UFC 295 looking better overall than Lopes, who picked up an impressive first-round KO/TKO stoppage win over Pat Sabatini to open the main card. Since losing in his UFC debut on short notice in a closer-than-expected bout with top 10 featherweight Movsar Evloev, Lopes has reeled off back-to-back first round stoppages in dominant fashion. He’s got some nasty submission skills, and as he displayed on Saturday, Lopes also has the striking to hang with a lot of opponents as well. I would be stunned if his next bout isn’t against ranked opposition, and I could see him continuing to rise fairly high in the featherweight division heading into next year.
Thoughts on the Rest
Impressive and much needed win for Jessica Andrade, who has been extremely active this year despite having some pretty rough outings coming into this fight. She was able to keep McKenzie Dern standing and absolutely demolished her on the feet, becoming the first fighter to stop Dern in the process… Another excellent showing from Benoit Saint Denis, who picked up his fifth straight win via stoppage with a filthy first-round knockout win over Matt Frevola. Saint Denis is extremely entertaining to watch inside the octagon and he will likely be facing a top 10 opponent at lightweight in his next bout… Absolute firefight between Nazim Sadykhov and Viacheslav Borshchev and the well-deserved winner of Fight of the Night honors. No complaints on the bout ending as a Draw, and I was glad to see both fighters were happy with that ruling as well… Huge win for Jared Gordon to cap off the early prelims and great to see him get back in the win column at home in New York City at the Garden with a nasty first-round knockout victory over Mark O Madsen.
Quick Betting Recap
My bets for UFC 295 could have gone better, with only one of my three recommended props to consider for this weekend coming through. Fortunately, the one that hit also happened to be my most confident bet of the card with Alex Pereira winning over 1.5 rounds in the main event. I had the right method and/or rounds on the other two plays (Pavlovich by KO/TKO in R1/2 and Frevola by KO/TKO), but unfortunately, I picked the wrong winners on those bets.
What’s Up Next
UFC Vegas 82 is on the way this upcoming weekend from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card currently has 14 bouts scheduled and it will be headlined by Brendan Allen and Paul Craig in a battle of middleweights. Check back later this week for my main event pick and/or some of my favorite prop bets for this card.