UFC returned to Madison Square Garden for UFC 295. The event was defined by two highly anticipated title fights. The first of these title fights was Alex Pereira facing off against Jiří Procházka for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship, which was vacated due to previous champion Jamahal Hill suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon. The other title fight between Tom Aspinall and Sergei Pavlovich for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship was set up due to lineal champion Jon Jones suffering a pectoral muscle injury. As a result, the planned main event between Jones and Stipe Miocic was canceled.
The event opened with young Featherweight sensation Diego Lopes defeating Pat Sabatini in a KO win within 90 seconds after a flurry of punches. Lopes, now 1-1 in the UFC, has already issued a challenge for the #10 ranked Featherweight Bryce Mitchell. It only took 91 seconds for Lightweight Benoît Saint-Denis to take down Matt Frevola with a massive head kick. This resulted in Saint-Dennis’ fifth win. During his battles throughout the division, commentators have agreed that the “God of War” has established himself as a contender for the title. Jéssica Andrade bounced back from a three fight losing streak by dropping Mackensie Dern by TKO in the second round of their Strawweight fight. Despite losing, Dern made it clear that she is undeterred and will be fighting her way to the Strawweight title.
The bout between Aspinall and Pavlovich had two weeks’ notice. Despite the short preparation, Aspinall overpowered Pavlovich with a KO punch one minute into the bout. Due to the swift victory, The buzz for the new interim champ has dominated conversation among fans. This has led to the million dollar question being asked once again, can he be the one to take down Jon Jones?
Alex Pereira has done so much in his short time with the UFC. He held the UFC Middleweight title for a short time and made his debut for the Light Heavyweight division in July. Currently, Pereira holds the Light Heavyweight title after he defeated Procházka, a former champion in his own right, by TKO with a series of elbows and punches. The Brazilian fighter and member of the Kickboxing Hall of Fame has now won two titles in less than two years. Pereira’s quest to defend his title in a hungry division will be an exciting sight for fans.
UFC’s next major event, UFC 296, is on December 16th in Paradise, Nevada. UFC is available to watch on ESPN, ESPN+, and PPV.
