Paulo Costa in action against Luke Rockhold
UFC 278: Here’s a look at the UFC 278 results, which had a few star-studded fights on the card as well as who all received the bonus
The UFC welterweight division is shaping into one of the most exciting divisions in the UFC. With the emergence of young prospects like Shavkat Rakhmonov, Sean Brady, and Khamzat Chimaev, the future of the division seems to be in good hands. Kamaru Usman faced Leon Edwards in the main event of UFC 278. The card lived up to everyone’s expectation with some great fights, capped off by an incredible finish in the main event.
Kamaru Usman was undefeated for nine years before he met Leon Edwards at UFC 278. The fight began with Edwards using his range to keep Usman away. He threw a strong calf kick and body shots to open his attacks. Usman realized that he needs to utilize his wrestling to disrupt the British fighter’s flow.
He quickly closed the distance and initiated a clinch. Edwards however, maintained his composure and posture forcing Usman into a clinch contest. In one of the rarest sights in a Kamaru Usman fight, Edwards established strong under-hooks that postured the Nigerian up. and used his full force to trip Usman and secure a takedown. ‘Rocky’ obtained a dominant position of full mount, and quickly took Usman’s back. He worked his way for a submission in the remainder of the round.
Realizing that he was one round down against the challenger, Usman came in to the second round stronger. He pressured his opponent with intent, and forced his wrestling onto him. He managed to wear down his opponent who seemed to have no answers for Usman’s wrestling proficiency.
The Nigerian was taking down his opponent at will and it looked like he was well on his way to a decision victory. Before the last round, Edwards’ corner encouraged him to dig deep and urged him to push the action. He pulled out a sneaky head kick weapon from deep in his arsenal, that stifled Usman and knocked him out cold. What followed was clear display of thrill and agony from both sides, and a reminder of why this is the most unpredictable sport in the world.
In the co-main event, Luke Rockhold and Paulo Costa delivered one of the most exciting fights that earned him the ‘fight of the night’ bonus. The fight was packed with action right from the start. The fight began with Rockhold trying to take Costa down which unfortunately for him did not work out well. Costa reversed the position, and got him into an arm tie and landed nasty uppercuts from the position.
This wounded Rockhold’s nose pretty bad and he was forced to breathe from his mouth for the remaining fight. There were moments in the fight where it felt like Rockhold could not continue. A little push from his coaching team, and cheer from the crowd pushed the former middleweight champion to continue fighting.
The most bizarre moment came in the third round when Rockhold sprayed his blood on Costa’s face from top position. He even managed to land some big punches, but in the end, he was too spent and Costa capitalized on it to coast through a decision victory.
Leon Edwards def. Kamaru Usman via fifth-round KO (4:04)
Paulo Costa def. Luke Rockhold via unanimous decision
Merab Dvalishvili def. Jose Aldo via unanimous decision
Lucie Pudilova def. Wu Yanan via second-round TKO (4:04)
Tyson Pedro def. Harry Hunsucker via first-round TKO (1:05)
Marcin Tybura def. Alexander Romanov via majority decision (29-28 x2, 28-28)
Jared Gordon def. Leonardo Santos via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Sean Woodson vs. Luis Saldana ruled split draw (29-27, 27-29, 28-28) | Twitter Reax
Ange Loosa def. A.J. Fletcher via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28 x2)
Amir Albazi def. Francisco Figueiredo via sub (rear-naked choke) (R1, 4:34)
Aori Qileng def. Jay Perrin via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Victor Altamirano def. Daniel Lacerda via first-round TKO (3:39)
These are the four fighters who claimed the extra $50,000 bonus for their performances
Performance of the Night: Victor Altamirano
Performance of the Night: Leon Edwards
Fight of the Night: Luke Rockhold vs Paulo Costa
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