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UFC Vegas 31 shot down last night (Saturday, July 17, 2021) from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the main event of the evening, Islam Makhachev dominated Thiago Moises for three rounds before sinking into a choke at the back ending the fight for his eighth consecutive victory (highlights here). In the headlining act, Miesha Tate defeated Marion Reneau by third round technical knockout in what was the first “Cupcake” fight after an almost five-year retirement (see him again here).
Biggest winner: Islam Makhachev
Makhachev’s latest victory over Moises has further helped raise his stock in the stacked lightweight division. Makhachev dominated the first three rounds of the bout, never giving up the opening bell before eventually sinking into late-round fourth-round submission. Once again, he used his struggle to subdue Moises, which he built up with his ever-improving hitting. The win should be good enough to lift him a few places in the Top 10. It should also prepare him for a bigger fight in his next outing, possibly against Rafael dos Anjos. Makhachev is the real deal and slowly but steadily he is climbing the 155-pound ladder in an attempt to pick up where his mentor and training partner, Khabib Nurmagomedov, left off.
Finalist: Mateusz Gamrot
Gamrot added to his means of winning after crushing longtime veteran Jeremy Stephens, submitting him in the first round via Kimura. If “Little Pagan” hadn’t typed when he did, he could’ve spent some time in the hospital… it was so tight. For Gamrot, this is his second consecutive victory inside the Octagon after failing on his Octagon debut against Guram Kutateladze, whom he lost by split decision. Along with perhaps his biggest win against an established veteran, the American Top Team (ATT) trained fighter also returned home with an additional $ 50,000 post-fight bonus.
Honorable mention: Miesha Tate
After a five-year absence, Tate hasn’t missed a beat in his comeback fight against Reneau. After an expected slow start, Tate started to get under his feet and found his rhythm. She went to her roots and used her struggle to stifle Reneau, who was in the last fight of her fighting career. In the third and final round, Tate managed to defeat her foe and beat her to a technical knockout victory. With the win, Tate ends her losing two-fight slippage and steps onto the winner’s podium for the first time since March 2016. Now she just has to win twice more in 12 months to match the winner. six-figure salary she left behind to return to the cage.
Biggest Loser: Jeremy Stephens
Entering the event, Stephens earned our spot on “Who Needs A Win Badly” as “Lil ‘Heathen” hasn’t raised a hand inside the Octagon in over three years, losing four of his five previous fights. The other fight was a “No Contest” against Yair Rodriguez. Stephens’ woes only escalated last night in “Sin City” because his chill streak extended after Gamrot subdued the powerful slugger in just 65 seconds via Kimura (see him again here). So to recap: Stephens has lost three in a row and five of his last six inside the Octagon. It’s unclear what the future holds for him as he’s a fan favorite and always brings it. Whether or not that will be enough to convince UFC officials to keep him on the list after his numerous setbacks remains to be seen.
For full UFC Vegas 31 play-by-play updates and results, click here.
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