A Look at UFC 280 and the Future of the Sport

By Sport Editor 2 years ago

The UFC returned to Abu Dhabi on October 22 with a UFC 280 card. Faris analyses the fights and what they mean for the future of the sport.

On Saturday 22 October, UFC fans were treated to a fantastic fight card including pitting the reigning lightweight Charles Oliveira against the rapidly rising Islam Makhachev. Other much anticipated fights included up-and-coming star, Sean O’Malley against former bantamweight champion, Petr Yan. Not only did UFC 280 give fans a spectacle with some incredible performances from the fighters but O’Malley’s victory was perceived as controversial and divided fans while bringing into question the sport’s future.

The two victors of these bouts, Makhachev and O’Malley, represent contrasting ideals within the world of MMA and symbolise the fork in the road for UFC. Given the connection between Makhachev and Khabib as well as the comparisons made between O’Malley and Conor McGregor, it is hard not to draw parallels between this matchup and Khabib and McGregor’s rivalry; the flashy and confident against the humble and focused. While one makes for a more respectable competitor, there is no denying the effect Conor McGregor and his explosive personality had on the sport’s popularity, creating drama with the organisation as well as cementing rivalries in the history of the sport.

 

UFC 280 card was headlined by a clash for the vacant lightweight championship between Charles Oliveira [left] and Islam Makhachev [right] (Photo Credit: UFC)
The main event of the night was the Oliveira and Makhachev fight, affirming Makhachev’s dominance as a fighter as well as the strength of his fighting style and his discipline, as a student of Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov and his son, Khabib, who dominated the division during his time. The fight both shocked and entertained fans as Oliveira unexpectedly submitted in the second round after a dominant performance from Makhachev. From the start until the end, Islam dominated Oliveira with an impressive takedown in the first round and excellent striking game in the second with a punch causing the knockdown leading to the hold in which Oliveira submitted. Not only was it surprising to see Oliveira take his first loss since 2017 but to lose by submission in the second round is truly a testament to Islam’s ability. After the fight, Oliveira vowed to come back stronger and as fans know all to well, he has done this successfully before, however, Islam’s dominance and focus is apparent as he sets his sights ahead. Dedicating his victory to his coaches Khabib and his late father, Islam showed great humility in his victory and emphasised that the values of Khabib and his father would be upheld and carried on within the world of UFC, through the way he carries himself. Although we should hesitate to write off Oliveira as a contender it appears that the sport is entering a new era, in which Islam Makhachev will reign.

The fight between Petr Yan and Sean O’Malley in the bantamweight division, although not a main event, was equally, if not more, entertaining than the main fight of the night. Filled with incredible moments from both fighters, the fight could have gone in either direction. Whilst Yan dominated on the ground, O’Malley’s striking game outmatched Yan’s, although not by a large margin. Ultimately, the split decision went in O’Malley’s favour dividing fans massively.

 

American UFC star O’Malley divided fans with his controversial win against Russian, Yan (Photo Credit: MMA News)

Prominent American UFC commentator, Joe Rogan excellently outlined the various points of debate, questioning how points are decided upon especially the debate around whether instilling little damage but having someone on the floor counts less than striking and landing hits, even if one is held down for prolonged periods. Throughout the fight, Yan kept up with O’Malley’s striking game for the most part despite appearing weaker in some moments. When it came to grappling, O’Malley was clearly outclassed, rarely gaining the upper hand against Yan. Despite his dominance on the floor, Yan was not able to capitalise on his advantage effectively and caused little damage nor was he able to get a submission from O’Malley. There is an additional layer to the divisions caused by this result, in that O’Malley is suspected of cheating throughout the fight. On multiple occasions, O’Malley grabbed onto the cage to hold his weight or prevent Yan from moving him, however, this was missed by the referee. More seriously, when grappling, O’Malley can be seen glove grabbing, digging his two middle fingers inside Yan’s glove when in a difficult position on the floor, preventing Yan from striking him. Again, the referee allegedly saw nothing. Thus, we return to the issue of who should have emerged victorious; perhaps if the referee had been more diligent, Yan would have been in a better position to capitalise on O’Malley’s weak groundwork. Ultimately, the results cannot be changed and certainly O’Malley fought well but the issue of cheating undermines his victory as well as bringing into question the intentions of the UFC as an organisation.

There has been much discourse regarding the direction the UFC is heading in, especially with the rise and fall of Conor McGregor. The UFC was known to treat fighters unfairly, often granting Conor concessions where other fighters would not be given the same liberties, such as the time were Conor was allowed to keep his belt despite remaining inactive. In this case, O’Malley is the rising star and perhaps he is treated leniently due to his potential to reach Conor’s level of fame, bringing in casual fans who are more interested in the cult of personality created around flashy fighters such a Conor than the competitive integrity of the championships. Thus, the UFC finds itself at a fork in the road, although going too far down either path runs the risk of either ostracising the massive amounts of fans that big personalities bring in or damaging the integrity of the sport itself by being lenient towards these fighters.

 

Conor McGregor, 34 (Photo: BBC Sport)

Comments

comments

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

232 thoughts on “A Look at UFC 280 and the Future of the Sport”

  6. Greetings from Colorado! I’m bored to tears at work so I decided to browse your website on my iphone during lunch break. I love the knowledge you provide here and can’t wait to take a look when I get home. I’m amazed at how quick your blog loaded on my phone .. I’m not even using WIFI, just 3G .. Anyways, great blog!

    Reply

  17. With havin so much content and articles do you ever run into any problems
    of plagorism or copyright violation? My
    website has a lot of completely unique content I’ve either
    written myself or outsourced but it appears a lot of it is popping it up all over the
    web without my authorization. Do you know any solutions to help stop content
    from being stolen? I’d certainly appreciate it.

    Reply
  30. Pingback: joker gaming

  75. Wonderful work! That is the type of info that are supposed to be shared around the web. Shame on the search engines for no longer positioning this publish upper! Come on over and discuss with my site . Thanks =)

    Reply

  143. Hi there! This post couldn’t be written any better! Reading through this post reminds me of my previous room mate! He always kept talking about this. I will forward this article to him. Pretty sure he will have a good read. Thank you for sharing!

    Reply

  183. All the top stories and transfer rumours from Tuesday’s newspapers… And with no obvious progress in sight over a new deal for the Blues star, a number of top-flight clubs are exploring the possibility of signing the midfielder this summer. The Telegraph reports that United are alongside Manchester City and Liverpool in monitoring the situation in London. Stan Collymore is a football pundit and former player, signing for Liverpool FC in 1995 for an English transfer record… read more Victor Osimhen has put Manchester United and Chelsea on red alert with his latest transfer comments. FootballChelsea bidder Pagliuca gives Boehly verdict amid Man United rumoursThe American was one of the shortlisted candidates to buy Chelsea last year Hazard playing more centrally worked wonders for Chelsea last season, as he combined wonderfully with striker Diego Costa. Conte and the club will be counting on him to eventually do the same with the Spain international’s replacement, Alvaro Morata.
    https://vuf.minagricultura.gov.co/Lists/Informacin%20Servicios%20Web/DispForm.aspx?ID=6295410
    You can watch all the pre-match coverage, latest Liverpool FC news, TV interviews and scores from other English Premier League matches throughout the game. NewsNow aims to be the world’s most accurate and comprehensive Liverpool FC news aggregator, bringing you the latest LFC headlines from the best Liverpool sites and other key national and international news sources. Whether it’s the very latest transfer news from Anfield, quotes from a Jurgen Klopp press conference, match previews and reports, or news about the Reds’ progress in the Premier League and in Europe, we’ve got it covered. Those titles demonstrate the history of Liverpool and how it has periods of dominance. In fact, many argue that we are currently in one of those periods of success. Liverpool won the 2018 19 Champions League after finishing as the runner-up in the year prior. Also, Liverpool broke its long English title drought by winning the Premier League in 2019 20.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

THE STAND