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UFC Vegas 85 is officially in the books and much like it was on paper, in practice, it was a mixed bag. We ended up with just five finishes out of 13 fights. We had a no contest, a majority decision and six unanimous decisions. The main event was a grueling battle that got to be quite tedious with all the wall and stall that was happening and the Khizriev-Muradov fight was over almost before it started. Fun fact: That fight is now tied for the shortest no contest result in UFC history.
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UFC Vegas 85 key moments
Roman Dolidze was the sizable betting favorite going into this pairing but he looked outclassed almost from the jump. Every time Imavov would get some rhythm going, Dolidze would revert to stall tactics against the cage, forcing Herb Dean to intervene over and over. The big action occurred when Imavov thought Dolidze’s hand was cleared from the canvas and thus launched a huge kick that ended up causing a big ruckus.
It was thought that one of Imavov’s toes may have caught Dolidze in the eye, but either way, it was an illegal knee by current rules. If you thought that was the end of it, you’d be wrong. Chris Curtis happened to be part of Dolidze’s corner and started shouting something at Imavov. Next thing you know, Imavov is charging out of the cage trying to fight Chris Curtis.
Herb Dean had to almost tackle Imavov to keep him from starting a fight with Team Dolidze, all while shouting “I’ll disqualify you, don’t do it!” Dean would take a point from Imavov, as the kick was pretty egregious, and despite being obviously stunned. Dolidze opted to continue. When the decision was read and Imavov was being interviewed, he thanked Dolidze for being a warrior and soldiering through, not like Chris Curtis “who would never do that.”
The co-main event was a pretty solid fight with lots of action. Moicano would take the unanimous decision and of course, his mic time was memorable, as has become his standard. This time, though, he started strong, with a reference to his 62-year-old father having just fathered a child that was born yesterday and that he was going home to knock up his wife to keep the tradition alive.
Then, his speech began to come apart at the seams. While were basking in the glory of another verbal masterpiece from the Brazilian, he abruptly began talking about wanting to become a police officer after his UFC career so he could “kill bad guys” and then admonished everyone saying they needed to “go to church and respect the law” and that America was becoming a third world country.
Molly McCann’s move down a weight class seems to be just what the doctor ordered if we are to judge off this one contest where she was given about as soft a touch as there is in any of the women’s divisions. It was nice to see her get her first UFC submission and her post-fight interview was great. Her “talk less, do more” statement is something I wish more fighters would embrace.
And of course Natalia Silva looked great against a very tough gal in Viviane Araujo. Silva’s speedy, accurate kicks were the biggest key to victory and hopefully, she gets another fight asap. It’s a treat to watch her compete and she’s got such a bubbly, vivacious personality. She seems to have quite a high ceiling if she gets her striking a little more refined.
UFC Vegas 85 Quick Results
- – Nassourdine Imavov def. Roman Dolidze by majority decision (49-44, 48-46, 47-47): Middleweight
- – Renato Moicano def. Drew Dober by unanimous decision (29-28 x3): Lightweight
- – Randy Brown def. Muslim Salikhov by KO at 3:17 of round 1: Welterweight
- – Natália Silva def. Viviane Araujo by unanimous decision (29-28 x3): (W) Flyweight
- – Makhmud Muradov vs. Aliaskhab Khizriev is a no contest due to eye poke at :11 of round 1: Middleweight
- – Charles Radtke def. Gilbert Urbina by TKO at 4:47 of round 1: Welterweight
- – Molly McCann def. Diana Belbiţă by submission (Armbar) at 4:59 of round 1: Strawweight
- – Charles Johnson def. Azat Maksum by unanimous decision (29-28 x3): Flyweight
- – Themba Gorimbo def. Pete Rodriguez by TKO at :32 of round 1: Welterweight
- – Jeong Yeong Lee def. Blake Bilder by unanimous decision (30-27 x3): Featherweight
- – Luana Carolina def. Julija Stoliarenko by TKO at 4:52 of round 3: (W) Flyweight
- – Marquel Mederos def. Landon Quiñones by unanimous decision (29-28 x3): Lightweight
- – Jamal Pogues def. Thomas Petersen by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 x2): Heavyweight
Don’t forget to check out the bonus section where the boys give their patented, five-star review of all the fights from UFC Vegas 85. You can’t get this anywhere…or can you? We like to think you can’t, so we’ll stick with that. Just be sure to listen!
What comes after UFC Vegas 85?
The next event after UFC Vegas 85 will be UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Pyfer on February 10th. That card is also taking place at the ol’ APEX facility in Las Vegas, and will also enjoy a middleweight main event when the 23-8 veteran, Jack Hermansson, dances with the surging 12-2, Joe Pyfer. The co-main will involve an explosive featherweight scrap between Dan Ige and Andre Fili.
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