UFC 284
Review
The tops and flops of the pound-for-pound clash in Perth
Tops
Fans, Main- & Co-Main Event
Wow, what an energetic event that was in Perth. The first award clearly goes to the Australian fans. As one might have expected, the "Aussies" spurred on their local hero, Alexander Volkanovski – and he delivered. The UFC fighter, undefeated until yesterday, delivered a spirited performance against the favored Makhachev in a fantastic main event, even wobbling the champion from Dagestan three times...
With a minute to go, the Australian had his best moment, knocking Makhachev down and landing several ground-and-pound strikes. However, in our opinion, the Russian was the deserved winner in terms of rounds. Still, it was a close fight—not many expected Makhachev to have such trouble with Volkanovski.
Yair Rodriguez and Josh Emmett showed them how it's done, battling for the interim featherweight title in the co-main event. A brilliant performance from Rodriguez, who won against a dangerous Emmett. Fun-to-watch kickboxing and a submission finish – that's MMA the way we love it.
Flops
wenig auszusetzen...
Overall, the UFC event in Perth was a very successful one; you'd have to be a very critical person to find many negative aspects. The main card is the most likely area of criticism. When you have a double-championship fight in the main event, you're used to seeing top-class fights in the fights leading up to it. That wasn't the case at UFC 284.
Just remember UFC 205, where, alongside McGregor and Alvarez, Woodley, Jędrzejczyk, and Romero also fought. But you shouldn't expect too much.
In conclusion, top fans, top fights – the event leaves you wanting more…
Wie geht es weiter?
Nächste Challenge?
Man muss neben dem ganzen Lob für Volkanovski auch die Leistung Makhachevs anerkennen. Dieser hat am Ende des Tages mit dem australischen Kraftpaket einen echt schwierigen Gegner bezwungen, auch wenn nicht in dominanter Khabib-Manier.
Islam wird sich als nächstes wohl an einem Lightweight-Contender messen. Namen wie Porier und Dariush stehen im Raum, der Gewinner zwischen Fiziev und Gaethje hat sicher auch gute Chancen. Wie es mit Volkanovski weitergeht, lies dieser noch offen. Wahrscheinlich wird es in naher Zukunft das Matchup gegen Yair Rodriguez geben.