UFC Vegas 86 competed for attention in the same city as Super Bowl LVIII this weekend. Despite the overlap, the show proved to be well worth it! The City of Las Vegas put on a show for MMA fans. The night ended in a decision victory for Jack Hermansson over Joe Pyfer. But, which early stoppage was your favorite of the evening?
UFC Vegas 86 In-Fight Finish #3
Although not a knockout, Rodolfo Viera submitted Armen Petrosyan before the first round could finish. The performance warrants being on this list! The fight nearly lasted into the second round. But even though only twelve seconds remained on the clock, it proved to be too much. His corner argued that he hadn’t tapped, but the commentary team saw it otherwise. They viewed it as Petrosyan falling asleep while in a hold, and that he involuntarily tapped right before falling asleep. He seemed weary and even had the referee not stepped in, he likely would have just been even more visibly submitted. Regardless, the win was deserved for Viera, as he pulled off the win.
First round finish for Rodolfo Vieira!
He gets the tap with twelve seconds left in round 1 ? #UFCVegas86 pic.twitter.com/NSYVRRMyS2
— UFC (@ufc) February 11, 2024
Both fighters boxed well in the first match on the main card for UFC Vegas 86. Both landed 14 total strikes. Additionally, Petrosyan landed nine significant strikes to Viera’s six. His main damage came to the legs where he landed seven out of seven leg kicks, compared to his opponent’s two. However, the ground game damaged Petrosyan too much. Viera scored three takedowns and dominated control time at 2:46. Ultimately, it ended in an arm triangle, earning Viera the victory.
UFC Vegas 86 In-Fight Finish #2
Gregory Rodrigues dominated Brad Tavares. Even though the eventual losing fighter came in with significantly more experience, it didn’t show tonight at UFC Vegas 86. The Brazilian fighter controlled the entire fight in every aspect. The end of round two looked to be the beginning of the end. Although the fight ended on punches early in the third, Rodrigues scored a late takedown. He maintained control of the fight. The referee stepped in during a barrage of punches. Either way, the fight was not going to go the distance.
Rodrigues landed nearly double the amount of strikes. He had 79 total strikes, by contrast, Tavares landed only 42 significant strikes. The winner scored two takedowns to none, ultimately it would have required a massive turnaround for Tavares to win in the later rounds. As Rodrigues controlled all aspects of the fight, he capped it off nicely through his consistent pressure.
UFC Vegas 86 In-Fight #3
Dan Ige earned the Performance of the Night for UFC Vegas 86. He fought a fighter in Andre Fili who did not look as controlled as Ige. Throughout the fight, Fili was circling and looked more active. However, wasted movement and low hands proved to be fatal. Ultimately, the winning fighter kept better fundamentals and remained composed while his opponent tried to outbusy him.
Dan Ige ends it in the 1st with a vicious knock of Andre Fili #UFC #knockout #ko #UFCFightNight #UFCVegas86 pic.twitter.com/iIt8Ka2oOW
— The MMA Minute (@TheMMA_Minute) February 11, 2024
The stats reflect this as well. Although Fili threw significantly more punches, he couldn’t get as many to land. Both fighters landed about the same amount of punches. Although it took Fili 33 attempts to get eight scored strikes. Whereas Ige only took 19 to land 11. Additionally, even when they landed for Fili they weren’t as impactful. The fight ended during an exchange, but Ige knocked his opponent to the ground. He took an additional hit while on top, but he realized that Fili couldn’t defend himself so he stopped. That proved to be the most electrifying moment of UFC Vegas 86.
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