Islam Makhachev and The Winners, Losers, and Results From UFC 322
It's the city that never sleeps, so the fight card had to be a big one.
The UFC made its annual pilgrimage to the world's most famous arena on Saturday night with a 14-bout show whose main card featured three ranked-fighter matchups, followed by a co-main and main event with championship gold on the line.
Welterweight king Jack Della Maddalena got top-of-the-marquee treatment at Madison Square Garden with the first defense of a six-month title reign against ladder-climbing lightweight champ Islam Makhachev, while flyweight ruler Valentina Shevchenko risked her throne against rising strawweight boss Zhang Weili.
The main show was branded this time around as UFC 322, and the B/R combat team was in place to take it all in and deliver a real-time list of its definitive winners and losers. Please take a look at what we came up with and share your thoughts in the app comments.
Winner: Making the Lists
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If you didn't believe it already, you should now: Makhachev is not just one of the best fighters in the world today, he's one of the best who's ever done it.
The Dagestani grappling ace beat Della Maddalena in Saturday's main event to both reach a short list of fighters to win UFC titles at two weights and an even shorter list of winners of 16 straight fights, moving from 155 pounds to become the undisputed king at 170.
All three judges scored a shutout, 50-45, for the winner.
"This is the dream," he said. "All my life for these two belts."
Makhachev, who relinquished his lightweight title after four successful defenses, claimed belt No. 2 with his 16th consecutive UFC victory, tying the promotion's all-time mark set by Anderson Silva at middleweight and light heavyweight from 2006 to 2012.
Now 34 years old, Makhachev debuted in the UFC with a win in 2015 before a TKO loss to Adriano Martins on the UFC 192 undercard later that year in Houston.
He's not lost since, claiming seven submissions, three KOs, and five decisions before the shot at Della Maddalena—during which he landed 123 strikes to Della Maddalena's 31, took the now-ex-champ down four times in four tries, and ran up more than 19 minutes of positional control time in a 25-minute fight.
"There's levels to this game," analyst Joe Rogan said, "and Islam Makhachev's level is very, very high. We're looking at one of the all-time greats."
Winner: Belief in "Bullet"
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It's OK to admit it.
You might have forgotten just how good Shevchenko is.
The two-time flyweight champ had beaten everyone she'd fought in the UFC except for Amanda Nunes, but she'd been so good for so long—going 10-2-1 in title fights—that the recency bias may have swung the needle toward her surging strawweight opponent.
The good news? It probably won't happen twice.
The Kyrgyzstan-based "Bullet" put on such a comprehensive MMA clinic against Weili, the world's second-best active female fighter, that she's unlikely to be slept on again.
Shevchenko pot-shotted her smaller, aggressive foe with stand-up strikes and outmuscled her on the ground, turning a pound-for-pound duel into a one-sided skills exhibition.
It was just as clear on the scorecards, which each read 50-45 in her favor.
"She completely shut out one of the greatest female fighters of all time," analyst Daniel Cormier said. "People are so desperate to think that there's someone out there to challenge her, but she proves time and time again that she's just next level.
"It was a complete wipeout."
Winner: Concussive Commencement
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Michael Morales was feeling all the joy.
The 25-year-old graduated from prospect to contender against second-ranked Sean Brady, pounding the grappling ace with punches from distance until he landed the long right hand that sent the Philadelphian sprawling and prompted a stoppage at 3:27 of Round 1.
Already celebrating with training teammates, Morales made a definitive statement of his intentions by turning toward Dana White, whistling to get the UFC czar's attention at cage-side and channeling his competitive menace by simply saying, "Dana. I need belt."
It was the unbeaten Ecuadorian's 19th straight win as a pro and his seventh in a row since arriving at the promotion with a Contender Series triumph in 2021. He's finished five of those seven wins and ended the last three in a single round against Neil Magny, Gilbert Burns, and Brady.
"You were already undefeated," Rogan told him. "Tonight, you became a star."
Cormier agreed.
"Sean Brady is really good," he said. "He's really good, and he just got wiped out by this kid. He just beat Sean Brady and Gilbert Burns in one round back-to-back. That's incredible."
Loser: Denying Danger
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Leon Edwards was doing everything he could to avoid the danger that was rising welterweight contender Carlos Prates.
He moved and worked from distance to begin, then spent the last minute of the first round on the Brazilian's back searching for a choke-out finish to the horn.
But the "Nightmare" wouldn't be denied.
Prates landed a long left hand as Edwards retreated in a straight line, dumping the ex-170-pound champ to his back and going in for one last ground strike as referee Keith Peterson intervened at 1:28 of the second round.
It was his sixth win by KO in the UFC and the 12th consecutive time he's won by that method since his most recent decision victory in the ONE Championship promotion in 2019. And it left him claiming a front-of-the-line position for a title shot, given that Edwards entered the cage ranked fourth in the weight class to his ninth.
"I think I'm the most entertaining guy in the welterweight division," Prates said. "You guys pay to watch violence, not boring fights. That's me."
Winner: Belt Hunting
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The walkouts and intros took more time than Benoît Saint-Denis.
A respected veteran of the French military, Saint Denis rose from a hard kick to his right leg and tied opponent Beneil Dariush into a brief clinch from which he landed the decisive left hand that sent his foe face-first to the floor and ended matters after just 16 seconds.
Referee Herb Dean intervened after one unfettered ground strike.
It was the sixth-fastest KO in lightweight history and extended the winner's active streak to three in a row, prompting him to call for shots at either reigning 155-pound champion Ilia Topuria or the promotion's popular "BMF" belt, held by Max Holloway.
He strutted around the cage in celebration, making a belt gesture at his waist, and, after thanking the promotion for its support of veterans, made his intentions public.
"You know what I am chasing," Saint-Denis said. "The two things I have on my mind are the BMF and the lightweight belt. I will do whatever the UFC tells me to do. I am a soldier."
Winner: Returning to Relevance
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For two years or so, Bo Nickal had the makings of a UFC elite.
He graduated from high-profile collegiate wrestler to octagonal prospect while finishing five of six victories across the Contender Series and four official fights with the promotion.
But then came a second-round squash loss to single-digit contender Reinier de Ridder on a Fight Night show six months ago, which sent the Penn State alumnus back to the drawing board when it came to rebuilding the eventual champion brand.
A defeat of Rodolfo Vieira in Saturday's prelim feature was trending toward workmanlike early in the third round and drawing boos from a "USA, USA" chanting crowd, but the 29-year-old turned the tide with a stunning head kick that rendered Vieira unconscious.
The official time was 2:24.
And Nickal, clearly annoyed with the jeering, immediately climbed to the top of the cage and flipped off the fans who'd turned back into supporters with the KO.
"That's the game. I've lost a lot since I was a young kid. They always hit me hard but I keep coming," he said. "Frick you mother frickers for booing me and then cheering me. Figure it out and pick one."
Loser: Fistic Flameout
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One guy was two away from the UFC's all-time lead in knockouts by a middleweight, and the other was three off the same high watermark. So, it was a slam dunk that the prelim bout between Roman Kopylov and Gregory Rodrigues would end inside the distance, right?
Well, maybe not.
In fact, neither man landed what could remotely be described as a KO-worthy volley across their 15 minutes together, instead engaging in a mostly active but occasionally tedious battle from distance that Rodrigues deservedly won by unanimous decision.
Two judges saw it 30-27 and a third had it 29-28 for Rodrigues.
It was the Brazilian's second straight win and ninth in 12 octagonal outings, while Kopylov fell for the second straight time and is 6-5 in an 11-fight UFC run that began in 2019.
Statistically speaking, Rodrigues landed 90 significant strikes to Kopylov's 52 and was only controlled for 35 seconds on Kopylov's two successful takedowns. It was his fourth decision in 18 career wins and just his third in the UFC since he arrived in 2021.
Winner: Showcase Show-Out
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Just in case people had forgotten, Erin Blanchfield reminded them.
The 26-year-old flyweight hadn't fought in a year and was just a fight removed from a shutout loss in her home state, so the motivation to not only get a memorable victory—and avenge a past loss while getting it—was particularly strong.
It was no surprise then that she was particularly ebullient in the aftermath of the rear-naked choke that prompted a second-round submission from Tracy Cortez.
"I'm feeling amazing. I really wanted to redeem this win," Blanchfield said. "I love that I'm fighting on the same card as Valentina and Weili."
A loser by split decision when she met Cortez in 2019, three months before her 20th birthday, Blanchfield was moderately effective in a stand-up setting through the opening round of the rematch before getting things to the ground and ultimately getting the choke moments after scoring her second consecutive convincing takedown.
The official time was 4:44 of the second, and the win lifted Blanchfield to 8-1 in the UFC.
"That's two in a row," blow-by-blow man Jon Anik said. "And for two in a row to be Rose Namajunas and Tracy Cortez, this really does set her up. What an excellent showcase."
Winner: Short-Notice Standout
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He not only won the competitive fight. He won the perception one, too.
Fighting on two days' notice and just a week after a win on the regional circuit, California-based bantamweight Ethyn Ewing walked into a prelim against unbeaten UFC prospect Malcolm Wellmaker as a prohibitive underdog and walked away as a hot commodity.
The 27-year-old, already carrying a memorable "Professor Finesser" nickname, showed excellent technique, world-class resilience, and zero hesitation to seize the moment, and ultimately wound up on the winning end of a unanimous scorecard decision.
"We got a good look at this guy and I'm impressed," said Cormier, who compared Ewing's debut to that of Diego Lopes, whose loss to contender Movsar Evloev on similarly short notice kick-started a run to his own title shot just 23 months later.
The official scores were 30-27, 29-28, and 29-28 for Ewing, now 9-2 as a pro since 2020.
"They called me Thursday morning. I slept through my alarm, and I had 40 missed calls from everybody," Ewing said. "I knew what I gonna come in here and do, and I'm here to stay. The sword is deadliest in calm hands. I was more than prepared. I was calm."
Winner: Philly Specials
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Once Pat Sabatini established the performance bar for Philadelphia-based fighters on the early prelim card, Kyle Daukaus knew what he needed to accomplish.
Sabatini was relentless and impressive on the way to a shutout decision of long-time featherweight rival Chepe Mariscal, but even he would have to admit his suffocating victory was slid out of the spotlight by Daukaus, who vaporized Gerald Meerschaert with a left-hand punch before submitting him with a d'arce choke.
It was a second straight win in a second UFC stint for the 32-year-old middleweight, who washed out of the promotion after going 2-4 in six tries between 2020 and 2022.
"I'm living the dream right now," Daukaus said. "I'm in Madison Square Garden right now. I just got a 50-second finish. It's been amazing."
The choke finish was his second via submission in the company and first since he'd finished Jamie Pickett with the same maneuver in 2022, but Daukaus was just as pleased with the hard shot that set it up and left Meerschaert vulnerable on the ground.
"I'm getting very comfortable in my striking and it's showing," he said. "Once I tagged him all I had to do was follow up and I'd find the finish."
Loser: Reasons for Return
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If Angela Hill fans were looking for reasons for their favorite strawweight to continue a career that stretches back more than a decade, they didn't find them Saturday night.
The 40-year-old arrived as the 12th-ranked fighter in the division but provided little more than durability across 15 minutes against rising 25-year-old prospect Fatima Kline.
She lost eight of a possible nine rounds on the scorecards while dropping a wide decision—losing for the second straight time, the third time in four fights, and ninth time in 15 since celebrating a three-fight win streak just before the COVID-era lockdowns began in 2020.
Hill passed Andrei Arlovski for the seventh-most overall cage time in UFC and extended her fight-time record for women, but she is 13-16 in 29 octagonal fights and may drop entirely out of the rankings after the loss to Kline, who was 13 years old when Hill debuted in 2014.
"I feel like I had it in me to finish Angela," said Kline, now 9-1 as a pro and 3-1 in the UFC. "I'm gonna come back and start finishing people."
Winner: Bolstering the Buzz
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Just when it appeared his hype was waning, Baisangur Susurkaev reclaimed it.
The brash 24-year-old labored through two full rounds against unheralded middleweight foe Eric McConico, and, though he didn't seem in danger of losing, he was also not adding fuel to the "he could be a superstar" fire that preceded him.
Then came the right hand. And back came the buzz.
Susurkaev finished a 1-2 combination with a devastating right hand that sent McConico face-first to the canvas and provided the Russian with a chance to step over his fallen rival to begin the post-fight revelry.
"That was slick," Rogan said. "He knew it right when he landed it. No follow-up shot necessary. Hopped right over him and started celebrating."
Susurkaev, who earned a contract with a Contender Series win in August and debuted on the UFC 319 undercard four days later, improved to 11-0 as a pro and delivered as promised on the high-profile callout he'd prepped during fight week.
"Bo Nickal, you're next," he said. "If not you, Chimaev."
Winner: Pulling Corner Strings
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Matheus Camilo got the win. But Eric Nicksick deserves some credit.
The Xtreme Couture trainer had a gassed-out client in front of him when Camilo returned to the stool after Round 2 of Saturday's opener against Viacheslav Borshchev, prompting Nicksick to lean less on the technical advice and more on the motivational.
He repeatedly reminded Camilo that he was fighting for his family and that he felt it in his heart, suggesting that the adversity was a test of his competitive mettle.
Consider the test passed.
Camilo stayed upright and stayed in the fray through the final five minutes, landing enough of his own stand-up offense to dissuade his desperate middleweight foe and lock up a unanimous decision by scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28.
It was the 24-year-old's first UFC win after a submission loss to Gabe Green on a Fight Night show six months. Borshchev, meanwhile, could be in contractual danger given three straight losses and an octagonal record that's plunged to 3-6-1.
Full Card Results
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Main Card
Islam Makhachev def. Jack Della Maddalena by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Valentina Shevchenko def. Zhang Weili by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Michael Morales def. Sean Brady by TKO (punches), 3:27, Round 1
Carlos Prates def. Leon Edwards by KO (punch), 1:28, Round 2
Benoît Saint Denis def. Beneil Dariush by KO (punch), 0:16, Round 1
Preliminary Card
Bo Nickal def. Rodolfo Vieira by KO (kick), 2:24, Round 3
Gregory Rodrigues def. Roman Kopylov by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Erin Blanchfield def. Tracy Cortez by submission (rear-naked choke), 4:44, Round 2
Ethyn Ewing def. Malcolm Wellmaker by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Early Preliminary Card
Kyle Daukaus def. Gerald Meerschaert by submission (d'arce choke), 0:50, Round 1
Pat Sabatini def. Chepe Mariscal by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Fatima Kline def. Angela Hill by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Baisangur Susurkaev def. Eric McConico by KO (punch), 1:38, Round 3
Matheus Camilo def. Viacheslav Borshchev by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
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