When Islam Makhachev defeated Dustin Poirier in the fifth round of their UFC 302 main event, he won his 14th consecutive fight under the UFC brand, putting him ahead of former UFC champions Jon Jones, Demetrious Johnson, Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Max Holloway. After winning via stoppage, Makhachev, who now has the UFC lightweight championship, can focus on the two opponents who have winning streaks longer than his: former middleweight champion Anderson Silva (16) and former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman (15).
Previously: MAKHACHEV VS POIRIER | UFC 302: PRIMARY CARD RESULTS
As anticipated, in the last stanza, Makhachev applied his submission, ground control, and wrestling abilities to pin Poirier with a D’arce choke. Poirier worked hard in fight camp to strengthen his takedown defence before meeting Makhachev, but facing a lifetime grappler in a title bout proved to be too much for him. Poirier’s defeat on Saturday puts him among the UFC competitors who have lost three championship bouts.
In the co-main event of the evening, former UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland defeated former title challenger Paulo Costa via split decision after losing his title bout with Dricus du Plessis via decision. Strickland will remain ranked first in the middleweight division following the victory.
Overall, UFC 302 was among the UFC’s least successful pay-per-view events of the year. Nevertheless, Makhachev’s performance helped appease the fans who were hoping for something exceptional from the fighters on the programme, as did Kevin Holland’s strong submission earlier on the main card.
The UFC 302 winners and losers, as well as the results and fight-night bonus winners, are shown below.
The Prudential Centre in Newark, New Jersey hosted UFC 302. After early prelims on ESPN+ and preliminary action on ESPN2, the main card was streamed on ESPN+ PPV.
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Winners of UFC 302
Islam Makhachev: At UFC 302, Islam Makhachev gave a fantastic performance. Makhachev, who was well-known for his grappling and ground game, was excellent in those areas as well, but he was not afraid to hit Dustin Poirier, who was also well-known for his striking prowess.
Makhachev persisted despite a few stressful moments in the fight, winning by late submission to retain his UFC lightweight championship.
Sean Strickland: Throughout the course of the 25-minute fight, Sean Strickland exerted constant pressure and moved forward against Paulo Costa. Although Strickland’s victory was not spectacular or likely to be remembered favourably, it was still a victory, and going into UFC 302, he was ranked as the number one middleweight, a position he will continue to maintain.
Kevin Holland: Kevin Holland is said to be a warrior who is more talkative than gifted. Although some of that reputation is well-earned, Holland is a highly skilled combatant in all areas. On Saturday, he demonstrated that by rebounding from Michal Oleksiejczuk’s left-hand tag and locking up an armbar that ended the middleweight bout.
After the battle, Holland declared, “I think I’m the best gatekeeper you guys have ever seen.”
Niko Price: With a full training camp for UFC 302, Niko Price overcame late replacement opponent Alex Morono by using his cardio. The speed of Price was simply too fast for a crippled Morono. Price did not put up a particularly strong performance, but he was still able to win and snap his losing streak of two fights.
Randy Brown: In the opening round of his welterweight bout with Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos, Randy Brown performed admirably. He moved fluidly, had excellent footwork, and could score with his hitting by extending his reach and length. When he found the right moment and space, he also demonstrated his ability to deliver some strong knees. Despite facing difficulties with his opponent’s grappling at the finish of the stanza, Brown persevered and managed to reverse Dos Santos when things did not go his way in the second round.
Now on a three-fight winning streak, Brown will probably receive his next opportunity to face a rated opponent in the Octagon.
Jailton Almeida: Jailton Almeida lost his last bout because he hung onto a leg longer than he should have and Curtis Blaydes knocked him out. To recover from that setback, he need a heroic display.
I’m not sure whether he received it on Saturday, but he did what he did, using his submission and wrestling prowess to defeat Alexander Romanov, who was vastly outmatched, in the first round via submission.
Grant Dawson: Grant Dawson had a difficult time in the opening round of his bout with Joe Solecki, getting choked out and getting cut by an elbow. But for the remaining ten minutes of the fight, Dawson held the upper hand, landing many ground strikes and winning by decision. Although it wasn’t the most elegant triumph, Dawson fulfilled his necessary actions to secure the victory.
Jake Matthews: At UFC 302, Jake Matthews defeated Philip Rowe via decision by using strength, aggressiveness, and ground control. While Rowe tried to utilise his length to keep Matthews at bay, Matthews just forced his way in and used strong strikes to earn the decision. With the triumph, Matthews’ record after seven fights is now win-lost-win.
Bassil Hafez: There were conflicting results after his performance at UFC 302. He performed passably while throwing with force, but as the battle entered the second round, he did not do anything to prepare for his strikes.
Hafez, however, received the unanimous approval of the judgement because to his stronger and more frequent landings.
Hafez might be an entertaining fighter to watch in the UFC welterweight category, but he still has to improve his defence, setups, and cardio.
Andre Lima: Mitch Raposo, Andre Lima’s late replacement opponent, did not have the best start to his UFC 302 curtain-raiser. He missed weight by five pounds.
Lima looked excellent against his much-outmatched opponent. He was cool under pressure and made effective use of his leg kicks. What should have been a clean unanimous decision triumph was easily picked up by him.
It’s important to keep an eye on Lima’s ability to gain weight. He did so for his UFC debut in March, but it is not possible for someone to weigh 130 pounds for a 125-pound fight more than once.
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UFC 302 Defeatists
Dustin Poirier: Poirier made a great effort in his third try to capture the undisputed UFC lightweight championship, but similar to his previous two attempts, Poirier was unsuccessful and lost by submission. Poirier successfully repelled a few, but not enough, of Islam Makhachev’s takedown attempts. Poirier was prevented from winning by the title’s grappling prowess, but he shouldn’t give up after UFC 302 since Makhachev was a fantastic champion.
Paulo Costa: Despite Sean Strickland’s lack of strength, Paulo Costa battled him for nearly the entire five rounds. He could have had a chance to win the fight if he had positioned himself in front of Strickland, or at least if he had scored a few very good blows.
Michal Oleksiejczuk: From the beginning, Michal Oleksiejczuk battled to his strengths, trying to narrow the gap and deliver strong blows. But he was unprepared for his opponent Kevin Holland’s submission manoeuvre, which culminated in a vicious armbar.
Alex Morono: Against Niko Price, Alex Morono ran out of steam. After his cardio failed him in the second round, he appeared hesitant to participate and sluggish.
Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos: Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos had trouble stopping Randy Brown until the second round, when he successfully locked up a choke attempt. He was unable to deal with his opponent’s length or get close to them. Dos Santos lost, snapping a three-fight winning run.
Joe Solecki: Joe Solecki attempted to counter Grant Dawson’s strikes with his grappling abilities. Apart from a brief triumph in the initial round, he was unsuccessful.
Philip Rowe: Against Jake Matthews, Philip Rowe made good use of his length. Early in the first round, he bloodied Matthews with a quick jab, but he was unable to stop his opponent’s onslaught. Rowe is on his first losing streak in his MMA career after going 0–2 in his first two professional fights following the decision defeat.
Mickey Gall: Although Mickey Gall landed a respectable number of blows on Bassil Hafez, his punches lacked the force to influence the judges. Although Gall performed a respectable job of fighting behind his jab, his lack of strength kept him from scoring the necessary points against the weak-willed Hafez.
Gall, who hadn’t participated since 2022, lost and now has a 0-3 record in his last three contests. In 2021, he achieved his most recent triumph.
Mitch Raposo: Compared to Andre Lima, Mitch Raposo was outmatched. When he did fight, Raposo delivered his blows singly rather than in combos. He appeared reluctant.
Given the short notice of Raposo’s UFC debut, this bout may be the greatest indicator of what lies ahead for him. He must, however, significantly improve for his next appearance.
Referees: During UFC 302, there were several offences that went unpunished, including a headbutt in the second bout of the evening. One of the main shortcomings of MMA officials is this. The regulations must be upheld by them.
UFC Analysts: Hearing seasoned UFC workers like Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier misjudge the scoring criteria more frequently than correctly frustrates me. I beg spectators who are interested in scoring bouts to read the criteria exactly as stated and toss aside a lot of the nonsense that people like Rogan and Cormier say, particularly regarding ground control and the inability to give a round to a fighter who is in bottom position.
Results of UFC 302’s fight card
- Islam Makhachev uses a D’arce choke to submit Dustin Poirier at 2:42 of Round 5.
- Paulo Costa loses to Sean Strickland by split decision (46-49, 50-45, 49-46)
- At 1:34 of Round 1, Kevin Holland submits Michal Oleksiejczuk (armbar).
- Alex Morono loses to Niko Price by unanimous decision (29-28 x 3).
- Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos loses against Randy Brown by majority decision (29-28 x 3).
- Roman Kopylov wins Cesar Almeida by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27) on the UFC 302 preliminary card.
- At 2:27 of Round 1, Jailton Almeida submits Alexander Romanov by rear-naked choke.
- Joe Solecki loses to Grant Dawson by unanimous vote (29-28, 30-27, 30-27).
- By a unanimous vote, Jake Matthews overcomes Philip Rowe (29-28, 29-28, 30-27).
Mickey Gall is defeated by Salvador Hafez on the UFC 302 Early Preliminary Card by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28).
Joselyne Edwards is defeated by Ailn Perez by a unanimous vote (30-27, 29-28, 29-28).
Mitch Raposo loses against Andre Lima in a split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27).
Bonuses for UFC 302’s fight night
- Dustin Poirier vs. Islam Makhachev in the Nightfight
- Islam Makhachev’s nightly performance
- Kevin Holland gave the night’s best performance.
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