Photo | ZUFFA LLC
UFC 318 Controversy Report
A poetic ending to Dustin Poirier’s legendary career capped what was a beautiful pay-per-view event in New Orleans, Louisiana. The prelims were almost flawless. We saw finishes, dominant displays and all out wars. The main card, while tame, provided accurate officiating, peak mixed-martial arts and almost no controversies. As always, there is something for us to dive a bit deeper into and that would be the matchup between Francisco Prado and Nikolay Veretennikov.
Photo | ZUFFA LLC
Nikolay Veretennikov defeats Francisco Prado
- Split Decision (29-28 x2, 28-29)
The story of this fight was the size discrepancy between Prado and Veretennikov. Prado, undersized for the division, made up for his height and reach disadvantage with absolute heart and grit. Looking at details, Nikolay had an amazing start, hurting Prado often, landing big kicks and shots at a significant accuracy, and outlanding the Argentinian 17 to 7. At the end of the day, Round 1 had little to no debate. Despite the takedown of Prado, Veretennikov had more control time and far more damage. All judges were unanimous with the Nikolay Round 1.
Round 2, we saw some discrepancies from the score-card of Singletary and Judges D’Amato and Lee. In this instance, only Judge Singletary awarded this for Prado, pointing out the ample control time here, the control of pace and in this case, even similar striking numbers. One element that isn’t traced is the true and actual damage by these shots. In this case, I do firmly believe that Nikolay was landing the heavier shots, being more assertive with the shots landed to the head, whereas Prado was in survival mode most of the time. Regardless, this was a close round and no one was truly able of being comfortable awarding a victor here.
The third and final round was made easy for us. Prado’s durability paid off, winning this round unanimously on all score-cards. He landed more, he had almost three minutes of total control time, and was in better position for damaging situations, landing at 61% striking accuracy. I do believe this fight was judged well, with a lot of the uproar stemming from the fact Prado ended the fight in a better condition while not taking into account that fights are score by round. Regardless, a close fight and yet again, another argument for more draws in the sport of MMA.
Photo | ZUFFA LLC
What should happen to the BMF Belt?
After Lil Wayne wrapped the BMF belt on Max Holloway, it became the first time a BMF Champion had successfully defended his belt. This makes us think a little bit more on the legitimacy of the belt and what it truly imposes. While many are critical of the belt, it is important to analyze the good it does in promotion, getting more casual fans involved and providing a true and accurate assessment of who are the most violent and truthful fighters in that octagon.
The BMF belt isn’t for Mixed Martial Art athletes, rather Mixed Martial Arts fighters, who aren’t in the cage to win a decision, rather to prove that they are willing to fight anyone at any given time, searching for finishes, whilst causing actual damage. The essence of the belt will create a long-lasting legacy of fighters, knowing that a win-streak isn’t enough to access it, rather embodying your style and your way of living life.
Not only that, it can serve as motivation for fighters who attach themselves more to the raw elements of fighting and not as much to the competitive side of winning an MMA Bout. With defenses and only having the belt on the line against worthy competitors for it, proves that it embodies something different than a normal belt, which is why it means SOMETHING.
With a consistent title defense, actual competitive matchups and violent displays of fighting, I do believe the legitimacy of the belt should continue. The Lightweight Division has no short-list of candidates, though those that come to mind immediately are Dan Hooker and Charles Oliveira. Hopefully, we get the honor of seeing it on the line soon.
🔍 Want to know more about each event? Visit homeoffight.com or any of our social media accounts for more articles, fighter interviews, and plenty of more coverage.
💰 Want to get in on the action? Visit homeoffight.com/picks to tail all of the Home of Fight expert’s picks & bets each week!
🥊 Content & coverage brought to you by LEGENDZ! Play online Social Casino & LIVE Sports Gambling!
