Winners And Losers From Volkanovski Vs. Topuria

UFC 298 took place on Saturday at Honda Center in Anaheim, California. In the main event, highly ranked featherweight Ilia Topuria took the UFC 145-pound title from Alexander Volkanovski via knockout. Meanwhile, the evening’s co-headliner saw former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker score a decision over ex-title challenger Paulo Costa.

Below we look at the winners and losers from the UFC 298 fight card, which steamed on ESPN+ pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.

Winners

Ilia Topuria: The 27-year-old Ilia Topuria told anyone who would listen that his UFC 298 main event fight against Alexander Volkanovski would be easy work. The undefeated Topuria was sure he would walk away from the Honda Center with the UFC featherweight title that Volkanovski won in December 2019 with a decision over Max Holloway. He did just that, knocking out Volkanovski at 3:32 of the second round.

Topuria was patient and composed early in the fight. He racked up some nasty calf kicks, which served to slow the champion and perhaps limit his stance switches. He also employed a lot of feints while fighting behind a high guard.

I won’t say that Topuria “gave away” the first round, but he was not aggressive. It almost felt as if he used those first five minutes to pick up information on his opponent’s tendencies, one of which was how Volkanovski backed out of striking exchanges.

Then, with the clock ticking down in the second round, Topuria backed Volkanovski to the cage, giving him no escape route. That’s when Topuria landed a powerful right that put Volkanovski down and out.

Topuria’s ascent has been meteoric. He joined the UFC in 2020, while Volkanovski was already installed as the promotion’s 145-pound champion, and he won the title in just his seventh fight with the UFC. The future looks very bright for Topuria, who one could argue is still improving every time he steps into the Octagon.

Robert Whittaker: UFC 298 was not a must-win for the career of former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker. The ex-champ is widely acknowledged to be the best fighter who is not the champion in the division. However, if Whittaker wanted another shot at UFC gold, a win at UFC 298 was required.

Whittaker took what Paulo Costa had to offer on Saturday. The former titleholder did an excellent job of damaging Costa’s lead leg and landing powerful counters while showcasing his speed and footwork. However, there were times when Costa hurt Whittaker, which might not bode well if Whittaker gets another shot at current UFC middleweight champ Dricus du Plessis.

Whittaker’s decision win over Costa was a good bounce-back performance following his July 2023 knockout loss to Du Plessis. It’ll be interesting to see how the UFC books him going forward.

Ian Machado Garry: The brash and braggadocious Ian Machado Garry stayed undefeated with a split-decision win over Geoff Neal at UFC 298, but the reactions from Garry’s fellow fighters on social media were mixed at best.

Garry fought smartly against Neal, using range well, but he spent a significant amount of fight time circling outside, trying to bait Neal into his range. Neal refused to do that for the most part, which led to a fight that was not exciting.

A win is a win for the rising Garry, but if he thinks he’s ready to face the elite of the UFC’s 170-pound division, I would strongly disagree with that. That’s not to say Garry isn’t good; he is, but he needs more seasoning against fighters ranked between No. 5 and No. 10 in the UFC’s welterweight division.

Merab Dvalishvili: The question heading into UFC 298 was if Merab Dvalishvili could do his thing against former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo. If you’re unaware, that thing is pressure and then some more pressure with a fast pace and relentless takedown attempts.

Dvalishvili took 15 minutes, but he answered that question unequivocally, beating Cejudo via unanimous decision.

One could argue that the UFC made a mistake in booking UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley against Marlon Vera instead of having O’Malley face Dvalishvili. On the other hand, having Dvalishvili face Cejudo allowed Dvalishvili more time in the spotlight, allowing him to show his personality on social media, while giving him time to shine inside the Octagon against a former champion in Cejudo.

Dvalishvili is something special. If the UFC fails to book him against the winner of the UFC 299 matchup between O’Malley and Vera, that decision should be filed under promotional malpractice.

Dvalishvili is unbeaten in his past 10 UFC fights.

Anthony Hernandez: Anthony Hernandez kept his winning streak rolling at UFC 298 with a second-round submission win over Roman Kopylov.

The 30-year-old middleweight racked up an impressive 14 takedown attempts during the scrap, which kept Kopylov, who was the better striker, a bit tentative throughout the fight. Hernandez’s approach also taxed the cardio of his foe. Additionally, he scored some points with his clinch striking.

Hernandez now has five straight wins, with four of those coming via stoppage.

Amanda Lemos: Amanda Lemos compromised the lead leg of Mackenzie Dern early in their flyweight fight and used that advantage, fighting well at range and doing damage with her powerful hands, bloodying Dern with a blow that dropped her foe to her back early in the second round.

Lemos made a tactical error in the second round when she kept the fight on the mat for a prolonged period after injuring Dern earlier in the stanza, and Lemos spent most of the final stanza fighting off Dern on the ground.

Lemos picked up the victory at UFC 298, but I’m not sure if her performance puts her at the top of the list to face her initially booked opponent on this card, the No. 2 ranked Tatiana Suarez.

Marcos Rogerio de Lima: Marcos Rogerio de Lima did an excellent job of destroying Junior Tafa’s leg via low kicks in the opening moments of their heavyweight scrap. Still, instead of keeping pressure on his damaged opponent on the feet, De Lima took the fight to the mat, which was a questionable decision.

De Lima returned to business in the second stanza and finished the fight via those kicks, and some ground strikes 1:14 into the round.

Junior Tafa: Junior Tafa gets points for agreeing to step into UFC 298 on weigh-in day to replace his brother Justin against Marcos Rogério de Lima. Tafa lost by TKO, but hey, a lot of fighters talk about taking a fight on zero notice; not many actually do it.

Rinya Nakamura: Rinya Nakamura was the biggest betting favorite on the UFC 298 fight card at -1350. He entered his bantamweight fight against Carlos Vera with a perfect 8-0 record with five knockouts, one submission, and three decisions.

Nakamura only got to show a little of his game against Vera, who fought in the style of his coach, Ryan Hall. Still, Nakamura showed little concern in competing against a specialist like Vera.

The 28-year-old showed a lot of poise and technical skills in this matchup. I’m not sure fans appreciated it, judging by the booing throughout the fight, but he picked up a win and kept his unbeaten record intact.

Zhang Mingyang: Zhang Mingyang is a finisher. The 25-year-old entered UFC 298 with 16 victories (10 knockouts and six submissions). Less than two minutes into his light heavyweight bout against Brendon Ribeiro, he picked up his 11th knockout with a nasty combination that left Ribeiro crumpled on the mat.

The light heavyweight division needs new blood. It’s too early to say that Mingyang fits that bill, but there’s no reason not to note when he next steps into the Octagon.

As for his post-fight callout of UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira, who is headlining UFC 300, it might have been his adrenaline-talking, but hey, shoot your shot, young man.

Danny Barlow: Danny Barlow showed good speed and footwork in the early moments of his welterweight contest against Josh Quinlan, but what stood out for me about Barlow was his patience and poise, especially for a competitor who only had seven pro fights and zero under the UFC banner, before UFC 298.

The finishing sequence in this battle was impressive from Barlow. He hurt Quinlan with a left and never let his foot off the gas. Sure, he was a bit reckless during those exchanges, but he showed he has power to go with his poise.

If there is a knock against Barlow, he keeps his guard low, which could hurt him against experienced opponents who manage to pick up his timing. At 28, Barlow is a fighter to keep an eye on when he next competes inside the Octagon.

During his post-fight interview with UFC commentator Joe Rogan, Barlow said he broke his left arm during the first round. If that’s true, that adds to the impressiveness of his UFC debut.

Oban Elliott: Oban Elliott landed a beautiful head kick early in his welterweight scrap opposite Val Woodburn, but Woodburn ate it with no problems. The issue for Elliott was that he rushed in after he landed the blow without assessing the situation and paid for that mistake by getting dropped to the canvas. However, Elliott was able to recover and take top position. Still, that exchange showed some possible fight IQ / octagon awareness issues, or maybe he was just full of adrenaline in his UFC debut.

Elliott is extremely aggressive, bordering on sloppy. He leaves himself exposed to counters when he throws with power. The 26-year-old obviously trusts his chin, but with two TKO losses in his past under the Cage Warriors banner, there should be concern about the upside of his style as he moves up the ranks of the UFC’s 170-pound division.

In short, the jury is out on where Elliott will end up in the welterweight pecking order, as he was a significant betting favorite against Woodburn.

Miranda Maverick: Miranda Maverick attempted to use her grappling skills to get Andrea Lee to the mat early in her matchup opposite Andrea Lee, but her technique was lacking, as Lee reversed her and put Maverick on her back. To Maverick’s credit, she didn’t accept the position, but for someone whose strength is supposed to be her grappling, it was an alarming start to the fight.

Maverick showed that her striking is developing. She showed improvement in movement and timing in landing 48 percent of her attempted significant strikes. She also did an excellent job of mixing up her targets, landing 42 percent of her head strikes, 24 percent of her body blows, and 33 percent of her kicks to the legs.

The 26-year-old is still a work in progress, but a win over the No. 15-ranked Lee is another step in the right direction for her. Maverick’s team should continue to bring her along slowly and allow her to develop. There’s no reason to rush her into a fight against a top-10-ranked flyweight.

Losers

Alexander Volkanovski: Alexander Volkanovski’s reign atop the UFC’s 145-pound division ended with a knockout loss on Saturday. Volkanovski, who had never lost a featherweight fight under the UFC banner, won the first round on the judge’s scorecards. Still, he fell victim to the potent striking of the challenger in the fight, Ilia Topuria.

After the loss, Volkanovski said, “Obviously, I’ve been a champ for a long time. I want that rematch. That’s something that needs to happen. I’ve been reigning champ for how long? I’ve been a company man. I’ve backed up on short notice and fought Max (Holloway) three times. You name it, I’ve done it. I’ve been champ for a long time, so I think I deserve that. It’s going to be different next time.”

It’s hard to argue against his logic.

Paulo Costa: Paulo Costa fought well against Robert Whittaker but not well enough to pick up the victory. Costa is a threat in the middleweight division, but he doesn’t compete often or seem all that interested in fighting. With his loss at UFC 298, Costa is 1-3 dating back to September 2020. Don’t look for the UFC to go out of its way to get Costa back inside the Octagon. The promotion will offer him fights, but it won’t worry too much if Costa turns them down.

Geoff Neal: Geoff Neal struggled to cut off the cage against Ian Machado Garry, and that cost him.

Henry Cejudo: Henry Cejudo had something to prove at UFC 298. The former two-division champion said it was win and fight for the title or likely retire. He did his best against Merab Dvalishvili, winning the first round. Still, he couldn’t maintain his opponent’s pace in the remainder of the fight, dropping a decision to Dvalishvili.

The 37-year-old left the Octagon on Saturday with his gloves removed.

Roman Kopylov: Roman Kopylov saw his four-fight winning streak (all knockouts) come to an end on Saturday. Future opponents of the 32-year-old might want to pay attention to how Anthony Hernandez defeated him at UFC 298. Hernandez did not give Kopylov time or space, spamming him with takedown attempts and making wearing on his cardio.

Mackenzie Dern: Makenzie Dern’s striking, which made progress under the tutelage of coach Jason Parillo, has regressed over her past two fights. She is reckless and awkward on the feet. On Saturday, her opponent, the dangerous striker Amanda Lemos, took advantage of that.

Dern’s best moments at UFC 298 came in the first round when she landed a well-timed takedown and picked up 2:45 of control time, and in the third round when she spent most of the time in control on the mat. However, Dern never secured a legit submission attempt.

There’s no doubt that Dern is a tough and resilient competitor, but it feels like we have seen the best she has to offer as a fighter, and that is someone who can beat opponents who are outside the top 10 but struggles against the elite of the women’s 125-pound division. That’s not a terrible place to be, but at 30, Dern might never reach the heights her background promised when she joined the promotion in 2018.

Josh Quinlan: Josh Quinlan could not get his offense going against Danny Barlow. He struggled with the range and speed of his foe and ate 95 significant strikes throughout the scrap. With the TKO loss, Quinlan is 0-2 in his past two UFC scraps.

Val Woodburn: Val Woodburn got his opportunity to join the UFC by agreeing to get run over by Bo Nickal in Nickal’s second UFC fight. He did that, getting knocked out in 38 seconds. On Saturday, Woodburn had a chance to make a statement in fighting the young Oban Elliott, who was making his UFC debut at UFC 298. He had a moment in the first round when he scored a knockdown, but outside of that, Woodburn didn’t know much other than an inability to work off the mat and a suspect gas tank. He could be two and done with the UFC after Saturday night.

Andrea Lee: Andrea Lee did not look terrible against Miranda Maverick, but she lost a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28), which dropped her to 0-4 in the UFC since May 2022 and 2-7 since September 2019. That Lee, on a three-fight losing skid, was ranked No. 15 in the UFC’s women’s 125-pound division should give one an idea that the division is not exactly stacked, so Lee might still have a job with the UFC after UFC 298, but she is 35, so her roster spot could be taken by a younger (and cheaper) fighter.