UFC 216 Review

Last night was UFC 216 and I would have to say, it was not a bad card by any means. But with the lack of star power, it definitely was a fight card that should have been on Fox or even Fox Sports. It was a "C" card at best and I feel the lack of a big main-eventer really took away from everything. This car was a solid C+ or B- with Derrick Lewis on the card but (spoiler alert) with him being pulled off the main card at the last minute really hurt it more. However with that being said, there were some great things that happened on the fight card as well. Let's cover some of the big points and I will also dive into one of my favorite fights of the fight card (that was not on the main event card).

Tony Ferguson vs Kevin Lee

What a great fight we had here, these were two young guys looking to get in the ring and win a title. They knew what was on the line and sold out for the title. It has some great back and forth action and at one point in time Kevin Lee took control of the fight and looked to have some serious momentum going for him. Tony was able to withstand the storm to his shots when he needed it. Kevin showed his inexperience in the later rounds, which was something I had mentioned on the podcasts (GET THE KO and Vegas Sportscast) as well as WNST radio. Kevin had not been in a deep water fight though he said he was ready for it, it was just to get himself hyped up. Now the third round Ferguson was able to make the move took Lee down and was able to finish the fight with a triangle choke. 

What made this interesting was after the fight, Tony Ferguson called out Conor McGregor (who's last fight was in August with Floyd Mayweather). He told him to "Defend or Vacate" which is interesting because you know Conor will respond to Tony soon. 

Demetrious Johnson vs Ray Borg

Just walking to the T-Mobile Arena DJ set a record for titles to be defended. Ray Borg was looking to be "Chris Weidman" of the Featherweight Division (Chris Weidman beat Anderson Silva who was defending his 11th title). Ray said all the right things leading up to this fight, he got himself in the right state of mind and was looking good. DJ was just looking like himself, cool...calm...collected. Almost, as he knew that this fight was going to go his was. DJ was the heavy favorite and I had told people he was going to win this fight hands down. 

Ray Borg was determined and looked tough, looking for the take downs constantly and attacking. DJ was able to weather the storm and continued to be the Tsunami he is. He constantly hits you with wave after wave and wears you down. This is exactly what happened with Borg, though he was able to withstand the first few onslaughts, eventually DJ is going to get you and he did. With an amazing grab from being and putting the armbar instantly, Borg had no choice but to tap out, it was a valiant effort by the young buck. I would expect Borg to be back in the title hunt soon.

What is next for DJ? Well I think he needs to fight the winner of the Garbrandt/Dillishaw fight. I think a super fight between the two is necessary, the Flyweight Champion has been dominate in his weight class and a fight between him and the Featherweight Champion needs to be put in effect. Let's hope sometime next year we can see that fight go down.

Fabricio Werdum vs Walt Harris

We are just going to keep this short and sweet. Joe Rogan said it best, there are levels in the UFC and Walt Harris saw the Mount Everest of the peak. Walt took this fight on short notice and it was a great look for him. However Werdum is not a guy I would have thought he wanted to fight, it was quick work for Werdum with the submission in the first minute. Werdum is not a guy who likes to keep fights on the feet, pulled Walt into guard and worked for the tap out. 

My Fight of the Night

Brad Tavares vs Thales Leites

At one point in time Brad was considered on of the most feared fighters in the UFC, he has hung around for a long time in the UFC. Most of you who have been following my blog for the last year and even listened to me on the radio know, I love Hawaiian Fighters. The are scrappy, hungry, and always looking for a fight. Brad fights out of Las Vegas, and is from Kailua (where I lived for short while) and I give lots of love to the fighters from Hawaii. To watch him in the Octagon again and battle towards the decision was amazing and I can not wait to see what is going to happen for Brad.

Fight of the Night (UFC)

If you missed the "Fight of the Night" do yourself a favor and watch it on the Fox Sports Go App. Lando Vannata VS Bobby Green was an amazing fight, filled with a little controversy. Vannata in the first round landed an illegal knee, and knew it the moment it landed. Green stated in a post fight interview, there was no way he was going to call the fight...he was going to go out on his shield. For three rounds these two men went to battle and landed numerous shots. In the third round towards the end of the fight, Green landed a nasty shot on Vannata (which buckled him) and Green went in for the kill. However the horn blew and it was the end of the fight. Great showing by both men and the fight ended up being called a draw. Hopefully next year we will see these two fight again!

Let me know what you thought of UFC 216. Did you enjoy it? Did you not? What was your fight of the night? Also are you excited about the future fight cards coming up this year? 

You guys can catch me on the podcast later tonight for "GET THE KO" we will be diving more in depth in these fights for UFC 216. Also, you can catch me on "Vegas Sportscast" as well. If you want to contact me on social media: Snapchat, Twitter, IG @cm_miller85 or Twitter: @gettheko. 

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