UFC 277: The Conclusions
Amanda Nunes backed up her claims, the change of camp made her feel more confident and she was dominant again, in a rematch that put her entire legacy at risk. Julianna Peña did not stop trying until the end, but she was outclassed and returned the belt to the greatest of all time.
Brandon Moreno also regained the title, although in this case it is interim, but opened the door to the unification with Deiveson Figueiredo in the next semester. A great night for the Mexican, who also got the most convincing knockout of his UFC career against a dangerous Kai Kara-France.
Alexandre Pantoja submitted Alex Perez and remains very close to both, if he is patient, he could fight for the title when an undisputed champion is defined between the Mexican and the Brazilian.
The Russians -Magomed Ankalaev and Sergei Pavlovich- and the Latin Americans -Michael Morales and Joselyne Edwards-, had reason to celebrate with victories in the card, which exceeded expectations in many ways.
Here are the highlights of UFC 277
Amanda Nunes has a lot more to fight
When we highlight the endurance of a fighter it’s usually because he or she is being punished heavily and Julianna Pena had to show a heart the size of the arena to go the full 25 minutes with Nunes.
‘The Lioness’ regained her appetite, opened her own gym and was able to secretly develop a strategy from the southpaw guard, which surprised Julianna. With the adjustment she neutralized the jab with which the Venezuelan hurt her so much in December last year and also showed that her power is back.
Her career was on the line, a double loss to Pena would have been a very hard blow for someone who has finished every champion in 135-pound history.
The damage she caused with her punches was reminiscent of victories like Cris Cyborg, Ronda Rousey or Miesha Tate. She is far from finished and stands as the double champion.
The trilogy would be fair to Julianna, who made history when she defeated her and did not surrender a single second of the fight, she got up every time Amanda sent her to the canvas with her punch and even with a clear disadvantage on the cards, she always worked in search of a submission. It will come, although it may not be immediately.
The expected knockout for Brandon Moreno
The Tijuana native continues to gain fans and once again had the crowd on his side in Dallas. With a large number of Mexicans supporting him against a Kai Kara-France who was convinced to take the interim belt in the rematch.
But Moreno was focused on a finish that was denied him at UFC 270, the third fight with Deiveson Figueiredo that cost him the championship on a close judges’ scorecard. The lesson was clear and he won’t want to leave it to the judges again, even if it means taking more risks.
Kara-France connected and Brandon took much more damage to the face, but a kick to the liver cost him the fight and set the path to the flyweight title. Moreno has to close out the tetralogy with Figueiredo.
The Brazilian climbed into the cage and it looks like the bad blood might be in the past. Apologies were offered. Time to talk in the cage in when Deiveson recovers from his injuries.
