UFC 289 didn’t have many expectations coming in, but the event delivered on all fronts. From big knockouts, slick submissions, and dominating displays, these are the fighters who stood out the most at UFC 289.
UFC 289: Canada
Canada by far had the biggest performers of the night, with all fighters from Canada winning their bouts to give the country a 6-0 night at home. Mike Malott and Aiemann Zahabi both picked up massive finishes over tough opponents. Marc-Andre Barriault, Jasmine Jasudavicius, Kyle Nelson, and Diana Belbita all picked up unanimous decision wins in their fights as well. This marked the first time in nearly 7 years that five or more Canadians won on the same card. It seems that there is a new rise of Canadian MMA upcoming, and the UFC is likely to return soon.
Charles Oliveira
Charles Oliveira was able to get back to his winning ways, picking up a vintage first-round KO over Beneil Dariush. Oliveira tried working some of his well-known jiu-jitsu early on, pulling Dariush into his guard. By the time they got up, Charles was all over Dariush and pounding away with the ref being forced to step in. Oliveira added to his all-time finishes record in the UFC with his 20th finish, 9th in the first round. Oliveira inserts himself right back into the title conversation and could be next in line. If he is, he will rematch the man he lost his title to in Islam Makhachev, and get his chance at vengeance.
Stephen Erceg
Stephen Erceg got the opportunity of a lifetime at UFC 289 and took full advantage. Stepping in for the injured Matt Schnell, Erceg took on #10 ranked flyweight David Dvorak on just 10 days’ notice in his UFC debut. Erceg shined in the spot, outclassing Dvorak en route to a unanimous decision win. Erceg had Dvorak on the ropes late in the 2nd round, landing a big right hand that pushed Dvorak into the cage. Dvorak looked to be recovered before Erceg landed a massive sweeping head kick that dropped Dvorak and opened up a guillotine for Erceg. While he didn’t get the choke, the fight was in Erceg’s control from that point on. The win catapults him to the top of a hot division, with many interesting matchups ahead.
Dan Ige
Dan Ige picked up a dominant unanimous decision win over Nate Landwehr in his first career fight in Canada. Ige’s hands were as sharp and fast as ever, dropping Landwehr with two big left hooks at the end of the first and second rounds. Landwehr had almost been finished on both occasions, but Ige ran out of time. The win marks Ige’s first time with back-to-back wins since early 2020, as he picked up a huge 2nd round KO over Damon Jackson earlier this year. Ige had struggled as of late but it seems that after the derailment of “Nate the Train”, that Dan “50k” Ige found his flow again.
Do you agree with our picks for standout performers at UFC 289? Let us know in the comments below.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
