To borrow the famous tagline of Australian former Formula 1 ace Mark Webber, UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski showed true “Aussie grit” as he retained his undisputed title in the main event of UFC 266.
Volkanovski claimed a landslide decision on the scorecards after his bout with Brian Ortega went the distance, but the 49-46, 50-45, 50-44 scorecards don’t tell the full story of the fight, as Volkanovski showed remarkable composure and determination to fight his way not one, but two deep Ortega chokes in Round 3 before proceeding to batter the challenger to a near TKO at the end of the same round.
Things were much more straightforward for the other world champion on show, as Valentina Shevchenko took the opportunity to show us what most fans already know – that she’s one of the most complete mixed martial artists, male or female, on the planet.
On this week’s show, we look back at the two title fights from Las Vegas and offer our take on Nick Diaz’s comeback defeat to Robbie Lawler in their main card matchup.
We also look ahead to Bellator 267 as world-class MMA finally makes a return to England with a dynamite rematch between London’s own Michael “Venom” Page and the only man to defeat him, three-time former welterweight champion Douglas Lima.
There’s also time to look ahead to Saturday’s UFC event at the UFC Apex, as the spectacular Johnny Walker gets his chance to gatecrash the light heavyweight title picture when he takes on former title challenger Thiago Santos.
It’s another packed show, and it’s all yours, right here!
Alexander 'The Great' Volkanovski lives up to his name in UFC 266 instant classic