Las Vegas, March 28: Francis Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic to claim the heavweight title in UFC 260: Miocic vs. Ngannou 2 at the Apex facility in Las Vegas on Saturday (March 27).
The Main Event rematch between UFC heavyweight champion Miocic and #1 contender Ngannou delivered a nail-biting first round, with The Predator Ngannou showing marked improvement in his grappling since their first encounter.
In the second round, Ngannou found his timing and distance, swarmed the champion with punches, and knocked him out with a short left hook. The incredible finish makes Ngannou the new UFC World Heavyweight Champion.
50K for some elite showings!
— UFC (@ufc) March 28, 2021
💸: @Francis_Ngannou & @SugaSeanMMA
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The Co-Main Event featuring former UFC welterweight champion #7 Tyron Woodley and #10 Vicente Luque got off to a fast start with powerful clinch work and big punches.
Woodley rocked Luque, but he came back strong with a knockdown then chose to finish it up with a D'Arce choke on the ground. The first-round submission earned Luque a career-defining win.
Bantamweight Sean O'Malley employed his creative striking against Thomas Almeida and got a knockdown by head kick in the first round.
Almeida recovered, but O'Malley continued his high output in the second. O'Malley's damaging kicks and crisp combinations punctuated the final round until he dropped Almeida with a left, and finished him with a right for the late-fight KO victory.
Didn't last long but man did it deliver. 🤯
— UFC (@ufc) March 28, 2021
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A competitive women's flyweight bout saw Miranda Maverick edge out a first round over #15 Gillian Robertson by two takedowns.
Robertson reversed it with dominant grappling in the second. The tie-breaking third saw Maverick let loose with her hands and work in top control which earned her the unanimous decision win.
To open the main card with a bang, lightweight finisher Jamie Mullarkey made it another one with a fast left hook to the chin that knocked out Khama Worthy in just 46 seconds.
CASHIN' CHECKS 🤑
— UFC (@ufc) March 28, 2021
🇦🇺 @Jamie_Mullarkey opens the PPV with a BANG!
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Earlier in the preliminary card, Abubakar Nurmagomedov, Omar Morales and Michal Oleksiejczuk earned decision wins, while Alonzo Menifield and Marc-Andre Barriault picked up stoppage wins.
UFC 260: Miocic vs. Ngannou Final Results
Main Card
1. Heavyweight title bout: Francis Ngannou defeated Stipe Miocic via KO at 0:52 of round 2
2. Welterweight bout: Vicente Luque defeated Tyron Woodley via submission at 3:56 of round 1
3. Bantamweight bout: Sean O'Malley defeated Thomas Almeida via KO at 3:52 of round 3
4. Women's Flyweight bout: Miranda Maverick defeated Gillian Robertson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
5. Lightweight bout: Jamie Mullarkey defeated Khama Worthy via KO at 0:46 of round 1
Preliminary Card
1. Light Heavyweight bout: Alonzo Menifield defeated Fabio Cherant via submission at 1:11 of round 1
2. Welterweight bout: Abubakar Nurmagomedov defeated Jared Gooden via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
3. Light Heavyweight bout: Michal Oleksiejczuk defeated Modestas Bukauskas via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
4. Featherweight bout: Omar Morales defeated Shane Young via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
5. Middleweight bout: Marc-Andre Barriault defeated Abu Azaitar via TKO at 4:56 of round 3