UFC 279 results and recap: Nate Diaz, Khamzat Chimaev secure submission wins in headliner

Nate Diaz (right) punches Tony Ferguson during the main event of UFC 279 (Image Courtesy: UFC Media)

Nate Diaz and Khamzat Chimaev claimed submission wins in the headliner of UFC 279: Diaz vs. Ferguson as the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas witnessed an emotional action-packed bouts from start to finish on Saturday (September 10).

The 12-fight UFC 279 card looked vastly different than it did a week ago, but after a wild couple of days, the sold-out crowd at the promotion's base were treated to a memorable event highlighted by 7 stoppage wins.

Diaz, Irena Aldana, Johnny Walker and Jailton Almeida took home an extra USD50k as the quartet were awarded performance bonuses in an event which was the 25th consecutive sold out UFC event with crowds as 19,125 fans attended the pay-per-view.

Now, let's take a look at UFC 279 results and how the event went down:

Main Event: Diaz submits Ferguson

In a last minute surprise, UFC fan favorites Nate Diaz and Tony Ferguson were paired for the main event.

The creative strikers put on a thrilling and brutal bout through three rounds. In the fourth, Diaz jumped on an opportunity for a guillotine and Ferguson was forced to tap.

Following the win, Diaz said, "I did a whole wrestling camp, I didn't do any boxing. But we got it done. I got a worthy OG representative of mixed martial arts. Right now, I feel like I've had the longest career in UFC, and the most successful one."

Co-main Event: Chimaev stands amidst boos

When Khamzat Chimaev was unable to make weight for his main event bout, opponents were shuffled and Kevin Holland answered the call up at 180 lbs.

Chimaev continued showing his dominant grappling by quickly tapping out Holland with a D'Arce choke in the first round.

After the win that was followed by boos from the T-Mobile Arena crowd, Chimaev said, "I'm coming for everyone! Nobody can stop me. If I die, I die in the cage!"

Other Main Card Action

In the third altered bout on the card, China's powerhouse No. 14 ranked welterweight Li Jingliang was paired on a day's notice with Daniel Rodriguez at catchweight of 180-lbs that played out as a very measured, competitive bout.

The predominantly striking battle was contested all the way to the scorecards and Rodriguez won by a narrow split decision.

In a 140-pound women's catchweight bout, Irene Aldana broke open a close fight with Macy Chiasson by delivering a stirring third-round knockout, while, Johnny Walker choked out Ion Cutelaba for a first-round submission win in the main card opener at 205 pounds.

Preliminary and Early Prelims action

Featherweight veteran Julian Erosa made it three wins in a row with a decision win over highly-touted Hakeem Dawodu after Brazil's Jailton Almeida continued to roll in a 220-pound catchweight bout with first-round submission win over UFC newcomer Anton Turkalj.

Meanwhile, Middleweight Denis Tiuliulin earned his first UFC victory in style, stopping Jamie Pickett in the second round after Asian MMA veteran Chris Barnett came through personal adversity and worked through significant damage from Jake Collier to earn his best ever finish by TKO.

Barnett was swarmed by Collier and nearly submitted, but took an opportunity to gain mount where he pounded away until the referee stopped the fight.

China's Alateng Heili used all of his skills across three rounds to make it a clean sweep victory on the scorecards against Chad Anheliger. Alateng's well-known striking acumen was noticeably improved in distance, timing and patience after his work at Fight Ready.

Also on the early prelims, Norma Dumont, Yohan Lainesse and Elise Reed earned decision wins in their respective bouts over Danyelle Wolf, Darian Weeks and Melissa Martinez.

UFC 279 Results

Main Card

1. Welterweight Bout: Nate Diaz defeated Tony Ferguson via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:52 of the fourth round

2. Catchweight (180 lb) Bout: Khamzat Chimaev def. Kevin Holland via submission (D'Arce choke) at 2:13 of the first round

3. Catchweight (180 lb) Bout: Daniel Rodriguez defeated Li Jingliang via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

4. Women's Catchweight (140 lb) Bout: Irene Aldana defeated Macy Chiasson via TKO (strikes) at 2:21 of the third round

5. Light Heavyweight Bout: Johnny Walker defeated Ion Cutelaba via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:37 of the first round

Preliminary Card

1. Featherweight Bout: Julian Erosa defeated Hakeem Dawodu via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

2. Catchweight (220 lb) Bout: Jailton Almeida defeated Anton Turkalj via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:27 of round one

3. Middleweight Bout: Denis Tiuliulin defeated Jamie Pickett via TKO (strikes) at 4:52 of the second round

4. Heavyweight Bout: Chris Barnett defeated Jake Collier via TKO (strikes) at 2:24 of the second round

Early Preliminary Card

1. Women's Featherweight Bout: Norma Dumont defeated Danyelle Wolf via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

2. Bantamweight Bout: Alateng Heili defeated Chad Anheliger via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

3. Women's Strawweight Bout: Elise Reed defeated Melissa Martinez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

4. Welterweight Bout: Yohan Lainesse defeated Darian Weeks via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

Story first published: Sunday, September 11, 2022, 11:58 [IST]

Other articles published on Sep 11, 2022

Sporting Buzz