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He beat Brazil’s Charles Oliveira to fill the vacant title as bantamweight champion Ajaman Sterling defended his title against two-time former champion TJ Dirasa
Islam Makhachev, left, battles Charles Oliveira for the lightweight title during the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) match at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. — AFP
After UFC 280, there is no debate about who is the UFC lightweight champion.
Dagestan’s Islam Makhachev had a solid performance in Saturday’s main event in Abu Dhabi, beating Brazil’s Charles Oliveira to fill the vacant title. Makhachev finished Oliveira’s race through an arm triangle choke at 3:16 of the second round, capping off a superlative performance.
Makhachev (23-1) was in control from the start as he gave up Oliveira (33-9) early and dominated from the top spot for the remainder of the opening round.
Towards the end of the second round, former champion Oliveira succeeded in the stand-up match, but Makhachev dropped him with a counterattack and pounced. Shockingly, he got a penalty from Oliveira, who holds the UFC’s record of 16 submission wins.
“I’ve worked hard for this moment my whole life,” said Makhachev, who won his 11th straight game. “When I was a kid, I was preparing for that moment.”
A contest for common features is also a championship fight, and in this case, it’s hardly a match. Bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling easily defended his title against two-time former champion TJ Dillashaw. The champion swam until the 3:44 TKO of the second round ended.
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Long Island, New York native Sterling (22-3) took it to Denver’s Dillashaw (17-5) from the start, scoring an early fall in the opening seconds when he tried to break When the challenger’s left shoulder ejected his fall from his socket. Sterling then alternated most of the round between pounding and tight grapple control on the ground.
Dillashaw’s cornerback managed to bounce his shoulder back into place between rounds, but popped again midway through the second round. This time, Sterling looked bent on finishing the game, while another knockout led to a roaring mayhem until the bout was mercifully called off.
Sterling won his eighth straight and successfully defended his title for the second time. Dillashaw has dropped two of his last three games.
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