Honestly, I thought Gastelum rallied pretty well and was picking up steam from about 2:00 left in the second. Pyfer definitely won… but the commentators were absolutely correct to criticize him for just headhunting. Powerful and accurate… but also boring and not even close to championship level.
Kevin Holland looked really sharp. I can’t really decide if I like the guy or not. Is he a villain? Is he a funny guy? With all the talking he does, I can’t decide. Talented and a game fighter with an entertaining style though. No denying that.
The Patchy Mix hype got derailed before it could even get started.
Kayla did exactly as expected and steamrolled Pena, who has always been overrated. You can’t take away the fact that she shocked the world by beating Amanda in that first fight (she was a fucking +900 dog!) but she’s just… not great and barely good. Either way, I’m cheering for Amanda!
The main event went exactly how I thought it would go. Suga Sean has a fun style and a big personality… but when it comes to beating a high level wrestler, he’s not that dude. He’s never been that dude. He wasn’t going to suddenly become that dude against a guy that’s as great as Merab is. I like both fighters but this ended exactly how it was always going to end from the time they announced the fight. And even if O’Malley hadn’t tapped, he hadn’t won a round and lost the last round 10-8. As O’Malley said afterwards, “Merab is a Motherfucker!”