A rare non-title fight headlined Saturday night's UFC 272, as a welterweight grudge match between former training partners headlined the card at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The dislike went back and forth between Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal in the buildup to the fight. But once it got started, the traffic went one way -- Covington dominated the bout en route to a unanimous decision on the scorecards: 49-46, 50-44 and 50-45.
Covington (17-3) is a relentless wrestler with a deep gas tank and an underrated striking game, and all of this was on display in a rinse-and-repeat performance over five rounds.
The veteran Masvidal (35-16), who looks on the downside, had flashes of his former self and even dropped Covington to one knee with his best punch of the fight in the fourth round, but he never got anything sustained going.
Covington has won nine of his past 11, with the two losses coming to UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Masvidal has dropped three in a row.
In the evening's co-feature bout, Renato Moicano showed great heart in taking a fight with former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos on five days' notice and flying in from Brazil for a five round, 160-pound catchweight fight.
But that's basically where the superlatives ended, as dos Anjos (31-13) rolled to a unanimous decision over Moicano (16-5-1), who fought just three weeks ago at UFC 271. The judges' scores were 49-45, 49-44 and 50-44.
Dos Anjos dominated all aspects of the fight from the jump.
In the third, Dos Anjos landed a perfect head kick, then laid down a hellacious beating on the mat. Moicano somehow made it to the end of the round. With his left eye nearly swollen shut between rounds, the ringside doctor examined him and inexplicably cleared him to continue.
Dos Anjos dominated again in the fourth, and the doctor again cleared him. Dos Anjos noticeably took his foot off the gas pedal in the fifth and cruised to seal his 20th career UFC win.
Reuters
Sun Mar 06 2022
Welterweight fighter Colby Covington connects with a punch on Jorge Masvidal in the five-round main event during UFC 272 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Saturday, March 5, 2022. - AP photo
Sheriff: 9 hari tayangan, kaut RM28 juta!
Filem arahan Syafiq Yusof, Sheriff: Narko Intergriti kini meraih kutipan sebanyak RM28 juta dalam 9 hari tayangan.
Jaheaik sudah panggil artis wanita tular buat persembahan - Exco
Jaheaik sudah panggil artis wanita tular buat persembahan - Exco
KidDin bergabung jawab segala isu Konsert Search 'Gemuruh'
KONSERT Search 'Gemuruh' nampaknya semakin diperkatakan disebabkan beberapa isu yang ditimbulkan sehari dua ini.
Penunjuk perasaan Palestin tempelak wartawan AS
Mereka menuduh wartawan A.S sembunyikan dan berikan gambaran salah mengenai perang di Gaza.
Lawatan ke Riyadh: Blinken melawat Arab Saudi esok
Setiausaha Negara Amerika Syarikat, Antony Blinken akan melawat Arab Saudi pada Isnin untuk bertemu dengan rakan serantau dan membincangkan usaha mencapai gencatan senjata di Gaza dan pembebasan tebusan Israel.
Iraq lulus akta penjara maksimum 15 tahun
Parlimen Iraq meluluskan undang-undang yang menjenayahkan hubungan sejenis dengan hukuman penjara maksimum 15 tahun pada Sabtu.
PRK Kuala Kubu Baharu: MB nafi rumah terbuka Selangor langgar akta
Penganjuran Rumah Terbuka Aidilfitri Peringkat Negeri Selangor yang diadakan pada Sabtu malam di pekan Kuala Kubu Bharu (KKB) di sini, tidak melanggar Akta Kesalahan Pilihan Raya 1954 (AKPR).
Pengurus rumah kebajikan didenda RM4,500 cederakan warga emas
Seorang pengurus rumah kebajikan didenda RM4,500 selepas mengaku bersalah mendatangkan kecederaan kepada seorang warga emas.
Amiruddin nafi rumah terbuka langgar peraturan pilihan raya
Menteri Besar Selangor Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari menafikan dakwaan bahawa penganjuran Rumah Terbuka Aidilfitri oleh kerajaan negeri di pekan Kuala Kubu Baharu (KKB) pada Sabtu, melanggar peruntukan Akta Kesalahan Pilihan Raya 1954.
Misi teroka peluang ekonomi, tarik pelaburan baharu di WEF - Anwar
Malaysia dalam misi meneroka pelbagai peluang ekonomi dan menarik pelaburan baharu pada Mesyuarat Khas Forum Ekonomi Dunia (WEF) di Riyadh, Arab Saudi yang akan berlangsung dua hari bermula hari ini.
UFC 272: Umar Nurmagomedov kekalkan rekod tanpa kalah 14 - 0
Umar Nurmagomedov mengekalkan rekod tanpa kalahnya selepas menewaskan Brian Kelleher dari Amerika Syarikat dalam aksi featherweight di UFC 272, pada Ahad.