UFC London is now one for the books and from a card that appeared constructive forward of battle night time went down terribly. The primary occasion was a onesided beat down with the house fighter, Leon Edwards on the unsuitable finish of it. There have been 18,583 individuals in attendance, bringing in a document Struggle Night time gate of $4.71 million, nonetheless, the 18,583 didn’t see a single end through TKO/KO. It was a decision-heavy card with few highlights, 4 submissions and an evening to neglect total.
English fighters went 3-6, together with low IQ moments from English stars. The cardboard lacked star energy from the off with names reminiscent of Tom Aspinall, Paddy Pimblett, Arnold Allen, MVP all lacking from the cardboard.
We dive into UFC London and see what went so unsuitable.
I’ve misplaced depend of the quantity of UFC occasions I’ve attended and labored on
I can’t bear in mind one ever being as lacklustre as that #UFCLondon
— Adam Catterall (@AdamCatterall) March 22, 2025
UFC London – English Fighters Wrestle from the Begin
Nathan Fletcher, Mick Parkin, Jai Herbert, Jordan Vucenic, Molly McCann, Leon Edwards. That’s an inventory of names of English fighters who misplaced on the O2 Enviornment final night time. Not solely that however Fletcher and Vucenic misplaced towards native rivals in Caolan Loughran and Chris Duncan.
Mick Parkin put in a lacklustre efficiency in an immediately forgettable battle towards Marcin Tybura, Jai Herbert had an entertaining battle towards Chris Padilla, nonetheless, it wasn’t sufficient to get his hand raised on the night time and Christian Leroy Duncan, except for profitable, didn’t put in a great efficiency.
Molly McCann and Leon Edwards, nonetheless, put in arguably career-worst performances. McCann, taking over late discover opponent, Alexia Thainara was dominated from the beginning. She was taken down and choked out in simply 4:32. Following the loss, Meatball hung up the gloves for good, recognising that she has nothing left to offer within the sport. You may try our full piece on McCann’s retirement right here. The cardboard was helped out rather a lot by McCann’s retirement because it considerably takes the shine off what was a dreadful night time of fights.
As for Leon Edwards, UFC London was an evening to neglect. When will he be taught to wrestle? Previous to combating Sean Brady in the principle occasion of this 12 months’s UFC London, Edwards had been taken down 20 instances in his final 4 fights. Towards Brady, he added to this undesirable stat, being taken down an additional 5 instances. What didn’t assist Rocky was that he confirmed some dreadful battle IQ within the third spherical taking pictures for a really lazy takedown, regardless of being dominated within the second spherical on the bottom.
Significantly LOW IQ from Leon taking pictures from a takedown then. That might go down as an all timer of low IQ moments. What on the earth was he pondering??? #UFCLondon
— Frazer Krohn (@frazerkrohnMMA) March 22, 2025
Media members contained in the O2 Enviornment famous how followers had been heading for the door after three rounds, regardless of the battle being scheduled for 5.
Followers are heading for the exits after three rounds of the principle occasion. #UFCLondon
— Nick Peet (@Peety_Editor) March 22, 2025
While Edwards put in a career-worst efficiency, credit score should be given to Philly’s personal, Sean Brady. He put in an exceptional efficiency, dominated the battle and didn’t give Edwards an opportunity within the cage on Saturday night time. Was it entertaining? Completely not. His wrestling-heavy type isn’t fan-friendly. It’s heavy strain, place over submission and really low motion. Birmingham’s personal, Edwards did little or no within the octagon at UFC London, didn’t mount any sort of offence and seemed to be combating to not lose, somewhat than combating to win.
Different Lowlights
Different lowlights embrace Guram Kutateladze ruining many individuals’s betting slips, shedding a one-sided determination. A -380 favorite with Khamzat Chimaev and the Topuria brothers in his nook, Kutateladze was totally battered throughout quarter-hour.
Lone’er Kavanagh was one of many few English fighters to get a win on the cardboard, however attributable to circumstances inside the battle, needed to put in a security first efficiency after a troublesome first spherical. The Londoner suffered a nasty minimize to the top, forcing him to wrestle for giant intervals of the second and third rounds. With that being mentioned, it wasn’t a nasty battle in any respect and Kavanaugh progressed to 2-0 within the UFC.
Nathaniel Wooden placed on a clinic, nonetheless, questions are being requested after one more spectacular win. The Prospect dominated the battle, dropping Morgan Charriere within the first spherical. With that being mentioned, everybody wished to see Wooden put his foot down within the battle and seek for the end. He hasn’t completed a battle since 2019 however constantly places on entertaining fights. What we’d like now for Wooden is a prime 15 opponent the place he can actually shine.
Carlos Ulberg and Jan Blachowicz put in quarter-hour to neglect within the gentle heavyweight division. In what was primarily a battle of leg kicks, 82 mixed to be exact, the 2 males fought for the complete quarter-hour. A controversial determination? Possibly. However definitely forgettable.
Highlights
The highlights of the UFC London card shine because of the lacklustre performances from the bulk on the cardboard.
Shauna Bannon’s battle with Puja Tomar wasn’t entertaining… till it was. The primary six minutes of the battle weren’t significantly entertaining, nonetheless, as soon as Tomar landed the top kick and Bannon was capable of survive (simply), the battle got here alive. Bannon was capable of lock within the armbar for a come-from-behind victory and secured a $50K bonus.
Alexia Thainara’s efficiency, ring stroll and total aura had been definitely a spotlight. Her ring stroll possible took extra time than the battle itself, ending issues within the first spherical. The UFC have a star on their fingers and he or she kicked off her UFC profession with a $50K bonus, towards a house fighter, on brief discover. Good work, Thainara.
The ultimate spotlight was the Gunnar Nelson vs Kevin Holland battle. While it wasn’t a battle of the 12 months contender, it definitely entertained. With enjoyable exchanges on the ft, motion on the bottom and an entertaining method of avoiding a submission by Nelson, the battle supplied the followers with one thing to cheer. Holland dropped Nelson and the Icelandic grappler virtually locked in a submission late on. The battle went the complete quarter-hour, nevertheless it was definitely entertaining.
No sport like MMA
#UFCLondon pic.twitter.com/xULuVj9Rk6
— Verdict (@VerdictMMA) March 22, 2025
When the UFC returns for the subsequent UFC London card, it’s crucial that they stack it with expertise. There can’t be one other un-inspiring card in England’s capital or time could also be working out for British MMA followers to see the octagon throughout the pond.
