UFC 330 Takeaways

The UFC made its first return to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in over seven years, and by many accounts it was successful. This card was riddled with upsets and crazy moments, along with two champions retaining their titles to cap off the card. 

The crowd arrived early and brought the energy from the jump. While tonight’s biggest takeaway is that the UFC should start making regular trips to Philadelphia, there are plenty of others revolving around the action. 

Jeremiah Wells Was UFC 330’s Rocky

Heading into his UFC 330 fight with Myktybek Orolbai, Jeremiah Wells, the Philadelphia native, was a near eight-to-one underdog, the biggest on the card. Through the first ten minutes of the fight, it seemed like this was fair oddsmaking, but then round three happened. Just over a minute into the round Wells landed a straight right punch that forced Orolbai to shoot for a desperation takedown resulting in Wells locking up a ninja choke and putting Wells out unconscious. 

After his win, it seemed like Wells hinted at a potential retirement, which at 39 years old and after a shocking upset win in his hometown seems like a dream way to call it a career. If he decides to keep fighting he has now entered the top 20 of the stacked welterweight division.

Get Neil Magny’d

At least once a year, Neil Magny is made an underdog against a fighter who he has no business being an underdog against, and at least once a year he proves oddsmakers wrong. Tonight was that night as Neil Magny came in as about a +130 underdog against Ramiz Brahimaj. 

In the first round, Magny got off to his typical slow start and spent the majority of the round on his back defending ground strikes and submission attempts. This seemed to be all part of Magny’s plan though as Brahimaj was gassed coming into the second round. 

Almost immediately Magny pounced on Brahimaj and as soon as he got the opportunity to land strikes, the fight was over. Tonight was everyone’s millionth reminder that Neil Magny is still a top 25 welterweight in the world. 

No Teeth, No Problem

After a mediocre 3-4 start to his UFC career, Tresean Gore got the biggest test of his career against former top contender Vicente Luque and took full advantage. In the first round, Gore landed a strong combination of punches that hurt Luque, and after a rough start to the second round, Gore rebounded by taking Luque down and delivering a beating that secured a decision victory.

Following his win he revealed to Joe Rogan that he lost multiple teeth from a flying knee but was determined to come out on top, which he did. In his last two fights, Gore has looked to be turning into the fighter many hoped he would be following his stint on The Ultimate Fighter. 

What Kind of Twister?

Like his fellow crafty veteran Neil Magny, Charles Johnson avoided the jaws of defeat and clawed his way back to a finish victory. After a competitive first round, UFC newcomer Eduardo Chapolin landed a perfectly timed punch that sat Johnson down and almost put him away. 

Unfortunately, Chapolin made the mistake of letting Johnson recover. In the third round, Johnson proved to be the clearly fresher fighter as he began an onslaught of strikes before attempting to take the back of Chapolin. While this may not have worked it led to Chapolin falling directly into a Scottish Twister, one of the rarest submissions in the UFC. While Johnson may never challenge for a UFC title, he taught a future contender a valuable lesson, finish a veteran when you have the chance. 

Happy Trails Edson Barboza

While it would have been a bit of a miracle for Edson Barboza to pull off a win over Esteban Ribovics, the sheer bravery it took for a 40-year-old Barboza to step in the cage with someone as dangerous as Ribovics speaks to the type of fighter Barboza has always been.

Over the course of his near 16-year UFC career, Barboza put together an 18-15 record with wins over fellow legends like Paul Felder, Anthony Pettis, Beneil Dariush, and Dan Hooker. Barboza will always be best known for his elite highlight reel and warrior spirit. Happy trails to a legend of the sport, enjoy retirement. 

Mansur Abdul-Malik is a Bust

Earlier this year the UFC put together a fight between Yousri Belagroui and Mansur Abdul-Malik to determine who was the real boogeyman at middleweight, and by the end of the fight everyone could tell Belagroui was a level above Abdul-Malik. Tonight the UFC tried to restart the hype around Abdul-Malik and it failed miserably as he lost to a now 4-7 UFC veteran, Dustin Stolzfus. 

In his current form, the durability, defense, and cardio of Abdul-Malik are not up to par with even a mediocre UFC fighter. The offensive talent is clearly there but to be successful he has a lot of work to do, which should be done on the regional scene. 

Jalin Turner is a Star

There are and will always be a lot of question marks around Jalin Turner, and for good reason. He has openly stated he doesn’t want to do this but to keep himself religiously committed he feels as though he must. This is not the mindset you want a fighter to have, but what cannot be questioned is his talent.

It is still a mystery as to how Turner is making lightweight at a staggering 6’ 3”, but this length and his natural power make him nearly unstoppable on the feet. If Turner mentally commits to the sport and improves his grappling there is no reason Turner can’t make a run to the top of the division.

The UFC Needs Zhang Weili

I mean this with no disrespect towards either Mackenzie Dern or Gillian Robertson, but this was the least hyped up UFC title fight in recent memory, and their performance inside the octagon proved why. In terms of championship fight standards, that fight felt low-level. Both women have clear holes in their game, and with Zhang Weili on the sideline, this didn’t quite feel like a true title fight. 

To bring relevancy back to this division the UFC desperately needs former champion Zhang Weili. If Zhang Weili were to return it would immediately bring a much-needed resurgence to a division growing in irrelevancy. 

Islam Makhachev Makes History

It might be time to put Islam Makhachev in some uncomfortable conversations. After tonight, Makhachev has now won and defended championship titles in multiple weight classes, along with being the sole record holder for the longest win streak in UFC history.

While tonight may not have been as dominant as he would have liked, it doesn’t take away from what Makhachev has accomplished in this sport. Now, whether the UFC picks Michael Morales or Carlos Prates, Makhachev will look to add another killer to his long list of victims.