5 biggest winners from UFC 264: Dustin Poirier vs Conor McGregor 3

#4 Sean O’Malley and Kris Moutinho

Kris Moutinho and Sean O'Malley put on a wild and entertaining fight.

It’s rare that two fighters in the same fight could be considered big winners. But it’s probably fair to say that the stock of both Sean O’Malley and Kris Moutinho went up after last night’s scrap.

O’Malley picked up a late TKO victory in what was a surprising stoppage from Herb Dean, given Moutinho was still standing. But in a way. the end may have been justified given the shots the newcomer was taking.

But when you consider that the kind of strikes O’Malley landed last night had knocked out the likes of Eddie Wineland and Thomas Almeida, to see an unknown like Moutinho simply eating them and moving forward was insane.

And while ‘The Sugar Show’ was clearly landing the better shots, it wasn’t like Moutinho didn’t push his opponent hard. The latter landed some hard shots of his own and even had O’Malley glancing up at the clock on more than one occasion.

In the end, both men were handed the bonus for ‘Fight of the Night’, making themselves $75k richer in the process, something that should help Moutinho in particular. And the quality of the fight should ensure that fans would want to see both men fight again, which is all you can really ask for.

These two D E L I V E R E D 💸 💢 @SugaSeanMMA and @MoutinhoKris secure the FOTN at #UFC264.[ B2YB @ToyoTires ] pic.twitter.com/LJKP0s4fwM

— UFC (@ufc) July 11, 2021

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#5 Irene Aldana – defeated Yana Kunitskaya

Irene Aldana may well have earned a UFC title shot with her win over Yana Kunitskaya.

Irene Aldana might’ve missed weight for her fight with Yana Kunitskaya last night. But when it came down to it, she delivered the goods and took out her opponent violently.

Aldana dominated ‘Foxy’ from the off, eventually dropping her with a left hook. Kunitskaya tried to recover, but the Mexican was having none of it, and she pounced to finish the Russian off, picking up a key win in the process.

Late 2020 saw Aldana’s impressive form halted by former UFC bantamweight champion Holly Holm. But with this win, she should probably be in line for a shot at current champion Amanda Nunes.

‘The Lioness’ faces Julianna Pena next. But if she wins as everyone expects her to, Aldana could be an intriguing match for Nunes, due to her sharp boxing and knockout power.

Will anyone favour the Mexican against Nunes? Well, probably not. But she has almost certainly earned a title shot now, and that makes her one of UFC 264’s biggest winners, even with the weight-cutting error.

Back in the win column for @IreneAldana_ 🙌[ #UFC264 | We're LIVE on E+ PPV: https://t.co/DZxtGSEqWu ] pic.twitter.com/pxYRMi6rPP

— UFC (@ufc) July 11, 2021