5 points to note from UFC 197

#3 A Spectacular Fall from Grace

The bout didn’t live up to its expectations

While the return of Jon Jones to the Octagon after 16 months may have hogged the media limelight leading up to the event, it was widely speculated that Anthony Pettis vs Edson Barboza would be the fight that would steal the show.

Naturally, given both men’s extensive taek wan do background, everyone was expecting a stand-up war between the two men that are recognized as perhaps the finest exponents of the kicking game in the UFC today.

While the fight itself played out completely on the feet, the audience were left somewhat disappointed that only half an end of the bargain was lived up to; while Edson Barboza put on a clinic in technical striking, Anthony Pettis failed to show up for the third fight in a row.

Ever since the beating that Rafael Dos Anjos put on him, Anthony Pettis has looked a pale shadow of the man that beat Gilbert Melendez or Benson Henderson twice. And despite all the ‘edge’ that he reflected in the build-up to the fight, his eventual performance was a far cry from justifying it.

So while it is onward and upward for Edson Barboza in hope of edging closer to a title shot, a dejected walk back to the drawing room for the the third consecutive time is what awaits former Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis.