The best and worst from UFC Fight Night 169: Benavidez vs. Figueiredo

UFC Fight Night 169 turned out to be perhaps one of the strangest in promotional history. You can’t say it wasn’t a fun or entertaining show, as we got a finish in every one of the main card fights and only maybe one fight on the prelims – Marcin Tybura vs. Serghei Spivac – was dull.

However, we’ve come away from the show without a UFC Flyweight Champion after a fight that ended in semi-controversial circumstances, which is no good for anyone, and we also saw one of the most bizarre refereeing performances in UFC history too.

Here are the best and worst moments from UFC Fight Night 169: Joseph Benavidez vs. Deiveson Figueiredo.

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#1 Best: We’ve actually got some intrigue at Featherweight

Megan Anderson scored a big knockout last night

The Women’s Featherweight division is undoubtedly the most underdeveloped in the UFC right now, with only a handful of athletes signed and champion Amanda Nunes floating between 145lbs and 135lbs while holding both titles. Last night was a rare showcase for the Featherweights, as we were given two main card fights in the division, and in a positive outcome, both delivered the goods.

First, Megan Anderson survived some early takedown attempts to knock out Norma Dumont Viana with a picture-perfect right hand in the first round, and then in the semi-main event, Felicia Spencer simply destroyed an overmatched Zarah Fairn with ground-and-pound for a TKO. After their wins, both Anderson and Spencer talked up a shot at Nunes – who has since seemingly obliged on social media.

So who should get the shot? Well, it’s got to be Spencer who beat Anderson last year in one-sided fashion. In reality, Australia’s Anderson is perhaps the more intriguing fight for Nunes – she’s a huge, a concussive puncher, and seems to be closing the holes in her ground game – but for now, it’d probably be smarter to let her develop further, so giving Spencer a crack instead is only fair.

Either way, Women’s Featherweight is still a paper-thin division, but at least there seems to be a way for it to move forward, especially after last night.

#1 Worst: We’ve still got no Flyweight Champion

Deiveson Figueiredo's weight gaffe means we still have no champion at 125lbs

Last night’s show was meant to be the beginning of a new era for the UFC Flyweight division; either Joseph Benavidez or Deiveson Figueiredo would be crowned the new Champion and things could move on following Henry Cejudo’s strange title reign. Instead, we’re left with more questions than answers after Figueiredo knocked out ‘Joe-B-Wan’ in the second round.

The worst part is that due to ‘The God of War’ missing weight for the fight, he was no longer eligible to win the title and so we’ve still got no Champion. That’s bad enough, but to make matters even more frustrating, the fight ended controversially; it was largely even until a clash of heads stunned Benavidez and opened up a huge cut – blood spewed from his forehead, leading to Figueiredo’s knockout punch.

The best route to go for the UFC is just to run this fight back and hope Figueiredo makes weight, but who knows if they’ll do that or whether the long-standing rumor of the closure of the division will happen instead. Either way, this fight was supposed to provide clarity and instead it missed the mark by miles.

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#2 Best: Grant Dawson impresses again

Grant Dawson was impressive in his win over Darrick Minner

Whenever a fighter faces off with a late replacement, it’s tricky for them to gain some traction. If they win, well, it was always expected against a fighter with far less preparation time, but if they lose, it’s always a bad look.

Last night saw Featherweight prospect Grant Dawson put into that position, as his fight with veteran Chas Skelly (a chance to move a few rungs up the ladder) fell apart, and instead, he faced newcomer Darrick Minner, who took the fight on with just over a week’s notice.

Thankfully for Dawson, he fought excellently, fending off a lot of offense in the early going from Minner who attempted a lot of chokes but couldn’t quite get them synched in. By the second round, it looked like the newcomer had run out of steam somewhat, and ‘KGD’ took over, dominating on the ground before choking his opponent out.

The victory gives Dawson a 3-fight win streak in the UFC, and while a win over Minner doesn’t mean as much as a win over a veteran like Skelly would’ve done, it should still shunt him into a better position next time out, particularly as he picked up a main-card finish. This was a strong performance from ‘KGD’ and I look forward to seeing him in action again.

#2 Worst: The weird refereeing in the Magomed Ankalaev vs Ion Cutelaba fight

A refereeing mistake marred Magomed Ankalaev's win over Ion Cutelaba

The Light-Heavyweight clash between Magomed Ankalaev and Ion Cutelaba was, in my opinion, the best fight on this card outside of the main event as both men were coming off tremendous wins, are amongst the best athletes in the 205lbs division, and come into the Octagon with massive amounts of aggression. Unfortunately, things went entirely wrong from the get-go, leaving us with a big anti-climax.

Firstly, things got bizarre when Cutelaba strode across the Octagon and got into Ankalaev’s face during the ring introduction – causing the Dagestani to grab him in a body lock and spin him onto the cage. Security quickly flooded the Octagon to sort things out, but it was clear we were going to be in for a crazy fight.

Sure enough, ‘The Hulk’ came out with his trademark aggression, windmilling at Ankalaev – but unfortunately for the Moldovan, he appeared to be badly outgunned. A short punch from the Dagestani had him wobbled, and a flurry of kicks and punches then saw referee Kevin MacDonald step in to stop the fight.

Cutelaba was furious with the stoppage – and replays appeared to prove him correct. It looked like he’d been wobbled by one of the early punches, but the majority of Ankalaev’s head kicks didn’t land cleanly, and it appeared that ‘The Hulk’ was swinging back at the time of the stoppage.

Quite what MacDonald was thinking is anyone’s guess, but to me, this looked like one of the worst refereeing gaffes I can recall in the UFC. Cutelaba simply wasn’t out on his feet, and while he was in trouble, the stoppage also robbed Ankalaev of a chance to put him away properly. Simply put, this was a huge disappointment. The UFC ought to consider running it back – although I suspect they’ll push Ankalaev up the ladder instead.

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#3 Best: So many finishes!

The show was chock full of exciting finishes

While none of the other performances on the card stood out – Brendan Allen looked good in finishing Tom Breese while Kyler Phillips’ debut went well, but neither was truly memorable – the show at least featured a bunch of finishes and went quickly, which was just what the doctor ordered after a couple of shows that were largely longer and filled with decisions.

In comparison, for instance, UFC Fight Night 167, which took place 2 weeks ago, saw 7 of its 13 fights go the distance, with a further 2 reaching the third round. Sure, some of those fights were fun, but realistically it’s a hell of a lot of fighting to sit through, particularly when the entire show from the prelims onwards is now televised.

Last night, on the other hand, saw just 4 fights go the distance, with 5 first-round finishes dotted around the card with 3 second-round finishes too. That made for a far more enjoyable experience that never outstayed its welcome. It’s something the UFC can obviously never control, but when it does happen and you get a show that’s over before any boredom kicks in, it’s worth noting. Bravo to the fighters who stepped into the Octagon last night!