The best and worst from UFC Vegas 12: Hall vs. Silva

#2 Best: Mitchell continues to rise through the UFC’s ranks at Featherweight

Bryce Mitchell impressed again in his win over Andre Fili

Once better known for tearing his scrotum in a bizarre accident with a power drill, Bryce Mitchell should now be far better recognized for his stellar run through the UFC’s Featherweight division. ‘Thug Nasty’ – who is 14-0 in MMA and 5-0 in the UFC – picked up his latest win last night over tricky veteran Andre Fili.

The fight wasn’t an easy one for Mitchell. He did brilliantly to outwork Fili on the ground in the first and third rounds but also struggled with the striking skill of ‘Touchy’ throughout the second. However, the win almost certainly represents Mitchell’s best in the UFC thus far and should catapult him into contention at 145lbs.

Who should he face-off with next? Anyone in the top fifteen would probably work. It’s clear that he’s got a lot of work to do on his striking, but if he can close that gap, then he’s probably a danger to anyone thanks to his wrestling and ground game. Going into 2021, he’s definitely a man to watch closely.

Make it 1-0 in the camo shorts 🌾@ThugnastyMMA earns the UD victory at #UFCVegas12! pic.twitter.com/rDLfSoFWjz

— UFC (@ufc) November 1, 2020

#2 Worst: Green’s penchant for close fights costs him again

Bobby Green's penchant for putting on close fights cost him a win last night

UFC President Dana White’s famous “never leave it in the hands of the judges” quote is often criticized by the MMA media, and quite rightly so. It’s never easy to get a finish in an MMA fight – particularly at the UFC level – and no fighter outright chooses to go the distance.

However, it’s almost certainly true that Bobby Green’s penchant for putting on close fights that go the distance has prevented him from ever reaching the upper echelon of the UFC. Green has entered the UFC’s Octagon on 15 occasions, and only three of those fights have not seen the final buzzer.

Last night, Green’s fight with Thiago Moises was classic fare from ‘King’. Once again, Green put on a ridiculously close fight, landing more shots in terms of volume, while Moises seemed to land his strikes with more power and also came close with a leglock in the second round.

Many people scored the fight for Green, but in the end, it was Moises who had his hand raised. Can ‘King’ have a lot to complain about here? Well, perhaps – but then he probably could’ve done more offensively to convince the judges too.

Either way, his three-fight UFC win streak is now snapped. The lesson to be learned? You can let a fight go to the judges – but you need to make things a lot more clear than Green tends to do.

#3 Best: The APEX produces a ton of finishes again

Last night saw some fantastic finishes, including Alexander Hernandez's KO of Chris Gruetzemacher

If ever we needed proof that the UFC APEX facility’s smaller Octagon produces better fights than the larger one used in places like Fight Island, it was last night’s show.

From the first prelim fight – which saw Miles Johns ruthlessly spark out Kevin Natividad – we were treated to some seriously violent moments last night that were probably among the best of 2020.

Adrian Yanez shone in his UFC debut by knocking Victor Rodriguez out with a savage head kick, while Dustin Jacoby also impressed in his return, destroying Justin Ledet with some nasty striking.

Perhaps the most impressive performance was Alexander Hernandez’s slaughter of Chris Gruetzemacher – putting him firmly back into UFC title contention at 155lbs – but even Greg Hardy, who came close to missing weight, managed to pick up a highlight-reel KO in a sloppy fight with Maurice Greene.

A card of full of finishes! These four leave with an extra 50K for the night 💰 [ B2YB @o2tactical ] pic.twitter.com/cPxOBGLhVt

— UFC (@ufc) November 1, 2020

Overall, this was one of the better UFC shows of 2020, and with the next month’s worth of shows taking place in the UFC APEX, we should be in for more fun throughout November.