Two major title fights headlined Saturday night's UFC 239, but there were plenty of marquee fighters competing on the night's show, with major implications.
OH MY GOD MASVIDAL STARCHES ASKREN IN 5 SECONDS!!!#UFC239 pic.twitter.com/8oWeqSIBhW
— UFC (@ufc) July 7, 2019
With #2 Colby Covington not getting a title shot against champion Kamaru Usman, the fight between unbeaten #5 Ben Askren and #4 Jorge Masvidal became even more important. The importance lasted all of about five seconds, when Masvidal flew across the cage to immediately knock out Askren. Masvidal said that he knocked Askren out with a flying knee "because he's a bum."
Rockhold wobbled at the end of round 1! #UFC239 pic.twitter.com/7W48D8Df0X
— UFC (@ufc) July 7, 2019
Luke Rockhold's fall from grace had featured one win since 2016 and facilitated a move from middleweight up to light heavyweight, where he was welcomed to the division by #6 Jan Blachowicz. It wasn't a warm welcome, however. After a round one head kick wobbled Rockhold, a vicious combo in round two knocked the former UFC Middleweight Champion out.
JAN BLACHOWICZ!!!! #UFC239 pic.twitter.com/d6Rx1KpsGT
— UFC (@ufc) July 7, 2019
On the prelim card, #14 Randa Markos was looking for her biggest win to date in taking on #5 Claudia Gadelha. She didn't get it, as she was taken to the scorecards in a vintage Gadelha performance that led to a unanimous decision.
Not ranked fighters, but notable names nonetheless, former Strikeforce champ Gil Melendez faced Arnold Allen, while TUF winners Diego Sanchez and Michael Chiesa took each other on. Both Arnold Allen and Chiesa dominated their legendary opponents.
You can check out our full UFC 239 coverage at this link, and make sure to tune in to our live post-show podcast as well. You can also see the Fightful MMA panel break down the event this Tuesday at 2 PM EST on the Fightful MMA Podcast.
