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UFC Vegas 33 Highlights: Sean Strickland Out Boxes Uriah Hall

MMA UFC
Ewan Ross Jul 31, 2021 10:39PM

The UFC Vegas 33 card looked incredibly uninspired on paper, but as the UFC often says, those are the cards that can deliver the most. Instead of the dull card it looked like, we saw finishes up and down the card, and a main event with a middleweight emerging into a top 10 fighter. Check all the highlights after the break.

Sean Strickland def. Uriah Hall via Unanimous Decision (50-44, 50-45, 49-46)

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In his first main event, Sean Strickland put in a professional performance en route to a shutout victory over Uriah Hall. Strickland didn't do very much that was flashy, but he stuck to his game-plan and relied on his excellent jab to consistently get the edge over Hall. Strickland nearly got the finish with a sneaky right hand that knocked Hall loopy in the third, but he couldn't quite get the finish. This win extends Strickland's win streak to five, and moves him into the top ten, and will look to establish himself as a contender.

Cheyanne Buys def. Gloria de Paula via TKO (Head Kick & Punches) (Rd. 1 0:59)

Cheyanne Buys added yet another highlight to a card that's been packed full of them, by scoring a near walk-off head-kick knockout of Gloria de Paula. De Paula had been grounded, and her hand had just come off the ground as the kick from Buys landed.

Jared Gooden def. Niklas Stolze via TKO (Punches) (Rd. 1 1:08)

Jared Gooden absolutely floored Niklas Stolze with a straight right hand down the pipe that landed directly on the button. Gooden took the fight with less than a week's notice, and he used that opportunity to; halt a two-fight losing streak, gain his first UFC win, and score the biggest highlight of his career.

Melsik Baghdasaryan def. Collin Anglin via TKO (Head Kick and Punches) (Rd. 2 1:50)

In an excellent performance, Armenian kickboxing prospect Melsik Baghdasaryan put on an excellent performance in defeating Collin Anglin. Baghdasaryan came out hot in the first round, but once he couldn't get the finish, he showed excellent patience, and picked him apart, and got the finish early in the second round.

Jason Witt def. Bryan Barberena via Majority Decision (29-27, 29-28, 28-28)

The first two rounds between Bryan Barberena and Jason Witt were fairly tepid, but the action was turned up in the third round. Barberena came out knowing he needed a finish, and it led to a number of absolutely wild sequences. Barberena nearly did enough to get the 10-8 round which would've meant a draw, but came up just a little too short. The third round is a round of the year contender, which you should go out of your way to watch if you can.

Chris Gruetzmacher def. Rafa Garcia via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)

In an excellent fight, Chris Gruetzemacher emerged victorious over Rafa Garcia. Gruetzmacher survived getting stung early, but survived the first round, and managed to ride his varied striking approach to get the win. An excellent back and forth fight that's the leader to be fight of the night.

Kai Kamaka III vs. Danny Chavez Fight To A Majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)

A foul-filled fight between Kai Kamaka III and Danny Chavez resulted in a split draw. Kamaka first poked Chavez in the eye, then fairly shortly after kneed Chavez low, which resulted in a point deduction. Without that point deduction Kamaka fairly easily cruises to a victory, that he likely deserved regardless.

Jinh Yu Frey def. Ashley Yoder via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

In a fairly simmering kickboxing match, the former Invicta Atomweight champion Jinh Yu Frey got the win over Ashley Yoder. Not the most thrilling outing but a tidy win for to move Frey forward.

Zarrukh Adashev def. Ryan Benoit via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Uzbekistan's Zarrukh Adashev chopped Ryan Benoit's leg to pieces early and often. Benoit had his moments continuously walking forward, despite only having one leg to stand on, even knocking Adashev down once.

Phil Rowe def. Orion Cosce via TKO (Punches) (Rd. 2 4:21)

After a grinding first round, Phil Rowe went to town on Orion Cosce in the second round, hitting him with a series of devastating hooks, and brutal knees. Cosce withstood an incredible amount of punishment to both the body and the head before finally collapsing near the end of the round. It does need to be noted that Rowe missed weight by two and a half pounds, but this was a very impressive performance.

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