UFC 299: Sean O'Malley vs. Marlon Vera: Full results
UFC 299 is in the books. The pay-per-view event took place on Mar. 9 at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Apart from the title fight, the highly anticipated card featured several fights between veteran fighters and rising contenders with the potential to alter the future course of many divisions.
Without further delay, let's take a closer look at the detailed account of the event results.
UFC 299 main and co-main event: Sean O'Malley puts on clinic, Dustin Poirier scores resounding win
In the main event, UFC bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley attempted the first defense of his title reign against old foe Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera.
‘Chito’ handed O'Malley the only loss of his professional MMA career in their first meeting back in August 2020. However, O’Malley never acknowledged the loss, dismissing it as a "fluke." Both men went into the UFC 299 rematch not only to win the title but to get a legacy-defining victory.
In the fight, O'Malley's footwork proved effective against Vera's plodding style as 'Sugar' started inflicting damage from the outside. Meanwhile, 'Chito' appeared to be struggling with increasingly impactful strikes from the champion as the fight progressed.
Vera made the fight a bit more competitive in the championship rounds but O'Malley kept winning the majority of the exchanges until the final bell. After putting on a striking clinic, O'Malley won a clear unanimous decision.
In the co-main event, former interim UFC lightweight champion Dustin Poirier put his top-five spot in the rankings on the line against the much younger but relatively inexperienced Benoit Saint Denis in a non-title five-round fight.
Poirier, who has been through multiple dragged-out wars in his storied career, found himself in one immediately after the starting bell as Saint Denis came out guns blazing. 'The Diamond' seemed to have been overwhelmed by his opponent's pressure in Round 1.
But it has been proven time and time again that Poirier is difficult to outwork in a battle of attrition. Saint Denis' aggressive approach cost him the biggest potential win of his career as Poirier hurt the Frenchman multiple times before knocking him out with a powerful right hook in Round 2.
Poirier is now tied for the third-most victories (22) under the UFC umbrella with Demian Maia, Charles Oliveira, and Neil Magny.
UFC 299 main card: Petr Yan, Jack Della Maddalena, and Michael 'Venom' Page emerge victorious
Former UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan, who went on a 1-4 skid after winning the title in 2020, was tasked with fending off rising contender Song Yadong in the UFC 299 main card opening bout.
Yan won most of the striking and grappling exchanges in Rounds 2 and 3 and was declared the winner by unanimous decision which snapped his three-fight losing streak.
Top welterweight Gilbert Burns took on aggressive striker Jack Della Maddalena on the main card. While Burns seemed to get the better of the Australian on the ground, Maddalena did a good job of stringing effective combinations together in the stand-up.
'Durinho' scored a takedown at a crucial moment in Round 3 and appeared to be cruising to victory. But Maddalena sneaked out from the bottom and hit Burns with a knee as he went for another takedown, putting the wheels in motion for an eventual TKO victory.
Former Bellator welterweight Michael 'Venom' Page transitioned into the UFC and Kevin Holland welcomed him to the promotion at UFC 299.
Page tried to work with his creative striking from the get-go as Holland seemed to be struggling with his opponent's awkward style. 'Trailblazer' had most of his success in the clinch and on the ground. However, Page survived in both areas and continued to inflict damage from the outside, winning the fight via unanimous decision.
UFC 299 Prelims: Curtis Blaydes, Mateusz Gamrot and Maycee Barber score big wins
Mateusz Gamrot beat former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision after three rounds of back-and-forth action.
Flyweight prospect Maycee Barber outpointed veteran fighter Katlyn Cerminara en route to a unanimous decision victory. She is now tied for the longest active win streak in the UFC women's flyweight division.
In the featured prelim bout, No.5-ranked heavyweight Curtis Blaydes overcame adversity and knocked Jailton Almeida out with hammer fists in Round 2.
Taekwondo Olympic bronze medalist Robelis Despaigne made his UFC debut against Josh Parisian with an 18-second knockout win in the early prelims to prove that the hype is real.
Catch the full UFC 299 results below:
Main Card
Bantamweight - Sean O'Malley def. Marlon Vera via unanimous decision (50-45 x 2, 50-44)
Lightweight - Dustin Poirier def. Benoit Saint Denis via KO (R2, 2:32)
Welterweight - Michael Page def. Kevin Holland via unanimous decision (29-28 X 3)
Welterweight - Jack Della Maddalena def. Gilbert Burns via TKO (R3, 3:43)
Bantamweight - Petr Yan def. Song Yadong via unanimous decision (29-28 X 3)
Prelims
Heavyweight - Curtis Blaydes def. Jailton Almeida via TKO (R2, 0:36)
Women's flyweight - Maycee Barber def. Katlyn Cerminara via unanimous decision (30-27 X 2, 29-28)
Lightweight - Mateusz Gamrot def. Rafael Dos Anjos via unanimous decision (29-28 X 2, 30-27)
Bantamweight - Kyler Phillips def. Pedro Munhoz via unanimous decision (30-27 X 3)
Early Prelims
Light heavyweight - Philipe Lins def. Ion Cutelaba via unanimous decision (29-28 X 3)
Middleweight - Michel Pereira def. Michal Oleksiejczuk via technical submission (Rear naked choke) (R1, 1:01)
Heavyweight - Robelis Despaigne def. Josh Parisian via TKO (R1, 0:18)
Flyweight - Asu Almabaev def. C.J. Vergara via unanimous decision (30-27 X 2)
Women's flyweight - Joanne Wood def. Maryana Moroz via split decision (29-28 X2, 28-29)