Fight Coverage
The Bigger Picture | UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura
Diving Into The Biggest Takeaways From An Outstanding 2024 PPV Finale In Las Vegas
The final UFC pay-per-view of 2024 kicked off with three straight finishes and wrapped with one, as well, with everything in between combining to make this one of the most entertaining and compelling fight cards of the year from start to finish.
Stellar shows offer plenty to unpack, so let’s not waste any more time and get right into things.
Statement Made
Alexandre Pantoja started his flyweight title defense against Kai Asakura on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena like he had dinner reservations that he wasn’t planning on missing, racing out of the chute and taking things to the challenger. As expected, Asakura met him head on, looking sharp and quick as the two exchanged, but Pantoja was undeterred and unwavering in his pursuit of the former Rizin standout.
Early in the second round, he aggressively worked his way onto Asakura’s back, forcing him to the canvas, where he quickly clamped onto a rear-naked choke that momentarily put the challenger to sleep.
Alexandre Pantoja Post-Fight Interview | UFC 310
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Alexandre Pantoja Post-Fight Interview | UFC 310
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After a build where a lot of the questions focused on how Asakura would adapt to the Octagon and the threat he presented to the champion, Pantoja used the final title fight of 2024 to remind everyone that he’s a step or two ahead of everyone in the division at the moment.
UFC 310 REWIND: Main Card Results | Prelim Results | Official Scorecards
This was Pantoja’s most dominant showing since he raced across the cage, punched Alex Perez in the face, and quickly submitted him back at UFC 277, his first fight after having knee surgery and watching his initial championship opportunity go by the boards. He was tactically aggressive and calculating with his blitzes and attacks, landing big strikes and creating scrambles at a pace that is daunting to contend with, and has become one of the champion’s signatures as he’s worked his way to the top of the division and successfully defended his throne thrice.
The emphatic win leaves the American Top Team representative in an interesting position, as he’s already posted multiple wins over the No.1 and No. 2 contenders in the division, Brandon Royval and Brandon Moreno, as well as Perez, Steve Erceg, and Manel Kape. There is no one clearly next in line, and while the opportunity to challenge for UFC gold will always bring hopefuls to the fore, Pantoja showed on Saturday night that he’s got a firm grasp on the title and no intentions of relinquishing it any time soon.
This was an absolute statement performance and a star-making effort for the humble standout from Rio de Janeiro.
Business Picking Up At Welterweight
The biggest winner in Saturday’s stellar co-main event clash between unbeaten welterweight contenders Shavkat Rakhmonov and Ian Machado Garry?
The division as a whole.
Rakhmonov claimed the victory, edging out the Irishman after surviving some tense moments in the final round to move to 19-0 and ensure he’ll be the one to challenge Belal Muhammad for the title when the newly-minted champion is ready to return to action next year. Though he suffered the first loss of his professional career, Machado Garry’s stock rose over the weekend, as “The Future” ran as close to level with the unbeaten contender from Kazakhstan, pushing him to his limits and having periods of success himself.
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This fight upped the intrigue surrounding the eventual clash between Muhammad and Rakhmonov, which was scheduled to headline Saturday’s event before the champion was forced out after contracting a bone infection in his foot.
But it’s not just this triumvirate that makes things exciting in the 170-pound ranks at the moment.
Joaquin Buckley headlines opposite Colby Covington this weekend in the final UFC event of the year, and if “New Mansa” can extend his winning streak to six by turning back the three-time title challenger, he’ll very much enter the title conversation.
Shavkat Rakhmonov Post-Fight Interview | UFC 310
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Shavkat Rakhmonov Post-Fight Interview | UFC 310
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Jack Della Maddalena did that back in March by rallying to stop Gilbert Burns and extend his record to 7-0 inside the Octagon. While the injury that has sidelined him since means he has a little ground to make up, the Dana White’s Contender Series grad from Perth should make another push towards contention in 2025.
Sean Brady is in the mix, as well, having followed up his submission win over Kelvin Gastelum last December with a main event victor over Burns in September. The lone loss of his career came against Muhammad when the champ was on his push towards the top, and with another quality win or two, the hard-nosed grinder from Philadelphia could be knocking on the door for a rematch.
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Add in promising emerging talents Michael Morales and Carlos Prates, plus former champs Leon Edwards and Kamaru Usman, and you’ve got at least 10 intriguing fighters to follow in the welterweight division heading into 2025.
Development Time Is Essential (Part Two)
Last month in this space, I talked about the way Bo Nickal was being talked about and projected before he’d ever stepped in the Octagon was hurried, and how despite his considerable talents, he still needs time to develop as a fighter before mixing it up with the middleweight elite.
Early in Saturday’s fight card, Chase Hooper stood out as a prime example of how and why we need to allow athletes time to grow in every respect of the word.
Armbar submission for the win 💪@Chase_Hooper pushes his win streak to 4!
— UFC (@ufc) December 7, 2024
[ #UFC310 is LIVE now on @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/2JqFQnWuwe
Hooper first landed on the UFC radar as an 18-year-old hopeful that looked 14 at best, winning a chaotic and entertaining bout against Canaan Kawaihae on the second season of Dana White’s Contender Series. He secured a development contract, and after three more fights on the regional circuit, he made his Octagon debut at UFC 245, stopping David Teymur in the first round.
The next couple years were hit and miss for Hooper, who alternated results as more seasoned and savvy opponents got the better of him and he battled to make the featherweight limit ahead of each fight. Last May, he ventured to lightweight for the first time and earned a unanimous decision win over Nick Fiore, looking more filled out and grown up than he had in the past, while also showing improvements in his striking and grappling.
A submission win over Jordan Leavitt followed before the dropped and submitted Viacheslav Borshchev earlier this year to run his winning streak to three, continuing to look the part of a developing fighter in every way possible. Over the weekend, Hooper submitted Clay Guida in the opening round to collect his fourth straight win and third straight finish, solidifying his place as an emerging name in the talent-rich division heading into next year.
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While his surge is surely surprising to some, it really shouldn’t be: Hooper is 25 years old now, fighting in the correct weight class for his height and build and body, and has not only clearly added mass to his previously wiry frame, but sharpened his skills to the point where he’s an absolute terror on the ground and dangerous on the feet.
These are the things that happen when quality prospects are afforded the opportunity to work out the kinks and grow into themselves without being projected to the moon and hustled into the deep end of the talent pool. Those early setbacks honestly served him well because it made it impossible to rush Hooper up the divisional ladder, and he used that time to gain invaluable experience, mature, and become the best version of himself.
Now he stands as an intriguing prospect in the lightweight division on a nice little run of success, and a reminder to be patient when assessing the talent and future of the men and women that make the walk to the Octagon each weekend.
Quick Hitters
Ciryl Gane didn’t believe he did enough to beat Alexander Volkov in their heavyweight rematch midway through Saturday’s UFC 310 main card. “Bon Gamin” bolted from the Octagon after hearing the result, returning to explain he was disappointed with his performance and broke his toes early in the contest, while Volkov and many others voiced their frustration with the split decision verdict falling in favor of the former interim champion.
Saturday night felt like the complete Bryce Mitchell experience in one 30-minute burst. He raced to the prep point as “Cotton-Eyed Joe” pumped through the speakers, spent two rounds controlling Kron Gracie on the canvas before putting him to sleep with a big slam and a couple heavy elbows early in the third, and then used his time on the mic to apologize to publicly apologize to Joe Rogan for things he’d previously said about the UFC analyst and podcaster before dissecting his performance.
It was a lot, but it was also a very impressive finish for “Thug Nasty” and a nice way to return to the win column.
Dooho Choi showed some new wrinkles to his game in finishing Nate Landwehr from a mounted crucifix in the third round. His hands were as crispy as ever, but his grappling was on point, as well, and now that he’s unbeaten in his last three, there are a wealth of entertaining potential matchups out there for “The Korean Superboy.”
Dominick Reyes did what he needed to do, marching out and taking the fight to Anthony Smith, finishing him in the second round to claim his second stoppage win of the year. It’s been a long road back for the 34-year-old former title challenger, and it will be interesting to see if he can continue this run of success in 2025.
Vicente Luque showed that he’s not ready to give up his place in the welterweight rankings just yet, turning in a vintage effort against Themba Gorimbo. The Brazilian looked dialed in and dangerous in dropping and submitting the streaking Zimbabwe native, turning in an outstanding bounce-back effort following his loss to Joaquin Buckley earlier in the year.
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Movsar Evloev and Aljamain Sterling turned in an outstanding display of high-level grappling in their preliminary card featherweight pairing, with Evloev taking the decision to advance to 19-0 overall. It’s a very good win for the undefeated Russian, and Sterling shouldn’t lose any ground either, as he once again showed that he’s a force in the Top 10.
There has been and will continue to be a lot of talk about who is next in line in the flyweight division, and one name to pay close attention to is Joshua Van. While he’s not ready to be a contender yet, he’s on the fast track and improving each time out.
Michael Chiesa celebrated his 37th birthday by getting into a fistfight on live television. Thankfully, things worked out for “Maverick,” as he submitted Max Griffin in the second round to pick up his second stoppage win of the year.
Michael Chiesa Post-Fight Interview | UFC 310
Unlock MORE of your inner combat sports fan with UFC Fight Pass! Fighting is what we live for. And no one brings you MORE live fights, new shows, and events across multiple combat sports from around the world. With a never-ending supply of fighting in every discipline, there’s always something new to watch. Leave it to the world’s authority in MMA to bring you the Ultimate 24/7 platform for MORE combat sports, UFC Fight Pass!
Michael Chiesa Post-Fight Interview | UFC 310
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Just as Van is someone to keep tabs on in the lightest men’s weight category, Kennedy Nzechukwu deserves the same treatment at the top end of the scale. The “African Savage” earned his second straight first-round finish since moving to heavyweight on Saturday, and is a fresh name with a ton of intriguing upside that should get a step up in competition next time out.
One Last Thing
My heart goes out to Anthony Smith.
“Lionheart” opted to go through with his fight against Reyes on Saturday night despite the sudden passing of his best friend and long-time coach Scott Morton just a couple weeks ago. Morton had been in Smith’s corner for all but one of his previous professional appearances, and his absence clearly hit the former title challenger like a ton of bricks when he made the walk over the weekend.
While we learned about the tragedy that had understandably shaken Smith to his core in the preamble to his fight, this was also a reminder that in addition to being competitors that step into the Octagon and compete each weekend, these men and women are also human, just like the rest of us, and dealing with countless things we never hear of before, during, and after their fights.
If this was indeed the last time Smith competes, he hangs up his gloves as an example of perseverance and class, and will continue to be a welcome and vital member of the analyst crew on future events.
And with that, I’m out.
See you next year.
UFC 310: Pantoja vs Asakura took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on December 7, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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