There are plenty of words to describe UFC 262 at Toyota Center on Saturday Night. Boring, is not one of them. From the screaming fans to the fights to the babes, the UFC experience in Houston last Saturday was one to remember. And I haven’t even gotten to the fights in the cage.Yes, the UFC came to Houston and brought with it its unrivaled brand of entertainment and showmanship. More importantly, they brought back a sense of normalcy to fight fans and the city in general.
The main event saw Charles Oliveira defeat Michael Chandler to become the undisputed, UFC Lightweight Champion of the work in 18 second of the second round of their scheduled 5 round fight. The fight was all action and one of the best in recent memory. A back and forth contest in round one saw Chandler almost finish Oliveira with strikes. Oliveira survived the early onslaught of Chandler and came out swinging in round 2 in route to a KO victory.
The main card also saw the re-emergence of Edson Barboza with his unbelievable KO of Shane Burgos and possibly the end of the career of perennial contender and fan favorite, Tony Ferguson as he lost a unanimous decision to the very dangerous Beneil Dariush.
The prelim fights also had their share of amazing and unforgettable moments. Topping that list was the submission from Jacare Souza to the armbar of Andre Muniz. Leading up to the fight, Muniz claimed he was a better grappler than Souza. Many in the MMA community laughed at the idea of Muiz even saying this but when the fight came to be, Muniz proved his worth by submitting Jacre, one of the greatest Jiu-Jitsu practitioners in the history of MMA.
The prelims also saw rising star Lando Vanneta get a big split decision win in a hotly contested fight with contender Mike Grundy. More impressive than that may have been the coming out party of one Jordan Wright. All but one of Wright’s last 13 wins have come inside of round 1 and inside of 3 minutes. He handled his business again on Saturday night with an unbelievably quick finish of Jamie Pickett in only 1:04 of round number one.
The UFC brought what it usually brings to Toyota Center and the city of Houston on Saturday night. Along with the great action in the Octagon, there was action in the stands as 2 fights broke out and a few idiots that paid thousands for tickets were escorted out of Toyota Center and into county jail before the main card even started. There’s always a few winners like this at every sporting event, it seems. Still, in an odd way, it was good to see. Don’t get me wrong, I hate when adults decide to fight at football games or MMA events but the fact that we are able to have adults at MMA events now is good enough for me. If a few of them want to spend their hard earned money to go to a fight and get into a fight, who am I to stop them? At least we can go to a fight or an event again!
The UFC card on Saturday was a great one. Hard hitting and action packed which is what all fight fans really want. A return to the big fight feel that MMA fans have missed for a while now. More than that though, for at least one night, it was a return to a something better. A return to fun with friends and family. A return to normalcy. Which at the end of the day, is probably something we all have wanted for a very, long time.