Las Vegas witnessed an interesting event, to say the least, as UFC 326 may not have lived up to everyone’s expectations.
Out of 12 fights, only four bouts ended with a stoppage victory, although they were all very impressive performances, which earned a Performance of the Night bonus.
The BMF title headliner brought a lot of excitement and anticipation, but the aftermath felt very degrading, given how the contest played out over five rounds.
Here are all the results from UFC 326, as well as details behind the main event and co-headliner.
Oliveira dominates to become the new BMF Champion
Two of the most exciting mixed martial artists in the UFC went head-to-head for the symbolic title, generating a lot of hype among MMA fans.
Max Holloway was hoping to make his second successful defence of the BMF belt after defeating Dustin Poirier by unanimous decision at UFC 318.
Charles Oliveira had bounced back in his last battle, defeating Mateusz Gamrot by second-round submission to earn his call-out against the Hawaiian superstar.
Plenty of the MMA community believed the battle would not go to the judges’ scorecards or would produce some incredible moments within five rounds, but that didn’t seem to be the case.
Throughout the clash, Oliveira’s grappling caused nonstop problems for Holloway, who couldn’t defend many takedowns.
The Brazilian constantly threatened submission attempts, especially with a Rear-Naked Choke, which ‘Blessed’ denied to happen on numerous occasions.
Strikes were a rarity in the fight, which the fans were not pleased with, as the main event at the T-Mobile Arena received a poor reception.
‘Do Bronxs’ ultimately won by unanimous decision to become the new BMF Champion, but it left a lot of questions regarding whether the MMA community has as much respect for Oliveira as they did before the five-round contest.
Borralho redeems himself with a convincing win
Two middleweights who were close to being in strong title contention aimed to return to the win column in their quest for a future championship opportunity.
Caio Borralho lost by unanimous decision to Nassourdine Imavov at UFC Paris, which was widely considered a title eliminator, with the winner facing UFC Middleweight Champion Khamzat Chimaev.
Reinier de Ridder’s unbeaten UFC run came to an end when he suffered a fourth-round TKO loss to Brendan Allen, potentially being one fight away from a title shot.
Both fighters had very rarely lost in their MMA careers, so they were both in a rather unfamiliar position heading into UFC 326.
The first round saw Borralho make more of an impact with his thunderous striking, which slightly troubled the Dutchman, although de Ridder managed to land two takedowns.
‘RDR’ was able to land more strikes against the Brazilian in round two, but once again, they did not have as much power behind them compared to their opponent.
Both men were fatiguing in the final round as de Ridder again landed more punches, but couldn’t find a way to stun the Fighting Nerds mixed martial artist.
To the judges’ scorecards we went, and as no surprise from his performance, Borralho picked up a unanimous decision victory to return to his triumphant ways and keep his #7 spot in the 185-pound rankings.
Other Highlights from UFC 326
Raul Rosas Jr produced grappling dominance for three rounds to claim a comfortable unanimous decision win against Rob Font as he now enters the bantamweight rankings.
Drew Dober added another UFC knockout victory to his MMA record after stopping Michael Johnson in the second round, making it back-to-back wins for the Nebraska-born fighter.
Gregory Rodrigues got his revenge against Brunno Ferreira in their rematch, earning a brutal first-round knockout win over the fellow Brazilian.
Cody Garbrandt took home a unanimous decision victory after receiving two illegal groin strikes, which led to two deducted points for Xiao Long in a bizarre third round.
Donte Johnson increased his undefeated record to eight after defeating Cody Brundage by split decision, despite losing his 100% finish rate in MMA.
Alberto Montes shone on his UFC debut as he pulled off an impressive second-round submission against Ricky Turcios, using an Anaconda Choke.
Nyamjargal Tumendemberel got what he was looking for as he triumphed for the first time in the UFC by defeating Cody Durden by unanimous decision.
Sumudaerji extended his triumphant streak to three as he cruised his way to a unanimous decision win against Jesus Aguilar.
Diyar Nurgozhay finally claimed his first victory in the organisation as he went the distance to defeat UFC debutant Rafael Tobias by unanimous decision.
Rodolfo Bellato earned his first UFC win since December 2023 as he stopped Luke Fernandez by TKO in the first round to end his three-fight winless run.