Athletes
UFC Monthly Report | March 2023
The UFC Monthly Report Is A New Feature That Will Highlight Some Of The Best Performances From The Previous Month Of Action Inside The Octagon.
March featured four events, three championship fights, and two pay-per-views, making for one outstanding collection of action to comb through when handing out monthly hardware.
In the end, this month’s collection of standouts includes a newcomer that made an instant splash, an emerging talent that continued to roll, a new champion that pounced on a mistake, and a fight that somehow managed to exceed expectations even though expectations for the fight were sky high.
Order UFC 287: Pereira vs Adesanya 2
Here’s a look back at the best of the best in March in the Monthly Report.
Breakout Performance: Mario Bautista
Standing out in the bantamweight division is difficult, and doing so in a month where two of the four events were headlined by elite contenders in the 135-pound weight class is even more daunting, but Bautista still managed to do so, and deserves to be recognized for his efforts.
Mario Bautista Post-Fight Interview | UFC Fight Night: Yan vs Dvalishvili
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Mario Bautista Post-Fight Interview | UFC Fight Night: Yan vs Dvalishvili
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The MMA Lab product pushed his winning streak to four and his string of first-round submission finishes to three with a victory over Guido Cannetti in Las Vegas, bringing his UFC record to 6-1 since his short-notice debut loss to Cory Sandhagen.
While Cannetti came out looking to be the aggressor, Bautista was having none of it and quickly grabbed control of the contest, showing almost immediately that he was on a different level than his Argentinian adversary. He closed the distance and put Cannetti on the canvas in less than 30 seconds, and when he did finally work to his feet, Bautista quickly found his way onto Cannetti’s back following a high amplitude takedown.
After trying to muscle the veteran to the canvas unsuccessfully, Bautista dismounted his back and suplexed Cannetti to the ground, latching onto a rear-naked choke in the transition as the Argentine tried to settle himself.
Bantamweight is loaded with talent and breaking into the Top 15 is tough, but Bautista has been rolling of late and should find himself facing someone with a number next to their name in the next six months.
Submission of the Month: Alexa Grasso submits Valentina Shevchenko (UFC 285)
When you dethrone a dominant champion and claim UFC gold, you earn Submission of the Month honors, though Grasso’s finish of Shevchenko at UFC 285 is this month’s selection for more reasons than the “changing of the guard” element.
Alexa Grasso Post-Fight Interview | UFC 285
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Alexa Grasso Post-Fight Interview | UFC 285
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One thing we don’t ever talk about nearly enough when it comes to these athletes and the fights themselves is an ability to capitalize on small little openings — an alertness to what is happening and having the wherewithal to know exactly what to do and execute in a flash.
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Grasso showed that back in her March 2022 win over Joanne Wood, jumping onto the Scottish veteran’s back when she bounced off the fence, and she did it in Las Vegas at the start of the month, as well. The instant Shevchenko threw that spinning back kick, Grasso wrapped an arm around her waist and climbed onto her back, and after a few adjustments, secured the finish.
At the highest level, fights can often be decided by small miscues and taking advantage of even the faintest opportunities, and that is precisely how Grasso became UFC flyweight champion.
Knockout of the Month: Yanal Asmhouz def. Sam Patterson (UFC Las Vegas)
Because Patterson starts to fall to the ground after Ashmouz throws a right hand, you may think that’s the shot that put him out, but that wasn’t actually the case.
Ashmouz caught a low kick and glanced with the right, knocking Patterson off balance by catching his leg. What put him out, however, was the rocket of a left hand that followed as he slowly collapsed back to the canvas like a felled redwood. He let go of the caught kick and put a left hook on Patterson’s temple and, from there, it was academic.
This was an outstanding knockout and finish, and an amazing way for the lightweight from Israel to introduce himself to the UFC audience.
Fight of the Month: Justin Gaethje def. Rafael Fiziev (UFC 286)
Could there be any other choice?
When this fight was booked, not only did you know that it was the runaway favorite for Fight of the Night at UFC 286, but it immediately became the clubhouse leader in the Fight of the Year race even before Gaethje and Fiziev were close to stepping into the Octagon, simply because of their reputations and history.
UFC 286 REWIND: Final Results | Official Scorecards | Gaethje Post-Fight Interview
And then they ventured to London, crossed the threshold into the UFC cage, and somehow managed to still exceed expectations, putting on an absolute barnburner to set the table for Leon Edwards’ successful title defense at The O2 Arena.
According to UFCstats.com, Gaethje and Fiziev combined to land 200 significant strikes, with the former landing at a 60 percent clip, and the latter trailing him by only three percent. They were dynamic at distance, punishing in the clinch, worked the body, and rocked each other’s noggins for 15 solid minutes in an ultra-competitive, thoroughly entertaining scrap that feels destined to land on the Fight of the Year podium at the end of 2023.
Gaethje has now taken home Fight of the Night honors in seven of his 11 UFC appearances, and earned 11 post-fight bonuses overall, while Fiziev has collected a post-fight bonus in each of his last six outings as well.
These two men are guaranteed excitement, and putting them in the Octagon together delivered the kind of electric contest everyone was expecting from the second it was announced.
