Blachowicz vs Ankalaev - UFC 282 LIVE: Updates and undercard results (2024)

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A hectic night of action ends in absolutely bizarre circ*mstances. The vacant belt remains... vacant. Even Blachowicz admitted he didn't think he won but the judges have plenty to answer for tonight and you can bet we haven't heard the end of this. Thanks for your company tonight and join us next time!

Honourable stuff from Blachowicz

Mad result!

48-47, 48-46, 47-47 - Split draw

Superb last stanza for Ankalaev

Ankalaev's championship rounds have been wrestling heavy and look like they'll lead to him becoming champ on the scorecards. It was smart work and he changed things up just when he needed to. Blachowicz started well enough and might have thought the damage to the legs would be telling.

Russian dominates the fourth

Ankalaev secures a takedown that proves to be the defining moment of the round. Blachowicz's best chances is continuing to hack the legs but off his back he is being mauled. This could be a decisive final round.

Ankalaev somehow fires back

Ankalaev has been hacked to pieces and is struggling to stand at times, such is the ferocity of the leg kicks. But it has forced him to be the aggressor and it worked to a degree, securing a late takedown to possibly steal the round.

Ankalaev's right leg has been brutalised

Ankalaev has taken some heavy punishment on his legs and the leg kicks from Blachowicz are so punchy that it's causing real issues. Ankalaev is limping around and this is serious now.

A well balanced opener

Both men are still kind of feeling each other out from safe range. Blachowicz is not quite as quick as Ankalaev but seems to carry the power advantage. Ankalaev is using the front kick nicely to keep control and distance.

Last chance for Jan?

Blachowicz turns 40 in a couple of months so a defeat might make it hard to reach a title shot again. He's benefited from Prochazka's injury but then again, fighting Ankalaev is never that lucky. Will legendary Polish power prevail or can Ankalaev become the latest Dagestani phenom to take gold?

MAIN EVENT TIME

Ankalaev is a frightening man and many have viewed him as the obvious next champion. Blachowicz is trying to scramble his way back to the top of a mountain that he's already summited. The Dagestani is 18-1 overall and looks so strong in every department, he hardly ever makes mistakes (yes, except against Paul Craig), so can he step up tonight in the biggest fight of his life?

Pimblett was certain of the result, but it looked close

I think there will be a few people dubious over a couple of those scorecards but ultimately Pimblett's damage is what proved to be telling.

29-28, 29-28, 29-28 - PIMBLETT WINS

'Jared is tough, he's a tough man. He's come back hats off to him. I knew I won the first and second so coasted in the third not wanting to take any stupid risks. I'm not gonna lie, I hurt my right foot in the first round. Fight of the Night or what?'

We go to the scorecards...

Pimblett spends most of the round on he fence. Gordon hardly lands a shot but has the pressure and control without damage. At the end of the round Pimblett has some back control but it is such a hard one to call. It'll be fascinating to see if Gordon claims the biggest win of his professional career.

This one is so close

A better round for Pimblett this time even though he's still taking some punishment. He's on the back foot a bit more but he's geeing up the crowd and throwing wild bombs. Gordon ties him up against the fence and The Baddy almost locks up a head and arm choke but he escapes. This could be a decisive third round, it is a very close fight.

Strong start for Gordon

The American lands the left hand flush a number of times and Pimblett looks reckless, even if he is landing some powerful shots of his own. He looks vulnerable and tried to take Gordon down at the end but ended up on his back. Fascinating stuff to see him tested and we'll see how he responds.

Paddy's cage walk lifts the roof off T-Mobile Arena

Scouse House goes down a treat in the UK when Paddy walks out but the US crowd are lapping it up too. The tune and bounce out are quickly becoming iconic, but can he back it up with a performance again? We'll find out shortly.

I don't think Bernardo will be stepping up...

Time for Paddy 'The Baddy'

Paddy Pimblett looks typically chilled out in the dressing room and it's nearly his time to shine. Can he make it a fourth straight win in the UFC? Usually there's a bit of adversity for him before he comes through and he's not been happy with any of his performances so far despite he victories.

AND HE FINDS ONE!

What a moment. Ponzinibbio's heart and desire comes to the fore, but so does a right hand that staggers Morono. Flush on the jaw, a crisp shot followed by another and then one more on the ground. Jason Herzog stops it. What a comeback, and still every fight has been kept out of the judges' hands.

Ponzinibbio needs to find a finish

It looks like Morono is now two rounds up. He lands the better of the shots once again, even though Ponzinibbio's looping right hand finds a home. The Argentinian looks wobbly on his feet and his corner tell him in no uncertain terms what's needed to win the fight.

Morono sneaks it late on

A huge right hand from Morono punctuates the round that was otherwise relatively uneventful. The crowd are a bit tetchy but they've been spoiled by so many great fights tonight. Right at the end of the round, Morono lands a solid punch and the Great White's knockdown probably gave him the round.

Next up - Alex Morono vs Santiago Ponzinibbio

These two have more than 60 fights between them. Morono is on a four-fight winning streak, while Ponzinibbio has lost four of his last five, albeit against better opposition. The Argentine has had a lot of injuries but is still not letting go of the idea that he can still be champion one day. He's still a classy striker and always entertains.

Till might have done his ACL

He's had knee issues before and there's some talk that Till believes he might have torn his ligaments again.

I felt so powerful

'The gas tank can never be empty. I thought it would get stopped in the first round. Second round, I try not to lose too much. South Africa baby, bring on that last round and we'll always win it. I wanted to stand and see where it got me. How bout that wrestling hey? I switched stance and caught him with a jab a few times. I felt so powerful, got my groove back. Top 10 baby, I just beat Till, how awesome is that.

DU PLESSIS WINS BY SUBMISSION

For all the resilience in the second round, Till was outstruck in the third and then taken down into mount, he flipped to his back but then tapped almost straight away due to a rear-naked choke.

Till fights back

Another brilliant round. Till dominates on the feet this time but gets taken down late in the round. Du Plessis looks tired but is still managing to take Till down easily at times. It could be 1-1 heading into the third.

WHAT A ROUND

Du Plessis dominates Till and almost gets the bout stopped, hammering him up against the fence and the ref looks closely at it. The South African is reversed late in the round and Till then lands heavy shots of his own. Brilliant comeback. How much did the onslaught take out of both men?

South Africa's finest

Du Plessis has been mighty impressive so far and remains unbeaten in the UFC. But can he do it against a guy as talented as Till? We're about to find out

Tonight is so important for Till

The Liverpool fighter has won only once in his last four outings and it does not get much earier with Dricus du Plessis up next. However, if Till can recapture some of his old form, we might see a completely new and improved version.

TOPURIA WINS BY SUBMISSION

This man is legit. What an incredible performance. Topuria beat up Mitchell, dropped him and then went to ground. You'd think that would be the American's world but Topuria just manhandles him, clamps down on a head and arm choke to force a tap. Mitchell is very, very handy so that's an impressive win. He'll be flirting with a top 10 ranking soon.

Strong start by Topuria

Topuria ended the round on his back having been taken down for the first time in his UFC career. Topuria had the better of the early going, landed a heavy leg kick and forced Mitchell to change stance. The Georgian was also swinging for the fences, occasionally missing badly but also landing with more regularity than the American. All to play for.

'I'm going leave his head as flat as he thinks the earth is'

A sharp line from Topuria this week... Mitchell is known for being a conspiracy theorist. The featherweights are now in the cage and almost ready to go.

First up - Bryce Mitchell vs Ilia Topuria

A classic grappler vs striker first up on the main card and both of these men have plenty of momentum behind them. Topuria packs a punch, is best known for his feud with Paddy Pimblett, and will want to be the aggressor. But he'll need to be incredibly careful. Mitchell's suffocating wrestling is his bread and butter. We've had finishes in every fight from the pre-lims - let's see if we can keep up the hot streak.

Can Paddy cash in again?

Paddy Pimblett's start to life in the UFC has been just about perfect with three wins from three and a hat-trick of Performance of the Night bonuses. He's adamant that No 4 will be added to that list tonight. He's in he co-main event later but we have three fights before then.

Main card time!

Will there be another Dagestani champion?

Magomed Ankalaev is a scary, well-rounded fighter and has looked sensational on his rise to this point. Paul Craig famously tapped him in the very last second of their fight, but he bounced back from that to string together a number of wins. He'll have to be at his best later to beat Blachowicz, who has the championship experience and Polish power.

A complete performance

'Shout out to everyone who came to support me, Dana $50,000! I want to buy my mother a mini van so she can give me a ride to the Performance Institute. I knew I was going to be good at this age, I'm living the dream. Tonight I'm just introducing myself but I'm coming for the belt.'

ROSAS JR WINS BY SUBMISSION

How is that for a debut. Rosas Jr wraps him up like a Christmas present and Jay Perrin was made to look extremely ordinary by the youngest fighter in UFC history. He attacked the body triangle, flattened him out and locked in the rear-naked choke. It wasn't even under the chin. Outstanding prospect and dream start to his UFC career.

Can Perrin spoil the party?

Rosas Jr looks like he's a top talent in the making but the young man is inexperienced and Perrin might feel like he's being used as fodder and want to make a point. Rosas Jr comes to the octagon in a huge sombrero and looks supremely confident. It will be fascinating to see how he gets on on the big stage now.

Three KOs have us way ahead of schedule

There's still one more fight on the pre-lims but 40 minutes until the main card is set to start. So the UFC are filling time until Raul Rosas Jr makes his walk to the octagon. The 18-year-old is a hot prospect singled out by Dana White on the Contender Series and tonight could be a reference point 15-20 years from now if he fulfils the potential everyone thinks he might have.

Bigi Boy on the rampage

WOOOOOOW - Rozenstruik wins by TKO

This was mental. As predicted, it didn't last long. Rozenstruik charged forward and landed a left hand sending the senses of Daukaus into scrambled mode. The American did his best to recover on wobbly legs but Rozenstruik would not let him off the hook, piled forward and sent him tumbling again, forcing a stoppage.

Time for the big lads

Daukaus vs Rozenstruik. We're off to a flyer with two finishes in two and I'd be amazed if we don't secure an early hat-trick now. Heavyweight action with Philadelphia's Daukaus taking in the always-dangerous Suriname fighter takes centre stage and the atmosphere is building inside the T-Mobile Arena. We're about an hour away from the main card.

Shahbazyan wins by TKO!

After a year off to hone his skills - Shabazyan is back with a bang. It all started with a wonderfully well timed knee and then he just ripped a barrage of shots until Lungiambula went to deck and the referee intervened.

Not for the faint hearted...

Till was worried he wouldn't be able to fight tonight after the worst eye poke he'd ever suffered. The pics show just how grim it was but luckily it healed up nicely for the Gorilla to enter tonight in great shape.

Next up - Edmen Shahbzjan vs Dalcha Lungiambula

USA vs Congo next up in this middleweight clash. 11-5 vs 11-3 and this on paper at least is a tight one. Lungiambula is facing a man who is being trained and cornered by his former coaches, which must be weird to say the least.

Who was telling the truth?

Pimblett reckons he submitted Gordon a couple of times in a sparring session a while back - the American is having none of it and insists this was the first time they met this week. What a feather in the cap it could be for Gordon if he can give 'The Baddy' his first defeat in the UFC.

CHRIS CURTIS WINS BY KO

HUGE win for Curtis, a perfect left hand on the button put Buckley down. Curtis then jumped on him with some heavy ground and pound. The ref gave him every chance to recover but it was a decent stoppage and after a pretty even opening round, the end came midway through the second. Not a bad way to start the pre-lims!

First up Buckley vs Curtis

An all USA middleweight clash to get us going. Curtis lost his rag in London this year after being out-classed by Hermansson and will hope for less of a chess match tonight against Buckley, who can switch the lights off at any moment.

Hidden - and not so hidden - gems to be aware of

The business end of the card is well documented but who else is worth keeping an eye on tonight? It is a shame the original rematch between Prochazka and Teixeira fell off but the card is actually pretty deep.

The ideal tonic to forget about the football

Evening/ morning fight fans. If you're sick to death of any reminders of England going out of the World Cup, we have the perfect solution for you. Settle in for an action-packed few hours of elite MMA - with a couple of Brits taking centre stage before a beefy title fight later between Ankalaev and Blachowicz.