17 December 2023 , 04:00
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Paddy Pimblett picked up his first UFC win over a year as he beat Tony Ferguson by unanimous decision,
'The Baddy' was making his fighting return having been sidelined with an ankle injury that he sustained in his decision win against Jared Gordon last December. Pimblett won the fight on points but the result proved to be controversial as it was labelled one of the worst decisions in UFC history.
Making his return in the same arena that he broke his ankle, Pimblett landed some good kicks as the fight got underway whilst Ferguson was countering over the top with overhand and hooks. 'The Baddy' dropped Ferguson with a flurry of strikes at the end of the round and he came close to finishing the veteran, who was saved by the bell.
Paddy Pimblett lands a punch on Tony FergusonFerguson was getting beaten up on the ground in the second round as he tried his best to attempt submissions off his back. The former interim champion was in need of a finish heading into the final round but he was taken down by Pimblett and beaten up again. Fans began to get restless and boos echoed around the arena but Pimblett did enough to win by scores of 30-27 on all three judges' scorecards.
"Everyone give a round of applause and cheer for Tony Ferguson, an absolute legend of the sport," Pimblett said after his win. "He is a legend of my division and it’s an honour to share the cage with him. How did he survive that first round? I blew my load trying to get him out of there. I haven’t shown my grappling much so I thought we would put it to work. I’m still a bit dissatisfied that I didn’t get the finish but he is one of the toughest motherf****** to get in the cage."
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Elsewhere on the UFC 296 card, There were concerns around the T-Mobile Arena for Bryce Mitchell after he was brutally knocked out with one punch by Josh Emmett, but he was able to get back on his feet to walk out of the octagon. Alonzo Menifield won a hard-fought decision against Dustin Jacoby in the final preliminary fight of the evening.
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Irene Aldana won a hard-fought decision against Karol Rosa in a bloody back and forth war. Former champion Cody Garbrandt turned back the clock with a one-punch KO against Brian Kelleher. Ariane Lipski dominated Casey O'Neill on the feet before forcing her to tap out with an armbar.
Tagir Ulanbekov established himself as a top contender at flyweight by choking out Cody Durden whilst Andre Fili picked up his first knockout win in over four years by stopping Lucas Almeida. Shamil Gaziev also won his UFC debut by knocking out Martin Buday in the opening bout of the night.
Ian Garry was supposed to fight Vicente Luque at the pay-per-view event but he was forced to withdraw after contracting pneumonia. The unbeaten Irishman has endured a tough past weeks after him and wife Layla have been relentlessly attacked online by trolls, with Garry even admitting that he feared for his family's safety when travelling to America for the ill-fated fight.