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UFC Vegas 32 looked like a really intriguing card in the lead-up to the event, with potentially one of the best fights of 2021 acting as its main event.
In the end, even some strange judging decision couldn’t prevent UFC Vegas 32 from being a hugely entertaining show with plenty of action from top to bottom.
Sure, we didn’t get an explosive finish in the main event between Cory Sandhagen and T.J. Dillashaw, but with more than half of the show’s fights ending before the final buzzer, UFC Vegas 32 had plenty of highlight reel moments.
On that note, here are the five most explosive moments from UFC Vegas 32: Cory Sandhagen vs. T.J. Dillashaw.
#5 Julio Arce overwhelms Andre Ewell with sheer ferocity to pick up his fourth UFC win
Once considered a blue chip prospect, Julio Arce hadn’t actually won a fight in the UFC since May 2019 prior to last night’s event. That meant his back was likely against the wall in his clash with Andre Ewell, his first in the UFC’s bantamweight division.
But if Arce was feeling any pressure, he certainly didn’t show it. His striking looked phenomenal from the off, as he attacked Ewell with clean combinations and kicks, looking like the quicker fighter despite making his debut at 135lbs.
But the most impressive thing about Arce in this fight was the killer instinct he showed that led to the finish.
Ewell isn’t a glass cannon by any means, and has always been able to take a heavy shot. So when he continued to eat heavy shots from Arce, it would’ve been easy for the Florida native to simply outclass him and coast his way to a decision.
Instead though, after stunning Ewell badly in the second round, Arce swarmed over him with some unbelievable ferocity, throwing shot after shot until referee Chris Tognoni was forced to intervene with ‘Mr Highlight’ still standing.
Would this finish have been more explosive had Ewell been knocked completely unconscious? Sure, but this was still a fair stoppage from Tognoni and a fantastic showing from Arce. On this display, he could rapidly develop into a contender at 135lbs, and deserves a higher-ranked opponent next time out.
#4 Nassourdine Imavov’s striking proves to be too slick for Ian Heinisch
In a fascinating soundbite dropped by commentator Brendan Fitzgerald, it was revealed last night that Ian Heinisch had been training for his fight against Nassourdine Imavov with the last man to beat the Frenchman – Phil Hawes.
Unfortunately, that training couldn’t help ‘The Hurricane’ at all as he was thoroughly outclassed by Imavov, who produced a tremendous performance become the first man to stop Heinisch in the UFC.
Heinisch simply couldn’t get anything going in this fight. His vaunted wrestling never really allowed him to take Imavov down despite reaching the clinch on numerous occasions. Through the use of some impressive striking, ‘The Russian Sniper’ was always able to keep Heinisch at bay.
The end came in the second round. Imavov had the edge by that point, but when he landed a left hand that wobbled Heinisch and sent him stumbling backwards, it was clear that a finish was a possibility.
Imavov ended things beautifully, never getting too wild but instead landing more clean shots before dropping Heinisch with a knee and finishing him on the ground.
This explosive finish was apparently not enough to net him a $50k bonus award, but it was mightily impressive, and whoever faces him next in the UFC is clearly in for a tough match.
#3 Mickey Gall produces the best performance of his UFC career to beat Jordan Williams
After garnering a ton of hype for his wins over CM Punk and Sage Northcutt, Mickey Gall had struggled for traction in the UFC over the past couple of years. In fact, the New Jersey native hadn’t won a fight since August 2019 until last night.
But his performance against Jordan Williams showed that the year off he’s taken has done him the world of good. Gall’s striking looked tuned up and more explosive than it’d been before, and he stunned Williams more than once with clean punches to the jaw.
However, what was impressive was the fact that Gall returned to his bread-and-butter – his slick ground game – to finish Williams with a nasty rear-naked choke midway through the first round.
Given the improvements in his striking, it would’ve been very easy for Gall to attempt to land a clean knockout of Williams, who was clearly out of his depth overall. But that would’ve been a risky gameplan and so it was much smarter for him to use his ground game for a victory that was no less explosive.
Based on this evidence, Gall may well be able to fulfill his potential in the UFC.
#2 Darren Elkins pulls out another magical comeback
Ultra-tough veteran Darren Elkins has always been renowned for his durability in the octagon, and it’s something that’s given him multiple comeback wins over the likes of Mirsad Bektic and Diego Brandao.
Last night at UFC Vegas 32, ‘The Damage’ pulled off another magical comeback, this time taking out Darrick Minner in the second round in violent fashion after struggling badly in the early going.
The first round of the UFC fight couldn’t have been much more one-sided. Minner was more aggressive, and took Elkins down on more than one occasion before attempting to secure a fight-ending submission. Quite how ‘The Damage’ escaped one armbar attempt remains a mystery.
But escape he did, and by the second round, it was clear that Minner was tired. And when he attempted to scramble with Elkins to go for a submission again, he ran out of steam and found himself trapped on the bottom with ‘The Damage’ opening up above him.
From there, the fight became a beatdown, as Elkins landed shot after shot on Minner until referee Mark Smith was forced to step in to save him.
Sure, this was death by a thousand cuts rather than one explosive shot, but it was still a hugely violent finish and it proved that Elkins still has plenty to offer in the UFC’s 145lbs division.
#1 Adrian Yanez takes out Randy Costa in an instant classic at UFC Vegas 32
Kyler Phillips and Raulian Paiva might’ve been awarded the Fight of the Night award at last night’s show, but there was definitely an argument that the crazy war between Adrian Yanez and Randy Costa was the better clash.
Simply put, this fight was insane.
The first round saw Costa use a ramrod jab to basically batter Yanez from pillar to post. The jab had Yanez busted up badly, and Costa was also able to add in plenty of combinations that also landed cleanly. Midway through, it looked like a matter of time before Yanez was done.
Somehow, though, Yanez ate up all the damage and by the end of the round, put pressure on Costa, who began to look tired. And thus, the tide began to turn.
By the time the second round began, it was clear that Yanez was the predator rather than the prey. He walked Costa down from the off, using a stiff jab of his own to set his strikes up, and suddenly, a barrage to the body followed by a nasty uppercut caused Costa to drop to his knees.
From there, Yanez didn’t let up, swarming on his fallen opponent until Chris Tognoni stepped in to halt proceedings – giving Yanez his third win in the UFC.
Not only was this a tremendous, explosive finish from Yanez, it was also an impressive come-from-behind victory. In a UFC division full of talent, he’s clearly a man to watch closely.
