Tonight’s UFC main event live from the UFC Apex featured a clash between two talented and dangerous strikers in Edson Barboza and Sodiq Yusuff.
Entering the fight, Barboza holds a notable (23-11) record. Having fought the best guys in the sport, Barboza believed Yusuff didn’t match the ability of those he’s shared the cage with. After facing a two-fight skid to the likes of Giga Chikadze and Bryce Mitchell, Barboza recently returned to the win column with a victory over Billy Quarantillo. The Brazilin fan-favourite got a profoundly known durable Quarantillo out of there in the first round.
Yusuff comes in (13-2) and has found some consistency in his performances as of late after falling short to Arnold Allen in 2021. The 30-year-old has recent wins over Alex Caceres and Don Shainis. With that said, Yusuff hasn’t fought since his win over Shainis, which was last October, one year ago.
Yosuff came out 100mph from the opening bell and was lucky to see the second round. Both men traded with Yusuff, getting the better of those exchanges. He had Barboza hurt multiple times within the first several minutes, but the toughness and experience helped the Brazilian weather the storm.
Edson Barboza
In the second, a slightly more clear-headed Barboza tried to assert himself back into the fight. Still busted up and feeling the effects of the high output from Yusuff, Barboza walks forward and begins landing stinging shots of his own. Towards the backend of round two, Yusuff slowed down drastically, with Barboza pushing him against the fence and picking his shots.
Edson carried on where he left off in the second in the third round, pushing Yusuff back against the fence and ripping to the liver with his hands and legs. In the last minute of the third round, Barboza had his biggest moment of the fight after dropping Yusuff with a spinning wheel kick to the temple. Weirdly, while having Yusuff rocked, Barboza decided to engage in the grappling.
In the fourth, both men are looking recovered and now give each other the respect they deserve. The trajectory of the fight changed as soon as Barboza began to move forward, putting Yusuff on the backfoot.
The fifth round went down to who wants it more, who’s got the better cardio? Both men went back-and-forth up until the final bell, with Barboza landing a takedown in the process. After twenty-five minutes, the experience and grit was clearly still there for Barboza.
Official result: Edson Barboza def. Sodiq Yusuff by unanimous decision.
What did you make of that instant classic between Edson Barboza and Sodiq Yusuff?
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
