UFC 280 HIGHLIGHTS, results: Makhachev beats Oliveira to clinch lightweight title; Aljamain Sterling retains bantamweight belt

Hello and welcome to Sportstar’s Highlights of the UFC fight night 280.

Islam Makhachev has made his way into the octagon. Former UFC lightweight champion Charles Oliveira comes in next and we are all set for the fight of the night!

Round 1: And we are underway! Oliveira attacks straight away with a jumping kick. Makhachev gives one of his own. The Russian pins Oliveira down with a couple of swift movements but Oliveira puts him on the defensive with a counter hold. Oliveira has Makhachev pushed against the fence but the Russian reacts quickly and pulls his opponent down. Oliveira yet again holds Makhachev with his legs and the Russian is in an awkward position as he cannot move. Oliveira lets his guard down for a couple of seconds and Makhachev pounces with strong punches to his face. First round comes to an end with that

Round 2: Oliveira lands a good kick to Makhachev’s face to start things off. Makhachev counters with a double under hook and holds the Brazilian for a good 20-30 seconds. Makhachev knocks down Oliveira with a powerful jab, pins him down and puts in an arm choke. OLIVEIRA SUBMITS TO MAKHACHEV TO HAND HIM THE LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE!!! WHAT A WAY TO ACHEIVE THIS FEAT. Islam Makhachev is the new undisputed UFC men’s lightweight champion. What a fighter!

Islam Makhachev def. Charles Oliveira by submission (arm-triangle choke), time - 3.17, round - 2

Charles Oliveira - Key stats

On a 11 match winning streak

Most submissions in UFC history - 16

Most finishes in UFC history - 19

Holds wins over Justin Gaethje, Dustin Poirier, and Michael Chandler

Islam Makhachev - Key stats

10 fight win streak

Eight first round finishes 

Holds wins over Bobby Green, Dan Hooker, and Drew Dober

This fixture will see Aljamain Sterling (21-3) defend his bantamweight crown against T.J. Dillashaw (18-4).

Round 1: Here we go! Sterling on the attack straight away as Dillashaw is pinned down and is in visible pain. Looks like he’s hurt his collar bone but Sterling doesn’t mind continuing the fight as he lands a string of punches. That is followed by a body lock from Sterling, Dillashaw recovers after a long struggle. But Sterling is on top again, lock after lock and Dillashaw is stumbling hard. The injury that Dillashaw sustained was a shoulder dislocation, clear signs of struggle but it is rectified in the break. What a dramatic first round!

Round 2: Dillashaw is basically a one handed fighter now as he finds it difficult to use his left hand. Sterling is capitalising this and has been pinning Dillashaw down quite frequently. Oh this is bad for Dillashaw as his shoulder is yet again dislocated. No mercy from Sterling and DILLASHAW TAPS OUT!! STERLING DEFENDS HIS TITLE SUCCESSFULLY!

Aljamain Sterling wins this title tie by TKO (punches), time - 3:44

Up next is the blockbuster title clash between Aljamain Sterling and T.J. Dillashaw in the men’s bantamweight category. Stay tuned for more updates!

Petr Yan takes on 11th ranked ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley in the men’s bantamweight category. O’malley has a record five wins by knockouts in this category.

Round 1: O’malley has the height advantage over Yan and he’s making it count as he has better reach too. O’Malley puts in a couple of leg kicks. That is followed by a body hold from Yan and O’Malley breaks it after a short struggle. Yan with an amazing set of moves to pin O’Malley down. End of round 1

Round 2: The Etihad erupts as both Yan and O’Malley exchange powerful jabs to their faces. Yan has once again pinned O’malley down and tops it off with a combination of punches to his face, O’Malley is back on his feet finally. An electric round comes to an end as Yan pins O’Malley down with a tricky takedown

Round 3: Final round is underway. The crowd is behind Yan now as he lands a string of short but sure punches on O’Malley’s face. Yan’s face is left bloodied as O’Malley put in two strong jabs and Yan comes right back with a running push to bring his opponent down. Absolutely nothing to separate the both as we get into the last 10 seconds of the final round

Sean O’Malley wins the contest with 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 by split decision!!

Sixth ranked Beneil Dariush will lock horns with ninth ranked Mateusz Gamrot. Dariush holds the record of fourth most wins in lightweight division - 15, while Gamrot comes in to this match on a four match win streak.

Round 1: Dariush puts in a strong leg hold, Gamrot struggles but gets out of the deadlock after a good 20-25 seconds. A competitive round comes to an end with a powerful kick from Gamrot

Round 2: Gamrot is getting dominated here by a crafty Dariush. The latter tried a couple of foot grapples but failed on both occasions. Dariush in the driver’s seat as we near round 2’s end. Gamrot finally gets his leg hold on Dariush but it is cut short as the round comes to an end

Round 3: Third and final round. Dariush attempts a takedown straightaway but Gamrot counters it without any trouble. WOW! Dariush dishes out a thundering kick on Gamrot and the latter falls down but he’s back immediately. This is followed by a good hold from Gamrot. And that is the end of third round

Beneil Dariush wins the tie!! 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 is the final score. He is now third on the list of most wins in lightweight category - 16

Katlyn Chookagian will take on Manon Fiorot in the first match of the main card. Ranked number 1 in women’s flyweight, Chookagian is on a four match winning streak coming into the fight.

Manon Fiorot is the winner via unanimous decision!! 29-28, 29-28, 29-28

PREVIEW

A pair of title matches top today’s loaded UFC 280 card.

In the main event at Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Charles Oliveira (33-8) will tangle with Islam Makhachev (22-1) to fill the vacant UFC lightweight title. The co-feature sees Aljamain Sterling (21-3) defend his bantamweight crown against T.J. Dillashaw (18-4).

Brazil’s Oliveira was set to make his first defense of the lightweight title at UFC 274 in May. However, he became the first fighter in UFC history to be stripped of a belt for missing weight when he came in a half-pound overweight for his bout with Justin Gaethje. Several fighters complained about the accuracy of the scale used by Arizona’s athletic commission.

The fight went on, and Oliveira submitted Gaethje in the first round, extending his UFC-record total of submissions to 16 while logging his 11th straight win. The victory meant the title stayed vacant. (Gaethje would have become champion with a victory.)

Makhachev, meanwhile, has gone on a tear. The Dagestan native is the top protege of UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov and competes in a similar style. He has used dogged grappling to set up ruthless ground strikes en route to compiling a 10-fight win streak.

The bantamweight title bout will see Dillashaw attempt to become just the second fighter ever to hold the same UFC weight-class title thrice, after former heavyweight champion Randy Couture. The Denver resident twice held the 135-pound title. He also sat out a two-year suspension after testing positive for EPO in 2019.

Dillashaw returned in July 2021 and earned a split decision over top contender Cory Sandhagen, but he hasn’t fought since.

Sterling, from Massapequa, N.Y., is looking to assert himself as champion. After being handed the title via disqualification against Petr Yan at UFC 259 in March 2021, he barely quieted his critics in eking out a split-decision win over Yan in the rematch at UFC 273 in April 2022. Still, he takes a seven-fight win streak, dating back to 2018, into the bout and can boost his credentials with a win over the former two-time champ.

Full schedule

• ⦿ Lightweight bout (Title): Charles Oliveira vs Islam Makhchev
• ⦿ Bantamweight bout (Title): Aljamain Sterling vs TJ Dillashaw
• ⦿ Bantamweight bout: Petr Yan vs Sean O’Malley
• ⦿ Lightweight bout: Beneil Dariush vs Mateusz Gamrot
• ⦿ Women’s flyweight bout: Katlyn Chookagian vs Manon Fiorot

When and where to watch UFC 280?

The UFC 280’s matches will start at 11.30pm IST and will be telecast live SONY TEN 2, SONY TEN 3 (Hindi) & SONY TEN 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels.