On paper, UFC 248 was supposed to be the biggest event of the promotion in February.
Numbered shows of the Absolute Fighting Championship have a solid card and include at least one title fight, and therefore are broadcast on the PPV (Pay-per-view) system.
However, this time the promotion managed to comply with only the second point.
It was headed by a duel for the welterweight belt between Kamaru Usman and Gilbert Burns, but otherwise the event could hardly boast of a stellar line-up of participants.
Of course, the coronavirus played an important role in this issue, provoking the postponement of the battle between ex-UFC champion Chris Weidman and the flamboyant Uriah Hall, but other factors affected the rest.
Lightweight veteran Bobby Green was unable to fight Jim Miller as he felt unwell after weighing in.
According to the head of the promotion, Dana White, the fighter lost consciousness due to dehydration.
Also, the tournament lost the fight between the prominent representatives of the bantamweight - Jimmy Rivera and Pedro Muñoz and the battle between Gillian Robertson and Miranda Maverick.
As a result, UFC 258's card hardly matched the organization's standard numbered shows, which drew criticism from fans and media alike.
The situation was only aggravated by the fact that the first few battles turned out to be not the most attractive in terms of what was happening in the cage and lasted all the planned 15 minutes.
The turning point was outlined only in the middle of the preliminary card, when Polyana Viana dealt with Mallory Martin in a spectacular manner and won for the second time in a row using the elbow lever (armbar).
One of the most colorful was the duel between Belal Muhammad and Diego Lima.
The fighters delighted the fans with a classic duel, exchanging in stance for most of the time.
The American is more successful in this.
He worked as the first number and constantly kept his opponent in suspense, threatening either with hard hits to the head or with passes to the legs.
At the end of three rounds, he almost doubled the Brazilian in the number of significant strikes (129: 69), and also once transferred him to the ground.
The judges unanimously gave the victory to the 32-year-old welterweight and allowed him to win his fourth fight in a row.
The next fight turned out to be much more eventful.
Rodolfo Vieira started the battle with Anthony Hernandez very well, as expected, betting on the fight on the ground, but did not calculate the strength.
By the end of the first five-minute period, he was tired and could hardly stand on his feet, practically not responding to blows.
The Brazilian with great difficulty endured the break, during which he looked absolutely exhausted, but even in this state he successfully started the second segment and carried out a takedown.
True, it was not possible to build on the success.
The American got to his feet, was marked by a series of crushing hits, after which he sensationally “strangled” the world champion in grappling and Brazilian j-jitsu.
This tournament was significant for Julian Marquez, who had his first fight since July 2018.
Then he lost by split decision to Alessio Di Chirico, and at the end of the show he found out that he would not be able to enter the cage soon.
He was diagnosed with a ruptured latissimus dorsi muscle, which cost him two surgeries and a long recovery.
Initially, the return of the American was planned for November 2020, but then Saparbeg Safarov prevented him.
The Russian failed the weighing procedure, as a result of which the duel was canceled.
All heart!
🚀 @JMarquezMMA completes the career comeback at # UFC258.
pic.twitter.com/lz4TLg4gSJ
- UFC (@ufc) February 14, 2021
At UFC 258, things weren't going well for Marquez either.
In the first rounds of the confrontation with Maki Pitolo, he missed a number of serious punches, allowed the opponent to carry out five takedowns and a choke attempt, but miraculously survived.
And already in the third segment, he himself caught the opponent with an anaconda and won the first victory since December 2017.
The next three fights, although they turned out to be quite intense, did not please the fans with early terminations.
Ricky Simon surpassed Brian Kelleher both in the standing position (45:19 in the number of significant strikes) and on the ground (6-0 in takedowns) and won the third fight in a row, while Calvin Gastelum took over Ian Heinisch and interrupted a streak of three defeats.
Wrestling was also a key success factor.
The triumphant of the 17th season of The Ultimate Fighter transferred his counterpart to the floor six times and was in a dominant position for almost seven minutes, which allowed him to win all three judges over to his side.
Meanwhile, Maisie Barber is at risk of permanently losing her status as a potential female flyweight star.
Until January 2020, the American had eight victories in a row and threatened to become the youngest UFC champion, surpassing the record of John Jones himself.
But at first she sensationally lost to Roxanne Modafferi, and now she was beaten by Alexa Grasso.
Grappling skills played a key role.
Although the American held takedowns, she didn't look so confident on the ground and allowed the Mexican to be in a dominant position.
In addition, the opponent had almost a double advantage in the number of strokes (95:50).
All three judges sided with Grasso - 29:28.
In the fight for the UFC welterweight title, the main intrigue was whether Kamaru Usman could impose his style on Gilbert Burns.
The Nigerian became famous for his ability to wear down opponents in the clinch and on the ground, but with the Brazilian, such a plan might not work.
Not only the black belt in J-Jitsu spoke for the challenger, but also the fact that he knew the champion's style very well.
Since 2012, the future opponents have trained together - first in the now defunct Blackzilians team, and then in Sanford MMA.
#AndStill!
@ Usman84kg is the baddest alive 🇳🇬 # UFC258pic.twitter.com / kUw0sVaQGr
- UFC (@ufc) February 14, 2021
To the surprise of many, Usman decided not to clinch, but to test his strength in a standing position, which at first turned out to be not the best decision.
Already at the 32nd second, Burns, who seriously added in the stance, broke through the most powerful overhand and almost knocked down the champion, after which he was marked with a number of hits.
The Brazilian could build on the success, but slipped during the execution of the kick and fell.
However, Kamaru again behaved carefully and did not dare to go to the ground, but preferred to attack from above.
Subsequently, Gilbert managed to get to his feet and, until the end of the segment, not only exchanged blows with Kamaru, but looked more confident.
It seemed that the second round would follow a similar scenario.
Burns again noted a number of good strikes in the rack, but at a certain moment Usman managed to pick up the keys to him.
The Nigerian began to hit with a jab over and over again, and in the middle of the round he struck a powerful right cross.
Gilbert staggered and found himself with his back to the net, missing a few more sweeping hooks from his opponent.
Subsequently, the Brazilian still fell to the floor after the oncoming jab and was in the balance of defeat, but was able to endure until the break.
But as it turned out, Burns was never able to recover from 39 missed hits in the second five minutes.
In the third round, he came out not in the best condition and already in the 19th second was knocked down again.
Usman rushed to finish off and, albeit not immediately, achieved what he wanted.
Gilbert resisted desperately and even survived the first wave of Kamaru attacks, but he was not enough for more.
At the end of the battle, the Brazilian could not come to terms with defeat for a long time and could not hold back his tears.
Ousmane successfully completed his third title defense and secured his 13th consecutive welterweight victory in the largest MMA promotion in the world, surpassing the record of the legendary Georges Saint-Pierre.
True, these achievements are hardly worth considering.
Most of the success of the Nigerian came at the beginning of his career in the UFC and was obtained in confrontations with not the strongest opponents, while the Canadian - on his second campaign for the title and the subsequent nine defenses.
Nevertheless, Uthman has clearly shown that he is capable of more than just wearing down his opponents in a clinch.
The Nigerian confirmed that he deserves to be considered one of the strongest fighters in the UFC, and at the end of the fight, he expressed a desire to have a revenge with Jorge Masvidal.