UFC Fight Night 281 absolutely blew up the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City this past Saturday, pulling in a brand new building gate record after being away for nine years! Talk about a comeback! Fans showed up ready to rumble, and while there were a dozen fights on the card, five of them ended with a bang, giving the packed house exactly what they wanted.
Main Event Drama: Du Plessis Shines Without the Stoppage
The top of the card had two former champions squaring off, and you know that always brings the absolute heat. Former middleweight king Dricus Du Plessis, rocking a 24-3 MMA record, went head-to-head with ex-welterweight champ Kamaru Usman, who holds a 21-5 MMA record. Du Plessis looked absolutely outstanding out there, putting on a clinic and having multiple chances to end the fight early. He was so close to a finish, man, you could feel it! But in the end, Du Plessis had to settle for a decision win, showing that sometimes even the best can’t quite get that final stoppage. Still, a dominant performance to cap off a huge night.
Hooper’s Big Win, Bigger Missed Bonus, and Other Finishes
Among those five incredible finishes, one fighter delivered a wild submission but then got a gut punch after the buzzer: Chase Hooper. This dude, with a 17-5-1 MMA record, snagged a massive submission victory over Mitch Ramirez, who now sits at 8-4 MMA, in Round 1, locking in a rear-naked choke at 2:15. It was a highlight reel moment, no doubt. But here’s the kicker: Hooper missed weight before the fight. Because of that, he couldn’t properly celebrate with the $25,000 stoppage bonus. That’s rough, right? Imagine putting on a show like that and then seeing a quarter-million bucks slip through your fingers because of the scales. What a shame, especially when it was one of only two finishes on the main card!
The rest of the stoppages were just as wild, keeping the energy levels off the charts for the OKC crowd. Tommy McMillen secured a TKO with punches against Alberto Montes deep into Round 3, at 3:29. Felipe Franco stopped Levi Rodrigues with punches in Round 2, at 1:40. RJ Harris got a lightning-fast TKO with punches against Alvin Hines in Round 1, just 1:40 in. And Dione Barbosa delivered another slick submission, a rear-naked choke, against Alice Melisano in Round 1, at 4:04. Each one of these finishes just added to the crazy energy of the night, proving the UFC’s return was definitely “juice worth the squeeze.”
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
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