UFC 251: Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo Play-by-Play

In the first of three championship fights on UFC 251, Petr Yan and Jose Aldo fought for the vacant UFC Bantamweight Championship. Here’s how the fight went.

Bout 11: Petr Yan (14-1) vs. Jose Aldo (28-6) (Vacant UFC Bantamweight Championship)

Yan landed a clean two-punch combination in the second minute of the fight. Aldo landed a leg kick which tripped Yan. Aldo tried for a takedown in the final minute. Yan was able to reverse and get on top in full guard. Yan landed punches from above, with Aldo shelling up after a series connected. Aldo was able to endure the punches until the round ended.

Aldo started the second round in a Muay Thai stance. Aldo continued to chip away at the legs of Yan. Aldo was the more active striker in the second round.

Yan had a strong start in the third round, throwing more than he did in the round before. Aldo started to target Yan with body punches in the second minute. Aldo connected with a series of punches and a knee to the body before clinching. Aldo landed a good leg kick and then knee to the head in the third minute of the round. Yan opened up with punches late in the round, however, Aldo did a good job to evade a lot of the strikes with head movement. They clinched up as the round ended.

Aldo landed a hard hook to the body a minute into the fourth round, although Yan answered back with two hooks to the head. Yan was the fighter consistently come forward in the fourth round. Fatigued started to affect Aldo in the fight. Yan landed a combination in the fourth minute that had Aldo covering up. Aldo was swept to the ground, where Yan scored with strikes in full guard.

A left hand hurt Aldo eary in the fourth round. Aldo got dropped moments later, where Yan moved into half guard on the ground. Yan threw punches and elbows to the head from half guard. Getting on the back of Aldo, Yan threw numerous hammerfist punches until Aldo moved. The punches continued as Aldo’s blood got on the canvas. Yan mixed up his punches with knees to the body. Dozens and dozens of strikes later, the referee ended the fight.

RESULT: Petr Yan def. Jose Aldo via TKO, Strikes (RD 5, 3:24) (Vacant UFC Bantamweight Championship)

My Scorecard:

Live coverage of UFC 251 can be found here.