Charles Oliveira delivered one of the most dominant performances of his career, defeating Max Holloway to become the new BMF champion at UFC 326.
Oliveira wasted no time, swarming Holloway early and lighting up ‘Blessed’ with a bevy of strikes before securing a quick takedown near the fence. As Holloway attempted to scramble, he gave up his back, allowing ‘Do Bronx’ to jump on like a backpack and start working for a first-round submission.
Oliveira nearly cinched in a rear-naked choke multiple times, but Holloway managed to fight the hands and stay alive long enough to make it back to his stool.
Charles Oliveira’s strategy continued to pay dividends in the second, as he quickly got ‘Blessed’ back on the mat. This time, Oliveira was working toward an arm triangle before switching to an RNC. Again, Holloway defended the attempt and made it out of the round, but not before eating some nasty 12-to-6 elbows from Oliveira.
With Oliveira’s game plan working flawlessly, there was no need to deviate from the plan in round three. Oliveira secured yet another takedown and kept Holloway on the mat for the entirety of the stanza.
After spending most of the fourth on the mat, Holloway had no choice but to pull a rabbit out of his hat and finish ‘Do Bronx’ in the fifth round.
Fans had a glimmer of hope as Holloway landed a takedown of his own on Oliveira early in the fifth. Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be as ‘Do Bronx’ reversed the position and ended up on top with only minutes left on the clock.
Holloway fought his way up for one final flurry in the final 10 seconds. Unfortunately, he couldn’t repeat his highlight-reel knockout of Justin Gaethje, sending us to the scorecards for a decisive decision.
Official Result: Charles Oliveira def. Max Holloway via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) to win the BMF championship.
