Biggest Winners, Loser For UFC 246

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Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) was back at it again last night (Sat., Jan. 18), as UFC 246 went down from inside T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. In the headlining act, Conor McGregor got back in the win column after annihilating Donald Cerrone just 40 seconds into the fight (see it again here). In the co-main event, Holly Holm scored her second win over Raquel Pennington, this time defeating her via unanimous decision (recap).

Biggest Winner: Conor McGregor

This one is a no-brainer, as “Notorious” made a triumphant return to action after a 15-month hiatus to score a first-round technical knockout (TKO) win over “Cowboy.” The victory is huge for so many reasons. To start, Conor just breathed a huge sigh of relief and got some of that immense pressure of his shoulders by scoring his first win in mixed martial arts (MMA) in over three years. Furthermore, his victory assures the promotion and fight fans that Conor will indeed be returning to action sooner, rather than later, and all of his plans set forth are now closer to becoming a reality. A loss would’ve likely meant another Conor hiatus, leaving him in limbo with no-big fights to campaign for. But with the win in his back pocket, McGregor can now pick and choose who he wants next. UFC president Dana White was quick to explain how big a Khabib Nurmagomedov rematch would be during the post-fight press conference (replay here), pretty much meaning it’s the fight to make should “The Eagle” defeat Tony Ferguson at UFC 249. If not, Conor is still a shoe-in for the Lightweight title fight against “El Cucuy” if he wants it. Or he can go for Jorge Masvidal’s “BMF” title. The options are limitless for “Notorious” at this point, who secured his ticket to be on standby for the aforementioned UFC 249 event on April 18.

Runner Up: Carlos Diego Ferreira

Chalk up another win for the Brazilian Lightweight, as he scored a huge victory after submitting former 155-pound champion, Anthony Pettis, in the second round. After taking Anthony’s back early in the fight, Carlos almost sunk in a rear-naked choke before “Showtime” used great defense to roll out of it. In the second round, though, the jiu-jitsu ace once again took the fight to the ground and put the ex-champ in a precarious position, ultimately forcing the tap via neck rank. That is now six straight wins for Ferreira, which assures him a huge bump the rankings as he hasn’t lost since 2015. With a huge win over an ex-champion in his pocket, Carlos can start lobbying for bigger fights moving forward. It was truly a dominate performance from the 35-year old.

Biggest Loser: Donald Cerrone

Unfortunately, “Cowboy” has to take this spot after getting smoked by “Notorious” in just 40 seconds. First of all, for everyone talking dive, just stop. Conor landed flush with that head kick, and those subsequent blows to follow up were hitting their mark. Despite the relentless attack, referee Herb Dean gave “Cowboy” plenty of chances to fight back and get out of danger. Ultimately, he had to put an end to the onslaught to protect Cerrone from taking unnecessary damage. That is now three straight defeats for “Cowboy,” who will have to go back home and regroup battered, bruised and deflated. On the bright side, he recently locked up a new UFC contract prior to the Conor fight, so he has that locked in the bag. Still, with three losses in a row — all via technical knockout — Donald won’t have he privilege of scoring another big fight in the immediate future. But if anyone can bounce back and score some wins in a hurry, it’s Cerrone.

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