UFC Vegas 84, The Morning After: Jim Miller, Bonafide UFC Legend

Here’s what you may have missed!

Jim Miller set a new handful of UFC records last night (Sat. Jan. 13, 2023) by defeating Gabriel Benitez in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 84. Of course, he was breaking his own statistics, but Miller still managed to increase his lead on the all-time wins records and most UFC fights. He also advanced into fifth place for overall time in the Octagon.

Not a bad night at the office.

40 year old UFC fighters are not common, but neither are they unheard of. Randy Couture set the tone way back in the day, proving that special fighters could still compete at a high-level into their 40s. Earlier on the main card, Andrei Arlovski didn’t win, but the 44-year-old “Pitbull” still competed well enough against a young prospect.

There’s a handful of important differences between Miller and those men, however. First and foremost, Miller is a Lightweight, one of the smaller divisions that does not forgive the loss of speed quite like Heavyweight. Another difference between Miller and most older veterans is that “A-10” is still fighting quite well in all three facets of MMA.

Against Benitez, Miller made great use of a high guard to hold his own in the pocket and land big counter shots — unusual reaction time for a man with 55 professional fights. He also managed to out-kick the kicker! A good portion of the fight took place on the feet, and Miller landed the harder shots and beat up his opponent in that realm.

Often, kickboxing alone is the best option for older fighters. There’s a reason wrestlers like Daniel Cormier and Dan Henderson spent the latter portions of their careers striking. At a certain age, the knees and spine become unwilling to participate. Subsequently, older athletes stop practicing live wrestling in the training room, and their fights reflect their training.

Not Jim Miller! Last night, Miller went two-for-two on his takedown attempts, running Benitez right off his feet. Once in top position, Miller smashed Benitez with solid punches and elbows, convincing him to give up his back. Before long, the submission opened up late in the third round.

Most older fighters don’t have cardio either, partially because of simple aging and partially because wonky knees don’t much like running either. For whatever reason, Miller is still able to fight hard for three rounds, something he struggled with just a few years ago while dealing with his Lymes disease.

In short, Miller has bucked numerous trends. He’s achieved ironman status in the UFC, and his entire career has been a ton of fun. He may not be an elite contender anymore, but Miller remains among the most respected men on the roster, and he more than deserves his spot at UFC 300.

For complete UFC Vegas 84: “Ankalaev vs. Walker 2” results and play-by-play, click HERE!