Dricus Du Plessis and the Real Winners and Losers from UFC 297

The most unlikely champion of 2023 was the first to go to work in 2024.

UFC middleweight king Sean Strickland, who dethroned pound-for-pound boss Israel Adesanya in last year's highest-profile upset, crossed the border to risk his 185-pound status for the first time against second-ranked contender Dricus Du Plessis in Toronto, Ontario.

It was the first octagonal championship match of the new year and the five-rounder was stationed atop a five-bout pay-per-view portion billed as UFC 297. A second title match pitted Raquel Pennington and Mayra Bueno Silva, ranked second and third behind ex-champ Julianna Pena, for the bantamweight title vacated by the retirement of Amanda Nunes in June.

Canadians Mike Malott and Marc-Andre Barriault got home turf turns in separate bouts elsewhere on the main card, which went live at 10 p.m., while others representing the True North are involved in all three bouts on the early prelim show and three of four bouts on the preliminary card, which began at 6:30 and 8 p.m., respectively.

The B/R combat team was in place to take it all in and deliver a real-time list of the show's definitive winners and losers. Take a look at what we came up with and drop a thought or two of your own in the comments.

It was everything a championship main event is supposed to be.

Two battered fighters throwing hard shots to the final buzzer, which was followed by both men then throwing their hands to the air in anticipation of a victory.

But once Bruce Buffer hit the phrase "and new," only one continued the celebration.

Sort of.

Having survived a five-round grind for the first time in a 10-plus-year career, Du Plessis collapsed into the arms of his corner team and his father, exulting in the split decision that saw him take two scorecards by 48-47 margins to offset a dissenting score in Strickland's favor by the same margin.

The B/R card also had it 48-47 for Du Plessis.

"This is history," the new champion said, wrapping himself in the South African flag as a video board showed his gleeful fans back home. "You can probably go silent in here and hear them outside."

They were certainly 25 minutes worthy of celebration.

Vocal rivals throughout the fight's build-up, Strickland and Du Plessis delivered a close, compelling scrap that warranted the hype. Strickland controlled the first round with the same methodical style that had bamboozled Israel Adesanya last year, but Du Plessis adjusted and turned up his aggression in rounds two, three and four, forcing Strickland to fight off his back foot and mixing in takedown attempts so he couldn't focus entirely on striking defense.

He opened a nasty cut alongside the champion's right eye with an elbow in the fourth, then withstood a fifth-round rally in which Strickland once again pressed forward but wasn't able to land anything that put Du Plessis, whose supposedly suspect cardio was never an issue, in imminent danger.

Strickland didn't argue the decision and instead lauded the champion before exiting the cage following a brief interview.

"I called it," he said. "I said it was gonna be a f--king war. Hats off to the new champion. Congratulations to him."

Come Round 5, it was all about optics.

As Pennington stood over Bueno Silva and strafed her legs with kicks while looking for opportunities to drop down with hard, slashing elbows, her rival reclined on her back with hands behind her head.

She was beaten up. She was exhausted. And she was out of answers.

And Pennington, a beaten challenger against Nunes nearly six years ago at UFC 224 in Brazil, was more than happy to make sure it stayed that way.

"I got to a point where I knew it just wasn't pretty," she said. "But I didn't care if I got booed out of here. It was time to just get the win and get the belt."

She did. And became a world champion for doing so.

Bueno Silva made it to the final horn, but it wasn't enough to offset the dominance Pennington had shown across most of 25 minutes to earn a unanimous decision by scores of 49-46 (twice) and 49-45.

Game. Set. Championship match.

Still, when presented with the title belt and the gold-tinged T-shirt befitting her new status, the 35-year-old Coloradan didn't seem prepared for the emotional reality.

"I don't know. It feels surreal," she said. "I had to climb mountains to get back here. Stay believing. That's exactly what I did."

The crowd was shocked. The announce crew was shocked.

No one was more shocked than Mike Malott.

The popular Canadian was left flat on his back by veteran welterweight contender Neil Magny with just 15 seconds remaining in their three-rounder, and it was several moments before the previously unbeaten 32-year-old, who'd barely lost a moment in the UFC let alone a fight, could get up.

But it wasn't all because of concussive blows from the 13th-ranked winner.

Instead, the sheer surprise of it all might have been just as responsible.

"That was just incredible. He did what Neil Magny does," analyst Dominick Cruz said. "He kept that pace the whole fight. Mike Malott had no clue, no idea what to do."

What a difference a round makes.

Malott had been the boss through 10 minutes, strafing Magny's left leg with calf kicks and continually getting him to the mat with takedowns. He continued that approach into the third and appeared ready to cruise to a wide decision before Magny countered a guillotine attempt with a slam, immediately seized top control and rained down dozens of blows on a defensive Malott.

The younger man had no reply, though, and referee Kevin MacDonald finally intervened at 4:45.

It was Magny's 22nd win as a UFC welterweight, tops all-time in the weight class.

"Once I got into position I was like, 'OK, I'm gonna end this fight right here,'" he said. "It's too soon for the young bloods. I can do this all day. I knew what I had in the tank in the third round to get it done. Nothing new. I can do this all day."

It was bound to happen at some point.

Though the night's first eight bouts weren't exactly filled with recognizable names, there was more than enough action to keep a packed house at Scotiabank Arena satisfied.

Until there wasn't.

A three-rounder at middleweight between Quebec native Marc-Andre Barriault and American import Chris Curtis was the first fight to generate a consistently audible stream of discontent, with boos and groans becoming more frequent in the break after the second round and throughout the third.

The fight was exclusively fought on the feet, and, to the eyes of Cruz, resembled a sparring match. Neither Cruz nor colleague Jon Anik ventured a guess as to how a particularly slow first round would be judged, leaving Din Thomas to suggest it ought to be scored 0 to 0.

Curtis, clearly annoyed at the reactions, gestured to the crowd between rounds.

"I don't know what more you want," he said.

He earned a split decision with two 30-27 scores that offset a 29-28 in Barriault's favor.

"You guys are bloodthirsty. Next time we'll kill each other more," Curtis said. "I'm sorry we didn't die. We'll try harder next time."

Movsar Evloev may or may not become a UFC champion.

But either way it's a good bet he'll remember his night with Arnold Allen.

The unbeaten Russian featherweight emerged from 15 minutes with the promotion's fourth-ranked contender with blood oozing from the side of his head and discolorations around both eyes, but his most prized professional possession—an undefeated record—still intact.

The soon-to-be 30-year-old (he'll celebrate on February 11) got to 18-0 as a pro and 8-0 in the UFC with a narrow but unanimous decision in the opening bout of the pay-per-view show.

And now, the winner said, a title shot is on the agenda.

"Arnold Allen is a good fighter. He's tough," Evloev said. "After beating him I feel like I can fight anyone in my division, I'm ready. Let's see who wins between (champion) Alex (Volkanovski) and Ilia (Topuria) and I'm ready for the winner."

Volkanovki will defend the featherweight belt against Topuria, ranked a spot below Allen at No. 5, at UFC 298 next month in California.

Evloev was probably on the short end of a first round in which Allen boxed effectively from a distance, but he was able to pressure Allen and take him to the floor in each of the final two rounds and opened an ugly cut under his left eye with a hard left jab that staggered Allen.

A series of knees to the head prompted referee Marc Goddard to halt the fight and have Evloev looked at by a cage-side physician, but he was able to continue and finished on his feet.

"18-0 is not a joke," he said. "Everyone is waiting for a finish, but I'm still winning when I'm winning by decision. I'm happy."

Well, that was awkward.

Though it seemed that Sean Woodson had done enough across 15 minutes to beat Charles Jourdain in their preliminary card three-rounder, it was competitive enough to warrant attention to Bruce Buffer's official reading of the scorecards.

The promotion's veteran voice read a pair of 29-28 cards—one in each fighter's direction—before breaking the tie with another 29-28 score that gave the verdict to Woodson.

But not everyone heard it that way. And it created a ripple effect.

Seeing Jourdain raise pumped fists over his head alongside referee Jerin Valel prompted Woodson to turn away, thinking he'd heard Buffer's words incorrectly—when it was Valel who'd heard wrong and Jourdain who was celebrating without cause.

Analyst Daniel Cormier grabbed Woodson for an interview and broke the news to him as Buffer stood by uncomfortably. Jourdain, meanwhile, was predictably less pleased with the new information.

It was his sixth loss (against six wins and a draw) in 13 UFC fights, while Woodson spiked to 5-1-1 since a 2019 win on Dana White's Contender Series.

"I heard him announce a split and I saw Charles and his corner celebrating so I thought he won," Woodson said. "I thought I did enough to win, but I guess it was close enough to go either way."

Trilogy anyone?

Though bantamweight rivals Serhiy Sidey and Ramon Taveras were on precisely no one's radar outside of their immediate families before Saturday night, their blend of styles may ultimately land them among the UFC's most familiar foes.

Sidey was such an abrupt winner (read: premature) when they met on Dana White's Contender Series in September that the promotion took the unusual route and put them back together for each of their official debuts on Saturday's preliminary card.

After 15 more minutes, there's still not much to separate them.

The level of respect developed was apparent at the final horn, when Sidey laid his hideously bloodied face—thanks to a cut between the eyes and a more than likely broken nose—onto Taveras' shoulder and shared what appeared to be a friendly conversation.

He was slightly less cordial moments later when Taveras was awarded a split decision after winning two of three rounds on two of three scorecards, but analyst Jon Anik threw his support behind another re-do.

"I think we need to see that a third time," Anik said. "Especially after such an interesting decision."

Neither Anik nor colleague Cormier agreed with the call, which came despite Sidey's overall advantage in striking and consistent aggression. Taveras produced the fight's lone knockdown with a body shot in the first round and was particularly effective when moving and countering.

"I dropped him at the end of the first and I inflicted more damage," Taveras said. "He pressured me, but I landed more."

There's something about home cooking.

Gillian Robertson gets her mail these days in Florida, but she was born on the Canadian side of the border town of Niagara Falls and has been competitively perked up each time she's crossed the 49th parallel into her original home and native land.

The one and only TKO win of her career, prior to Saturday, had come in her only previous appearance in Canada, when she finished Sarah Frota in two rounds at Rogers Place in Edmonton.

That was more than four years ago, and, Robertson suggested, it was about time for another.

She got it done in similarly violent style about 90 miles from the world's most famous waterfall, chasing submissions against Polyana Viana in the first round before going with punches and drawing an intervention from referee Kevin MacDonald at 3:12 of the second.

"I knew it was gonna happen," she said. "My last TKO was in Edmonton. This is my second. Canada is my good luck charm."

Robertson got a takedown and nearly four minutes of control time in the first round and got the fight to the floor again when Viana missed a punch early in the second. Thirty-three strikes later and it was over, providing Robertson her 10th win in 16 UFC fights and 13th in 21 overall.

"When it comes to the ground this is my world, nobody's messing with it," she said. "(The referee) was telling her to keep on working and I knew he was gonna call it. I need a ranked opponent. I need to show the world what I'm capable of."

Sam Patterson is eager for a life change.

The 27-year-old Englishman was a winner on Dana White's Contender Series 16 months ago, but lasted just 75 seconds in his official debut with the promotion last March in London.

So he changed weight classes, moved from lightweight up to welterweight, and insisted he'd be better for it upon traveling to Canada to duel with a home-standing Yohan Lainesse.

"I said I would come out here and change my life this year," Patterson said. "This is just the beginning."

If the 123 seconds with Lainesse are indicative, it won't take long.

A huge lightweight at 155 pounds, Patterson was even more effective with the additional 15 pounds, quickly getting his foe to the mat, seizing the neck and getting it over with via rear-naked choke at 2:03 of the first.

It was his 11th win in 14 fights, his 10th finish, and his sixth win by choke.

"I always said I'd go up as soon as it got tough to make the weight," he said. "I was always a welterweight fighting as a lightweight. This is the division for me. That's my world. If I get hold of your neck I'm putting you to sleep. That's guaranteed."

Canadians are cliched to be a kinder, gentler sort.

But when it comes to combat sports, they can also be, well...combative.

Jasmine Jasudavicius made the 90-minute trek up the Queen Elizabeth Way to prove that point while taking out fight week frustration on bantamweight foe Priscila Cachoeira.

The Brazilian balked at making the initially contracted weight for the early prelim fight and ultimately tipped in at 133 pounds, angering the Niagara Top Team product to the point of outright competitive cruelty on the way to a third-round submission win.

"I was frustrated and I really wanted to torture her," Jasudavicius said. "Be a professional. We're in the premier organization. Get your s--t together. I wanted to show how mean I am. She's known as a dirty fighter but I wanted to get dirty with the dirty girl."

Mission accomplished,

Jasudavicius repeatedly took Cachoeira to the mat and viciously pounded her while there, ultimately running up a UFC bantamweight record 281-strike advantage—303 to 22—before getting the finish with an anaconda choke just 39 seconds from the world-be final horn.

"If you ever want to torture somebody," analyst Dominick Cruz said, "she just showed you how to do it. You don't actually go for the complete finish. You just keep punching them for 15 straight minutes."

Jimmy Flick was, to say the least, up against it.

He was a significant betting underdog at +170, hadn't won a fight in more than three years, and was certainly the villain to a crowd waiting to adore local hero Malcolm Gordon.

And for most of the time he spent in the cage with Gordon, it didn't change.

His 33-year-old foe was aggressive and busy and had Flick on the verge of an early exit with a volley of powerful strikes that drew the attention of referee Todd Anderson.

But he wasn't ready to give in. And after a particularly intense between-rounds speech from his corner team, he wasn't going to.

Flick continued to weather a storm early in the second but took advantage of Gordon's eagerness, swung behind to take his back and ultimately locked in his signature move—the arm triangle choke—to abruptly end matters at 1:17 of the second round.

"Mentally, physically, emotionally I have been drug through the mud to get here," he said. "It wasn't the best but i got the job done."

Flick said he felt the tide had begun turning late in the first round when he briefly had Gordon in a compromising position that may have yielded a surrender if he'd had more time.

"He was gurgling, he was about to tap," Flick said. "All he needed was 15 more seconds and he would've tapped. This time I had four minutes."

Main Card

Dricus Du Plessis def. Sean Strickland by split decision (48-49, 49-48, 49-48)

Raquel Pennington def. Mayra Bueno Silva by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-45)

Neil Magny def. Mike Malott by TKO (strikes), 4:45, Round 3

Chris Curtis def. Marc-Andre Barriault by split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)

Movsar Evloev def. Arnold Allen by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Preliminary Card

Garrett Armfield def. Brad Katona by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Sean Woodson def. Charles Jourdain by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)

Ramon Taveras def. Serhiy Sidey by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)

Gillian Robertson def. Polyana Viana by TKO (strikes), 3:12, Round 2

Early Preliminary Card

Sam Patterson def. Yohan Lainesse by submission (rear-naked choke), 2:03, Round 1

Jasmine Jasudavicius def. Priscila Cachoeira by submission (anaconda choke), 4:21, Round 3

Jimmy Flick def. Malcolm Gordon by submission (arm triangle), 1:17, Round 2