Matt Frevola needed just two and a half minutes to finish an undefeated streak at MSG.
Mixed martial arts’ leading promotion is back within the ‘Great White North’ this week, because the UFC stages an event from Rogers Arena in Vancouver.
All eyes might be on the middleweight division as Reinier de Ridder faces Brendan Allen within the major event, with each men trying to advance their ambitions of a title shot at 185 kilos.
The undercard will feature numerous other notable names, including a fan-favorite lightweight veteran in Frevola. The Latest York native isn’t any stranger to firefights and memorable finishes, which he proved with an announcement performance in his home city three years ago.
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Matt Frevola flattened unbeaten Ottman Azaitar in a single round at UFC 281
When he faces Kyle Nelson at UFC Vancouver this Saturday, Frevola will look to finish his two-fight skid and return to the type of winning form that saw him record three knockouts in a row between 2022 and 2023.
Between stoppages against Genaro Valdez and Drew Dober, ‘The Steamrolla’ shared the cage with Ottman Azaitar at UFC 281. The Madison Square Garden-held event was widely seen because the 12 months’s best pay-per-view and one in all the all-time great cards to happen at the enduring Latest York City venue.
Frevola contributed to that with a memorable display on the prelims, which saw him hand the-then 13-0 Azaitar his first profession defeat in emphatic and brutal fashion.
After getting backed up against the cage, Frevola countered Azaitar with a clean left hand that immediately folded him. The American was in a position to get in two brutal follow-up shots before the referee intervened to send the MSG crowd right into a frenzy.
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UFC 281 ended with Alex Pereira’s first UFC title win
Frevola was not the just one delivering a standout performance at MSG on that night in November 2022.
The truth is, 10 others also got the job done inside the gap to tie the record for many finishes at a single UFC event. Seven got here in the primary round, equaling yet one more record.
After Frevola, Ryan Spann, Carlos Ulberg, Michael Trizano, Renato Moicano, and Erin Blanchfield got stoppage wins on the prelims, all five major card fighters followed suit.
Within the major event, Alex Pereira knocked out Israel Adesanya in comeback fashion to develop into middleweight champion. That marked the event’s second title fight, with Zhang Weili submitting Carla Esparza in the primary to develop into a two-time strawweight queen.
Elsewhere, there was a submission win for Dustin Poirier over Michael Chandler and knockouts for Chris Gutierrez against Frankie Edgar and Dan Hooker opposite Claudio Puelles.