The UFC made its return to Manchester, England for the first time in eight years and fight fans showed out in droves.
A jam-packed card saw seven English fighters come out victorious on home soil, like Paddy Pimblett and Tom Aspinall who retained his interim heavyweight title but the fight to conclude the night left the arena stunned in disbelief.
In the main event, Belal Muhammad pulled off an impressive upset over Leon Edwards to capture the welterweight title in front of the former champion’s home fans.
Complete UFC 304 results below.
MAIN CARD
Belal Muhammad def. Leon Edwards via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)
And new! Muhammad becomes the first Palestinian champion in UFC history, outworking Edwards with his surprisingly effective stand-up strikes to go with his groundwork to secure the upset victory. The belt-capturing performance also marked a sixth consecutive win for the 36-year-old.
Tom Aspinall def. Curtis Blaydes via TKO at 1:00 of Round 1
The Englishman couldn’t ask for a better result in his first title defence, picking up an emphatic victory on home soil. Aspinall caught Blaydes with a right jab that sent him to the ground, and within seconds of the ensuing ground-and-pound assault, the contest was over. The interim heavyweight champ improved to 8-1 in the UFC with the win and avenged his previous loss to Blaydes.
Paddy Pimblett def. Bobby “King” Green via technical submission at 3:22 of Round 1
Becoming the first person in UFC history to submit Green, the No. 15 ranked fighter in the lightweight division, Pimblett made a statement that he’s no longer a fan-favourite prospect but a real contender at 155 pounds. On home soil, the Englishman locked in a triangle choke that put Green to sleep and extended his undefeated UFC start to 7-0.
Gregory Rodrigues def. Christian Leroy Duncan via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
In what ended up being a bloody middleweight affair, “Robocop” came out on top, picking up a third consecutive win, and improving to 7-2 in the UFC after battering Leroy Duncan for three rounds and sweeping the scorecards.
Arnold Allen def. Giga Chikadze via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
“Almighty” bounced back in a big way, picking up a decisive victory to get back in the win column after back-to-back losses leading into the featherweight matchup. Allen decided to showcase his versatility in the win, opting for a striking focused attack despite his wrestling background, proving why he’s the division’s sixth-ranked contender.
PRELIMINARY CARD
Nathaniel Wood def. Daniel Pineda via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-28)
A practically flawless victory for Wood, picking apart Pineda for a second consecutive win, battering the American from top to bottom.
Bruna Brasil def. Molly McCann via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
The undefeated streak for English fighters on home soil came to an end with McCann as she ate a flurry of body shots that had her reeling early and wasn’t able to recover. The loss snapped a two-fight win streak for “Meatball” while Brasil improved to 2-2 in the UFC with the victory.
Jake Hadley def. Caolan Loughran via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Moving up a division and taking the fight on short notice did nothing to slow down Hadley as he took care of business against Loughran to snap a two-fight loss streak and get back in the win column.
Muhammad Mokaev def. Manel Kape via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
The bad blood between the two flyweights was so intense they could hardly wait for the opening bell before going at it, but once action officially got underway things were more subdued than most anticipated as the two fighters tactically engaged one another. With the win, Mokaev improved to 7-0 in the UFC.
Oban Elliott def. Preston Parsons via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
The “Welsh Gangster” improved to 2-0 in the UFC with the convincing victory, patiently picking when to attack and landing 44 significant strikes as a result.
Modestas Bukauskas def. Marcin Prachnio via submission at 3:12 of Round 3
After the dust settled on a third round filled with haymaker exchanges, Bukauskas was able to work Prachnio to the ground before he locked in an arm triangle for the victory. It was the third win in his last four UFC fights, bringing Bukauskas back to .500 under the banner (4-4).
Sam Patterson def. Kiefer Crosbie via submission at 2:50 of Round 1
Patterson made it a 2-0 start for the English on home soil after he locked in an arm triangle midway through the opening round that left Crosbie no choice but to tap. The victory marked back-to-back wins for Patterson, both by first-round submission.
Mick Parkin def. Lukasz Brzeski via knockout at 3:23 of Round 1
The first English fighter of the evening had the crowd on its feet with Parkin delivering the first stoppage victory of his UFC career. The two heavyweights spent the entire bout striking and Parkin found a home for a big right hand that wobbled Brzeski. Parkin showed great finishing instinct and a few punches later his opponent fell to the canvas.
Shauna Bannon def. Alice Ardelean via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
Ireland’s Bannon kicked off the early prelims by picking up her first UFC win with a 15-minute effort against a promotional newcomer who took the fight on short notice.