UFC 294 Results: Islam Makhachev goes 2-0 over Volk; Chimaev gets the better of Usman

After all the 11th-hour alterations, UFC 294 progressed as one of the most visually aesthetic cards of the recent past. While it rarely happens that both the headline fights would undergo changes just days before the event, in this case, it did happen and in the face of adversity, the UFC management reacted quickly and brought in the substitutions that only scaled up the hype of the PPV. Kamaru Usman replaced the injured Paulo Costa to take on Khamzat Chimaev and Alexander Volkanovski accepted to fill in for Charles Oliveira on 11 days' notice.

3 things you need to know

• Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski was the headliner of UFC 294
• In the co-main event, Khamzat Chimaev fought former UFC Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman
• India's Anshul Jubli made his debut at the event

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UFC 294 major highlight

Aside from the co-main and main event fight, UFC 294 turned out to be historic for India as Anshul Jubli made his debut. So, with all the buzz that was around the mega-show in the build-up, did it deliver on the violence quotient?

From KO and submission to decision victories, the show had everything to showcase, and it could be gauged that it was a hit-and-miss on several accounts. The biggest letdown of the show was the end to the Magomed Ankalaev vs Johnny Walker fight, where an unintentional foul (Knee strike) by Ankalaev concluded the match as a no-contest. Moreover, the fight between the main event fighters was nowhere as competitive as it was the first fight between them. Makhachev landed a head kick early in the match, it wobbled Volkanovski and the barrage of punches ended the match in a blink of an eye.

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Anshul Jubli falls short in Round 3

For India, it was a big moment as Anshul Jubli started his UFC journey, against Mike Breeden. Anshul started on a brighter note, landing significant strikes on all ends. He won the first round, continued the momentum in the second and it seemed he was closer to get a finish in Round 2 but Breeden was able to endure the damage and prolonged the match. In the third round, Breeden went all-out and used all his experience to land clean punches. It completely turned the tide towards Breeden, who capitalised and followed it up with a whack. Millions of hearts in India were shattered as Anshul Jubli lost his bout via. KO. However, considering he brought a whole nation to the forefront of MMA, Anshul Jubli still has a lot to cherish and has a comeback story to script.

UFC 294 card and results

• Islam Makhachev (c) def. Alexander Volkanovski via first-round TKO (head kick, punches)
• Khamzat Chimaev def. Kamaru Usman via majority decision (29-27, 29-27, 28-28)
• Magomed Ankalaev vs. Johnny Walker ends in no contest (unintentional foul)
• Ikram Aliskerov def. Warlley Alves via first-round TKO (knee, punches)
• Said Nurmagomedov def. Muin Gafurov via first-round submission (guillotine choke)
• Muhammad Mokaev def. Tim Elliot via third-round submission (arm-triangle choke)
• Trevor Peek def. Mohammad Yahya via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
• Javid Basharat vs. Victor Henry ends in no contest (accidental groin strike)
• Sedriques Dumas def. Abu Azaitar via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Mike Breeden def. Anshul Jubli via third-round knockout (punch)
• Muhammad Naimov def. Nathaniel Wood via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Viktoriia Dudakova def. Jinh Yu Frey via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Shara Magomedov def. Bruno Silva via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)