With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMAjunkie looks at the best fights from June 2018: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and the winner of MMAjunkie’s “Fight of the Month” award for June.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.
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The nominees
Steven Siler def. Magomed Idrisov at PFL 1
For the first four minutes of the fight, Magomed Idrisov (8-1) looked every bit the +2000 betting favorite oddsmakers pegged him. That is until Steven Siler (30-17) pulled off a miraculous come-from-behind submission victory.
Idrisov put a brutal beatdown on Siler out of the gate. He dropped, cut and handled the MMA vet. Siler weathered the storm, though, and he kept his wits about him long enough to capitalize on sloppy top control from Idrisov to lock in a fight-ending triangle choke for the stunning comeback win (via Instagram):
Claudia Gadelha def. Carla Esparza at UFC 225
It didn’t come easy – and didn’t come with the crowd’s approval – but Claudia Gadelha (16-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) scored a hard-fought split-decision win over rival Carla Esparza (13-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC).
The strawweight fight was a back-and-forth affair, with both fighters landing hard punches and exchanging takedowns. After 15 competitive minutes, two of the three judges felt Gadelha’s offense was more effective, and she left with the crucial victory (via Instagram):
Robert Whittaker def. Yoel Romero at UFC 225
Robert Whittaker (20-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) solidified his status as the best middleweight in the world when he defeated Yoel Romero (13-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) for a second time in a thrilling contest.
After Romero missed weight and forced the fight to become a non-title affair, 185-pound champ Whittaker defeated “The Solider of God” by closely contested split decision. He overcame multiple knockdowns and adversity and put out enough solid offense to claim the narrow win on the scorecards (via Instagram):
Aung La N Sang def. Ken Hasegawa at ONE Championship 75
Aung La N Sang’s (23-10) middleweight title defense against Ken Hasegawa (16-3-1) was by no means flawless. What it often lacked in slickness, though, it more than made up for in heart.
The fight featured an incredible amount of action. Both fighters largely showed a disregard for their own defense and unleashed on the offense end. Just when it looked like it might go to the judges, Sang finally face-planted Hasegawa with a massive uppercut in the fifth round to retain one of his two titles (via Instagram):
Valerie Letourneau def. Kristina Williams at Bellator 201
Valerie Letourneau (10-6 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) had to dig deep, but she ultimately got the job done to defeat Kristina Williams (2-1 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) and potentially secure a Bellator women’s flyweight title shot.
Former UFC title challenger Letourneau got a second straight win to begin her Bellator career when she outworked Williams for a unanimous-decision victory in a grueling three-round fight (via Instagram):
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The winner: Robert Whittaker vs. Yoel Romero
A belt may not have been on the line, but the drama was just as high as any championship fight in recent memory as Whittaker took home a split-decision win over Romero.
After a touch of gloves to start the UFC 225 headliner, middleweight champion Whittaker was quick to kick the legs and then throw up high. Romero was stoic and kept his hands high and remained almost stationary as he absorbed the blows. Whittaker fired a quick jab up the middle but continued to chop the legs, as well. The left hand started to land cleanly for Whittaker, and Romero loaded up on a few big punches that missed – but certainly caught his opponent’s attention.
Whittaker’s jab and lead hook peppered Romero’s face and head, and the low kicks chopped at his base. Romero was patient as he picked his blows, throwing them all with power, of course, but struggling to land cleanly. Whittaker added the right hand on a few combinations in the latter stages of the round, and he also dug to the body.
Romero showed some hop in his step to start the second round while firing off his own low kicks and a few big elbows. Clearly taking a different strategy in this frame, a more aggressive Romero emerged in the opening minutes, though Whittaker adjusted well and launched big right hands that found their mark.
As the round wore on, Romero’s right eye started to close, and it seemed to bring out a little more desperation in him. Whittaker seemed energized by the visual damage and was able to open up the arsenal, sneaking in a few high kicks that landed as he moved around the cage. Romero certainly wasn’t done, though.
Whittaker continued to chop at the legs to start the third round while Romero seemed to know he had to get things done quickly. As he started to swarm, a big right hand blasted Whittaker’s chin and changed the course of the fight, and it sent his opponent to the canvas. Whittaker was clearly hurt but battled on while covering on his knees and crawling up to his feet. He couldn’t immediately escape to safety, and Romero stayed in tight, controlling him against the cage and then unleashing a barrage of punches. Seemingly still shaken, Whittaker was able to target a few big elbows that landed cleanly but couldn’t halt the attack. Romero powered his way into the clinch and kept the action tight, and Whittaker was forced to defend the takedown and try to counter in the moments he felt safe.
Romero just missed on a foot sweep past the halfway mark, and Whittaker landed a high kick that seemed to stun his opponent. Still, Romero walked forward through the blows and fired off his big right hands. Whittaker was bloodied and dazed but reset to the center and landed another stunning high kick. The action was incredibly intense. Romero seemed to have a quick takedown, but Whittaker knew he couldn’t stay there, and he crawled to his feet and worked the clinch until the bell.
Romero was clearly exhausted between rounds, and he was again stoic to start the fourth. Whittaker fired in a few high kicks that landed but simply couldn’t put down Romero. Whittaker chopped at the legs, as well, while stomping on the knee before Romero complained of a low blow and took a break that the crowd wasn’t thrilled to see.
Whittaker again stomped at the knee on the restart while Romero just lumbered through it and fired the big right hand. Whittaker landed jab after jab on the feet, but Romero simply shook it off and continued seeking the big punch. Romero’s mouth was wide open as he moved around the cage, but when he did unleash his punches, it was with vicious intentions.
Whittaker added in more elbows on the feet, and he cut Romero under that battered right eye. Front kicks to the body also landed for Whittaker, but Romero wouldn’t stop, and he landed a right hand that again had Whittaker wobbled and struggling to stay upright.
Whittaker fired out more kicks to the legs to start the final round, though Romero was able to counter with a right hand over the top. Whittaker just ducked a nasty spinning backfist before going back to work with his quick jab and snapping kicks to the body and leg.
Romero continued to walk forward, and a leaping left hand landed cleanly and sent Whittaker crashing to the floor. He immediately turtled up and defended his head as Romero tried to punch away at any available opening. Referee Dan Miragliotta watched closely, but Whittaker did enough to keep himself in the fight.
Whittaker crawled back to his feet with a little more than two minutes remaining, and Romero stayed tight to the body. He dragged Whittaker back down and landed a few vicious knees to the back. Whittaker showed incredible resolve in survival, and he crawled again to his feet and tried to peel away the arms. Miragliotta called for a restart with 40 seconds remaining, and Whittaker tried his best to engage – but only from a safe distance. Romero slipped on a spinning high kick in the final seconds, and both men celebrated at the final bell.
“In the first round, I busted my hand, and I cannot feel it up to my elbow,” Whittaker said after the win. “Yoel hits like a truck, and I just had to try and survive and make the comeback. I could have seen it going any way because it was tight, but I hit him a lot, and I thought I did enough to get three of the five rounds.”
In the end Whittaker did enough to take the win via split decision with 47-48, 48-47 and 48-47 scores.