UFC 282 was headlined by a fight between Magomed Ankalaev and Jan Blachowicz for the promotions vacant light heavyweight title.
The pay-per-view fight card was originally slated to be headlined by a light heavyweight title fight rematch between Jiri Prochazka and Glover Teixeira. However, the Czech fighter suffered a severe shoulder injury and was forced to withdraw from the matchup.
With that, the UFC promoted Jan Błachowicz vs. Magomed Ankalaev to main event status, with the vacant light heavyweight title up for grabs.
Blachowicz (29-10-1 MMA), a former light heavyweight champion, was coming off a third-round TKO victory over Aleksandar Rakić in his most previous effort this past May.
Meanwhile, Magomed Ankalaev (19-1-1 MMA) had entered tonight’s main event sporting a nine-fight winning streak, his latest being a TKO victory over Anthony Smith at UFC 277.
Tonight’s UFC 282 main event proved to be a grueling twenty-five minute affair. Jan Blachowicz found a ton of success with his kicks in the early rounds, battering Magomed Ankalaev’s front leg on frequent occasion.
However, the Russian standout would begin to turn the tide in his favor in the championship rounds, utilizing a strong grappling gameplan to overwhelm the Pole. After five rounds of back and forth action the fight went to the judges’ scorecards for decision.
Official UFC 282 Result: Magomed Ankalaev vs. Jan Blachowicz ends in a split draw (48-47, 46-48, 47-47)
Check out how the pros reacted to ‘Ankalaev vs. Blachowicz’ below:
Post-fight reactions to Magomed Ankalaev vs. Jan Blachowicz ending in a split draw at UFC 282: