Aljamain Sterling narrowly defeated Henry Cejudo via split decision to retain his UFC bantamweight title last night (Sat., May 6, 2023) at UFC 288 live on ESPN+ PPV from inside Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The co-main event of the evening saw Belal Muhammad punch his ticket to his first-ever UFC title shot by defeating welterweight contender Gilbert Burns.
In addition to the two headlining acts, UFC 288 provided fight fans will a long list of memorable finishes and standout performances. Check them out below and let us know your favorite:
- Ikram Aliskerov made a huge Octagon splash with a ridiculous lawn chair KO over middleweight Phil Hawes (watch HERE)
- Middleweight Claudio Ribeiro rebounded from a debut loss with a brutal TKO stoppage over Joseph Holmes (highlights HERE)
- Rising light heavyweight contender Kennedy Nzechukwu impressed with a slick ninja choke submission over Devin Clark (see it HERE)
- Women’s strawweight contender Yan Xiaonan captured the biggest win of her career with a vicious TKO finish over former UFC champion Jessica Andrade
- Matt Frevola made a big statement with a TKO win over lightweight Drew Dober and then called out Paddy Pimblett after his victory
- Heavyweight veteran Parker Porter made quick work of UFC newcomer Braxton Smith with a dominant first-round TKO
- Featherweight contender Movsar Evloev remained undefeated in an absolute dog fight with UFC newcomer Diego Lopes, who filled in on just a few days notice
In order to sift through the action and see which fighters took home an extra $50,000, we take a closer look at the official UFC 288 post-fight bonus winners below:
Fight of the Night: Movsar Evloev vs. Diego Lopes
Performance of the Night: Yan Xiaonan
Performance of the Night: Matt Frevola
For complete UFC 288 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
