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Vive la Violence: UFC Paris Delivers French Clean Sweep
The French Go Unbeaten in Paris
French MMA fans were treated to a perfect night as all five French fighters on the card walked away victorious, going 5-0 on home soil.
In the main event, Nassourdine Imavov continued his ascent up the middleweight ranks with a dominant decision win over Caio Borralho, marking his fifth straight victory over ranked opposition. Imavov kept Borralho on the back foot with sharp footwork, crisp combinations, and intelligent defense. He absorbed Borralho’s calf kicks and shut down all takedown attempts, leaving the Brazilian looking lost in a fight where he had few answers. With this performance, Imavov’s case for a title shot against newly crowned champion Khamzat Chimaev becomes hard to ignore.
Benoît Saint Denis wasted no time asserting himself in the co-main event, throwing Mauricio Ruffy off with a body kick in the opening seconds. While everyone expected Saint Denis to wrestle, his striking diversity forced Ruffy into a defensive shell. In the second round, the Frenchman secured a takedown, took the back, and locked in a rear-naked choke — his 11th career submission win and second straight.
It’s now a four-fight win streak for Modesto’s Bukauskas. The Lithuanian fighter land big shots on the feet before clinching up with Paul Craig. The seasoned submission artist went old school pulling guard – a move that backfired as Bukauskas followed him down a thunderous elbow just before the bell left the lights on, but no one was home.
Scotlands formerly top ten ranked Light Heavyweight Paul Craig called it a career leaving his gloves in the octagon.
Mason Jones improved to 2-0 in his second UFC stint with a comeback win over Bolaji Oki. Early in the first round, Oki caught a body kick and dropped Jones with a big right hook. But Jones rallied quickly, evening the score with a knockdown of his own via a left hook and nearly securing a kimura before the round ended. In the second, Jones took control — tossing Oki to the canvas and finishing the fight with a relentless barrage of elbows from mount.
On short notice and up a weight class, Alex Sola grabbed attention in his UFC debut with a TKO win over Rhys McKee. While McKee applied constant pressure, it was Sola’s sharp counter-striking that did the damage. A perfectly placed right hook to the body dropped McKee to his knees, and a series of hammerfists forced the referee to wave it off.
William Gomis spoiled the UFC debut of former KSW champion Robert Ruchala, continuing his unbeaten run on home soil. The Frenchman is now 4-0 inside the Octagon in France. Gomis’ kickboxing pedigree was on full display, consistently staying a step ahead of Ruchala throughout the bout. A late third-round takedown helped seal the decision victory for the hometown favorite.
France’s Oumar Sy wasted no time implementing his wrestling, planting Brendson Ribeiro on his back with double-leg takedowns and finishing the fight with relentless ground-and-pound for a first-round TKO victory.
In his promotional debut, 2022 PFL Heavyweight Champion Ante Delija made an emphatic statement, blitzing through veteran Marcin Tybura for a win that should land him in the heavyweight top 10. Delija’s fast hands were the difference — a left uppercut followed by a right hook stunned Tybura, with a few follow-up strikes on the ground sealing the finish.
Kaue Fernandes also impressed, stopping short-notice opponent Harry Hardwick in the first round. Devastating calf kicks set the tone early, leaving Hardwick compromised and unable to recover.
Sam Patterson made it four first-round finishes in a row, scoring a standing TKO over Trey Waters. A stiff jab from Patterson stunned Waters early, and the Englishman wasted no time — pressing forward and unloading a series of right hands to force the stoppage.
Meanwhile, Robert Bryczek impressed with a dominant performance against UFC veteran Brad Tavares, who was making his 27th appearance in the Octagon. The Polish fighter’s heavy combinations forced the typically striking-focused Tavares to resort to wrestling. Bryczek kept up the pressure in the second round, with a left hook that opened the floodgates, followed by a barrage of right hooks and uppercuts that overwhelmed Tavares for the finish.
As promised, Andreas Gustafsson brought the fight to Rinat Fakretdinov, using jabs and leg kicks to initially nullify the Swedish fighters forward pressure. A powerful left from Fakretdinov turned the tide, putting Gustafsson on his back foot. A tornado of punches followed, dropping Gustafsson, and a hailstorm of hammerfists sealed the finish.
In the women’s division, a much more aggressive Sam Hughes forced Shana Bannon into grappling exchanges early on. After controlling most of the first round, Hughes capitalized on a small opening, took Bannon’s back, and secured a rear-naked choke to earn the submission victory.
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