Geoff Neal edges Santiago Ponzinibbio on the scorecards at UFC 269
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada once again tonight, December 11, 2021, for UFC 269.
Headlining the card is a UFC lightweight championship bout between our newly crowned champion Charles Oliveira, who faces No. 1 contender and former interim champion Dustin Poirier in the five round main event of the evening.
Co-headlining is UFC women’s bantamweight & featherweight champion Amanda Nunes, who looks to defend her bantamweight title for the sixth time tonight in her return to the division against No. 3 ranked TUF 18 winner Julianna Pena.
Our feature bout of the evening came in the welterweight division between No. 12 ranked Geoff Neal and No. 14 ranked Santiago Ponzinibbio. Continue reading to see how this epic clash went down:
Official Result: Geoff Neal def. Santiago Ponzinibbio via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
Round 1
Neal is looking very slick throughout round one, as it appears he’s getting the better of the exchanges.
Both men are attacking the others leg, but Neal is bringing those kicks upstairs and landing his hands as well.
Round 2
It appears it’s either 19-19 or 20-18 Neal going into the third, but it’s a very close fight. Ponzinibbio comes alive in the second, just as he did to rebound in his latest victory over Miguel Baeza. He just needs five minutes to make the reads and he’s one of the best in the entire world.
Round 3
Neal is winning the early part of the third, up until Ponzinibbio starts to land his own once again. This has turned into quite a war.
Neal then pours on the pressure and is very accurate throughout the last minute of the fight, as he tags Ponzinibbio a number of times over the last 60-70 seconds.
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