Mateusz Gamrot survives early adversity, outworks and defeats Rafael dos Anjos at UFC 299
The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to us tonight, March 9, 2024, for UFC 299, a 14-fight card going down from the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Headlining the event is bantamweight championship rematch between Sean O’Malley (17-1, 1 NC) and the only man to ever defeat him, no. 5 ranked Marlon Vera (23-8-1).
Co-headlining the event is a lightweight encounter between no. 3 ranked former interim champion Dustin Poirier (29-8, 1 NC) and no. 11 ranked Benoit Saint-Denis (13-1, 1 NC).
Our second bout going down on the regular prelims tonight came at 155 lbs between no. 6 ranked former KSW two-division champion Mateusz Gamrot (24-2, 1 NC) and former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos (32-16).
Gamrot came into the bout on a two-fight win streak, showcasing victories over Jalin Turner (SD) and Rafael Fiziev (TKO), while dos Anjos had gone 3-2 over his last five, most recently losing to Vicente Luque up at 170 lbs this past August.
Continue reading to see how this lightweight encounter went down:
Official Result: Mateusz Gamrot def. Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Dos Anjos catches Gamrot with a stiff knee about 40 seconds in, dropping him do his knees with it.
Once Gamrot got back to his feet he was caught with a right hand that also dropped him. Gamrot shot in on a few takedown attempts unsuccessfully, before eventually securing one midway through the opening round, remaining in control for the second half of the round.
Gamrot secures a single leg takedown 30 seconds into the second. Once dos Anjos returned to his feet he got taken down again, eventually getting back to his feet in the final minute of the round.
Gamrot continued to secure takedowns on the former champion throughout the third and final round. Dos Anjos got back to his feet each time and ended the round on his feet, he was ultimately out-worked by Gamrot, who fights like the lightweight version of Merab Dvalishvili.
After a great start for Rafael dos Anjos, Mateusz Gamrot improves to 7-2 inside the octagon tonight at UFC 299.
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