UFC on ESPN+ 26 took place Sunday, February 23, 2020 in Auckland, New Zealand. The card was headlined by Paul Felder taking on hometown fighter Dan Hooker.
Closing odds are courtesy of Several Bookmakers. Here’s a quick recap of each of those fights.
Favorites that Won
In an excellent main event, which saw both fighters have their moments, Dan Hooker did just enough in the final round to get his hand raised against Paul Felder to win by split decision. Hooker closed -155 while Felder closed +135
Yan Xiaonan was dominant winning nearly every moment of her fight with former title challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz to win by unanimous decision. Xiaonan closed -280. Kowalkiewicz closed +230
Marcos Rogerio de Lima landed a right hook that sent Ben Sosoli spiraling to the canvas in the opening minute of the bout giving de Lima the knockout win. De Lima closed -155 with the return on Sosoli +135
In the second round, Jalin Turner was able to get Josh Culibao grounded. With Culibao flattened out and face towards the mat, Turner landed punch after punch until the referee stepped in and called the fight giving Turner the win. Turner closed -230 while Culibao closed +195
Jake Matthews secured takedowns in all three rounds to solidify a decision victory over Emil Meek. Matthews closed -225 with the return on Meek +185
Song Kenan landed a beautiful four punch combo which sent Callum Potter to the canvas. The referee saw enough and stopped the fight 2:20 into the first round to give the Chinese fighter another win in the UFC. Kenan closed -200 while Potter closed +170
Kai Kara-France landed the bigger strikes on the feet to fend off Tyson Nam winning by decision in one of the better bouts of the night. Kara-France closed -265. Nam closed +225
Angela Hill used her size and power to get the better of the stand up and dominate in the clinch in a decision victory over Loma Lookboonmee. Hill closed -175 with the return on Lookboonmee +150
Underdogs that Won
Jimmy Crute secured a takedown in the opening round and worked on a kimura which forced Polish fighter Michal Oleksiejczuk to tap. Crute closed +120 with the return on Oleksiejczuk -120
In a competitive fight, Brad Riddell finished strong clearly winning round three to edge out Magomed Mustafaev by split decision. Riddell closed +120 while Mustafaev closed -140
Zubaira Tukhugov looked as good as he has in years as he dropped Kevin Aguilar twice in the first round forcing Marc Goddard to step in and stop the bout just over midway through round one. Tukhugov closed -105. Aguilar closed -115
In the night’s opening bout, Brazilian Priscila Cachoeira landed an uppercut flooring Shana Dobson in the first minute of the fight. The referee was forced to stop the bout giving Cachoeira the win. Cachoeira closed +165 while Dobson closed -190
