Betting: UFC 275 Instant Reaction
Kevin Iole recaps the UFC 275 PPV Card.
Video Transcript
KEVIN IOLE: UFC 275 is in the books, and what a fight card it was. What a main event it was. It was just an incredible card-- the main event, one of the greatest fights I have ever seen. A title changed hands in the main event, as favorite Jiri Procházka became the champion, submitting Glover Teixeira with just 28 seconds left in the fight, a fight that Teixeira was about to win on the cards.
Procházka gets the rear naked choke in after a wild exchange, and he submits Glover Teixeira to become the new UFC light heavyweight champion. Procházka was a minus-225 favorites. So a lot of late money actually went on Procházka. Teixeira closed at plus-180.
All three favorites in the final three bouts, cover but you really had to sweat all of them because it was really something else. In the last of the non-title fights, Zhang Weili defeated Joanna Jedrzejczye by knockout with an amazing, spinning backfist knockout. It was a great first round. They went back and forth. It was much like their fight in 2020. It was one of the greatest fights in UFC history. These two women went at it like crazy.
Zhang was a minus-175 favorite. Jedrzejczye was plus-145. They just battled on even terms throughout the first round, although the wrestling was an advantage for Weili Zhang. Finally, she got that spinning backfist, and she ends Joanna's-- not only her night, but Joanna announced her retirement after that. It looks like Weili will now fight Carla Esparza for the title.
And in the co-main event-- who could have ever seen this coming? Taila Santos nearly dethroned Valentina Shevchenko. But the classy champion from Kyrgyzstan managed to hold on, and she won a split decision as a 6 to 1 favorite. Shevchenko closed at minus-600, Santos at plus-425.
Santos had Shevchenko in all sorts of trouble, had her back a couple of times in the early part of the fight. An inadvertent headbutt in the third round may have made the difference because it closed the left eye of Santos-- excuse me, the right eye of Santos. And that was it. Santos really wasn't able to do much after that. Shevchenko attacked the eye-- a lot of punches and kicks to that side of the face, and she was able to retain her championship and the closest fight she has had yet.
The UFC 275 is going to go down in the books as one of the best ever, but all three favorites close in the final-- cover in the final three fights. It was an amazing show including an amazing, memorable main event. For Yahoo! Sports, I am Kevin Iole.
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