MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month for April: Featherweight contenders battle in Kansas City

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from April 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for April.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

Nominees

Nominee: Steve Garcia def. Shayilan Neurdanbieke at UFC 287

Shayilan Nuerdanbieke (39-11 MMA, 3-2 UFC) started his featherweight fight against Steve Garcia (14-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) strong, hurting his foe with big punches and having his opponent on the ropes. It would’ve been over against an opponent with less heart, but it wasn’t happening.

Garcia stayed alive and turned the tables by rocking Nuerdanbieke multiple times late in the first round. He picked up where he left off on the second, landing a left body kick followed by a nasty show to the body that led to the knockout finish in the second round.

Nominee: Kelvin Gastelum def. Chris Curtis at UFC 287

Kelvin Gastelum (18-8 MMA, 12-8 UFC) was confident he’d have a positive turning point in his career, and he accomplished the first step with a much-needed win over Chris Curtis (30-10 MMA, 4-2 UFC).

After dropping five of his past six fights prior to Saturday, “The Ultimate Fighter 17” winner Gastelum earned a unanimous victory over Curtis in what many viewed as a crossroads fight in his career. He used his striking to get the job done in a high-paced and hard-hitting middleweight affair.

Nominee: Kevin Holland def. Santiago Ponzinibbio at UFC 287

Kevin Holland’s (24-9 MMA, 11-6 UFC) fight-ending accuracy and power was on display once again in his welterweight showdown with Santiago Ponzinibbio (29-7 MMA, 11-6 UFC).

After doing some good work on the feet, Holland sparked Ponzinibbio with a beautiful left hook to faceplant the Argentina-born fighter. Holland looked for a right hand after catching the kick, and then charged forward with a hard left hook that dropped Ponzinibbio face-first into the mat. The follow-up punches landed with no response, prompting the referee to rush in to stop the fight.

Nominee: Max Holloway def. Arnold Allen at UFC on ESPN 44

Max Holloway (24-7 MMA, 20-7 UFC) proved he’s still the standard among featherweight contenders when he ended Arnold Allen’s (19-2 MMA, 10-1 UFC) winning streak in their featherweight contender clash.

Holloway bounced back from his title-fight loss to Alexander Volkanovski in July with a unanimous decision win. Allen came into the fight with a flawless octagon record through 10 octagon appearances, but “Blessed” brought an end to all that with his signature high output and technical striking over five rounds.

Nominee: Yancy Medeiros def. Charlie Leary at Bellator 295

Yancy Medeiros (16-8 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) won in front of a raucous Honolulu crowd for the second time in as many appearances when he submitted Charlie Leary (17-14-1 MMA, 3-5 BMMA) in a thrilling battle at a 165-pound catchweight.

A firefight ignited between Medeiros and the Englishman, Leary, seemingly from the opening bell. A moderate underdog, Leary looked like he might play the role of spoiler as he found success in the boxing department. Punches, knees, a spinning back elbow, and a spinning back kick to the body found its way for Medeiros, who battered Leary. Eventually, Medeiros dropped Leary, and when it hit the canvas, he pivoted to jiu-jitsu and locked in a rear-naked choke.

The winner

The winner: Holloway vs. Allen

Former UFC featherweight champ Holloway proved he’s still a level above every other contender in the division.

Allen looked to start the action with a series of leg kicks as Holloway measured from the outside. One of the kicks went south, pausing the action momentarily. When the fight resumed, Holloway fired off a few fast punching combinations as the crowd chanted his name.

A big left hand from Allen cracked, but Holloway didn’t seem bothered as kept his same demeanor. A few more heated exchanges followed, but Holloway appeared more comfortable as he circled and picked his shots well.

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The left hand was the tool of choice early in the second round for Allen, who came out aggressive and landed the punch to punctuate a few hard combinations. Holloway responded well in the second half of the round, but Allen set the tone for the frame with his power in the opening exchanges.

Staying light on his feet while circling remained a key strategy for Holloway in the third. Holloway added in more kicks to his offense, especially a few flush to the body, while switching stances repeatedly to keep Allen guessing.

In the fourth, Holloway’s experience in championship fights began to shine. While Allen’s offense slowed initially in the frame, Holloway took advantage with crisp combinations and clean counters. However, Allen did find a home for a few big strikes in the later moments of the round.

Allen’s corner told him he needed to go for a finish, and he came out hunting for it aggressively. After landing a few nice shots, Holloway reset and got back to controlling the pace of the action. Allen initiated a clinch momentarily, but opted to go back to the striking game, and landed more nice punches and a head kick. After a clinch stalled the action, the fighters separated and emptied the tank. Holloway clipped and dropped Allen right before the horn, but the judges would have their say.

All three cageside judges agreed the former champ did enough to earn the victory on the scorecards.

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Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie