Uriah Hall (16-9-0) completed his mission with a TKO victory at UFC on ESPN+ 39 in Las Vegas, but it was still bittersweet.
His opponent was only Anderson Silva (34-11-0), the former UFC middleweight champion who terrorized the division from 2006 to 2012 and making his likely final appearance in the octagon.
Silva appeared to look prepared physically, as he did against Israel Adesanya. And the fight through two and a half rounds, was a typical feeling out process, dictated by Silva.
But then reality set in near the end of the third round.
A right hand by Hall connected off the break and floored Silva, who barely made it to the bell. But in the fourth, Hall again capitalized on the counterattack and this time, followup strikes forced referee Herb Dean to call the bout at 1:24.
In a moment of sportsmanship, Hall knelt with Silva after the bout and consoled him.
The win was the third straight for Hall, while Silva potentially left the octagon with just one win and a no-contest in his last nine contests since 2012. Yet, Silva was non-committal about retiring from mixed martial arts.
It looks like we will have to continue to play the waiting game to confirm if Silva does indeed retire from MMA.
Kevin Holland, Alexander Hernandez, Adrian Yanez, and Miles Johns earned performance of the night bonuses and a $50,000 USD bonus apiece. There was no Fight of the Night bonus awarded.
A card of full of finishes!
These four leave with an extra 50K for the night 💰
[ B2YB @o2tactical ] pic.twitter.com/cPxOBGLhVt
— UFC (@ufc) November 1, 2020
Kenai Andrews checks in with his thoughts on the main card.
In case you missed the prelims:
MILES JOHNS DEF. KEVIN NATVIDAD VIA KO (PUNCHES) R3 2:51
DUSTIN JACOBY DEF. JUSTIN LEDET VIA TKO (PUNCHES AND LEG KICKS) R1 2:38
JASON WITT DEF. COLE WILLIAMS VIA SUBMISSION (ARM-TRIANGLE CHOKE) R2 2:09
SEAN STRICKLAND DEF. JACK MARSHMAN VIA UD (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
ADRIAN YANEZ DEF. VICTOR RODRIGUEZ VIA KO (HEAD KICK) R1 2:46
ALEXANDER HERNANDEZ DEF. CHRIS GRUETZEMACHER VIA KO (PUNCHES) R1 1:46
MAIN CARD
BOBBY GREEN VS. THIAGO MOISES
29-28 on all three cards!
🇧🇷 @ThiagoMoisesMMA gets RDs 1 & 3 to edge Green. #UFCVegas12 pic.twitter.com/FniHYjfWEA
— UFC (@ufc) October 31, 2020
WINNER: THIAGO MOISES VIA UD (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
ANDREWS PREDICTION: BOBBY GREEN VIA UD
Andrews: Moises outworked Green. Good win.
KEVIN HOLLAND VS. CHARLIE ONTIVEROS
Make it 4️⃣ victories in 2020!
🗣 @Trailblaze2top keeps his electric year going.
[ #UFCVegas12 – LIVE on #ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/RuxVTTAqDN
— UFC (@ufc) October 31, 2020
WINNER: KEVIN HOLLND VIA SUBMISSION (NECK INJURY) R1 2:39
AMDREWS PREDICTION: KEVIN HOLLAND VIA TKO
Andrews: Holland did his job. Got the rookie out of there, quick.
MAURICE GREENE VS. GREG HARDY
Unquestionable power! 😤@GregHardyJr sits Greene down on a jab and doesn't let up.
[ Co-main next on #ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/9puT2wJ4n2
— UFC (@ufc) November 1, 2020
WINNER: GREG HARDY VIA TKO (PUNCHES) R1 1:12
ANDREWS PREDICTION: MAURICE GREENE VIA SUBMISSION
Andrews: Wow! Good win for Hardy.
#15 BRYCE MITCHELL VS. ANDRE FILI
https://twitter.com/ufc/status/1322705377717342208?s=20
WINNER: BRYCE MITCHELL VIA UD (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
ANDREWS PREDICTION: BRYCE MITCHELL VIA UD
Andrews: Mitchell overcame Fili, as expected.
MAIN EVENT
#10 URIAH HALL VS. ANDERSON SILVA
Silva is down!@UriahHallMMA drops the Spider but is halted by the bell 😲 #UFCVegas12 pic.twitter.com/Cm643YSsRQ
— UFC (@ufc) November 1, 2020
WINNER: URIAH HALL VIA TKO (PUNCHES) R4 1:24
ANDREWS PREDICTION: URIAH HALL VIA UD
Andrews: It was predictable. Anderson Silva was a great champion, but his time has long come to retire from MMA. I can only hope he does. Uriah Hall did a good job, now he needs to continue elevating before his time runs out.
