UFC 263 review: Recapping a stunning night in Arizona

What a weekend that was! With PFL on Thursday night, Bellator on Friday and UFC on Saturday night, MMA fans got more than their fill of combat sports action, and UFC 263 was the perfect main course to a superb weekend of fights.Israel Adesanya returned to middleweight and showed the world why he’s been untouchable at 185 pounds as he pitched a shutout against Marvin Vettori, while Brandon Moreno provided the feel-good story of the MMA year so far with his emotional submission win over Deiveson Figueiredo to capture the undisputed flyweight title. Kudos, too, to Figueiredo for his reaction to defeat, which was just about as classy as you’ll find in this sport.It was a big night, too, for Leon Edwards, who defeated Nate Diaz in their special five-round welterweight showcase, despite a late scare when Diaz looked close to scoring a finish on the Brit, whose performance up to the final 60 seconds was absolutely sublime.The event also delivered a gruesome viral moment, a Paul Craig dislocated Jamahal Hill’s arm, with the referee seemingly oblivious to the fact. Thankfully, Craig was able to secure the win and Hill remarkably avoided any broken bones from the incident. We also look back at Bellator 260, where a new champion was crowned at 170 pounds as Yaroslav Amosov extended his perfect professional record at the expense of welterweight champion Douglas Lima and his title, and PFL 4, where Claressa Shields picked up a win on her MMA debut and Brendan Loughnane won a “Fight of the Year” contender with Tyler Diamond to book his place in the featherweight semi-finals and put him just two wins away from a major title and a cool $1million.It’s a packed show to recap a packed weekend in MMA. Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thebritpack.substack.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit simonheadsport.substack.com