Last night (Sat., March 7, 2026), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, for UFC 326. The third numbered event of 2026 featured the best main event yet, a guaranteed slugfest between fan favorites Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira — oh, and the BMF belt was on the line if you’re into that kind of thing. Elsewhere on the card, Middleweight contenders Reinier de Ridder vs. Caio Borralho aimed to rebound, and action fighters like Drew Dober and Gregory
Rodrigues promised to bring the action … we just had to endure the worst “Prelims” in recent memory to get there.
Let’s take a look back over the best performances and techniques of the evening:
Do Bronx Domination
Serious question: did anybody expect THAT?!?
Max Holloway landed maybe a handful of significant punches in 25 minutes. From the very first bell, Oliveira lived up to his promise to hunt Holloway, stalking him with chopping calf kicks and punishing right hands. In the very first real exchange of punches, Oliveira stunned Holloway with a right and threw him on his back with absolute ease. Moments later, he was scarily close to a rear naked choke finish.
Holloway, game as ever, fought hands really well and never gave up. He also never found any real success, as Oliveira kept his foot on the gas the whole time. Every round started upright, and Oliveira wasted no time throwing hard punches and kicks until the takedown materialized. As soon as he was on top, Holloway was absolutely stuck.
By the second half of the fight, Holloway was run ragged. Even during the exchanges before the inevitable takedown, Holloway was no longer throwing with his usual speed and power — he was just getting blasted by “Do Bronx.” All told, this victory was one of the greatest performances of Charles Oliveira’s remarkable career. It might be his finest!
Oliveira has rebounded brilliantly from his knockout loss to Ilia Topuria last summer. Back when that defeat occurred, there was plenty of speculation that Oliveira was past his best. Given the recent results of Charles Oliveira, Max Holloway, and Alexander Volkanovski, perhaps Oliveira and his peers are not washed.
Perhaps Ilia Topuria is just that damn good?
Borralho Outpoints RDR
Caio Borralho vs. Reinier de Ridder was a tactical affair.
Borralho’s speed and power dominated the early going. De Ridder would try to walk forward and build combinations, but Borralho routinely interrupted him with spearing jabs, check hooks, and heavy calf kicks. “RDR” was severely outgunned, and he couldn’t rely on his step knee to save him in this collision of lefties.
Still, the lanky Dutchman found his way into the fight. An extended wrestling entanglement sapped some of Borralho’s energy to finish the first, leaving him huffing and puffing a bit in the second. De Ridder continued to work and found some decent connections, particularly when he doubled up on his jab. Meanwhile, Borralho’s volume dropped off, setting the stakes high for the final round.
Credit to the Brazilian, he answered the call rejuvenated. Right away, he was slinging hard shots and forcing de Ridder backward. Pivotally, he also wrestled offensively for the first time, scoring a couple minutes in top position as a result. “RDR” was game to the final bell, but it was clear who scored the heavier blows across 15 minutes.
Don’t look now, but it’s 2026 and The Big Four of The Fighting Nerds are all back in the win column.
As Real As It Gets?
For the second time in two fights, there was suspicious line movement surrounding Michael Johnson’s fights. Last time, his planned scrap versus Alexander Hernandez was cancelled at the last second, and “The Great” received the criticism for allegedly concealing an injury. When there was more surprising line movement in the hours leading up to Johnson vs. Drew Dober, a lot of questions and accusations were thrown around online.
I can only offer up my take after watching the fight: I didn’t see anything untoward.
The two Southpaws boxed at a good clip in round one. Both men threw heat, and Johnson’s speed was the difference-maker. He dinged Dober’s formidable chin with a few straight punches that were clearly the best connections of the opening frame, producing some swelling and blood. Dober is a marauder and didn’t let up on the pressure, staying in Johnson’s face and continuing to press.
Dober’s persistence paid off. As Johnson’s quick trigger timing began to wane, Dober started finding bigger connections in longer exchanges. Then, he stepped forward into a powerful 3-2 that very obviously knocked out the longtime veteran — not even an Oscar-winning actor is going to let his skull bounce off the canvas like Johnson did while crumbling to the floor.
Furthermore, the outcome makes perfect sense. Dober is known for comeback wins and carries his power deep into fights. Johnson is known for starting fast and fading or losing focus as the battle wears on.
If you did notice something suspicious, I’d love to hear details in the comments section.
Robocop’s Revenge
Gregory Rodrigues learned his lesson from the first Brunno Ferreira fight.
Back in January 2023, “Robocop” sprinted at Ferreira, gave away his height and reach advantages, and ran directly into a monstrous counter punch that put him to sleep. Three years later, Rodrigues did not open the fight with immediate aggression. He circled around, feinted a bit, and let the shorter man come to him. “The Hulk” started to up the pressure, and Rodrigues planted with a wide right hand swing, catching his foe clean right as Ferreira switched into Southpaw.
It was Rodrigues’ first real punch of the fight, and it put Ferreira out cold.
Just like that, Rodrigues secures revenge and extends his win streak to three. He’s won six of his last seven overall in generally impressive fashion, so perhaps it’s time to give “Robocop” another shot at a Top 10 opponent? This was a nice display of maturity from the Brazilian slugger, and it appears Ferreira will have to put together a solid streak before we get a trilogy match.
Additional Thoughts
- Alberto Montes defeats Ricky Turcios via second-round anaconda choke (highlights): Montes made his official UFC debut opposite Turcios in his first-ever UFC appearance at 145 pounds after yet another Bantamweight cancellation due to no fault of his own. Early on, Turcios looked strong in the clinch and landed some good kicks, but Montes demonstrated a clear boxing advantage once he settled into the fight. He started timing straight, crisp punches with great accuracy, and Turcios was clearly feeling the impact. When Turcios tried to wrestle, Montes met his shot with a stiff sprawl and attacked the neck immediately, wrapping up his signature anaconda choke — his third in a row! Montes looked quite sharp, and I look forward to his sophomore appearance.
- Rodolfo Bellato defeats Luke Hernandez via first-round knockout (highlights): Bellato didn’t win many exchanges in this short fight. The significant underdog appeared to be outgunned by the debuting Hernandez, who was putting together good combinations and tagging the Brazilian. Then, Bellato stood his ground and crashed into Hernandez with an uppercut-left hook combination. The latter shot landed right on the chin, flooring the formerly undefeated finisher. After a winless 2025, Bellato is officially back in the win column and ready to rebuild his former momentum.
