Already in the first round, the South Korean fighter made it clear that he was not going to take the fight to a judges’ decision, forcing the American to counter-strike, and he nearly paid for it early in the second five minutes, missing a counter-punch and getting knocked down. Holloway lost momentum and didn’t finish his opponent, and an attempt to finish him with a choke was ineffective and allowed Zombie to recover and get back into the fight.
At the start of the third round, the South Korean went all-in and rushed the American, however, he missed a counter right jab at the 23rd second and was knocked out.
In his post-fight interview, Max Holloway asked UFC fans to support his home state of Hawaii, which was badly affected by the terrible fire, and Korean Zombie announced that he was ending his professional career, as he missed his last chance to make a name for himself, and was not ready to be in the league in a second role in the status of a gaytaker.
In the co-main event, former UFC bantamweight title challenger Anthony Smith put his career back on track after two straight losses, defeating Ryan Spann by split decision over three rounds.
In the second round, “Lionheart” missed a left uppercut that rocked him and almost completely covered his left eye, however, he did not allow his opponent to finish himself, but instead pulled out the win, convincing two of the three judges that he had the advantage in the fight.
In the third major event of the tournament, Georgian welterweight Giga Chikadze resumed his career after a year and a half hiatus, defeating American Alex Caceres by unanimous decision.
In other results, we note the successful performance of American Erin Blanchfield, who defeated Brazilian Taíla Santos by unanimous decision and solidified her position in the top three of the UFC women’s flyweight division.
Junior Tafa, Waldo Cortez-Acosta, Garrett Armfield, Michal Oleksiychuk, Billy Goff and J.J. Aldrich all earned early victories.
All results from UFC Fight Night 225.