The UFC made a triumphant return to Ireland for the first time since 2009, igniting Dublin with the electrifying presence of hometown hero Conor McGregor and his highly anticipated comeback fight. UFC Fight Night 46: "McGregor vs. Brandao" took place on July 19, 2014, inside O2 Arena in Dublin, Ireland.
The night was truly memorable, capping off a fantastic week for the UFC. McGregor secured his third consecutive victory in the world's premier promotion, defeating Diego Brandao in the first round. Here's a breakdown of the key moments and takeaways from this exciting event.
Main Event: Conor McGregor vs. Diego Brandao
There was an incredible amount of pressure on Conor McGregor to live up to a long train of hype leading into his first UFC main event. The Dublin native did not disappoint in front of his home fans. McGregor (15-2 MMA, 3-0 UFC) took out Diego Brandao (18-10 MMA, 4-3 UFC) in the first round with a TKO, setting The O2 and his home crowd into an utter uproar. The featherweight bout headlined UFC Fight Night 46 main card at The O2 in Dublin.
The two couldn't wait to get at each other, and McGregor threw a spinning kick right away. Then he got tagged by a few Brandao punches before firing back. Brandao pushed him to the cage 30 seconds in as the crowd filled the arena with a massive "Ole!" soccer-style chant. But after that settled down, it was on McGregor to work his way out of Brandao tying him up. When Brandao tried to roll, McGregor went with him and landed on top and looked to work ground-and-pound. He stood up before diving back in, then had to stave off a heel hook attempt from the Brazilian.
But he went right back down and pinned Brandao on the fence and looked for punches. Then elbows found a home on Brandao's head. Brandao scrambled back to his feet, but McGregor tagged him. Then he kicked up high, then landed a spinning back kick that put Brandao on a knee. Seconds later, it was Brandao returning fire in the center of the octagon. With a minute left, though, McGregor backed Brandao to the cage and started teeing off on him after a big left hand. He dropped him and then wouldn't let up until referee Leon Roberts was in to shut it down.
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The crowd went into an uproar. Irish tricolor flags were waved in the air as Brandao tried to lick the wounds. McGregor came to him to shake his hand after the fight, with Brandao looking like he was still a bit unsure of what just transpired.
"I had a feeling if I had a chance to drop him, I'd try to pass his guard and advance position," McGregor said. "I said I was going to put him away in the first round, and I put him away in the first round. There's not a man alive who can come on this soil and beat me."
Then McGregor said he was going to talk to the UFC about putting him in a bigger venue next time around.
"I'm going to go backstage with Mr. Lorenzo Fertitta, have a little whiskey, and talk about being in a stadium," McGregor said.
The bad blood-fueled bout began with a spinning kick from McGregor. Brandao threw two headkicks and McGregor one of his own, and the fighters went to war. Brandao sought a takedown against the cage, but McGregor reversed to get a takedown and land on top of Brandao on the ground. Brandao sought a leglock but McGregor slipped out to rain down some ground and pound.
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“Notorious” returned to the feet to land a big right hand and a body kick. He followed with a left hand and a spinning kick that hurt Brandao. An exchange ensued, with Brandao landing some good punches of his own. McGregor stalked his opponent on the cage, landing some brutal shots to drop the Brazilian and earn the first round finish with a swarm up against the cage.
What We Learned About Conor McGregor
He's going to talk. And talk. And talk some more. He's going to sell himself, his fights and anything related to those things as hard as anyone in the game. He's going to heap pressure onto himself while the rest of the world watches in amazement, wondering how much he can stand up to before he buckles.
Then he's going to go out into that maelstrom of attention he's created and exceed expectations. The only thing bigger for McGregor than returning home to Dublin at this point is a shot at the featherweight title. To this point, he's handled everything in his UFC career with incredible poise, and there's little reason to think the train is going to slow down anytime soon.
At a time when the UFC needs stars like the rest of us need air, the promotion might very well have its man.
What We Learned About Diego Brandao
He's not afraid of a gun fight but might not be cut out for one, either. His up-and-down trajectory in the UFC continued at UFC Fight Night 46, as he was more than willing to go toe-to-toe with McGregor and see who would stand up to a proper war. That's not really a surprise given his fiery nature, but it's also not a surprise that someone who's been so hit or miss in the Octagon might not win with such a strategy.
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Brandao didn't. Still, they were commendable terms on which to engage McGregor, terms that surely earned him some points with a crowd that was heavily against him from the get-go.
What's Next for McGregor
The two most logical options for McGregor depend on how far the UFC wants to jump him in competition.
If the UFC would like him to take a step in between where he is now and that upper echelon of the division, Jeremy Stephens makes sense next. If it wants to go all-in on him, a bout with Dustin Poirier would work, as both are young guns just on the fringe of title talk. They also share a common opponent in Brandao, whom they both defeated in previous bouts.
What's Next for Brandao
A fight with McGregor's original opponent, Cole Miller, might work. The two are similarly ranked, have a penchant for feistiness both in and out of the cage and possess styles that would mesh for a good fight.
Brandao is now lost in a swarm of tough and talented featherweights. It’s clear that he can’t hang with the best, and his ability to take damage is apparently waning with each bout. He’ll probably get one more chance against an unranked opponent. If he doesn’t win that bout impressively he’ll most likely be cut.
His considerable promise has dissipated amongst a litany of poor performances, and that’s just too bad given the potential he showed just a few short years ago.
To come back from a serious injury and demolish Brandao like that, McGregor deserves all the credit in the world. With the crowd roaring, McGregor got the win in front of his friends and family, looking fairly untroubled throughout the round and dealing with the pressure like a world-class fighter.
In all fairness, “Notorious” still needs a top-ranked opponent who is on a win streak, but putting the Brazilian away in less than five minutes is still quite impressive. He may have put him away in more impressive fashion than Dustin Poirier did at UFC 168.
McGregor delivered in a huge way on the grand stage, clearly outclassing Brandao, who was once considered the future of the UFC featherweight division. That distinction now goes to McGregor, who called out for a title bout with Jose Aldo in an Irish soccer stadium.
We'll have to see what happens, but McGregor was simply never in any trouble against Brandao. He's now undefeated in UFC, and a match-up with the winner of UFC on FOX 12's Clay Guida vs. Dennis Bermudez bout would make for an insane match-up for "Notorious."
But the fight he may receive could be with No. 6-ranked Poirier, the normally calm competitor who has become increasingly angered with McGregor’s endless trash talk.
UFC could even throw him to the wolves and book against big names in No. 1-ranked Chad Mendes, No. 2-ranked Frankie Edgar, or even No. 3-ranked Cub Swanson, who already has a sordid history building with "Notorious."
Love him or hate him, you can’t deny his talent, and he’s here to stay. UFC needs him in this time of absent and injured champions.
McGregor is to Ireland what Georges St. Pierre is to Quebec, at the moment, and seeing how the fans nearly smothered him as he walked out of the Octagon, he’s on the rise to become one of the top European stars in the sport. Maybe it could be said that Zuffa has the star they need in an era without GSP and Anderson Silva.
Soak it up for now, but the Irishman’s work isn’t done when considering him in a title fight. He could be close, yet it’s time to give him someone dangerous to see what he can do in the near future.
But then again, if Gina Carano can come back after years of inactivity and acquire a title fight, it’s not exactly out of the ordinary for “Notorious” to get a crack at the gold if he wins two more.
UFC Fight Night 46 Results
Here's a summary of the results from the main card and preliminary card of UFC Fight Night 46:
| Fight | Result | Round | Time | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conor McGregor vs. Diego Brandao | McGregor def. Brandao | 1 | 4:05 | TKO (punches) |
| Gunnar Nelson vs. Zak Cummings | Nelson def. Cummings | 2 | 4:48 | Submission (rear-naked choke) |
| Ian McCall vs. Brad Pickett | McCall def. Pickett | 3 | - | Unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) |
| Norman Parke vs. Naoyuki Kotani | Parke def. Kotani | 2 | 3:41 | TKO (punches) |
| Ilir Latifi vs. Chris Dempsey | Latifi def. Dempsey | 1 | 2:07 | TKO (punches) |
| Neil Seery vs. Phil Harris | Seery def. Harris | 3 | - | Unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) |
| Cathal Pendred vs. Mike King | Pendred def. King | 2 | 3:33 | Submission (rear-naked choke) |
| Trevor Smith vs. Tor Troeng | Smith def. Troeng | 3 | - | Unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) |
| Nikita Krylov vs. Cody Donovan | Krylov def. Donovan | 1 | 4:57 | TKO (punches) |
| Patrick Holohan vs. Josh Sampo | Holohan def. Sampo | 1 | 3:00 | Submission (rear-naked choke) |
Biggest Winners and Losers
Biggest Winner: Conor McGregor
To come back from a serious injury and demolish Brandao like that, McGregor deserves all the credit in the world.
Or, a top 10 opponent. With the crowd roaring, McGregor got the win in front of his friends and family, looking fairly untroubled throughout the round and dealing with the pressure like a world-class fighter.
In all fairness, “Notorious” still needs a top-ranked opponent who is on a win streak, but putting the Brazilian away in less than five minutes is still quite impressive. He may have put him away in more impressive fashion than Dustin Poirier did at UFC 168.
McGregor is to Ireland what Georges St. Pierre is to Quebec, at the moment, and seeing how the fans nearly smothered him as he walked out of the Octagon, he’s on the rise to become one of the top European stars in the sport. Maybe it could be said that Zuffa has the star they need in an era without GSP and Anderson Silva.
Soak it up for now, but the Irishman’s work isn’t done when considering him in a title fight. He could be close, yet it’s time to give him someone dangerous to see what he can do in the near future.
But then again, if Gina Carano can come back after years of inactivity and acquire a title fight, it’s not exactly out of the ordinary for “Notorious” to get a crack at the gold if he wins two more.
Runner Up: Gunnar Nelson
It’s strange, because Nelson didn’t really do anything until he submitted Cummings.
The American won the first frame, and although both commentators were complimenting “Gunni” without the fighter really doing much, it looked as if Nelson was going to have to dig deep in the third round.
Nelson then took advantage of Cummings’ mistake and transitioned from a guillotine into a rear-naked choke, while landing some big strikes to the face and body.
Everyone is ranting and raving about the Icelandic fighter, and he deserves merit for his performance. Still, he needs a top 10 opponent -- just like the main event winner -- to truly prove the eagle has landed.
But it’s looking good for “Gunni.”
He toppled Cathal Pendred as the runner up, simply because Nelson has a little more upside when it comes to his immediate future, but it was still a tough decision to make. The “Punisher” currently has the comeback of the year under his belt so far, but Nelson just decided to end his fight out of nowhere, too.
Biggest Loser: Diego Brandao
He was the underdog, and most expected him to lose, but at least Brandao showed up on enemy territory and did his best.
After all that trash talk, Brandao was on the wrong end of everything he said he was going to do to his opponent, losing his second fight in a row due to strikes.
Falling in a main event is bad enough, since everyone usually remembers the headlining fight over the others, yet the way “Ceara” lost was pretty dreadful if you were pulling for him.
It’s a tough pill to swallow for the first Brazilian TUF winner, and he hasn’t really lived up to expectations. One more lopsided loss, and the promotion will need to figure out if he’s worth keeping for those Wednesday night Brazil cards.
UFC doesn’t need to flip the switch and cut him right away, but if Brandao can’t focus on putting together a good performance in his next bout, the termination notice could be fresh out of the printer with his name on it.
Runner Up: Brad Pickett
After witnessing the highly anticipated flyweight battle pitting McCall against Pickett, it’s safe to say maybe their three-round bout wasn’t exactly filled with dynamite.
McCall opted to use a strategy of landing on the inside, and getting out right away. Both athletes tried to take each other down, and ultimately, “One Punch” came up short.