In the 73rd fight of his professional career, Russia’s Alexey Oleynik swapped grappling for striking as he threw caution to the wind, and defeated former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum at UFC 249 in Jacksonville.
Oleynik came out aggressively from the very start, and seemed to catch Werdum by surprise with his fast-paced, all-guns-blazing approach as he connected with a host of heavy-handed punches.
Werdum seemed discombobulated and took a while to settle as he started to return fire with Muay Thai knees to the body of “the Boa Constrictor.” But Oleynik continued his remarkable, relentless pace as he kept up his barrage for the remainder of the round.
Not just a submission artist…@OleynikUFC is throwing BOMBS! ?#UFC249pic.twitter.com/YUzMxQ12wt
After such an uncharacteristic striking output, Oleynik looked close to exhaustion after the opening round and, instead of sitting on his stool between rounds, opted instead to lay on the canvas with his feet perched on top of the stool instead.
Unconventional corner etiquette from @OleynikUFC…but we’re here for it! #UFC249pic.twitter.com/ibcijz2tJ7
It looked bizarre, but it seemed to work, as Oleynik came out for the second round and delivered more of the same. Werdum fired back with more strikes of his own in Round 2, but seemed to be outgunned by the output of an inspired Oleynik, whose work rate again left him breathless and on his back in his corner at the end of the round.
Werdum switched gears and turned to his grappling in the third and final round, and threatened with a host of submissions as he attempted to score a final-round finish. But Oleynik defended smartly and eventually worked his way back to his feet. And even though Werdum managed to lock up a last-gasp guillotine choke, the Brazilian was unable to finish the fight as time ran out and the bout went to the scorecards.
The Boa Constrictor! ??? @OleynikUFC gets the nod at #UFC249pic.twitter.com/eg2tKxKtJD
When the scores were announced, it was Oleynik who took the split-decision win, with scores of 28-29, 29-28, 29-28.
