UFC 178 lived up to the expectations and delivered a smorgasbord of entertaining violence. This is a prime example of the axiom that better fighters - all ten fighters on the main card and three on the undercard were ranked - put on better fights, contrary to that old and hackneyed line, "Don't judge a card before it happens." The lineup looked fantastic on paper, and it delivered in a big way. We saw ridiculous knockouts, high-level striking technique, high-amplitude throws, crazy athleticism, and come-from-behind victories.
It was a special card and a special night of fights, the kind of event that reminds jaded viewers of how great this sport can be when it all comes together right. Let's take a look at the real winners and losers.
Winners
Jorge Masvidal: The American Top Team product has developed into one of the UFC's most reliably entertaining action fighters, as most predicted he would after entering the promotion from Strikeforce. He's hittable enough to be fun, but not so much that it actively hinders his offensive game. He's effectively installed himself as a gatekeeper to the lightweight division's top 10, and that's no mean feat in a weight class this stacked.
Dominick Cruz: Well, that was certainly an emphatic way for the former bantamweight champion to announce his return to the division. Prior to the litany of injuries that robbed Cruz of the last three years, few doubted his skill or his ability to outmove and outwork anybody at 135, but few would have called him a particularly scary fighter. That changed tonight. Cruz came out and, for lack of a better term, destroyed Takeya Mizugaki, blasting him with ground strikes and tossing the normally sturdy Japanese fighter around like a sack of potatoes. I was prepared to watch a clear if not dominating decision and declare that TJ Dillashaw would eat the former champion alive, while lamenting the deleterious effets of his repeated injuries. After that performance, however, there are few fights by which I'd be more intrigued. Good for Cruz, and good for the bantamweight division. All hail the return of the king.
Cat Zingano: No victory on the card outstrips Cat Zingano's in terms of emotional significance, following not only the devastating knee injury that left her out of action for more than a year but also the loss of her husband. It's impossible to imagine the kind of turmoil she's faced in the last year, and surviving a first-round beating to come back and beat the hell out of Amanda Nunes represents an unfathomable triumph of will. Not only did she soundly trounce Nunes, Zingano did so in exceptionally entertaining fashion, with a profusion of high-amplitude throws, vicious shots from top control, and an unreal killer instinct. Zingano is a fine practitioner of violent mayhem and a worthy challenger to Ronda Rousey's lofty throne.
Yoel Romero: Speaking of violence, how about that Yoel Romero? Leaving aside the controversy about the stool, which frankly I'm not that interested in hashing out (mostly because Romero fights are always bizarre), he landed shots on Tim Kennedy that would've put down water buffalo and elephants on an African safari. The ease with which he shucked off the American's takedown attempts was shocking - nobody, not Jacare orLuke Rockhold, throws Tim Kennedy around - and he paced himself well. For my money, nobody does more straight-up awesome things in the cage than Yoel Romero, and I can't wait to see him fight again.
Conor McGregor: The birth of a star is a fascinating, infuriating, messy, and above all, a rare process that we're watching unfold in real time. McGregor is the real deal both in the cage and outside it, the kind of charismatic, next-level celebrity that MMA in general and the UFC in particular need to stay relevant in a time of declining ratings and presumably interest in the product. Sure, that process comes with a fair amount of hyperbole, but don't let that distract you from the very real apotheosis we happen to be watching. At the end of the day, I can't pay McGregor any higher compliment than to say that he's worth the price of admission.
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