Charles Oliveira came up against Beneil Dariush in the co-main event of UFC 289 on June 10th, 2023 and he delivered some great results for the fans in attendance. It was a very important fight in the UFC lightweight division as Oliveira was looking to bounce back from losing the title against Islam Makhachev in his last fight, while Dariush was on the verge of a title-shot himself. The fight between the two men has actually been a long time coming too, as they were originally booked to meet at UFC 288. That all changed at the very last minute though, as fans were left devastated when Oliveira suffered an injury during the lead-up to the fight. At least they didn’t have to wait too long to get what they were waiting for, as the fight was rebooked for UFC 289 almost immediately.
This was supposed to be a very close match on paper, as both men are elite grapplers who have developed fantastic striking over the course of their professional MMA career. Oliveira had put together an 11-fight winning streak prior to losing his title to Islam Makhachev, while Dariush was riding an 8-fight winning streak coming the fight. Oliveira landed a big head kick almost immediately, although Dariush was able to recover and get to work in the clinch. Dariush took the fight to the mat and started to land shots from top position, but Oliveira threatened a heel hook to force him to defend. Oliveira took an opportunity to get back to standing and landed another big head kick, swarming his opponent and finding the finish in the very first round.
There were other great results at UFC 289 as well, with Mike Malott locking up a beautiful guillotine choke to earn a “Performance of the Night” bonus shortly before Charles Oliveira’s win. In the main event, Amanda Nunes dominated Irene Aldana in every single round and retained her bantamweight world championship in impressive fashion. She left it all in the cage in more ways than one, as Nunes also announced her decision to retire from professional MMA immediately after she had won the fight.
UFC 289 Full Results
Amanda Nunes defeats Irene Aldana via Decision – Unanimous (50-44, 50-44, 50-43)
Nunes retains the UFC Women’s Bantamweight World Championship
Charles Oliveira defeats Beneil Dariush via TKO – Punches (Round 1, 4:10)
Mike Malott defeats Adam Fugitt via Submission – Guillotine (Round 2, 1:06)
Dan Ige defeats Nate Landwehr via Decision – Unanimous (29-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Marc-Andre Barriault defeats Eryk Anders via Decision – Unanimous (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Preliminary Card
Nassourdine Imarvov vs Chris Curtis ends in a No Contest – Clash Of Heads (Round 2, 3:04)
Jasmine Jasudavicius defeats Miranda Maverick via Decision – Unanimous (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Aiemann Zahabi defeats Aori Qileng via KO – Punches (Round 1, 1:04)
Kyle Nelson defeats Blake Bilder via Decision – Unanimous (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Stephen Erceg defeats David Dvorak via Decision – Unanimous (29-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Diana Belbita defeats Maria Oliveira via Decision – Unanimous (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
The full UFC 289 event replay, including all of the above results, will be available to watch on UFC Fight Pass.
