Mitch Raposo snapped a two-fight losing streak at UFC 321, defeating heavy favorite Azat Maxam by unanimous decision.
Raposo landed a few heavy right hands early, but Maxam took over near the halfway point of the round, changing levels and landing a big takedown. Raposo tried to recover, but Maxam turned up his aggression and probably won the round himself.
In the second, Raposo unleashed a fierce attack, landing a thumping overhand right that momentarily appeared to shake Maxam.
After being on fire for much of the round, Maxam finally found an opportunity to land another takedown. Maxam was able to get Raposo to the mat, but couldn’t keep him there for long.
Raposa used the fence to walk back up the wall and press Maxum’s back against the cage with seconds left.
Maxam quickly returned to grappling in the third round, but Raposo refused to go down. With less than a minute left, Raposo scored a takedown of his own near the fence. That’s when Maxam blatantly grabbed the cage and used it as leverage to turn the tables. This caused the referee to suspend the match and deduct a point from Maxam.
However, the deduction turned out to be inconsequential as Raposo had already gotten away with all three scorecards.
official results: Mitch Raposo Def. Azat Maxam by unanimous decision (30-26, 29-27, 29-27).