UFC 244, held at the legendary Madison Square Garden, was a WILD ride.

It was a great night for fight fans, with plenty of the fights ending with the KOs. Even the fights that didn’t end with a finish were displays of high level mixed martial arts.

It was unfortunately punctuated by a questionable doctor stoppage in the main event of the evening.

Diaz and Masvidal put on the show that they promised, and were robbed by the doctor

It’s not a Nate Diaz fight if there isn’t any blood involved.

Jorge Masvidal came in charging, but Diaz wasn’t going to fall for the knee. That got a smile out of Masvidal, who quickly followed up with a huge flurry of elbows, kicks, and punches that knocked Diaz down. Diaz started bleeding heavily early and was in trouble from the start.

Masvidal allowed Diaz to continue defending from the ground and recover though. Diaz caught him with good one-two combo but it only elicited a smile from Masvidal.

Diaz came in unafraid, as usual, in the second round. He kept pushing the pace while throwing punches, looking for a solid opening. Masvidal again landed two huge punches to the head and body that sent Diaz to the canvas.

Masvidal continued his assault, though, and honestly must have been confused about how Diaz was still coherent. A takedown in the last minute of the second round saw Diaz continue to get manhandled until Diaz got in a reversal – but he didn’t have enough time to mount any decent submission offense.

The third round started off with much of the same, seeing Masvidal landing a big right hand and big body kick. Diaz started to open up with his combos in the middle of the round though, which earned Masvidal’s respect and started to show visible damage to his face.

Diaz took the fight to the ground and did a pretty good job of defending from his guard until the closing seconds that saw Masvidal throw even more bombs.

The break between the third and fourth round saw the ringside doctor call a stoppage to the fight based on the cuts on Diaz’ eyes – a stunning end to the fight that neither fighter was happy with.

Masvidal was quick to ask for a rematch in his postfight interview. He was clearly winning the fight on points but Diaz was still there, still ready, and he shines in the championship rounds.

Joe Rogan said it best, you’ve got to take into consideration who the fighter is. Nate Diaz has been cut up similarly in plenty of other fights. He is a warrior who is always ready to fight through adversity.

If there’s any silver lining to this, the world has now seen that Diaz was able to survive shots from Masvidal that felled other men. It’s almost a certainty that we’re going to get a rematch.

The Gorilla makes a triumphant middleweight debut

The controversy surrounding Kevin Gastelum’s weigh-in didn’t seem to affect Darren Till’s disposition once they got into the cage. The middleweight bout did not lack action.

Gastelum started pressuring right away, and reversed Till’s clinch against the cage. Till didn’t get much of a chance to get space to throw and significant strikes in the middle potions of the first round. He did get a few good leg kicks in, though.

Till looked sharp to start the second round, as he started to figure out his timing and distance. An eyepoke from Gastelum momentarily paused the fight, but Till didn’t want to take the maximum time to recover.

Till continued to get good leg kicks in, but Gastelum started to throw them as well. Till’s cautious approach in the second round prevented any takedowns from his opponent.

The third round started with much of the same, with Till throwing leg kicks and stuffing a takedown attempt. He also caught a leg kick from Gastelum and pushed him to the ground before quickly separating.

Gastelum managed a takedown in the final minute of the fight but Till up quickly. He did it again in the final seconds of the fight, but the result was the same.

If there were any questions about whether Till could compete in the middleweight division, they have been silenced. His intelligent gameplan earned him a deserved split decision victory.

Wonderboy wins with a striking masterclass

Steven Thompson and Vicente Luque had a relatively quiet feeling out period in the first. Luque got the first significant moment of the fight with a combo that stunned Thompson.

Luque continued on with his pressure and ate a couple of good shots but got the better of Thompson in the first round.

Thompson didn’t seem worse for wear early in the second, and was able to throw quick and crisp punches as he started to find his rhythm. He hit a great kick that sent Luque to the floor, seemingly unfazed. Thompson then started to open up, throwing stunning punches and a wheel kick. Luque’s face started to bleed in his left eye after that exchange.

The fearles Luque kept fighting back though, getting a few good clean shots in himself that kept Thompson honest.

Thompson looked very comfortable in the third round, and his timing and precision saw him hit a big kick that knocked Luque down, and then another punch that sent him back to the floor. The damage to his right eye seemed to affect Luque’s ability to defend himself as well. This didn’t deter him, and he still kept pressing forward to eat shots while getting a few in of is own.

Thompson closed out the round strong, and was in complete control throughout the final stanza. It was an excellent display of world-class striking from both opponents, which saw Thompson come out with the unanimous decision win.

The Black Beast pulls out the decision victory

Derrick Lewis, as Joe Rogan put it today, hits about as hard as any human being can. He didn’t have a great start to the fight, though, with Blagoy Ivanov being able to take him down just over a minute into the fight.

Lewis managed to scramble back to his feet, though, and the two heavyweights traded in a wild exchange that did damage to both fighters. Afterwards, Lewis spent most of the rest of the first round controlling Ivanov on the cage, finding few opportunities to throw big swings.

The second round featured another exchange that saw Lewis get rocked, then taken down. Ivanov then attempted a submission, which Lewis escaped. The two opponents predictably began to slow down halfway through the second round.

Lewis made Ivanov eat a huge knee and swings with about a minute left in the round, and by the end of the exchange you could start to see blog on the Bulgarian’s face. Ivanov was able to weather the storm and get another takedown at the end of the second.

Lewis looked a bit tired to start the third round, but not as gassed as he normally is. The pace definitely slowed, which suited Ivanov more, and Lewis didn’t seem able to put together any major combos early in the round. He managed to scramble to his feet after another takedown late in the round.

Lewis went for a final flurry in the closing seconds of the fight, but Ivanov’s chin held up against blows that would have felled lesser men. Lewis’ late aggression may have saved the fight for him though, which saw him win by split decision.

Kevin Lee’s camp switch produces a crazy KO victory

Lightweight contender Kevin Lee (18-5-0), who once fought for the interim lightweight title, switched his training camp and joined Firas Zahabi to shake up his career.

Lee’s decision seems to have paid off, considering how quickly he dispatched heralded prospect Gerald Gillespie (13-1) who entered the fight undefeated.

The two fighters did not waste much time trying to feel each other out, with both letting their hands go early in the first round. After a few brief exchanges, Lee threw a right hand that took Gillespie’s attention and stopped him from seeing the subsequent left roundhouse that put him to sleep 2 minutes and 47 seconds into the fight.

Lee looked sharp, focused, and confident. Don’t count him out of the lightweight race yet.