UFC 331: Van vs. Pantoja 2 and The End of Oak Street

I watched UFC 331, and it was a good card. UFC Flyweight Champion, Joshua Van, has been showing big improvements as of late, especially with his grappling, takedown defense and ability to get back to his feet. His boxing has always been crisp, and he just seems so much more confident now that he is champion. In my opinion, Joshua Van has just made the UFC Flyweight division one of the more interesting weight divisions for a while now, as he is a young champion who also can sell his fights. I expect him to fight Manuel Kape next, and they have animosity towards each other. Arman Tsarukyan also got a big win in the co-main event as he KO’d Mauricio Ruffy with standing elbows in the first round. The UFC has not granted Tsarukyan another Title shot when he pulled out of his first Title shot against Islam Makhachev, even though he has been winning his fights since then. It looks like he has made himself undeniable with this win. The other big story of the night was former Olympic wrestler, Gable Steveson, losing by knockout in twelve seconds of the first round by Sean Sharaf. There was a lot of hype around Steveson, considering that he is still young, a Heavyweight, and has an elite athletic background. This loss is absolutely devastating for him, and one has to wonder if he’ll bounce back and be able to achieve the accolades that many expected of him. Otherwise, Tai Tuivasa lost his eighth straight UFC fight, setting a new UFC record. Casey O’Neil performed a potential submission of the year with her elevator sweep to armbar. Marlon “Chito” Vera got out of a four-fight losing streak with a TKO over Charles Jourdain. Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, at 39-years-old, got his first knockout win in the UFC over Doo-Ho Choi.

I forgot to mention that my wife and I watched The End of Oak Street two weeks ago. The movie stars Anne Hathaway, and it is about a suburban family in 1982 whose neighborhood is mysteriously transported by a cosmic event into a prehistoric era ruled by dinosaurs. It has elements of horror, comedy, drama and family dynamics. If anything, it’s the family dynamics that were the most interesting aspects of the movie. The husband and wife are having problems in their marriage, and it carries over to when they get transported and need to survive. There is an 80’s dynamic as well with the clothes, fashion, setting, dynamics, and values that really bring the movie to life. After all the tragedy that happens in the movie, it actually has a happy ending.