Vinicius Oliveira defeated Ricky Simon by unanimous decision in the opening bout of UFC 303. The bantamweight fight saw Oliveira, a +210 underdog, dominate with a combination of kicks and punches, effectively using his distance advantage. Simon, a -258 favorite with a 20-5 record, struggled to land significant strikes and takedowns, allowing Oliveira (20-3) to control the pace of the fight. Despite a strong start from Simon, Oliveira's consistent pressure and striking accuracy earned him the victory. This win marks a significant step for Oliveira, who impressed with his performance, including a previous flying knee KO, and could be a rising contender in the bantamweight division.
Simon/Oliveira Scorecards #UFC303 https://t.co/bsn3x6VZ3G
Ricky Simon had more aggression barking at Oliveira than any time during the fight #UFC303
Vinicius Oliveira defeats Ricky Simon by Unanimous Decision to kick off the Early Prelims Bantamweight contender incoming? 👀 #UFC303 https://t.co/z7HXbWpaiy
30 seconds LOL Oliveira talks to his own corner BEFORE GETTING HIS OWN TAKEDOWN!!!!! SIMON TO HIS FEET! Oliveira raises his hands in victory as the fightOHHHHHHHH SOME FUNKY BACK KICK TO THE LEG! LOL Oliveira is so much fun. Off to the judges. #UFC303
🟥 Ricky Simón vs. Vinicius Oliveira 🟦 => Score Round #3 #UFC #UFC303 #MMATwitter
Ricky Simon has to turn it up he’s getting further behind. Oliveira is ducking so many of these strikes it’s very incredible considering he fights with his hands down and leaves openings. He’s in FLOW state. #UFC303
Oliveira has some funky Cruz-style movement here to find angles to land it's wild. Simon misses. Oliveira makes him pay for it. Simon just so slow on his shots for takedowns at this point. Super telegraphed. #UFC303
Wow that was a huge sequence as Oliveira takes control of the round after Simon fails to land a pivotal takedown! #UFC303
What a way to kick off #UFC303 this is madness. Ricky Simon should be in more control here he’s let off the gas too much for my liking. Hasn’t kept Oliveira on the ground where I do feel he has the best advantage. #UFC303
Oliveira front kick, but misses the 1-2. Simon is hunting. Oliveira still landing well here. #UFC303
R3 - Oliveira goes in with a compromised right leg here. BIG right hand from Simon causing Oliveira to land a counter. Simon now stalking Oliveira a bit. Oliveira front kick to the body. #UFC303
10-9 Simon RD2 19-19 What happened to Oliveira’s leg there? That was weird! He seems to be fine but it looked terrible at first. #UFC303
Simon checked a kick and Oliveira wobbled. They have the ice bag on Oliveira's leg in teh corner now #UFC303
10 seconds!!! Round ends with an Oliveira uppercut. OHHH HE HITS SIMON AFTER THE HORN!!!!!! OR SHOVES!!!! #UFC303
Oliveira trying to put Simon on the fence and fire off flurries. Oliveira leaves his hands down to get ready for OHHHH OLIVEIRA KICKED SIMON AND HURT HIMSELF!!!!! SIMON LANDS ON HIM!!! #UFC303
Oliveria trying to be as unorthodox as possible. Nice combo from him there! Simon tries to get it back, not much lands. Wow super slow takedown attempt from Simon there. That lead calf might be jacked. BIG left hook from Oliveira then calf kick! #UFC303
Nice jab by Simon. He’s finding his range. Oliveira as we saw can counter with power but he’s going to need to catch his second wind. If we see round 3 it’ll be 19-19 #UFC303
Oliveira continues to light up Simon with kicks and punches. Looking excellent #UFC303
NASTY calf kick from Oliveira, but a right hand from Simon then a jab from Oliveira! Simon jab! Simon popping that left hand nicely now. #UFC303
Ricky Simon really needed that takedown. He gifts a stand up to Oliveira not sure about that choice. Oliveira looks to be fading a bit as Simon is coming alive in the second round he’s ahead early in the round. #UFC303
Simon ducks the Oliveira attack, gets another takedown, TAKES THE BACK!!!! Falls off! Landing on Oliveira on the fence tho! Oliveira throwing heavy and really kind of sloppy now. Maybe Simon is waiting for Oliveira to gas out? #UFC303
Oliveira still mixing his attacks up very well and keeping Simon guessing. He's still keeping his hands down, probably to stop the TAKEDOWN BY RICKY SIMON!!! BUT he lets Oliveira up?!?!?!? ....ok Simon, what you cookin' up, son? #UFC303
R2 - Simon should come out with a lot more urgency here. BIG left hook for Simon but he eats a low kick. Simon tries to clinch with him, nope. Oliveira's right ear is now bleeding, looks like that ear exploded. Gotta love cauliflower. #UFC303
10-9 Oliveira RD1 Clear round. Beautiful distance management, Simon has to get active. He’s not throwing nearly enough. Can Oliveira show us he improved his cardio? Huge first round. #UFC303 Ricky did well late but his lack of output early cost him potentially winning the…
Simon takes a wild takedown shot, no dice there. BIG hands from Oliveira there. BIG right hand for Simon! Oliveira lands a left and Simon grabs him and they clinch on the fence. Simon looking like he's doing a lot more thinking than anything here. #UFC303
Oliveira is going backhand with the left hand, as a jab, and then throwing a slick right that's landing. MAN Oliveira is landing all over the place and overwhelming Simon in this first round! Oliveira looks annoyed that Simon dared get in there with him lol #UFC303
Heavy body shot from Oliveira! That looked like it hurt as Simon goes to the wrestling which means he’s early not liking what he’s receiving. #UFC303
Simon left hand and takedown! Oliveira pops back up tho. WOAH slick right hand for Oliveira and he rung Simon's bell with it, before Simon lands the left hook! Oliveira is trying to walk Simon down now and he's landing on him! #UFC303
Simon hasn’t really done much. Oliveira is using his distance advantage well. Can he keep this cardio? If so he when Ricky shoot for a takedown? #UFC303
Oliveira is hunting that lead leg with the calf kick. Simon rushes in, Oliveira ducks and lands on him. Oliveira with hands down, but he's landing on Simon now!!! BIG right hand touches, then goes tot he body. #UFC303
Kicking off a big night of fights is Ricky Simón vs Vinicius Oliveira in a Bantamweight bout. #UFC #UFC303 #MMATwitter https://t.co/D2eP4wK8kr
#UFC303 coverage has officially begun. If Vinicius Oliveira can’t get Ricky Simon out early, he could get in deep waters fast. Very intriguing matchup to kick off this fight card that has so many interesting matchups. Better as a whole now then what was planned. https://t.co/AwiyMLCosR
Opener of #UFC303 is Ricky Simon, who is a -258 favorite at Draft Kings sports book. He fights Vinicius Oliveira, who is +210
#UFC303 is upon us, and while there’s no Conor McGregor, we do have a plethora of fun fights on tap. We’ll get started with a bantamweight tilt between Ricky Simon (20-5) and Vinicius Oliveira (20-3), who turned heads with a flying knee KO in his UFC debut.