The UFC's return to Manchester, England, came with high expectations. On a card headlined by two British champions and filled with talent from the United Kingdom, UFC 304 had the potential to be a memorable night for fans. Aside from two rematches for championship gold, UFC 304 had a heated rivalry between flyweight contenders and two of Liverpool's biggest stars performing in front of their countrymen. What could go wrong?
Did the main and co-main event deliver? What fights surprised and which ones underwhelmed?
After each MMA pay-per-view, we break down and assess the quality of each matchup and the fight card as a whole based on skill displayed, competitiveness and what is at stake. A bout that earns an A or higher could be considered one of the year's best fights, such as Max Holloway vs. Justin Gaethje at UFC 300. Fights that earn a D-minus or lower will be fights that could be considered the worst matchups of the year. Think Rose Namajunas vs. Carla Esparza at UFC 274 or Francis Ngannou vs. Derrick Lewis at UFC 226.
Here are the grades for all 14 fights on the card -- including two A's and one F that teased us during the lead-up of the event.
Interim heavyweight title: Tom Aspinall def. Curtis Blaydes by first-round TKO
Grade: A
Have we seen anything like Aspinall at this level? What Aspinall is doing to the heavyweight division is unparalleled and there's only one hurdle left for him to clear in his pursuit of greatness. But before we can talk about a potential fight with Jon Jones, it's worth mentioning that the time you are taking to read this may be longer than it took for Aspinall to finish Blaydes. The only person to finish Blaydes faster than Aspinall? Francis Ngannou, who did it in 45 seconds back in 2018. But Blaydes is far better now than he was back then and ended up getting wiped out by an Aspinall left hand with some vicious ground and pound to punctuate his first defense of the interim heavyweight title. The UFC keeps testing him and he continues to pass with flying colors. It's time for the final boss.
Lightweight: Paddy Pimblett def. King Green by first-round submission
Grade: A-
Paddy "The Baddy" is the real deal and will have a number by his name on Monday in the rankings. It was a stellar performance by Pimblett, who was expected to be tested by Green's striking. Instead, he matched him on the feet and took full advantage of an ill-advised takedown attempt to get the win. Pimblett snatched a guillotine and made a wicked transition to a triangle choke. In Green's attempt to survive, he found himself in an armbar but was already unconscious before Pimblett could crank on the arm. "Statement made, b-----s," Pimblett yelled during his postfight interview. Indeed it was.
Welterweight title: Belal Muhammad def. Leon Edwards by unanimous decision
Grade: B
This wasn't exactly a barnburner, but it was a grappling clinic put on by Muhammad that is worth checking out. That's not necessarily exciting for those watching, as Muhammad's style doesn't always lend itself to thrilling fights. But there's no way he can be overlooked. Between his wrestling and much-improved striking, Muhammad presents a headache for anyone who steps into the Octagon with him. Maybe Edwards underestimated him and paid for it with his world title, but that's been the constant narrative of Muhammad's career. He will never be considered an "exciting" fighter, but he is very good at what he does. As for Edwards, getting beat like this in England will be tough for him to swallow. He lacked a sense of urgency for long stretches of the fight and couldn't pull the rabbit out of the hat as he had when he beat Kamaru Usman.
Light heavyweight: Modestas Bukauskas def. Marcin Prachnio by third-round submission
Grade: B
This wasn't the prettiest fight from a technical standpoint, but it was fun, nonetheless. Prachnio was a kicking machine early on, but he depleted his gas tank when he needed it most. Bukauskas avoided any danger and landed strikes and some wild exchanges. In the second round, Bukauskas had Prachnio in line for a finish as he rolled in with punches but was brilliantly countered by a high kick that wrecked his equilibrium. But Bukauskas secured a takedown, the first in his UFC career, and rode the round out in top control. Prachnio blitzed Bukauskas with a barrage of punches to open Round 3 and appeared to have him in trouble, but Bukauskas dragged the fight to the canvas and took advantage of an exhausted Prachnio. The English fighter by way of Lithuania worked in an arm triangle and got the tap out. However, it was more likely due to sheer exhaustion than technique.
Heavyweight: Mick Parkin def. Lukasz Brzeski by first-round KO
Grade: B-
Parkin got the Manchester crowd going with a rousing first-round knockout of Brzeski. The "Dana White's Contender Series" alum made a quick adjustment early on and stunned Brzeski by putting a right hand behind the jab. Brzeski's legs turned to spaghetti and Parkin pursued the first knockout of his UFC career. The 28-year-old battered his opponent with a barrage of punches, sent him down with a left hand and pounded hammer fists until the referee rescued Brzeski from further damage. It was an impressive performance from the young heavyweight.
Welterweight: Sam Patterson def. Kiefer Crosbie by first-round submission
Grade: B-
Patterson didn't look remotely close to the guy who suffered a brutal knockout in 2023 as he schooled Crosbie before submitting him with an arm triangle. Patterson used his length to set up a slick uppercut that rocked Crosbie. The Watford, England, product closed the distance, quickly secured a takedown, and landed in full mount. Patterson wasted no time sinking in the submission and elicited the tap out that completed an effortless performance.
Featherweight: Nathaniel Wood def. Daniel Pineda by unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-28)
Grade: C+
For two of the three rounds, Wood put on a striking clinic against Pineda that is worth watching. Wood was ahead of Pineda at every turn, wrecking his opponent's right eye, compromising his lead leg with calf kicks and hurting him with a front kick to the torso in the opening round. It felt like Wood would eventually get the finish, but Pineda refused to go away and managed to take the final round by keeping the fight on the mat and grinding down the action. Pineda was tough but Wood picked him apart whenever the two were standing.
Featherweight: Arnold Allen def. Giga Chikadze by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Grade: C
This fight felt stuck in a pattern. Chikadze was committed to circling the Octagon and firing off strikes while Allen pressured and looked for the big power shot. Shockingly, Allen didn't utilize his wrestling to slow down Chikadze's movement. Instead, he appeared determined to showcase his striking. That left fans with a stalemate matchup, outside of Allen landing the more significant blows. There were a few close calls with Chikadze barely missing a flying knee in the first round and Allen whiffing on a few fight-ending left hooks. The lack of drama left fans wanting more but at least Allen got back into the win column.
Welterweight: Oban Elliott def. Preston Parsons by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Grade: C
If you enjoy defensive technique, this would be the fight for you. Elliott picked up his second UFC win and stretched his winning streak to seven by repeatedly thwarting Parsons' pursuit to grapple and bring the fight to the canvas. Parsons changed levels several times for takedown attempts that may have gotten any other welterweight to the canvas. But Elliott's reflexes allowed him to meet the level of his opponent and stuff the attempt. Offensively, there wasn't much to write home about as Elliott managed to slip in some strikes between all the defending. But a win is a win and Elliott continues to show marked improvement each time he steps into the Octagon.
Strawweight: Bruna Brasil def. Molly McCann by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Grade: C
Brasil left the Manchester fans disappointed with a dominant performance that ruined McCann's homecoming. "Meatball Molly'' showed grit but was never really in the fight after Brasil tore through her in the first round behind a wicked knee to the midsection and nearly finished the fight with a kick to the liver shortly after. Honestly, it could have been scored a 10-8 round. McCann couldn't recover from the damage she took in the opening frame and found herself chasing Brasil, only to be met with counter punches and kicks. Brasil may have turned a corner in her career, while McCann is stuck in neutral as a loser in three of her past four fights.
Middleweight: Gregory Rodrigues def. Christian Leroy Duncan by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Grade: C-
A finish was expected in this matchup. Instead, Rodrigues outgrappled and battered Duncan to cruise to a unanimous decision. Many fans thought Duncan would put his high-level striking on display, but Rodrigues suffocated him with pressure while getting the better of the exchanges. Rodrigues dragged Duncan into deep waters, taking the crowd out of the fight. It was a great performance by Rodrigues but lacked any real drama.
Men's bantamweight: Jake Hadley def. Caolán Loughran by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Grade: D
Yeah, Hadley won and looked solid at bantamweight. But it was an uneventful fight, where nothing of consequence took place.
Strawweight: Shauna Bannon def. Alice Ardelean by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29)
Grade: D
This was a relatively inoffensive opener. Bannon's submission attempts in the first round and blitzing strikes in the third round earned her the first victory of her UFC career. Ardelean started strong, but her cardio betrayed her in the final round, as she offered little down the stretch. Both fighters wore their inexperience in spots, but "Mama B" was busy enough to get the job done.
Men's flyweight: Muhammad Mokaev def. Manel Kape by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Grade: F
For all the prefight shenanigans, including a near brawl minutes before the fight started, the expectation was that this matchup would be a barnburner between two guys who didn't like each other. It was anything but that. This fight, which many thought would be a title eliminator, was disappointing, lacking any real drama or standout moments. Between Kape seemingly breaking his toe in the second round and Mokaev nearly removing his opponent's shorts in a takedown attempt, this didn't come close to reaching the heights fans expected. They may have thrown more punches before the fight than they did in the Octagon. The most exciting moment may have been Kape drilling Mokaev with elbows from bottom position after being taken down. Not great, but at least they buried the hatchet afterward.
Overall grade for UFC 304
Grade: C
Seven consecutive decisions on a fight card that took place after midnight local time doesn't lend itself to a good grade. Fortunately, Pimblett and Aspinall performed exceptionally to salvage a pretty average fight card. Fights expected to deliver (Allen-Chikadze and Rodrigues-Duncan) underwhelmed and a highly anticipated flyweight battle with bad blood at the root (Mokaev-Kape) was an overwhelming disappointment. It's not a great sign when UFC CEO Dana White says he's done raising post-fight bonuses because of how this event played out.