Yesterday (Saturday, September 5, 2026), the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) traveled to the Accor Arena in Paris, France. UFC Paris. In the main event, perhaps the best free agent in the sport Salahdine to Parna finally the fighter made it to the Octagon opposite the veterans Dan Hooker. In addition, several of the best MMA fighters in Europe are liked Price Ziam, Michael Pageand Losene Keita headed to the cage surrounded by a very enthusiastic French crowd.
Let’s take a closer look at the best performances and highlight the finishing touches of the night:
Parnasse lives in leaps and bounds
Parnasse vs. Hooker was a competitive kickboxing match until suddenly it wasn’t.
Hooker definitely came to fight. The massive underdog was immediately active, probing with kicks and straight kicks. Several times he blocked Parnasse’s strike and returned fire, chopping at the inner thigh. Slowing down the Frenchman was clearly a strategy from Hooker’s camp, which makes a lot of sense … because Parnasse was at a different speed to his older opponent.
For most of the short fight, Parnasse and Hooker traded blows. Neither man had yet found their range when Parnasse landed an elbow to the liver. Hooker is known for his toughness and grit, but he couldn’t hide the agony from that blow. He nearly hit the canvas, instead dropping down the fence and taking cover. Parnasse hit him with a glancing high kick and then landed a crushing left hook that put Hooker on the canvas for good.
Often, power and finishing ability don’t translate as a fighter moves up the ranks. The athlete’s average level and endurance improves, and the same strikes that produce quick knockouts produce dominant decisions instead. That’s the nature of climbing the fight ladder, but Parnasse seems to be the rare exception who can consistently put away even elite opponents.
The Max Holloway a tiebreaker would be an electric break … or some other quick KO?
In the battle of the French lightweights Axel Sola shocked audiences, commentators and viewers worldwide.
He was definitely shocked Price Ziamwho moved beautifully for the 100 or so seconds the fight lasted. Looking to bounce back from a memorable loss, Ziam was the aggressor early on, flashing his jabs and landing some powerful right jabs that found their target. Sola patiently watched his foe work, feigned a bit, then lined up an absolute left hand from hell.
Ziam actually countered the shot with a sneaky little elbow … it didn’t matter at all. Sola punched right through that resistance with no let up in his momentum and his left hand slammed into the jaw. Ziam was unconscious with his eyes open, dreaming of the single blow. This is the first knockout loss of his career, as well as the first time he has lost back-to-back matches.
Three months ago, he was on the rise in the lightweight rankings.
That role will shift to Sola, who improves to 3-1 in the UFC and could have a number to his name in a few days. I still feel like there’s a lot to learn from a 28-year-old athlete who has won most of his UFC fights quickly. At least he clearly has a knack for timing powerful connections!
THIS is the show you’ve been waiting for Losene Keita in his UFC debut.
The Belgian talent was immediately the face of confidence as he walked down Muhammad Naimov with your finger on the trigger of the kickbacks. At first, Keita landed body shots, but soon chased and punished Naimov with counter combinations. A right-left hook combination covered Naimov on the floor and the wounds kept coming. Keita got two more knockouts within a minute. A stiff blow laid the enemy down, and then the right hand completely dislocated his jaw. It was the controlled demolition, the display of precision and power that made Keita such a dominant force in the OCTAGON.
Embarrassing debut loss aside, Keita clearly has potential and just gave US fans a proper introduction to his skills.
Invincible Pavel Andrusca was a big underdog to match up against streaky veteran Nathaniel Wood.
Andrusca accepted the bout on short notice and moved up a weight class, but took the fight with Wood. Andrusca wanted to wrestle but executed the jab well, feigning level changes and using right hands to cover up his entries. He was able to drag Wood down repeatedly and whenever the Englishman stood up, Andrusca was sure to land elbows and right hands on the break.
In the second round, Wood landed a cracking right hand that sent Andrusca to the floor. Despite the damage, Andrusca went right back to work with his wrestling and even threatened to submit. After all the energy expenditure, Andrusca still had the gas to pick up the pace strongly in the third round and win a clear decision.
The 24-year-old Moldovan looks like a real talent.
As for Wood, this upset loss will kill his momentum. He knocked on the door of the rankings, but no more. Indeed, Wood still looks a bit small for a Featherweight. Andrusca is underweight and still managed to build muscle and rack up control time. Despite Wood’s technical skills and savvy, size and strength will likely hold him back at 145 pounds.
- Kurtis Campbell defeated Trevor Peek with a third-round rear naked choke: Man… The peek is terrible. I know we all love a silly meme fighter, but Peek just isn’t UFC caliber. Campbell made an absolute mess of him here, landing big counters, high kicks and clean knees before realizing he could dominate the canvas with ease. Peek’s wrestling from below was all about toughness and grit, meaning Campbell spent a good ten minutes roughing him up before finally locking in a submission over the jaw. After three straight one-sided losses, it’s clearly time to end the Peek experiment.
- Mario Pinto defeated Ryan Spann by second round knockout (highlights): Heavyweight is a fun subdivision. Spann exploded out of the gate, cutting Pinto with an uppercut and a left hook that nearly knocked him out cold. Pinto bounced off the canvas right into a guillotine choke, “Superman’s” signature technique. Pinto appeared to be dead in the water, but managed to wrestle the arms away… and immediately take over the fight! Outside of that guillotine, Spann’s fight is pretty lackluster. Pinto forced a takedown and completely dominated from the top position, beating Spann and quickly using up his gas tank. Spann was worn out by the start of the second, so Pinto was easily able to finish via ground and pound. Now 13-0 and on a four-fight UFC streak, it’s probably time to step up in the competition.
- Modestas Bukauskas defeated Oumar Sy by second round knockout: This lightweight clash was a two-round affair. Sy dominated the first frame, gaining top position and delivering a hail of ground strikes that almost resulted in an early finish. Bukauskas, however, survived the other and the tide began to turn. Sy was still able to take down, but Bukauskas got to his feet faster, which wore Sy down. After getting up along the fence late in the second game, Bukauskas was able to pin the A-Frame in the clincher. From this position, he fell to a crushing knee that pinned Sy, tired and without any wrestling effort.
- Matthieu Duclos defeated Luis Felipe Dias by first round knockout (highlights): Another debuting French athlete, another first round finish. Like the opener, Duclos and Dias were quick to fight, wasting little time committing to powerful swings. Dias quickly went wild and his early aggression helped him land first and dictate the pace. However, Duclos did well to keep his composure, soon allowing Dias to land a nasty hook that promptly put him to sleep, the pros and cons of wild charges being on full display in this middleweight slobberknocker.
- Delphine Benouiach defeated Sofia Montenegro in the second round with a rear naked choke (highlights): What a debut for Benouiach! The French rookie came to the cage ready to fight. Benouiach and Montenegro spent the first round taking pieces from each other, but Benouiach’s right hand in the second round completely changed the course of the fight. Montenegro hit the canvas and Benouiach savaged him with elbows and punches from top position, smearing the canvas with the first blow of the night in a pool of blood. After all the damage, locking down the RNC was an easy job.
For the complete UFC Paris results and clicks per play here.
