To many a fan, where a boxing headliner failed to acquit itself, a mixed martial arts event achieved more than what was expected. Two shows, one in Anaheim, California, and the other in Las Vegas, unfolded a few hours ago. At the Honda Center, Jake Paul fought Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., and at the T-Mobile Arena, Ilia Topuria faced Charles Oliveira. But that’s where the similarities end. Paul clinched a unanimous victory. But in doing so, he attracted scorn across several corners.

To the east, displaying some outstanding striking skills, Topuria annihilated Oliveira in the very first round. Alongside the vacant lightweight championship, he earned the Performance of the Night award. Needless to say, appreciations have been streaming in like anything. And if anyone needs validation, they should check out what Ryan Garcia said. Currently recovering from hand surgery, Garcia, a former interim lightweight titleholder himself, sounded ecstatic as the UFC 317 wrapped up.

“UFC went crazy tonight,” read Garcia’s short and crisp tweet. And from the reactions, it was clear that several followers agreed with him. Following a year-long suspension, Garcia returned to fight early last month. But the Times Square show of May 2 didn’t end the way he wanted. After tasting the floor in the second round, he suffered a humiliating defeat to former partner Rolando Romero.

Following Islam Makhachev relocating to the welterweight division, the lightweight throne was vacant. Last year, on February 17, Ilia Topuria defeated Alexander Volkanovski and became the UFC’s featherweight champion. Seven months later, handing Max Holloway his first knockout loss, Topuria defended his title with aplomb.

Early this year, talks about a rematch with Volkanovski emerged. But later, reports surfaced that Topuria vacated his title to move up a division. And tonight, he became UFC’s tenth multi-division champion. Early in the fight, Ilia Topuria impressed everyone when he wriggled himself out of Oliveira’s leg lock. As the round progressed, he stunned the Brazilian with powerful shots to the face.

Things came to naught halfway through when Topuria’s right hook floored Oliveira. And perhaps this is what elated scores of fans and Ryan Garcia.

Ryan Garcia had steam coming out of his ears

To many, Julio Cesar Chavez Sr.’s expressions narrated the whole story. Watching his son go the distance with Jake Paul left the boxing great angry. Ryan Garcia was already piqued when MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian made an innocuous remark.

Comparing the Paul-Chavez Jr. fight with Garcia’s title defense, Bidarian commented, “Ryan Garcia headlined Honda Center in his 20th pro fight, after an extensive amateur career. This Saturday, Jake Paul will headline Honda Center in his 13th pro fight, with no amateur career.” The MVP-Golden Boy card could pull in three times the revenue generated by Garcia vs. Fonseca in 2020, he claimed.

Ryan Garcia took a strong exception. He shot back with an expletive, “I knocked someone out cold. While Jake was there doing his thing. Congratulations to Jake, but don’t do that, my guy. Jake was a superstar from YouTube. I’m a boy from Victorville; don’t compare, b**ch.”

So that’s how a boxing and an MMA event panned out today. The coming month has a bucketload of shows to binge on. So fans should stay tuned and watch out as more exciting or better matchups roll out.

Did you watch Jake Paul vs. Chavez? What’s your take on the fight and its outcome?