Polaris 26 Full Results and Review
Polaris 26 took place on 4 November, 2023 at Southampton Central Hall, England. The event saw two UFC fighters step up on one of the biggest grappling stages in Europe, as well as an open weight title fight and an abundance of exciting matches.
The main card began on a bit of a stumble, as the first match ended up having a delay due to Marcin Maciulewicz somehow cutting his foot (very badly) on the way to the tatami. Medics were on hand to wrap him up as soon as possible, whilst his opponent Max Bickerton was patiently waiting on the mats – ready to go. Despite the injury, Maciulewicz came away with the decision win after a good back and forth match.
Highly-anticipated ADCC trials winner, Owen Jones, won his match against Bart Dubbledam via decision. However, I think everybody was expecting a bit… more from the ADCC trials winner; the Dutchman, Dubbledam, proved difficult to finish, resulting in the match going to a decision. Trash talk always builds anticipation but, if you’re going to talk trash about your opponent, at least live up to it!
Meanwhile, the match against Oliver Taza and Tommy Langaker was one, many struggled to watch. The audience could barely look at what was going on, when Taza heel hooked Langaker his knee was one way and his heel was the other, but apparently vikings don’t tap to heel hooks and Langakers legs are (definitely) made of rubber. The knee looked so close to exploding but, once Langaker escaped, he looked completely unfazed and unharmed. Langaker won two out of the three thirds of the match, scoring him the decision win against Taza.
Molly ‘Meatball’ McCann, a UFC fighter, made her Polaris debut and proved to UFC fans worldwide that she most definitely has a grappling game and isn’t just a striker. McCann has had a tough time as of late, due to online hate and criticism over her last two UFC performances where she got submitted. MMA fans and BJJ fans alike underestimated McCann’s grappling prowess and she submitted Polaris veteran and black belt judoka, Julia Scardone, in a dominant match with a very quick armbar from closed guard.
The co-main saw Kendall Reusing retain her title as the openweight champion against fellow world champion, Leticia Cardozo. Reusing attempted an armbar towards the end of the match, but it was a back and forth contest; Reusing definitely had to work to retain her belt and after some time away, it’s good to see her back at it – and just as strong as ever.
The main event saw UFC veteran Gerald Meerschaert, the UFC fighter with the most submissions in the Middleweight division, go against renowned ‘second best grappler in the world’ Craig Jones. Obviously Craig was going to get the job done, and he did – very quickly. The Australian joker submitted the UFC fighter within two minutes, by jumping on his back, sinking in a RNC and squeezing until he got the tap.
Main Card Results
Craig Jones defeats Gerald Meerschaert via RNC
Kendall Reusing defeats Leticia Cardozo via Decision
Molly McCann defeats Julia Scardone via Armbar
Tommy Langaker defeats Oliver Taza via Decision
Owen Jones defeats Bart Dubbeldam via Decision
Marcin Maciulewicz defeats Max Bickerton via Decision
Preliminary Card Results
Luiz Finnochio defeats Nathan Johnstone via Decision
Nia Blackman defeats Amanda Pamela Nicole via Decision
Phil Harris defeats Mark Phung via Decision
Dominic Dillon defeats Claudio Brudny via Reverse Bulldog Choke
Kerry Isom defeats Jade Barker via Decision
Sam Crook defeats Mike Parry via Decision
Justin Moore defeats Matthew Fitz-James via Arm-Triangle Choke
Jack Hassard defeats Abraham Dannan via Decision
Franck Takadjou defeats Archer Colaco via Decision
The full Polaris 26 replay is available to watch on UFC Fight Pass. However, the full preliminary card was uploaded to YouTube – watch below.
