One legend walked away on top. A new UFC threat announced his arrival. And two heavily favored boxers had their plans completely derailed.
Katie Taylor ended her historic career as an undisputed champion at Croke Park, Salahdine Parnasse destroyed Dan Hooker in his UFC debut, Damian Knyba stunned Andy Ruiz Jr., and Eridson Garcia produced one of boxing’s biggest upsets of the weekend.
Here are Fight Week’s Weekend Winners & Losers from September 4–6.
WINNER: Katie Taylor
There really wasn’t another choice for the top of this week’s list.
Katie Taylor finally got her night at Croke Park — and then gave Ireland the ending it wanted.
Taylor dominated previously unbeaten Flora Pili over 10 rounds Saturday, winning by scores of 100-90, 100-90 and 98-91 to become undisputed super lightweight champion once again.
Then she retired.
Taylor finished her professional career 26-1 in front of approximately 83,000 fans in Dublin, adding the vacant WBC championship to the belts she already held and becoming a three-time undisputed world champion.
The symbolism was almost too perfect. Taylor had spent years talking about fighting at Croke Park. At age 40, in the final fight of her career, she finally got there and produced one of her most complete performances.
Afterward, she placed her gloves in the center of the ring.
Fight Week Verdict: There are good retirements, and then there are endings like this. Taylor walked away as champion, in front of her home country, on her own terms.
WINNER: Salahdine Parnasse
Welcome to the UFC.
Salahdine Parnasse entered UFC Paris with a strong reputation from his championship career outside the promotion.
He left looking like a potential UFC lightweight star.
Parnasse stopped veteran Dan Hooker in the first round of Saturday’s UFC Paris main event, overwhelming Hooker with his striking and producing exactly the type of debut that can fast-track a fighter toward ranked opposition.
This wasn’t a prospect being eased into the UFC against a favorable opponent.
Hooker has shared the cage with many of the best lightweights in the world.
Parnasse ran through him.
Fight Week Verdict: One UFC fight. One massive statement. Parnasse immediately belongs in the lightweight conversation.
WINNER: Damian Knyba
Damian Knyba didn’t just beat Andy Ruiz Jr.
He may have completely changed the trajectory of his career.
Knyba defeated the former unified heavyweight champion by unanimous decision Friday night in Newark, with scores of 117-110, 114-113 and 114-113. Ruiz had hoped the fight would launch another run toward heavyweight relevance. Instead, Knyba took the opportunity for himself.
Beating a former heavyweight champion still means something — particularly when you’re trying to move from prospect or contender into meaningful fights.
Knyba now has a recognizable name on his résumé and a victory that should open doors.
Fight Week Verdict: This is the kind of upset that changes a career. Knyba should get another significant heavyweight fight next.
WINNER: Eridson Garcia
If Knyba scored the biggest-name boxing upset of the weekend, Eridson Garcia may have delivered the most dominant one.
Garcia entered his fight with undefeated Alan Chaves as a major underdog.
Then he dropped Chaves four times.
Garcia controlled the 10-round lightweight fight and won by huge scores of 99-87, 99-88 and 98-88, handing Chaves his first professional defeat while capturing the IBF International and WBO Latino lightweight titles.
This wasn’t a controversial decision or a lucky punch.
Garcia dismantled an unbeaten fighter who entered with a 22-0 record and 19 knockouts.
Fight Week Verdict: One of the weekend’s biggest stock risers. Garcia just forced his way into more meaningful lightweight fights.
WINNER: Axel Sola
Axel Sola made sure Parnasse wasn’t the only French lightweight leaving UFC Paris with serious momentum.
Sola knocked out Farès Ziam in the first round, landing the type of shot that immediately becomes part of a fighter’s highlight reel.
Ziam entered with considerably more UFC experience, making the emphatic nature of the result even more important.
Sola didn’t edge out a decision.
He erased him.
Fight Week Verdict: Another name to watch in an already ridiculously deep UFC lightweight division.
ALSO UP: Paddy Donovan
Paddy Donovan continued moving toward bigger opportunities by stopping veteran Tyrone McKenna in the fourth round on the Taylor-Pili undercard.
The official result came by doctor stoppage in Round 4, another strong performance for Donovan on the biggest stage Irish boxing could provide.
Fight Week Verdict: Donovan did exactly what a rising contender should do against an experienced opponent.
WEEKEND LOSERS
LOSER: Andy Ruiz Jr.
Andy Ruiz Jr.’s comeback has taken another major hit.
The former heavyweight champion wasn’t simply returning Friday night for another payday. The idea was to beat Damian Knyba and begin building toward another significant heavyweight fight.
Instead, Knyba beat him.
Ruiz lost by unanimous decision and now finds himself facing difficult questions about where he fits in the heavyweight division.
Ruiz will forever own one of boxing’s most famous upsets after knocking out Anthony Joshua in 2019.
But that victory is getting further away.
Fight Week Verdict: This may have been Ruiz’s last realistic opportunity to quickly re-enter the heavyweight title conversation.
LOSER: Dan Hooker
This was about as bad as a main-event loss can get.
Dan Hooker wasn’t fighting some unknown UFC rookie. Parnasse arrived with an excellent résumé and championship experience.
But Hooker was still the established UFC veteran.
He was supposed to provide the test.
Instead, Parnasse stopped him in the opening round.
Hooker’s toughness and willingness to fight anyone have never been questioned. But repeated damage and losses become increasingly difficult to ignore when you’re competing in the UFC’s deepest division.
Fight Week Verdict: Hooker remains a fan favorite, but his days as a serious lightweight contender may be nearing their end.
LOSER: Alan Chaves
Few fighters had a rougher weekend than Alan Chaves.
Chaves entered Friday undefeated at 22-0 with 19 knockouts, carrying significant momentum and high expectations.
Then Eridson Garcia dropped him four times.
The wide scorecards — 99-87, 99-88 and 98-88 — reflected just how decisive the defeat was.
One loss doesn’t destroy a young fighter’s career.
But this wasn’t a narrow defeat against another elite prospect.
Chaves was comprehensively beaten by a significant underdog.
Fight Week Verdict: The unbeaten record is gone, and so is the fast track toward a world-title opportunity. How Chaves responds will tell us considerably more about him than 22 straight victories did.
LOSER: Farès Ziam
Farès Ziam had been building momentum in the UFC lightweight division.
Axel Sola stopped it in less than two minutes.
Sola’s first-round knockout turned what could have been another step forward for Ziam into one of the night’s most memorable losses.
That’s particularly costly at lightweight, where dozens of fighters are competing for limited opportunities.
Fight Week Verdict: Ziam is still talented, but getting knocked out that quickly makes the climb toward the rankings considerably steeper.
TOUGH BREAK: Nathaniel Wood
Nathaniel Wood entered UFC Paris hoping to continue pushing toward the featherweight rankings.
Instead, short-notice UFC newcomer Pavel Andrusca defeated him by unanimous decision, with scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.
Losing to a late replacement is one of the fastest ways to lose momentum.
Fight Week Verdict: Not a career-killer, but absolutely a missed opportunity.
Fight Week’s Biggest Winner of the Weekend
KATIE TAYLOR
There really isn’t a debate this week.
Salahdine Parnasse may have produced the weekend’s biggest MMA statement. Damian Knyba and Eridson Garcia pulled off excellent upsets.
But none of them can top what happened at Croke Park.
Katie Taylor fought for the final time in front of approximately 83,000 people, dominated an unbeaten opponent, became undisputed champion again and retired with a 26-1 professional record.
She didn’t hang around until boxing forced her out.
She left with the belts.
She left with a victory.
And she left from the ring she had spent years dreaming about fighting in.
Katie Taylor is Fight Week’s biggest winner of the weekend.
Another weekend down. More fighters moving up, more fighters moving down — and a legend walking away exactly the way she wanted.
Check back every week for Fight Week Weekend Winners & Losers.
