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ESPN Staff Writer- Brett Okamoto has reported on mixed martial arts and boxing at ESPN since 2010. He has covered all of the biggest events in combat sports during that time, including in-depth interviews and features with names such as Dana White, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Georges St-Pierre. He was also a producer on the 30 for 30 film: "Chuck and Tito," which looked back at the careers and rivalry of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. He lives in Las Vegas, and is an avid, below-average golfer in his spare time.
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ESPN Staff Writer- Marc Raimondi's first year covering the Falcons was 2024, but it wasn't his first year at ESPN. He joined the company in 2019 and was a top combat sports reporter. He also covered professional wrestling and wrote the book "Say Hello to the Bad Guys: How Pro Wrestling's New World Order Changed America," which was published by Simon & Schuster in 2025. Raimondi also worked for the New York Post and Newsday, beginning in 2009, covering high school and college sports, plus the NFL, NFL, MLB and NHL.
After five close rounds in their first encounter, Islam Makhachev made quick work in the lightweight title rematch against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294. Makhachev knocked Volkanovski down with a head kick in the first round and finished the fight shortly after with strikes on the ground.
Volkanovski took the fight just 11 days ago, filling in for Charles Oliveira, who was removed due to injury. He said after the fight that his job at lightweight "is done" and he'll go back to defending the featherweight title.
In the co-main event, Khamzat Chimaev (13-0) secured himself a future title shot by beating former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman. Usman, who took this fight less than two weeks ago, was taken down immediately and spent the entire first round on the ground. He battled in the second and third, but lost by majority decision.
Here's how Brett Okamoto and Marc Raimondi saw all the action at UFC 294: