UFC Paris results: Sooo ... About last night | Hooker vs. Parnasse

Yesterday (Sat., Sept. 5, 2026), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to Accor Arena in Paris, France, for UFC Paris. In the main event, perhaps the top free agent in the sport Salahdine Parnasse finally made his way to the Octagon opposite veteran brawler Dan Hooker. In addition, several of Europe’s top MMA fighters like Fares Ziam, Michael Page, and Losene Keita made their way to the cage, surrounded by the cheers and jeers of a very enthusiastic French crowd.

Let’s take a closer look at the best performances and highlight finishes of the evening:

Parnasse vs. Hooker was a competitive kickboxing match until suddenly it was not.

Hooker certainly came to fight. The massive underdog was active right away, probing with kicks and straight punches. Several times, he blocked a Parnasse kick and returned fire by chopping to the inner thigh. Slowing down the Frenchman was clearly a strategy from the Hooker camp, which makes a lot of sense … because Parnasse was on a different level of speed than his older opponent.

For most of the short fight, Parnasse and Hooker were trading kicks. Neither man had found his punching range yet when Parnasse snuck a liver kick under the elbow. Hooker is known for his toughness and grit, but he couldn’t disguise the agony from that blow. He nearly hit the canvas, instead falling along the fence and covering up. Parnasse blasted him with a glancing high kick then feinted into a crushing left hook, which put Hooker on the canvas for good.

Often, power and finishing ability don’t translate as a fighter moves up the ranks. The average level of athlete and durability improves, and the same blows that produce quick knockouts instead produce dominant decisions. That’s the nature of climbing the combat ladder, but Parnasse appears to be the rare exception who can put away even elite opponents consistently.

The Max Holloway callout would be an electric scrap … or another quick KO?

In the battle of French Lightweights, Axel Sola shocked the audience, commentators, and viewers around the globe.

He certainly shocked Fares Ziam, who was moving nicely for the 100 or so seconds the fight lasted. Looking to rebound from a frustrating loss, Ziam was the aggressor early on, flashing his jab and lining up some powerful right kicks that were finding the target. Sola patiently watched his foe work, feinted a bit, and then lined up an absolute left hand from hell.

Ziam actually countered the punch with a sneaky little elbow … that didn’t matter at all. Sola punched right through that resistance without his momentum faltering, and his left hand crashed into the jawline. Ziam was unconscious with his eyes open, slept by a singular punch. It’s the first knockout loss of his career, as well as the first time he’s lost consecutive bouts.

Three months ago, he was a ranked Lightweight on the rise.

That role shifts to Sola, who improves to 3-1 in the UFC and could have a number by his name in a few days. I still feel that there’s much to learn about the 28-year-0ld athlete, who has won most of his UFC fights quickly. At a minimum, he clearly has a knack for timing powerful connections!

THIS is the performance that was expected from Losene Keita in his UFC debut.

The Belgian talent was the face of confidence right away, walking down Muhammad Naimov with his finger on the counter-punching trigger. At first, Keita was setting up body shots, but he was soon timing and punishing Naimov with counter combinations. A counter overhand right-left hook combination floored Naimov, and the hurt kept coming. Within a minute, Keita landed two more knockdowns. A stiff jab sat his foe down, and then a crushing right hand to the jaw put him completely out. It was a controlled demolition, a showcase of the accuracy and power that made Keita such a dominant force in OKTAGON.

Awkward debut loss aside, Keita clearly has potential and just gave U.S. fans a proper introduction to his skills.

Undefeated Pavel Andrusca was a major underdog opposite streaking veteran Nathaniel Wood.

Andrusca accepted the bout on short notice and up a weight class, yet he took the fight to Wood. Andrusca was looking to wrestle but set up the shot well, feinting level changes and using right hands to disguise his entries. He was able to drag down Wood repeatedly, and whenever the Englishman scrambled back to his feet, Andrusca was sure to land on the break with elbows and right hands.

In round two, Wood landed a cracking right hand that floored Andrusca. Despite the damage, Andrusca went right back to work with his wrestling and even threatened a submission. After all the energy expenditure, Andrusca still had the gas to push the pace heavily in round three and take a clear-cut decision win.

The 24-year-old Moldovan looks like a real talent.

As for Wood, this upset loss erases his momentum. He was knocking on the door of a ranking but no longer. In truth, Wood still feels a bit small for Featherweight. Andrusca is a Bantamweight and was still able to muscle him around and rack up control time. For all of Wood’s technical skill and savvy, size and strength are likely to hold him back if he remains at 145 pounds.