UFC 258 takeaways: Usman widens the gap

Kamaru Usman retained the welterweight title with a third-round TKO of Gilbert Burns in the main event of UFC 258 on Saturday in Las Vegas.

Here are five takeaways from the event.

An untouchable champion?

OK, Usman might not be literally untouchable. Burns did rock him early in the fight with some of the biggest shots Usman has absorbed in his UFC career.

But in terms of actually beating him? Good luck with that.

Usman widened the gap between himself and the rest of the division even further by defeating Burns in one of his most impressive performances to date. "The Nigerian Nightmare" showed off some new tools in the form of kicks, and his jab looked better than ever. He also proved he can take a punch and keep going.

Usman now holds wins over four welterweights currently ranked in the top five, and six ranked in the top 10. He also passed Georges St-Pierre for the longest winning streak in UFC welterweight history. Usman has held the belt for less than two years, yet he's already running out of opponents to face. It's time to start seriously wondering who can beat this man.

Don't write off Barber yet

Maycee Barber suffered her second professional defeat with a loss to Alexa Grasso in the co-main event, all but ending the 22-year-old's bid to surpass Jon Jones as the youngest champion in UFC history.

But while Barber has now stumbled in back-to-back fights, it would be foolish to write off the women's flyweight prospect this early in her career.

The reality is that Barber is still years from entering her prime. She was born in 1998, started competing as a pro less than four years ago, and has only been in the UFC since 2018. In other words, Barber has plenty of time to grow.

And she will grow. She has good coaches in Israel Martinez and Mike Valle, and she'll continue to mature as she gets older. Barber was considered a top prospect coming off "Dana White's Contender Series" for a reason. She's clearly talented and has potential, and two losses haven't changed that. In the grand scheme of things, those defeats won't mean anything. We just have to give her time.

Gastelum gets much-needed win

It was crucial for Kelvin Gastelum to pick up a win in his main-card bout against Ian Heinisch, and he did just that.

The former interim middleweight title challenger snapped a three-fight skid with a unanimous decision victory and potentially saved his UFC career.

It wasn't the prettiest performance, but Gastelum's return to the win column is what matters most. Had he lost four in a row, that might've been it for him in the UFC. At the very least, it would have had a hugely negative impact on his career. Gastelum took a significant step down in competition against Heinisch, and a loss would have indicated he's not the same fighter who took Israel Adesanya five rounds in a back-and-forth brawl two years ago.

While it's not a given that Gastelum will return to contention, this was the first step in turning his career around. And that's all the 29-year-old could ask for at this point.

Muhammad looks better than ever

Belal Muhammad is one of the most underappreciated fighters in the welterweight division. He deserves a lot more attention, and he showed why yet again Saturday.

Muhammad dominated Dhiego Lima en route to a unanimous decision victory, which extended his winning streak to four fights and improved his record since 2016 to 8-1. He looked better than ever, punishing Lima with constant offense and giving him no room to breathe.

The No. 13-ranked welterweight should get a big fight next. As he continues to improve, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Muhammad in contention down the road.

Hernandez shocks the world

Hats off to Anthony Hernandez for pulling off the unimaginable.

"Fluffy" handed jiu-jitsu ace Rodolfo Vieira - nicknamed "The Black Belt Hunter" - his first professional loss in MMA. Hernandez was a 3-1 underdog, so a victory was remarkable in itself. But the method by which he beat Vieira - a guillotine choke in the second round - was truly stunning.

For context, Vieira appeared to gas out after the first round, and Hernandez rocked him on the feet before sinking in the choke. It's not as if Hernandez went out and completely out-grappled an ADCC gold medalist. But on paper, this one goes down as a submission win. That's more significant than some may realize.

Nineteen former ADCC champions have competed in the UFC, and they've combined for a 77-43 (1 NC) record, according to MMA Fighting's Guilherme Cruz. This fight marked the second time one of them lost by submission in the Octagon.

That's a legitimate achievement for Hernandez. He badly needed this win after going 1-2 in his first three Octagon appearances, and now the 27-year-old is riding high after making history.