It’s the last event of a relatively down year for MMA as UFC 219 airs on PPV Saturday night from Las Vegas, NV.
Cris Cyborg defends her featherweight title against former bantamweight champion Holly Holm in the main event. This will be Cyborg’s first title defense in a division that is relatively contenderless as there’s only 2-3 women in the actual division.
In the co-main, it’s a likely title eliminator situation as the unbeaten Khabib Nurmagomedov returns after a long layoff to face Edson Barboza in a battle of top five lightweight contenders. Nurmagomedov was supposed to face Tony Ferguson for the interim belt earlier this year, but the enigmatic Russian failed to make weight and the fight went to Keith Lee instead. He’s been off for more than a year and will try to keep his streak going against the longtime contender Barboza who was last seen knocking out Beneil Dariush in March.
Outside of the top two matches, this card is relatively thin for a PPV. Jimmie Rivera was originally scheduled to face former bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and later John Lineker but when Lineker dropped out due to a tooth infection, there wasn’t enough notice to find Rivera an opponent so that fight was scrapped despite the efforts to get Marlon Moraes to take the bout.
Former WEC welterweight champion Carlos Condit will meet Neil Magny in a welterweight fight that will kick off the main card, while the unbeaten Cynthia Calvillo will try to keep that zero in the loss column when she faces the first ever UFC strawweight champion, Carla Esparza.
Rounding out our panel picks is a featherweight fight on the FS1 prelims where former TUF lightweight competitor Myles Jury will attempt to pick up his second straight win since moving down a weight class as he meets former WSOF champion Rick Glenn. The latter is coming off a one-sided beatdown of rising contender Gavin Tucker in his last fight.
If you’re new here, our panel picks are listed below and alongside the fighter’s names are their worldwide FightMatrix rankings, as well as BestFightOdds.com betting odds. The panelist’s 2017 records is in parentheses, and we also have panel consensus picks as well as a line where we show how the betting favorites did:
Dave Meltzer (54-26; .675) — Wrestling Observer publisher
Tom Lawlor (27-16; .628) – Co-host of Filthy Four Daily; pro wrestling undercard fighter; UFC enhancement talent currently suspended due to wellness violation
Steve Juon (50-30; .625) — MMA Mania writer, Angry Marks publisher
Cyborg is fighting for the fourth time in the UFC and has knocked out all three of her previous opponents, including Tony Evinger in her last bout to win the title that had been vacated by Germaine de Randamie. She is facing a woman who will most likely be the most skilled striker she’s ever seen in former bantamweight champion Holm.
Holm rebounded from a three-fight losing streak, the first three losses of her career, to defeat former title challenger Bethe Correia with a question mark kick that capped off an otherwise dull fight. If she can withstand with the brutal attack of the champion, her best hope is that Cyborg tires out and Holm is able to catch her late in the fight in similar fashion.
The oddsmakers seem to think that Holm has a better chance of pulling off the upset than any of Cyborg’s previous UFC opponents as she is usually anywhere from a -700 to -1000 favorite. The odds are much closer this time around.
> Khabib Nurmagomedov (24-0) vs Edson Barboza (19-4)
LIGHTWEIGHTS
This makes for a very interesting style matchup here as Nurmagomedov is known for taking his opponents down at will and smothering his way to victory. It’s not terribly exciting but it’s effective as evidenced by his long unblemished record. Barboza, meanwhile, is one of the most dynamic strikers in the division, capable of a knockout at any time. He’s an almost even-money bet to pick up a post show bonus award as he’s racked up eight of them in 17 UFC fights as opposed to none for his opponent.
With divisional kingpin Conor McGregor seemingly holding the belt hostage, the winner here will almost certainly get interim champion Tony Ferguson sometime in 2018.
Barboza #4; +260 betting underdog: Lawlor, Fontaine, Bix, Dave
> Cynthia Calvillo (6-0) vs Carla Esparza (12-4)
STRAWWEIGHTS
Calvillo has taken the UFC by storm as the Team Alpha Male product debuted early this year with just three fights on her resume. She had the rare distinction of appearing on the main card of two straight UFC PPVs, winning both of her fights by submission. She followed that up with a decision over veteran Joanne Calderwood in July and will fight for the fifth time in 2017 (she also fought on a regional show in January) against former champion Esparza.
Esparza, who was also a champion in Invicta, won the TUF 20 tournament to claim the women’s strawweight title. She lost her first title defense to Joanna Jedrzejczyk but has rebounded to win two of three since then. She does hold a victory over current champion Rose Namajunas so a win here could get her close to a rematch with “Thug Rose”.
Carlos Condit (30-10) vs Neil Magny (19-6)
WELTERWEIGHTS
When we last saw Condit 17 months ago, the former title challenger was submitted in the first round by Demian Maia and many felt it might be the last time we’d see him in the Octagon. After that long time off, he returns tonight and will hope to avoid his third straight loss against longtime contender Magny. Although he’d faced very tough competition, Condit only has one victory in almost five years and badly needs a W here.
Magny’s history is such that he usually beats the guys ranked behind him and loses to those ahead of him, so he’s been stuck in the bottom half of the top 10 rankings for a couple of years now. He’s also lost two of his last three, but a victory here would be the biggest of his long career and might finally move him into the top five of a tough division.
> Myles Jury (16-2) vs Rick Glenn (20-4-1) FEATHERWEIGHTS
Jury returned from a 16-month absence and KO’d Mike De La Torre in the first round earlier this year to snap a two-fight losing streak. The one-time lightweight may be even better than his impressive record shows as his only two losses have come at the hands of Charles Oliveira and Donald Cerrone. He doesn’t immediately spring to the mind when you think of title challengers, but that record is hard to ignore and increased activity will only help his cause.
Glenn has picked up two straight since losing a short notice fight in his UFC debut against the much larger Evan Dunham at lightweight. He’s actually won five straight in the weight class since losing his WSOF title to Lance Palmer in 2014. He couldn’t have looked better in his last fight, destroying the previous unbeaten Gavin Tucker in a bout that got the very rare 30-24 score including one round that was scored 10-7. This fight could steal the show.
> Daniel Hooker (14-7) vs Marc Diakese (12-1) LIGHTWEIGHTS
Hooker #50; +174 betting underdog
Diakese #112; -178 betting favorite
> Khalil Rountree (6-2) vs Michal Oleksiejczuk (12-2) LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS
Rountree #49; -300 betting favorite
Oleksiejczuk #97; +285 betting underdog
> Omari Akhmedov (17-4) vs Marvin Vettori (12-3)MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Akhmedov #76 at welterweight; +186 betting underdog
Vettori #55; -205 betting favorite
> Louis Smolka (11-4) vs Matheus Nicolau (12-1-1) FLYWEIGHTS
Smolka #27; +255 betting underdog
Nicolau NR; -214 betting favorite
> Tim Elliott (14-8-1) vs Mark De La Rosa (9-0) BANTAMWEIGHTS
Elliott #9 at flyweight; -200 betting favorite
De La Rosa #108; +185 betting underdog
– Action begins with the Fight Pass prelim at 7:30 PM EST and moves over to FS 1 at 8 PM EST. The main card airs on PPV at 10 PM EST, and yours truly will have play by play coverage of the show.
After a few days of trying to put together a match with Jimmie Rivera vs. Marlon Moraes, a tweet last night by Rivera indicates it’s not happening.
“Sorry to my fans friends and family @MMARLOONMORAES said no to the 10 pounds. Those were his terms. I agreed, and then he withdrew the offer.”
Rivera was looking for a new opponent for Saturday’s UFC 219 pay-per-view. He was supposed to face John Lineker, who pulled out due to emergency oral surgery after already coming to Las Vegas.
Rivera vs. Lineker was third from the top on Saturday’s show, behind the Cris Cyborg vs. Holly Holm featherweight title fight and Edson Barboza vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Rivera had tried to get Moraes as a new opponent, although Moraes is coming off fights on November 11th with John Dodson (winning via split decision) and December 9th with Aljamain Sterling (winning via quick knockout). He had offered the fight at 138, 140, and finally 145 but Moraes turned it down.
Given the quick turnaround and the importance of the fight when it came to the title picture, it wasn’t in Moraes’ best interest to take a fight at the last minute with no specific training.
Less than a week before the show, UFC 219 has lost one of its main card matchups.
MMA Fighting first reported today that John Lineker won’t be able to fight at the pay-per-view due to a tooth infection. Lineker will have emergency surgery and is expected to return to training in approximately three weeks.
Lineker was scheduled to face Jimmie Rivera in what was the third biggest fight on the card. The UFC hasn’t confirmed whether Rivera will still fight at the PPV, though MMA Fighting noted that they’re looking for a replacement opponent. Lineker himself was an injury replacement in the bout after Dominick Cruz was forced out of it when he broke his arm.
UFC 219 is the company’s last show of the year and will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday night. With the UFC yet to announce Rivera’s updated plans for the show, here’s the current main card lineup with Lineker out:
UFC women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg defending against Holly Holm
In a content era in which it seems like anything and everything is possible, Dana White told ESPN Wednesday that the UFC is talking to retired boxer and all-time pay-per-view king Floyd Mayweather about coming to the Octagon.
“We’re interested in doing something with Floyd. Everything is a realistic possibility. Mayweather vs. McGregor f—ing happened. Anything is possible,” White told ESPN’s Brett Okamoto.
Mayweather recently made headlines by saying that he could earn $1 billion in “3-4 fights” in the UFC and that “They just called me not too long ago and asked me to come back,” not specifying exactly who “they” was (UFC, Showtime, etc).
Whether Mayweather has a deal with Showtime that would necessitate their involvement as co-promoters is unclear.
The undefeated Mayweather famously crossed over into the MMA consciousness with his August boxing match against Conor McGregor that generated more than $600 million in total revenue. Mayweather won that fight via 10th round TKO and was expected to retire from combat sports. McGregor hasn’t competed in the UFC since November 2016 and seemingly has no plans to do so anytime soon.
One would assume that a Mayweather-McGregor rematch in the UFC would be the move to make if the fight could be sanctioned. The obvious lack of ground training would put Mayweather at a significant disadvantage against even the most novice of grapplers.
Former heavyweight champion James Toney famously came into the UFC for one fight against Randy Couture at UFC 118 in Boston, MA, seven years ago. Couture had no issues taking down Toney and submitting him in the first round easily.
The Christmas Eve UFC special that will re-air UFC 218 will be on FS1 and not FOX as reported yesterday.
That changes the scope of the show, although it still will give greater visibility to an exciting card and the Francis Ngannou knockout of Alistair Overeem along with a quick turnaround between the pay-per-view and the television airing.
Fox officials have noted that the show will be airing from 10 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on December 24th, a Sunday night.
The show will include only three fights, the Max Holloway vs. Jose Aldo featherweight title match, Ngannou’s win over Overeem with one of the year’s most spectacular knockouts, and one of the year’s best fights with Eddie Alvarez vs. Justin Gaethje for what Alvarez billed as the lightweight violence championship.
On Christmas Eve last year, a UFC 206 special aired on FOX and averaged 4,720,000 viewers. That was the second-biggest number ever for UFC on FOX, though the lead-in was an NFL game.
Last night’s UFC on FOX show headlined by Rafael dos Anjos’ win over Robbie Lawler, with a welterweight title shot at stake, did 1.78 million viewers on the fast nationals, which would be the lowest December rating in the history of the series and third lowest ever.
The Winnipeg show was down 34 percent from last year’s unusually high fast nationals number for a card featuring Michelle Waterson vs. Paige VanZant and Urijah Faber’s retirement fight against Brad Pickett.
While that’s not a fair comparison, it was down 21-22 percent from the first reported figure for the 2013 to 2015 shows at the same time of the year.
Lawler in particular is a well known fighter, a former welterweight champion who has been pushed as a star since he was a teenager in UFC, Strikeforce, and Elite XC, winning UFC and Elite XC titles. He’s also won an unprecedented three straight matches of the year, with his 2014 fight with Johny Hendricks, his 2015 fight with Rory MacDonald, and his 2016 fight with Carlos Condit. Dos Anjos is a former lightweight champion who is unbeaten as a welterweight.
Dos Anjos won a five-round decision to make him the top contender for Tyron Woodley’s belt.
The fast nationals only measure 8-10 p.m. for FOX, and also don’t measure the West Coast since it covers prime time and the fight airing live on the West Coast was out of what is considered prime time. The final three rounds of the main event aired after 10 p.m. so the final number should grow to closer to 2 million.
Going into the August 26th Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor boxing match, we knew it would generate a significant amount of business but just how much was the big question given the lopsided odds and the somewhat fun/somewhat cringy four city press tour.
On Thursday and nearly four months after the megafight, we got our answer as Showtime officially announced the pay-per-view extravaganza generated 4.3 million buys, falling 300,000 short of the 4.6 million record Mayweather set with Manny Pacquiao.
At a price of $99.95, that’s a lot of money the two men divvied up, not to mention the take from outside North America where the show broke records for PPV buys. The total includes traditional purchasing methods (cable/satellite providers) in addition to various online options, most of which famously crashed due to an influx of traffic before the fight, causing a delay.
The total revenue for the show (tickets, PPV, sponsorship, international TV distribution, etc) was in excess of $600 million, among the highest single-day grosses of all time.
This week, Mayweather said UFC has been in touch with him about coming to fight in the UFC. He said if he was to do so, he’d make $1 billion in just three or four fights.
McGregor, the UFC lightweight champion, hasn’t defended the title he won in November 2016 and it’s unclear whether he’ll ever return to the UFC again. The aforementioned Pacquaio said he was in negotiations with McGregor to box, which Dana White shot down quickly with the threat of a lawsuit.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 123: Swanson vs. Ortega, eminating from the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.
The Octagon heads to Fresno for the first time with a five-round main event in the featherweight division as Cub Swanson takes on the undefeated Brian Ortega.
Swanson, in the last fight on his current UFC contract, is looking for his fifth consecutive win while Ortega looks to avoid his first loss and build on his impressive string of four straight final round finishes.
Also on the card is a featherweight bout between Jason Knight and Gabriel Benitez in the co-main event position, and a bantamweight affair with two men looking to get into title contention as Marlon Moraes takes on Aljamain Sterling. In prelim action, Alexis Davis and Liz Carmouche battle in a women’s flyweight bout that could also have title shot implications on the line.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:30 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 6:30 PM ET/3:30 PM PT
> Antonio Braga Neto (9-2 1 NC, 1-1 UFC) vs. Trevin Giles (10-0, 1-0 UFC) Middleweights
Former UFC fighter Frank Trigg is the referee, the first UFC fight he has officiated. Giles came out with a quick combo that rocked Neto. He is working to land the jab. He slipped on an uppercut but Neto unable to take advantage. Giles landed a right hand and slipped out of the way of Neto’s leg kick attempts. Neto grabbed a body lock and got a trip takedown. Neto trying to pass guard against the fence. Neto with a knee to the chest of Giles. Neto now in full mount. Giles is surviving on the mat but Neto in complete control late. 10-9 Neto.
Giles landing the jab early. Giles landed a big left hook. Neto landed a counter left hook. Giles back to snapping the jab and landing. Giles landed a huge right hand and Neto was hurt. Neto is much slower this round. Giles landed a hard right but Neto rocked Giles with a counter right hand. Giles was running away and then rocked Neto with a big right hand that really hurt Neto. Giles landing the jab again. Neto in trouble. Giles pouring on the jab late. Neto doing almost nothing. Giles lands a big right hand against the cage. Another hard right at the end from Giles. 10-8 Giles, 19-18 Giles.
Giles fresh coming out for the third. Neto scored a takedown but Giles got to his feet and Neto slipped out over the back and they were back standing. Giles lands a right hand then another followed by the jab. Neto holding his hands low. Giles with a straight right hand. Giles with another. This is close to being stopped. Giles with a hard right hand that knocks Neto out. Big win by Giles as he stays undefeated.
Official Result- Trevin Giles def. Antonio Braga Neto by TKO (punches) at 2:27 of Round 3
> Chris Gruetzemacher (13-2, 1-1 UFC) vs. Davi Ramos (6-2, 0-1 UFC) Lightweights
They both come out swinging. Ramos landed a big knee to the body. They trade kicks. Ramos with some big punches, some are missing. Gruetzemacher with a leg kick. They go to the mat and Gruetzemacher on top landed some punches but they got to their feet. Ramos lands an uppercut. Ramos lands a flying knee that doesn’t hurt Gruetzemacher. Ramos gets a takedown into half-guard. Ramos looking to set up a choke. Gruetzemacher landing punches from the bottom. Ramos finishes on top. 10-9 Ramos.
Ramos lands a big combo to start the second. He drops Gruetzemacher for a moment with a right hand. They get up and Ramos gets a takedown but the referee quickly stands them up. That was a bad standup. Ramos whiffs on a takedown. Gruetzemacher is now coming forward as Ramos is slowing down. Gruetzemacher lands a right hand. Ramos misses more takedown attempts. Ramos lands two big right hands. Gruetzemacher lands a right hand followed by a knee. Ramos lands a combo and gets a takedown. 10-9 Gruetzemacher, 19-19.
Ramos gets a body lock immediately and gets a takedown and has the back and a rear-naked choke locked in and he gets Gruetzemacher to tap! That was quick and impressive.
Official Result- Davi Ramos def. Chris Gruetzemacher by submission (rear-naked choke) at :50 of Round 3
They crack each other with big punches in the first minute. They trade but not much landing and not much going on. They continue to look for openings. Perez is looking for counters but Alcantara is not throwing to give him a chance. They trade kicks with thirty seconds left. Alcantara connects with a left hand. Alcantara tries for a flying knee. Not much of a round. 10-9 Alcantara.
Perez throws a combo but nothing really lands. Alcantara throws a kick but Perez catches the leg and kicks Alcantara to the mat, but he gets up. Alcantara with a leg kick. Perez with one. They are doing nothing. Alcantara lands a straight right hand. Perez with a leg kick. Perez with another and Alcantara counters with a combo against the cage. This fight is not good. 10-9 Alcantara, 20-18 Alcantara.
Something has to happen this round. Unfortunately, nothing has in the first minute. Neither doing anything still two minutes in. They throw leg kicks that completely miss. Perez misses a right hand. Still not much happening with two minutes left. Perez sweeps the leg of Alcantara. Alcantara with a front kick. Perez dropped Alcantara for a moment but did nothing to capitalize. This fight is over. It was terrible. 10-9 Perez, 29-28 Alcantara.
Official Result- Alejandro Perez def. Iuri Alcantara by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Dvalishvili throws early and gets the clinch. They trade knees. Saenz lands some big knees to the body as Dvalishvili looks for a takedown. They scramble and Dvalishvili grabs the back. Dvalishvili is cut over his eye. They break as Saenz lands some knees. Dvalishvili gets a takedown. They get to their feet. They break. Dvalishvili with a kick. Saenz with a kick and Dvalishvili counters it into a takedown. They get up and Dvalishvili is working hard for a takedown but the round ends. 10-9 Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili gets a takedown to start the second but they work back to their feet. Dvalishvili with an elbow on the break. Saenz lands a knee in the clinch. Dvalishvili working hard for a takedown against the fence and gets it for a moment. Dvalishvili with a brief takedown. He gets another. Saenz trying to work towards the cage to use it to get up. Referee Frank Trigg stands them up. Dvalishvili lands a left hand. They trade punches. 10-9 Dvalishvili, 20-18 Dvalishvili.
Dvalishvili gets a takedown after they clash heads. Saenz working to get up but Dvalishvili trips him back down. They get right back up. Dvalishvili lands a spinning back fist. Saenz with a head kick. They trade punches and Saenz connects with a knee and lands a right hand. Saenz with a spinning back fist. Dvalishvili has a takedown stuffed by Saenz. They are scrambling. This fight is a grind. They break and Saenz lands a big uppercut. Close final round. 10-9 Saenz, 29-28 Dvalishvili.
Official Result- Frankie Saenz def. Merab Dvalishvili by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
> Carls John de Tomas (8-1, 0-1 UFC) vs. Alex Perez (18-4, 0-0 UFC) Bantamweights
Perez with some leg kicks early. Perez misses a right hand. Perez with a leg kick. Tomas ducks under a right hand. Perez with some kicks and Tomas lands to the body. Tomas with a left hand. Perez grabs a neck as they drop to the mat and is looking for a choke. He has a D’arce choke locked in and is looking for the tap but loses it. Perez still has the neck and is working for a choke again. Perez gets into the guard of Tomas and lands a big elbow. 10-9 Perez.
Perez gets a takedown into side control and lands a couple of elbows. Tomas gives up his back and Perez is landing punches. Perez looking for full back control and is softening Tomas up with punches. Perez gets the D’arce choke locked in again and this time Tomas taps! Big dominant win for Perez in his UFC debut.
Official Result- Alex Perez def. Carls John de Tomas by submission (D’arce choke) at 1:54 of Round 2
> Luke Sanders (11-1, 1-1 UFC) vs. Andre Soukhamthath (11-5, 0-2 UFC) Bantamweights
Soukhamthath misses a head kick. Sanders lands a left hand. Sanders lands a combo starting with a hard left hand. Sanders with a head kick. Both land punches. They trade punches. Sanders with a leg kick. Sanders lands a combo and they clinch against the fence. Sanders has full control against the fence. Sanders with a short elbow. Sanders with an elbow at the end of the round. 10-9 Sanders.
They are trading and Sanders is landing with more volume. Soukhamthath then drops Sanders with a big right hand and then started landing punches. Sanders was face down and Soukhamthath was landing lots of punches and the referee stopped the fight. Sanders protested but he was face down and not intelligently defending himself so the stoppage is justified.
Official Result- Andre Soukhamthath def. Luke Sanders by TKO (punches) at 1:06 of Round 2
> Alexis Davis (#10 WBW, 18-7, 5-2 UFC) vs. Liz Carmouche (#11 WBW, 11-5, 3-3 UFC) Women’s Flyweights
They come out swinging early and Davis gets the clinch against the fence. Carmouche with short punches. They are separated by referee Frank Trigg. Davis with a right hand and Carmouche gets a trip takedown into side control. Carmouche with some knees to the body on the ground. They get to their feet and Carmouche working for another takedown. They get back to the mat. Carmouche in the high guard and landing knees. Davis going for an armbar from the bottom. She almost has it. Davis has it tight but Carmouche survives the round. 10-9 Carmouche.
Davis coming out with combos and then Carmouche counters with combos. Carmouche throws a leg kick and Davis catches it and takes Carmouche down. Davis in the full guard and landing punches to the body. Both looking to transition on the mat. Davis still working in the guard landing punches. Carmouche looking for an opening for a triangle from the bottom. Both women landing on the ground. They are stood up. Both land punches. Carmouche with a front kick and then two right hands. Davis with a leg kick and they clinch. Davis with some short knees. Carmouche with a late takedown. 10-9 Davis, 19-19.
Both coming out swinging. Davis with a leg kick and Carmouche with a big combo and she has Davis hurt but then takes Davis down. That might have been a mistake. Carmouche in the guard and lands some knees. Both landing body punches. Davis looking for an armbar now and she has Carmouche in trouble. Carmouche picks Davis up and slams her down and is able to break the armbar attempt. Carmouche moves to side control. Both landing punches on the mat. Davis looking for an escape and she sweeps to the top. Davis reigning down a lot of punches and she has a big finish to the round. She tried to steal it there. 10-9 Carmouche, 29-28 Carmouche.
Official Result- Alexis Davis def. Liz Carmouche by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
> Albert Morales (7-2-1, 1-2-1 UFC) vs. Benito Lopez (8-0, 0-0 UFC) Bantamweights
They are swinging right away. Lopez with some kicks and Morales grabs the back and tries for a takedown but it is defended. Morales drops Lopez with a punch but Lopez gets up and drops Morales with a flying knee. Morales gets up and they are in a wild exchange and Morales goes back down. Lopez has a one-arm guillotine choke locked in and is looking to finish. Morales is able to get up and they are throwing bombs at each other. Lopez throws a flying knee and falls to the ground and Morales grabs the back as they stand. Morales landing punches from the back. Lopez with some back elbows. They are stuck there until the end of the round. Wild round. 10-9 Lopez.
Lopez lands a right hand and both land the jab. Lopez with a big body kick. The pace has slowed a little. Morales with a leg kick. Morales lands some left hands. Lopez with a spin kick to the body and then a head kick. Lopez landing big punches as he has Morales hurt. Morales with some kicks and then lands a combo. They trade punches. Morales lands some punches as he presses forward. Morales with a leg kick. Lopez with a jumping head kick. 10-9 Lopez, 20-18 Lopez.
Lopez with a body kick. Morales with a leg kick. They trade kicks. Lopez with a big head kick but he misses his uppercuts. Morales is cut under his right eye. Lopez with another head kick. Morales lands a right hand. They trade punches. Morales with a left hand. Morales with another. Lopez with a high kick. Morales with a left hook. They exchange and Lopez just misses a flying knee. Morales with a leg kick and a late combo. Close fight. 10-9 Morales, 29-28 Lopez.
Official Result- Benito Lopez def. Albert Morales by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
> Eryk Anders (8-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Markus Perez (9-0, 0-0 UFC) Middleweights
Anders closing the distance as he’s looking to land the left hand. Anders has the body lock against the fence and lands a knee. Anders lands a right hand on the break after Perez lands a knee. Anders with a right hand and goes back to the clinch. Perez now has the clinch advantage and he picks Anders up and slams him to the ground. Perez looking for a choke and he is squeezing. Anders gets out and ends up on top. They get to their feet and Anders lands a knee. Anders with a high kick then a knee. Anders with a left hand. Anders grabs the back. Anders with a combo on the fence. Perez lands a left hand and then runs away from Anders. 10-9 Anders.
Perez on the retreat early as Anders presses forward. Anders lands some left hands. Anders stalking Perez around the Octagon. Anders lands some big punches and Perez has a chin on him. Anders with another left hand. Anders lands some more left hands. Perez still running away inside the Octagon but lands a spinning back elbow. Anders with a big left hand. Perez with a body kick. Anders gets on top and lands some left hands. Anders lands some big punches. Perez gets up and Anders gets him down and lands more big punches. 10-9 Anders, 20-18 Anders.
Anders gets the fight down to the mat and is landing. They get to their feet and Anders lands some big punches and has Perez in trouble. Anders gets a takedown and is in the half-guard. Anders landing some punches to the body but not a lot is happening. Anders looking to improve position and is just landing from the top. Anders gets to his feet but gets right back into top position and is landing short punches. Both are tired. 10-9 Anders, 30-27 Anders. Anders won the fight and then called out Lyoto Machida for a fight in February in Brazil.
Official Result- Eryk Anders def. Markus Perez by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-25, 29-28)
> Scott Holtzman (10-2, 3-2 UFC) vs. Darrell Horcher (13-2, 1-1 UFC) Lightweights
Holtzman shoots for an early takedown but it is defended by Horcher. Hotlzman with a knee to the body. Holtzman gets a takedown and is on top landing punches from the half-guard. Horcher able to reverse and he is on top. They get to their feet. They trade and Horcher gets a takedown. They get to their feet and Horcher lands a right hand and Holtzman slips on a kick at the end. Close round. 10-9 Holtzman.
They are trading and Horcher drops Holtzman with a left hand. Horcher then lands two more hard left hands. Holtzman has a cut on his nose and he gets a takedown against the fence. Holtzman landing punches from the top before they get to their feet. Holtzman gets another takedown and is working from the half-guard. Holtzman is landing punches from the top as he postures up and then lands an elbow. They are stood up by the referee and Holtzman is angry about it. It was a bad standup. Holtzman immediately gets another takedown. Holtzman stands and lands to the body and goes back into the guard and lands more ground-and-pound to end the second. 10-9 Holtzman, 20-18 Holtzman.
They exchange punches and Holtzman gets a brief takedown. They get up and separate and trade punches before Holtzman shoots for another takedown. He doesn’t get it but has position standing against the fence. Holtzman lands an elbow and then goes back for another takedown. He gets it and is landing more punches from the top. Horcher has no takedown defense in this fight. They are stood up again and Holtzman isn’t happy again. Holtzman misses a flying knee and Horcher rocks him with a left hand but Holtzman takes the fight back down. Holtzman in half-guard and rides the fight out. It should be a clear win for him. 10-9 Holtzman, 30-27 Holtzman.
Official Result- Scott Holtzman def. Darrell Horcher by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Sterling goes for a kick but Moraes catches the leg and tosses Sterling down, though he gets up. Moraes drops Sterling with a right hand and Moraes goes after him on the mat but Sterling grabs the arm. Moraes quickly gets out and they get to their feet. Moraes then throws a kick but his knee catches Sterling right in the jaw and Sterling goes out cold! A vicious knockout by Moraes in impressive fashion.
Official Result- Marlon Moraes def. Aljamain Sterling by knockout (knee) at 1:07 of Round 1
> Jason Knight (#15, 17-3, 4-2 UFC) vs. Gabriel Benitez (19-6, 3-2 UFC) Featherweights
Knight comes out firing away with right hands to start. Benitez landing kicks and Knight drops Benitez for a moment with a right hand. Knight with a kick and then goes for a takedown and gets it for a moment. The referee stopped the fight and took a point away from Knight as he bit Benitez. That is a first. They get back to action and both are firing away. Benitez gets a takedown and has top position but gets to his feet and Knight follows. Benitez rocks Knight with a left hand. Benitez lands a left hand and then a leg kick. Knight goes for a takedown but it is defended. Benitez gets the round big due to the point deduction. 10-8 Benitez.
Both men land punches to start the second. Knight needs to win these two rounds. They both land combos. Knight gets a takedown but Benitez gets right back up and they clinch. Knight with another takedown but Benitez reversed position to the top. They get to their feet and start exchanging. Benitez is more active with his striking and we have another timeout as Knight poked Benitez in the eye. They get back to action and Benitez is landing more punches and some big left hands. Knight is hurt. 10-9 Benitez, 20-17 Benitez.
Knight trying to push the action but Benitez has counters for him. Benitez lands a big head kick and then a combo. Knight lands a right hook. Benitez lands some right hands followed by a left hand. He lands some more. Knight unable to get any offense going. Knight goes for a takedown but Benitez steps aside and Knight falls to the mat. Benitez landing more combos and Knight just isn’t doing anything. Benitez with a late takedown into mount and he was throwing elbows. Knight tries for a heel hook but time runs out. 10-9 Benitez, 30-26 Benitez.
Official Result- Gabriel Benitez def. Jason Knight by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 29-27)
> Cub Swanson (#4, 24-7, 9-3 UFC) vs. Brian Ortega (#6, 12-0 1 NC, 4-0 1 NC UFC) Featherweights
Swanson on the attack with leg kicks early on. Ortega looking for openings but Swanson is quick on his feet. They each tag each other with wild punches. Swanson back on the attack with leg kicks. Swanson misses a big right hand but lands a combo in return. Swanson with a hard right hand. Ortega lands a combo in return. Swanson with some right hands to the body. Swanson with a right hand then a head kick then a couple of left hands then a right to the body. Ortega grabs the neck of Swanson and drags him to the mat and has a D’arce choke locked in but Swanson survives the round. It was close. 10-9 Swanson.
Swanson back on the attack with strikes but Ortega is applying pressure and landing some. Ortega is making Swanson miss a lot of his punches. Head kick from Ortega blocked by Swanson. Swanson back to the body and just misses an elbow on the break. Swanson with some body punches and then lands an uppercut. Swanson lands a right hand and then Ortega shoots for a takedown but it is defended. Ortega grabs the neck and has a jumping guillotine choke locked in and Swanson taps out! Wow, a big submission win for Ortega as he remains undefeated.
Official Result- Brian Ortega def. Cub Swanson by submission (guillotine choke) at 3:22 of Round 2
Less than a month after winning the UFC middleweight title in dramatic fashion, Georges St-Pierre is dropping that title in not-so-dramatic fashion.
Due to a condition known as ulcerative colitis (an inflammatory bowel disease), St-Pierre dropped the belt officially Thursday night, saying in a statement that he was going to have to take some considerable time off, adding that he didn’t want to hold up the division.
“My fight at UFC 217 was one of the greatest nights of my life but I now need to take some time to focus on my health. Out of respect to the athletes and the sport, I don’t want to hold up the division. I will be giving up my belt and once I’m healthy I look forward to working with the UFC to determine what’s next in my career.”
That means Robert Whittaker gets the ‘interim’ removed from his middleweight title reign and now becomes the official champion — on paper anyway. He’s been injured since defeating Yoel Romero for the interim title and will look to defend the official gold for the first time against former champion Luke Rockhold at February’s UFC 221 in his home country of Australia.
St-Pierre returned after a four year layoff to submit Michael Bisping for the middleweight title in November at Madison Square Garden. He had been a dominant welterweight champion before taking time off after a controversial split decision win over Johny Hendricks at the promotion’s 20th anniversary show. There was some question as to whether GSP would remain in the middleweight division as he was non-commital after the Bisping win.
After Francis Ngannou’s highlight-reel knockout of Alistair Overeem at this past Saturday’s UFC 218, it wasn’t a case of ‘if’ but ‘when’ when it came to getting a shot at UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic.
On Wednesday night, we may have found out the ‘when’: Saturday, January 20th at UFC 220 in Boston, Mass., first reported by MMA Junkie and confirmed by MMA Fighting’s Ariel Helwani.
UFC has not officially announced the bout as of this writing.
Ngannou’s rise to a title shot was accelerated after the Overeem victory, his 10th straight and sixth in the Octagon where he’s finished everyone he’s faced. In Miocic, he’ll face the man who has held the title since May 2016 and has won five straight, including two successful defenses of the gold. He’s one away from setting the UFC heavyweight record.
After downing Junior dos Santos in May, Cleveland, Ohio’s favorite son sat on the sidelines with a contract dispute.
The fight should headline a show with a co-main event of light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier vs. light heavyweight prospect Volkan Oezdemir who burst onto the scene this year with three wins, two by first round knockout. This will be Cormier’s first fight since losing the title to Jon Jones this summer and then being given the title back after another Jones USADA violation.
UFC hasn’t been in Boston since a January 2016 FS1 show headlined by then-bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz vs. TJ Dillashaw.
UFC returns tonight for its second show of the weekend with an event that looks exciting on paper but probably won’t be breaking any box office records. Top to bottom, though, it’s one of the best shows of year headlined by a featherweight title rematch where Max Holloway defends the belt against longtime former champ Jose Aldo.
In the co-main, a future heavyweight title contender should emerge as up and coming prospect Francis N’Gannou hopes to extend a five fight UFC winning streak against MMA legend Alistair Overeem, making one last title run in the twilight of his career.
In a fight that promises to steal the show, and both competitors have said as much, TUF 26 coaches Justin Gaethje and Eddie Alvarez will square off in a lightweight bout. In another main card fight with title implications, top flyweight contenders Sergio Pettis and Henry Cejudo meet in attempt to determine another victim for division kingpin Demetrious Johnson.
Rounding out the main card and our panel picks is a strawweight bout between former Invicta atomweight champion Michelle Waterson against Tecia Torres. Both are top contenders to the belt recently won by Rose Namajunas and the winner could be in line for a title opportunity.
If you’re new here, our panel picks are listed below and listed alongside the fighter’s names are their worldwide FightMatrix rankings, as well as BestFightOdds.com betting odds. The panelist’s 2017 records is in parentheses, and we also have panel consensus picks as well as a line where we show how the betting favorites did:
Dave Meltzer (50-25; .667) — Wrestling Observer publisher
Mike Sempervive (46-29; .613) — Wrestling Observer Live and Big Audio Nightmare co-host
Mike Sawyer (46-29; .613) — Tough Talk MMA publisher
Tom Lawlor (23-15; .605) – Co-host Filthy Four Daily; pro wrestling undercard fighter; UFC enhancement talent currently suspended due to wellness violation
David Bixenspan (45-30; .600) – Deadspin pro wrestling columnist; Between the Sheets podcast host
Ryan Frederick (43-32; .573) — WrestlingObserver.com UFC writer
Front Row Brian (40-35; .533) — MMA newsbreaker, beloved internet personality, podcast host
Paul Fontaine (38-37; .507) — MMADraws.com publisher, WrestlingObserver.com writer
> UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway (18-3) vs Jose Aldo (26-3) II
Holloway KO’d Aldo in the third round of their first fight this past June and was initially scheduled to face Frankie Edgar in his first title defense. But when the former lightweight champion pulled out due to injury, Aldo was chosen to step in as he was training for a fight with Ricardo Lamas.
In a very unique stat, this will be Aldo’s 11th fight in UFC and they have all been title matches. Only Ronda Rousey, with eight title matches and no non-title bouts, is even close. He was getting the better of Holloway early in their first bout but gassed out, allowing the younger challenger back into the fight he eventually won.
Holloway has won 11 straight since losing a decision to current lightweight champion Conor McGregor and he’d love nothing better than a chance to avenge that loss some day in a different weight class. While that is unlikely for now, he’ll have to settle for attempting to defeat a bonafide MMA legend for a second straight time.
> Francis N’Gannou (10-1) vs Alistair Overeem (43-15) HEAVYWEIGHTS
N’Gannou has taken the UFC by storm, winning five straight with five finishes in just over two years. He’s finished nine opponents in a row overall and if he can manage to beat long-time contender Overeem, it’s likely he’ll get the shot at champion Stipe Miocic.
Aside from a first round KO loss in his first and only UFC title shot, Overeem is on quite a roll himself. Sandwiched around that defeat are six wins, including four by KO. Three of those victories came against former UFC champions, including his most recent win over Fabricio Werdum.
This is your classic ‘next big thing’ vs. the fading legend, but we’ve seen the legend pull out a win before and if Overeem can manage to do that here, it would be quite a story.
> Henry Cejudo (11-2) vs Sergio Pettis (16-2) FLYWEIGHTS
Cejudo is a former Olympic gold medallist who burst onto the MMA scene with nine straight wins before running into Demetrious Johnson in a title shot that he probably took too early in his career. He was KO’d in the first round and then lost a split decision to Joseph Benavidez in his next fight. In his most recent fight, he KO’d recent title contender Wilson Reis and looked great in doing so.
Standing across the Octagon will be “The Phenom” Pettis, riding a four-fight win streak and basically the only top contender left who has yet to face Johnson. He will almost certainly get that elusive title fight with a win here while Cejudo could also get the nod with an impressive finish.
> Justin Gaethje (18-0) vs Eddie Alvarez (28-5) LIGHTWEIGHTS
Gaethje, the former World Series of Fighting lightweight champion, made his UFC debut in spectacular fashion with a win over longtime contender Michael Johnson in a fight of the year candidate that landed him two post-show bonus awards.
Alvarez is a former Bellator champion that shocked the world by winning the UFC title over Rafael Dos Anjos. He would go on to lose the strap to Conor McGregor. He followed that up with a strange no-contest against Dustin Poirier that was shaping up to be a hell of a fight before he landed illegal knees, causing the fight to be prematurely stopped. Both guys are promising to deliver a fight of the night performance.
> Tecia Torres (9-1) vs Michelle Waterson (14-6) STRAWWEIGHTS
Torres, aka “The Tiny Tornado”, has won five of her six UFC fights with the only loss coming at the hands of current champion Rose Namajunas. She does hold a victory over the champ in a pre-UFC bout early in their respective careers and a third bout between the two would be a chance to settle that rivalry.
Waterson is somewhat undersized for this division but the former Invicta 105-lb champion started her UFC career with two straight submission wins before being stopped by Namajunas in a title eliminator bout earlier this year. At 31, she’s one of the oldest contenders in the division and she’ll probably need a decent winning streak to get back into title contention.
> Paul Felder (14-3) vs Charles Oliveira (22-7) LIGHTWEIGHTS
Felder #20; +105 betting favorite
Oliveira #13; +110 betting underdog
> Alex Oliveira (18-4-1) vs Yancy Medeiros (14-4) WELTERWEIGHTS
Oliveira #9; -218 betting favorite
Medeiros #34; +220 betting underdog
> Drakkar Klose (8-0-1) vs David Teymur (6-1)LIGHTWEIGHTS
Klose #88; +160 betting underdog
Teymur #59; -170 betting favorite
> Felice Herrig (13-6) vs Cortney Casey (7-4) STRAWWEIGHTS
Herrig #14; -120 betting favorite
Casey #11; +110 betting underdog
> Abdul Razzak Alhassan (7-1) vs Sabah Homassi (11-6) WELTERWEIGHTS
Alhassan #157; -240 betting favorite
Homassi NR; +220 betting underdog
> Dominick Reyes (7-0) vs Jeremy Kimball (15-6) LIGHTHEAVYWEIGHTS
Reyes #54; -425 betting favorite
Kimball #53; +450 betting underdog
Angela Magana (11-8) vs Amanda Cooper (2-3) STRAWWEIGHTS
Magana NR; +415 betting underdog
Cooper NR; -440 betting favorite
Allen Crowder (9-2) vs Justin Willis (5-1) HEAVYWEIGHTS
Crowder #106; +195 betting underdog
Willis #56; -215 betting favorite
Action begins with the Fight Pass prelims at 6:30 PM EST and moves over to FS1 at 8 PM EST. The main card airs on PPV at 10 PM EST, and yours truly will have play by play coverage of the show.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 26 Finale: A New World Champion, emanating from the Park Theater in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The latest season of The Ultimate Fighter, the 26th American version, wraps up as a brand new champion is crowned as the inaugural UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship is on the line in the headline bout.
The main event underwent a huge change yesterday during the weigh-ins, as we noted. Sijara Eubanks was originally to battle for the championship, but was pulled from the bout after being hospitalized due to kidney failure. The title is still on the line as Roxanne Modafferi takes Eubanks’ place to take on Nicco Montano.
Montano made it to the finals after defeating Lauren Murphy, Montana De La Rosa and Barb Honchak during the tournament. Modafferi was the top seed in the tournament, and made it to the semi-finals before falling to Eubanks.
Also on the card, the majority of the remaining cast members of TUF 26 will compete, as well as undefeated Sean O’Malley, fresh off an impressive showing on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Sereies, battle Terrion Ware, and former bantamweight title challenger Joe Soto goes for four straight wins against the undefeated Brett Johns.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7:30 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
Robertson lands a counter right hand right off the bat to start. Robertson scores a single-leg takedown. Robertson took the back for a moment but Whitmire was able to spin into the guard and landed a big right hand. Robertson then worked for an armbar from the bottom and got it locked in and Whitmire quickly tapped! First round submission win for Robertson.
Official Result- Gillian Robertson def. Emily Whitmire by submission (armbar) at 2:12 of Round 1
Beck fires away with two body kicks. Dobson then lands a jab and then two kicks, including a spin kick. Beck lands a left hand. Beck lands another left hand. She is landing with more volume as Dobson comes forward. Dobson lands a leg kick as Beck lands a left and slips to the mat. They trade high kicks. Beck with two low kicks. Dobson starting to land more leg kicks. They trade at the end. Close round. 10-9 Beck.
They were trading and Dobson landed a big head kick and followed it with a knee. Dobson landed a leg kick and a soft spinning back fist. Beck still pressuring and lands a left hand. Beck with a leg kick and then some left hands to the body. Dobson lands a right hand and then drops Beck with a right hand and Beck is done as the referee stops the fight. Dobson with the big knockout finish to get the win.
Official Result-Shana Dobson def. Ariel Beck by TKO (punches) at 2:53 of Round 2
Gevorgyan with a couple of quick punches. Ostovich with a right hand and then scores a takedown and is in the guard. Gevorgyan goes for an armbar but Ostovich gets out and they scramble to their feet. Gevorgyan goes for a takedown but Ostovich takes the back on the mat. Ostovich tried to armbar and has it locked in and Gevorgyan taps out! Ostovich with the submission victory in the first round.
Official Result- Rachael Ostovich def. Karine Gevorgyan by submission (armbar) at 1:40 of Round 1
> Andrew Sanchez (9-3, 2-1 UFC) vs. Ryan Janes (9-3, 1-2 UFC) Middleweights
Sanchez is landing the overhand right early and a leg kick and then scored a takedown but Janes is able to get to his feet. They break the clinch and Sanchez lands a combo. Sanchez lands some more punches as Janes has his chin out high. Sanchez then dropped Janes with a right hand and was landing lots of punches. Janes gets up and then gets dropped again with another right. Janes back up and is trying to run away but Sanchez is landing punches. More big punches from Janes. This fight should have been stopped already. Sanchez with another right hand. Sanchez is gassed out but it still landing punches. Both men landing now. They continue to trade and Janes somehow made it to the end of the round. Sanchez is exhausted. 10-9 Sanchez.
Sanchez lands another big right hand to start the second and Janes eats it. Janes lands a knee but Sanchez fires back with a right hand. Sanchez pushes against the fence and works for a takedown but it is defended. Sanchez starts landing some combos and Janes landed a body shot that took a lot out of Sanchez. Both are landing and Janes now has Sanchez in trouble. Janes rocks Sanchez with a right hand. Sanchez now lands two right hands. They are brawling ugly and Sanchez gets a takedown but Janes gets up and lands a knee. Janes hurts Sanchez with a left hook. Sanchez lands a hard overhand right. Sanchez is even more exhausted. They both survive. 10-9 Janes, 19-19.
They come out firing and Janes is landing big punches. Janes rocks Sanchez with a combo and then lands more and Sanchez drops to the ground and Janes lands more punches and finishes him off as the referee steps in. Big comeback win for Janes as he stops Sanchez.
Official Result- Ryan Janes def. Andrew Sanchez by TKO (punches) at :58 of Round 3
> Christina Marks (8-8, 0-0 UFC) vs. Montana De La Rosa (7-4, 0-0 UFC) Women’s Flyweights
Marks lands a lot of punches that hurt De La Rosa early before De La Rosa established the clinch. De La Rosa with a leg kick. She lands a high kick but Marks grabs the leg and De La Rosa pulls guard and is looking for an armbar. She has it locked in and Marks taps! De La Rosa gets the quick win as this is the third armbar finish tonight.
Official Result- Montana De La Rosa def. Christina Marks by submission (armbar) at 2:00 of Round 1
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> Joe Soto (18-5, 3-3 UFC) vs. Brett Johns (14-0, 2-0 UFC) Bantamweights
Soto went for a takedown and Johns scrambles for a leg and grabs the foot of Soto and locks in a calf slicer and gets Soto to tap out quickly. It was the first move of the fight and the fight last around thirty seconds as Johns remains undefeated.
Official Result- Brett Johns def. Joe Soto by submission (calf slicer) at :30 of Round 1
Fabian with a couple of quick right hands. Bennett has Fabian pushed against the fence looking for underhooks. Both land some knees in the clinch. John McCarthy breaks the clinch as not a lot of action was happening. Fabian with some kicks and an uppercut. Bennett lands a left hand. Bennett pushes Fabian against the fence and has a headlock looking for a guillotine. Fabian gets out but eats a knee then drops Bennett with a head kick and lands a punch but the round ends before a finish could be found. 10-9 Fabian.
They clinch immediately as Bennett is looking for underhooks. Bennett working for a takedown against the fence. Bennett was going for a takedown but Fabian blocked it by grabbing the fence. That wasn’t going to sit well with McCarthy as he took a point away from Fabian and we went back to action in the same position. That needs to happen more. They were split up as Bennett couldn’t get a takedown but Bennett went right back for it. They are broken up again. Fabian with a kick and Bennett grabs the leg and goes for a takedown again against the fence. They traded punches late. 10-8 Bennett, 19-18 Bennett.
They trade to start the third. Fabian lands a right hand. Fabian lands another. Fabian with a leg kick and Bennett grabs the leg and pushes the fight against the fence looking for the takedown. She doesn’t get it. Fabian lands some knees. Bennett gets a late takedown and lands some punches at the end of the fight. Not a pretty fight. 10-9 Bennett, 29-27 Bennett.
Official Result- DeAnna Bennett vs. Melinda Fabian ruled a majority draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
> Eric Spicely (10-2, 2-2 UFC) vs. Gerald Meerschaert (26-9, 2-1 UFC) Middleweights
Spicely lands a right hand and Meerschaert counters with a body kick. Meerschaert lands some left hands and is going back and forth with punches and has Spicely covering against the fence. Spicely lands an overhand right and goes for a takedown and has it and takes the back. Spicely has the body triangle and is landing punches. Spicely landing punches and looking for an opening for a choke. Spicely has his arm around the jaw but lets go. Spicely landing more punches as he can’t find an opening for the choke. Spicely went for an armbar but Meerschaert escaped into the guard and lands an elbow from the top. 10-9 Spicely.
Meerschaert is landing with his left hands to start the second. He is mixing to the head and body. Spicely shoots for a takedown but it is stuffed. Meerschaert with a body kick then a high kick. Meerschaert then dropped Spicely with a liver kick and Spicely went down in a heap of trouble and Herb Dean stopped the fight. Big win by liver kick for Meerschaert.
Official Result- Gerald Meerschaert def. Eric Spicely by TKO (liver kick) at 2:18 of Round 2
Honchak looking to establish the jab early. They both land a hard punch. Both standing in the pocket and Murphy lands a right hand. Honchak lands a leg kick. Murphy lands an overhand right. She lands another right hand. They trade punches and Honchak landed a harder right hand. They both land right hands. Honchak with a leg kick. They trade punches late. Close round. 10-9 Murphy.
Honchak coming out more aggressive to start the second. Honchak rocks Murphy with a hard combination. Murphy landed a right hand as she had some time to recover. Honchak attacking the body and legs of Murphy with kicks. Murphy lands a hard right hand. Honchak lands a right hand. Honchak lands another right hand and ducks under a head kick attempt from Murphy. Both land right hands. Murphy shoots for a takedown and gets it but they get back to their feet. They scramble back to the mat and Honchak has top position. Murphy was looking for an armbar but time ran out. Another close round. 10-9 Honchak, 19-19.
They both come out firing in the third. Honchak with a body kick and Murphy grabs the leg and gets the takedown. Murphy in the full guard of Honchak. Murphy landing from the top. Honchak finds an opening and is looking for the armbar. Murphy defends but Honchak turns it into a triangle choke. Murphy is trying to escape and Honchak grabs the arm again looking for an armbar. Murphy able to get out and they scramble to the feet and Murphy takes the back and they go to the mat. Murphy works for a choke but time runs out. Real good fight, and going to be close. 10-9 Honchak, 29-28 Honchak.
Official Result- Lauren Murphy def. Barb Honchak by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
> Sean O’Malley (8-0, 0-0 UFC) vs. Terrion Ware (17-6, 0-1 UFC) Bantamweights
O’Malley with a lot of feints early on and then a high kick followed by two body kicks. O’Malley with a spinning back fist into a kick. Ware lands a right hand and they clinch against the fence. They break and Ware with a high kick. O’Malley lands a left hand and Ware lands a right hand. O’Malley lands a kick. O’Malley with a straight left hand followed by a head kick. O’Malley with a front kick. Ware with a leg kick. O’Malley with a foot sweep as Ware goes to the mat but Ware gets back up. O’Malley lands another right hand. Ware is landing some but O’Malley with more volume landing. 10-9 O’Malley.
O’Malley landing to start the second. O’Malley switching between the head and the legs. O’Malley with a big head kick partially blocked by Ware. Ware lands some knees to the body on the inside. O’Malley lands two straight left hands. Ware lands a combo but O’Malley fires back with a right hand. O’Malley slips as he misses a head kick and Ware follows him to the mat but they get up and O’Malley with a head kick. O’Malley is slowing down. He then lands a combo that stuns Ware. They trade leg kicks and O’Malley goes for a jumping triangle but gives up top position on the mat for a moment. 10-9 Ware, 19-19.
O’Malley with a spinning back kick followed by a front kick and then a right hand and a left hand after Ware landed a leg kick. O’Malley with a right hand and then the jab. Ware is unable to land his punches but does land a leg kick. They trade right hands. Ware misses his punches as O’Malley lands a right hand. They clinch but break. O’Malley with a combo and he is more active this round which could make the difference. O’Malley with a spinning head kick. Ware gets the back. O’Malley with a takedown. They get up and O’Malley lands a big body kick and then one to the head and then scores another takedown. Ware scrambles and gives up his neck. O’Malley was looking for a D’arce choke but Ware slipped out. They clinch late. Great fight. 10-9 O’Malley, 29-28 O’Malley.
Official Result- Sean O’Malley def. Terrion Ware by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
They trade punches early. Modafferi lands a nice combo. They are trading and they clinch for a moment. Modafferi with some leg kicks. They trade punches and Montano just misses a left hand. They clinch and Modafferi is looking for a trip as she pushes the fight against the fence. They break. Montano gets an awkward takedown off a Modafferi kick. Modafferi working for an armbar but Montano passes the guard. They both get to their feet. Modafferi with a takedown into side control. Modafferi lands punches and goes to the half-guard. Close round. 10-9 Modafferi.
They are trading and Modafferi rocks Montano with a big right hand. Modafferi on the chase as she has Montano in trouble. They clinch against the fence and Modafferi looking for a takedown. They break and both starting to tire. Montano lands some kicks. Modafferi lands a right hand. Montano now landing punches. Montano with a leg kick and they trade punches. Montano with a combo. Montano with a body kick and they trade punches. Modafferi with a combo. Modafferi with a takedown but Montano trying for a triangle choke. She has it locked in and is landing punches and elbows. Modafferi survives the round. 10-9 Montano, 19-19.
Modafferi lands some right hand as Montano lands a couple of leg kicks. Modafferi with a high kick. Modafferi with a combo. Montano goes for a takedown against the fence but it is defended and they break away. Modafferi lands some punches as Montano counters with a right hand. Montano with an inside leg kick. They trade punches. Modafferi with a body kick. Both missing their punches. Modafferi lands a big right hand. They trade late. Close round. 10-9 Modafferi, 29-28 Modafferi.
Montano clips Modafferi at the start of the fourth. Montano with a high kick. They trade inside the pocket. Left hand from Montano lands. Montano lands a combo while landing some leg kicks and clinches against the fence. Montano with a brief takedown but Modafferi gets up and circles away. Modafferi lands a right hand. They battle in the clinch and Modafferi lands a big right hand that rocks Montano. Montano is able to score a takedown. Montano in the guard but both are landing on the ground. Montano pulls away and Modafferi gets to her feet. 10-9 Montano, 38-38.
They come out trading as this round is going to decide it. They were trading and Montano scored a takedown and is in the half-guard. They get up and break. Modafferi gets a takedown but Montano is able to switch to the top and works to side control. Montano slides to full mount but Modafferi is able to scramble out and they get to their feet. Modafferi lands a knee. They break and they exchange some wild punches and then clinch. Modafferi sweeps and is looking for the armbar but gives up full guard to Montano. Montano lands some punches but Modafferi is working for the armbar and she almost had it but Montano broke loose. She had a chance and almost had it. They stand and trade in the last ten seconds. 10-9 Montano, 48-47 Montano.
Official Result- Nicco Montano def. Roxanne Modafferi by unanimous decision (50-45, 49-46, 49-46), Montano becomes the new UFC Women’s Flyweight Champion
The UFC’s strangest title match in history, scheduled for tomorrow night, had another twist thrown in its way.
The tournament, held months ago and filmed for the Ultimate Fighter reality series to crown UFC’s first women’s flyweight (125 pound) champion came down to two unknown and relatively inexperienced fighters, Sijara Eubanks (2-2) and Nicco Montano (3-2).
The two came into the tournament as the number twelve and the fourteen seeds out of the 16 women entered. Montano had scored wins in the tournament over Lauren Murphy, the only fighter on the UFC roster entered, and Barb Honchak, a former Invicta champion. Eubanks defeated the top seed, former UFC fighter Roxanne Modafferi.
But Eubanks was hospitalized this morning, apparently due to weight cutting issues, and will be replaced by Modafferi in the championship fight from Las Vegas which will air on FS1.
Modafferi was introduced to UFC fans in the highly rated season where Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate were coaches. She started her career back in 2003 and fought extensively in Japan in her early years, where women’s MMA was more accepted at the time.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 122: Bisping vs. Gastelum, emanating from the Mercedes Benz Arena in Shanghai, China.
The Octagon heads to mainland China for the first time with a middleweight main event as former UFC Middleweight Champion Michael Bisping, three weeks removed from losing the championship to Georges St. Pierre at UFC 217, heads right back into action against former TUF winner Kelvin Gastelum.
Bisping, eager to get back to action, takes the fight on short notice as a replacement for Anderson Silva, who was pulled from the event due to a potential USADA violation, and he looks to bounce back in a big way against a tough opponent. Gastelum is looking to get back into the win column after being submitted by another former champion, Chris Weidman, in July.
The entire UFC Fight Night 122 event streams on UFC Fight Pass with a very early kick off time in the United States.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 3:45 AM eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 3:45 AM ET/12:45 AM PT
> Cyril Asker (8-3, 1-2 UFC) vs. Hu Yaozong (3-0, 0-0 UFC) Heavyweights
Asker went right for a takedown and got it easily after landing a right hand. Asker landed some left hands against the fence and Yaozong had the standing guillotine locked in against the fence. Asker was able to pop his neck out. Asker got another takedown. Asker grabbed the back and landed some punches. Asker landing some big punches and then some knees to the body. Yaozong got to his feet but was taken right back down. Asker landed some big hammerfists. More big punches landed as Asker takes the back. Yaozong not doing much to defend until he lands some backwards elbows. 10-9 Asker.
Yaozong came firing out with some leg kicks to start the second. Asker landed an uppercut and then scored the takedown. Asker has the back and is landing punches. Asker has the hooks in on the back and is landing big punches. He flattens Yaozong out. Asker now working for a choke and has it and Yaozong quickly taps out. Submission win for Asker in a dominant showing.
Official Result- Cyril Asker def. Hu Yaozong by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:33 of Round 2
> Wuliji Buren (10-4, 0-0 UFC) vs. Rolando Dy (8-6 1 NC, 0-2 UFC) Featherweights* (Dy missed weight by 2 pounds)
They traded early and Dy knocked Buren down with a left hand but Buren recovered quickly. Buren shot for a single leg and finished the takedown. They scrambled to the feet and Buren had the back. Buren got a takedown as he had the back of Dy. Dy able to get to his feet and lands a left hand. Dy lands some kicks. Both men being tentative on the feet. Dy landing leg kicks that aren’t being defended. Dy trying to land the left hand but Buren ducking out of the way. Close round. 10-9 Buren.
Dy lands a left hand and Buren counters with a takedown. Dy reversed to the top and was in side control but Buren had the neck. Dy landing some knees to the body from side control as he pops his head out. They got to their feet and Buren was the aggressor on the feet as he was landing punches. Not much happened at the end of the round. Another close round. 10-9 Dy, 19-19.
Buren went right for a takedown and got it after grabbing the single leg. Buren in the half-guard against the fence. Buren was landing punches from the top but they scrambled to their feet. Buren landed a right hand and went right back to work for another takedown but it was defended. Brief timeout called by Herb Dean after a low kick by Dy. Dy looking to land but Buren is getting out of the way. Buren goes for a long takedown but it is stopped though he grabs the back of Dy against the fence. Dy lands a big elbow as they break they clinch. Dy with another elbow. Close fight. 10-9 Buren, 29-28 Buren.
Official Result- Rolando Dy def. Wuliji Buren by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Mazany fires away with some punches very quickly looking to end it quickly. They clinch and Mazany lands some more lefts. They trade knees in the clinch. They remain in the clinch with both landing punches. Mazany stumbles to the ground looking to escape and Wu lands some punches before they get to their feet. Wu lands a knee before they break. They trade punches. They clinch again and Mazany scores the takedown. Mazany with big punches and elbows. Wu almost had an armbar in from the bottom but Mazany escaped. They got to their feet and Mazany scored another takedown. They get up. 10-9 Mazany.
Mazany landed a big kick to the face as Wu was coming inside but she still grabbed the clinch against the fence. They were battling for position and underhooks and Mazany scored a couple of takedowns. Mazany with some punches from the top as she has Wu’s arm trapped. Mazany is cut over her eye. Mazany landing more punches but Wu was able to get to her feet. Mazany has the body lock against the fence and is landing punches. Wu has been warned several times about grabbing the fence. They trade late. 10-9 Mazany, 20-18 Mazany.
Wu messed up her shoulder bad at the end of the second round and was complaining about it but continued on into the third. They traded punches. Wu definitely having trouble throwing right hands. Mazany got a takedown against the fence. Mazany working from the top as Wu can’t get out from the bottom. Mazany with some elbows from the top as she cruises to what should be a win. 10-9 Mazany, 30-27 Mazany.
Official Result- Gina Mazany def. Wu Yanan by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
They were trading early. Both men looking to land big punches. Abdurakhimov landed a big left hook and then another. He landed a right hand and another left hook and knocks Sherman down and the referee quickly stops it. Big quick win for Abdurakhimov.
Official Result- Shamil Abdurakhimov def. Chase Sherman by knockout (punches) at 1:24 of Round 1
> Song Yadong (10-4 1 NC, 0-0 UFC) vs. Bharat Khandare (5-2, 0-0 UFC) Featherweights
Yadong with an early body kick. He just misses a spinning hook kick. Yadong rocked Khandare with a right hand. Yadong lands another right hand and then a combo that backs up Khandare. Khandare lands the jab. Yadong with a leg kick. Yadong with another leg kick. Yadong goes with a head kick now. Khandare looking to land a right hand. Yadong drops Khandare with a right hand and then grabs the neck for a choke and Khandare taps out! Impressive showing by Yadong. Yadong is only 19 and has a bright future.
Official Result- Song Yadong def. Bharat Khandare by submission (front choke) at 4:16 of Round 1
> Kailin Curran (4-5, 1-5 UFC) vs. Yan Xioanan (7-1 1 NC, 0-0 UFC) Women’s Strawweights
Curran with a leg kick and Xioanan counters with a right hand. Xioanan with her trademark hook kick. Xioanan drops Curran briefly with a big right hand and Curran is in a lot of trouble. Curran has seemed to recover as she has Xioanan clinched against the fence. They break. Curran with a right hand and works for a takedown but Xioanan is defending it. They break. Xioanan with another hook kick. Both women land some punches. They clinch again. They break and trade punches and clinch again at the end of the round. 10-9 Xioanan.
They trade punches to start the second. Curran with a head kick and Xioanan counters with a right hand. Curran with a body lock and gets a takedown and is in side control against the fence. They get back to their feet. Xioanan lands a solid combo. Curran looks to land a right hand and ducks under and grabs the clinch. Curran with some knees to the legs of Xioanan as they break the clinch. Xioanan lands a right hand that stuns Curran. Curran quickly grabs the clinch. They break. Xioanan with a hard right hand. They clinch again. 10-9 Xioanan, 20-18 Xioanan.
Xioanan briefly drops Curran with a low kick. She gets up and lands a right hand and a knee to the body of Xioanan. They were trading and Curran went for a takedown against the fence and got it. Curran in the half-guard and lands some shots to the body. Curran posturing up and moves into the full guard as she lands more from the top. Curran really needs to work harder for a finish. She lands some hammerfists but Xioanan grabs her and pulls her back to closed guard. Xioanan pushes Curran off and they get to their feet. They clinch. They have a brawl in the closing seconds with each lady landing punches in close range. Big punches from both. Good fight. 10-9 Curran, 29-28 Xioanan.
Official Result- Yan Xioanan def. Kailin Curran by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
> Song Kenan (12-4, 0-0 UFC) vs. Bobby Nash (8-3, 0-2 UFC) Welterweights
The first move of the fight is a groin strike by Kenan. We get back to action and Kenan drops Nash with a big right hand and lands a lot of punches until Herb Dean steps in and stops it. Quick win by Kenan. Nash was out of it so much that he spent several seconds trying to take down Herb Dean while being told the fight was over. Official time of the fight was just 15 seconds.
Official Result- Song Kenan def. Bobby Nash by TKO (punches) at :15 of Round 1
> Zabit Magomedshapirov (13-1, 1-0 UFC) vs. Sheymon Moraes (9-1, 0-0 UFC) Featherweights
Magomedshapirov with some side kicks to start. Moraes with a leg kick. Magomedshapriov just misses a spin kick. Moraes with a switch kick and then a heavy leg kick. Moraes with a switch kick to the body. Magomedshapirov with a hard right hand. They trade punches. Moraes with a kick but Magomedshapirov grabs the leg and gets a takedown into full guard. Moraes able to scramble out to his feet but gives up his back. Magomedshapirov with a back suplex and he has the back and is working for a choke. They get up but go right back down and Magomedshapirov is in side control. Moraes scrambles back to half-guard but Magomedshapirov back in side control. He moves to mount. Magomedshapirov with some big elbows and Moraes survives the round. 10-9 Magomedshapirov.
Magomedshapirov just misses a 360 kick but then gets a takedown. They scramble and go back to the mat with Moraes in mount but Magomedshapirov reverses to the top. Moraes goes for an armbar but they scramble to the feet and Magomedshapirov has the back. Moraes goes for an ankle lock but eats punches. Zabit working for the choke as he has the back and is landing punches. Big punches from the back by Magomedshapirov. Big elbows and Magomedshapirov is in the mount again. Zabit passes to side control and is still landing big punches with over a minute to go in the second. More work from the top. 10-8 Magomedshapirov, 20-17 Magomedshapirov.
Magomedshapirov leg kicks Moraes out from under him and they are on the mat briefly before getting up. Moraes with a left hook and Magomedshapirov counters with a spinning back fist. Magomedshapriov grabs the back and is looking for a suplex. Zabit gets the takedown and has the back. They get to their feet. Magomedshapirov with another takedown. They get up but Magomedshapirov kicks Moraes leg to get another takedown and is in the mount. Big punches from Magomedshapirov. He grabs the neck for a choke and has an anaconda choke locked in and Moraes taps! Dominant performance by Magomedshapirov. He is already a contender at 145 pounds. Magomedshapirov suggested a fight with Yair Rodriguez in his post-fight interview.
Official Result- Zabit Magomedshapirov def. Sheymon Moraes by submission (anaconda choke) at 4:30 of Round 3
UFC FIGHT PASS MAIN CARD | 7 AM ET/4 AM PT
> Muslim Salikhov (12-1, 0-0 UFC) vs. Alex Garcia (14-4, 4-3 UFC) Welterweights
Salikhov with a leg kick. Garcia goes for a takedown but it is stuffed. Garcia got the takedown despite Salikhov grabbing the fence. Garcia in the half-guard. Garcia briefly passes to side control and is looking to pass to mount. Salikhov finds an opening to scramble to his feet. Salikhov with a leg kick. Salikhov with a spin kick to the body. Salikhov with another leg kick. Garcia unable to land anything on the feet. Salikhov with a spinning back fist and he defends a takedown by Garcia. Garcia just misses a left hand but scores a takedown late in the round. He lands a couple of punches from the top. 10-9 Garcia.
Salikhov searching for head kicks early in the second. He just misses a spin kick to the body of Garcia. Garcia fakes a takedown. Salikhov with a spin kick to the head that is partially blocked. Garcia lands a big right hand. Salikhov with a right hand. Garcia misses a takedown and eats a body kick from Salikhov. Garcia shoots for another takedown and gets it. Garcia gets the back and has a choke locked in. Salikhov is in trouble and he taps! Big upset win for Garcia as he gets the submission.
Official Result- Alex Garcia def. Muslim Salikhov by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:22 of Round 2
> Wang Guan (19-1-1, 0-0 UFC) vs. Alex Caceres (13-10 1 NC, 8-8 1 NC UFC) Featherweights
Guan with a quick right hand. Caceres with a body kick. They trade leg kicks. They clinch and Caceres lands a groin strike and we have a timeout. We get back to action and Guan with a body kick. Guan then clips Caceres with a hard elbow and Caceres is rocked. He seems to recover. They clinch and Guan with a body lock. Caceres with a left hand followed by a kick. They both land punches. Caceres with a body kick. Guan dropped Caceres late with a punch and was landing lots of punches but couldn’t get the finish as the horn sounded to end the round. Caceres got up and could barely walk back to his corner. 10-9 Guan.
Caceres still moving weird to start the second. He is still coming forward though. Caceres with a leg kick. Guan with a high kick. Guan with a hard right hand that rocks Caceres and he follows it with a body kick. Caceres kicks Guan right in the groin but he continues on quickly. Guan with a leg kick. Caceres just misses a head kick. Caceres misses a left hand and Guan grabs the back but lets go. Guan lands a big right hand. Caceres with a body kick. 10-9 Guan, 20-18 Guan.
They trade leg kicks. Guan cracks Caceres with a right hand and follows it with a leg kick. Guan drops Caceres with a right hand but Caceres quickly gets up. Caceres lands a left. Caceres misses a high kick and slips but Guan unable to capitalize. Guan with a right hand. Caceres lands a lead uppercut followed by a spin kick to the ribs. They clip each other with punches. Guan is loading up his right hand and Caceres is capitalizing on openings. Guan lands a left and gets kicked in the groin at the same time. We get back going and they trade punches at the end. 10-9 Guan, 30-27 Guan.
Official Result- Wang Guan def. Alex Caceres by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
> Li Jingliang (13-4, 5-2 UFC) vs. Zak Ottow (15-4, 2-1 UFC) Welterweights
Jingliang with a leg kick to start. Ottow just misses a head kick. They trade kicks. Ottow with a high kick that is blocked by Jingliang. Ottow with a right hook and then lands a combo. Jingliang with a right hand. Jingliang lands a combo that rocks Ottow and then drops him with a right hand. Jingliang landing big punches looking to finish. Ottow in a lot of trouble and Jingliang finishes him off! Big win for Jingliang and goes into the crowd to celebrate with his daughter.
Official Result- Li Jingliang def. Zak Ottow by TKO (punches) at 2:57 of Round 1
> Michael Bisping (#2, 30-8, 20-8 UFC) vs. Kelvin Gastelum (#9, 13-3 1 NC, 8-3 1 NC UFC) Middleweights
Gastelum with a big body kick. Bisping lands a jab followed by an overhand right. They are trading with both looking for openings. Bisping landed a good punch as he’s finding his range. Gastelum with a body kick but Bisping counters with a right hand. Gastelum then lands a big combo that drops Bisping and he is out! Gastelum with the quick finish of Bisping in the first round. Big win for Gastelum. It was a vicious left hand that knocked Bisping out.
Official Result- Kelvin Gastelum def. Michael Bisping by knockout (punch) at 2:30 of Round 1
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC Fight Night 121: Werdum vs. Tybura, emanating from the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia.
The Octagon returns to Sydney for the first time in three years, bringing a five-round heavyweight bout as the headliner.
Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum makes the quick turnaround after fighting just six weeks ago as he takes on Marcin Tybura. Werdum is looking to score his second straight win to get back in the title picture, while Tybura puts his three-fight win streak on the line.
Also on the card is a women’s flyweight bout as Bec Rawlings takes on Jessica-Rose Clark, welterweights Tim Means and Belal Muhammad square off, and in prelim action, former Bellator Lightweight Champion Will Brooks looks to get back into the win column as he battles Nik Lentz.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:30 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 6:30 PM ET/3:30 PM PT
> Anthony Hamilton (15-8, 3-6 UFC) vs. Adam Wieczorek (8-1, 0-0 UFC) Heavyweights
Hamilton went to a cage clinch early and then got a takedown. He dominated him on the ground for most of the round, doing a fair bit of damage from half guard and even got into side control briefly. Wieczorek got up with about a minute left but wasn’t able to do much on the feet before Hamilton got him back into a cage clinch at the end of the round. 10-9 Hamilton
Wieczorek landed a nice kick/punch combo that dropped Hamilton early in the round. Wieczorek did some damage on the ground while working for a head and arm choke from half guard. Hamilton made it to his feet halfway through the round and did slightly better on the feet. Hamilton got a late takedown but didn’t do any damage and the round should go to Wieczorek. 10-9 Wieczorek, 19-19 overall after 2
Very close round that was entirely on the feet. Hamilton kept going for takedowns and Wieczorek defended them all. Hamilton had some cage clinch control time but didn’t do much damage. Wieczorek did have the nice combinations on the feet and seemed to be pressing the action. Could go either way, I have it 29-28 Wieczorek.
Official result – Adam Wieczorek (9-1) by unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
Wieczorek said that he had a hard time handling the time change and that explained his poor performance. He was asked to call someone out and didn’t, saying he was going to concentrate on training. After all the good promos last week, this was a terrible use of mic time.
> Jenel Lausa (7-3, 1-1 UFC) vs. Eric Shelton (10-4, 0-2 UFC) Flyweights
Lausa got the first takedown of the fight but didn’t do anything from top position. Shelton actually did more damage from his back. After Shelton got to his feet, he immediately got a takedown of his own but he didn’t do much either. Lausa got to his feet but Shelton took him down again and this time he did a little damage and stayed on top till the round ended. 10-9 Shelton
Much more dominant round from Shelton. He got an early takedown and was doing damage on the ground the whole time. He briefly got mount but Lausa escaped and got to his feet quickly. He took Shelton down with a guillotine but he quickly escaped and ended up on top. He stayed on top the rest of the round landing a ton of punches and elbows. At one point the strike count was 67-9 for Shelton. 10-8 Shelton, 20-17 after 2
Lausa blocked the first takedown but Shelton managed to get him down at 1:15 and held him down for the majority of the round. He landed a ton of elbows and punches on the ground. Total strike count was 186-11 for Shelton. Another 10-8 round for Shelton and 30-25 overall
Official result – Eric Shelton (11-4) by unanimous decision on scores of 30-27, 30-26 and 30-25
In his post-fight interview, Shelton put over Sydney as a beautiful city. He was very happy to finally get a UFC win and said he’d been waiting forever to do an interview. No call-out but he came off as a very likeable guy.
> Alex Chambers (5-3, 1-2 UFC) vs. Nadia Kassem (4-0, 0-0 UFC) Women’s Strawweights* (Kassem missed weight by 4 pounds)
Chambers got a takedown about 2 minutes and maintained top control for the rest of the round. Kassem did attempt an inverted heel hook and it looked close but once Chambers escaped, she was in control. Chambers did enough damage to avoid a standup and should easily take the round. 10-9 Chambers
Kassem was starting to do damage on the feet early in the round so Chambers was trying to take it to the ground. She got a takedown but Kassem almost immediately secured a triangle and was landing punches and elbows from her back while maintaining the choke. Chambers managed to avoid being finished but Kassem was doing a lot of damage. She eventually secured an armbar and used that to sweep into top position, landing a lot of punches and elbows before the round ended. 10-9 Kassem, 19-19 overall
Fun round. Chambers got a takedown again and Kassem immediately was going for another triangle. She didn’t get it but eventually reversed position and did way more damage from top than Chambers was able to do. Chambers got back to her feet and was getting lit up in the last minute on the feet and Kassem likely took the round and the fight. 10-9 Kassem, 29-28 Kassem overall
Official result – Nadia Kassem (5-0) by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27 x 2)
Kassem was really popular with the crowd and did a spirited promo after the fight. She said that she may have to move up to flyweight but will take on anyone, anytime, anywhere. She’s very young, very pretty and could be something some day.
FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> Damien Brown (17-10, 2-2 UFC) vs. Frank Camacho (20-5, 0-1 UFC) Lightweights* (Camacho missed weight by 4 pounds)
They spent the whole round either in clinches or on the ground with a ton of takedowns and reversals. Camacho landed far more strikes, both on the ground and for the brief times they were on their feet. Brown got two different rear naked chokes in the last minute but Camacho escaped and ended up in top position at the end of the round. Very close but 10-9 Camacho
Round 2 was entirely on the feet and Camacho lit up Brown for the most part, landing about 3 times as many strikes. Brown came on at the end and they were exchanging hard shots to the head at the end of the round. They embraced and shook hands before the end of the round. 10-9 Camacho, 20-18 overall..
Almost a replay of Round 2 but a little closer. Seemed like Camacho was only landing twice as many strikes, rather than 3 times as many. Both guys got great shots in though and both were bloody by the end. The last 30 seconds was both of them just throwing bombs with everything they had and both were smiling and the crowd was on their feet and cheering their lungs out at the end. Strike count was 201-84 for Camacho with 1 minute left and they both probably landed at least 20 more after that. 10-9 Camacho, 30-27 overall
Official result – Frank Camacho (21-5) by split decision (28-29, 30-27 and 29-28)
Camacho put over Sydney as well as Damien Brown as a tough opponent. Brown was very upset about not getting the win but in a standup war where you got outstruck over 2-1, that’s gonna happen. Dan Hardy asked for a round of applause for both guys and also interviewed Brown after the fight. He thought he won two rounds but I’m not sure which two. He said the last 30 seconds was what fans pay to see and the crowd exploded for that.
> Rashad Coulter (8-2, 0-1 UFC) vs. Tai Tuivasa (5-0, 0-0 UFC) Heavyweights
Started off as a typical heavyweight battle with two fat guys just throwing punches and then going to the clinch when they got tired. Taivusa started to find his timing late in the round and dropped Coulter to the canvas with a hard leg kick. When he got up. Tuivasa landed a jumping knee to the chin for the highlight reel KO.
Official result – Tai Tuivasa (8-0) by KO (flying knee) at 4:35
Tuivasa was a huge favorite of the crowd and he had just secured his 8th straight first round KO. Dan Hardy asked him if he had a message for the heavyweight division and he said “It’s me again”. Crowd loved it. Dude is super charismatic and could be Mark Hunt for the next 10 years.
> Nik Lentz (27-8-2 1 NC, 11-5-1 1 NC UFC) vs. Will Brooks (19-3, 1-2 UFC) Lightweights
Brooks got a takedown a couple minutes in but Lentz grabbed his neck on the way down. Once Brooks escaped from the guillotine, he immediately went back to his feet. Other than that brief stretch the rest of the round was on the feet. Brooks was landing more and cut open Lentz on his nose. Lentz had a couple takedown attempts stuffed and tried to get it to the cage a couple times as well. 10-9 Brooks but close
Brooks was controlling the fight on his feet and Lentz was all cut up and bleeding from various spots on his face. Then Brooks went for another takedown and completed it but Lentz secured a guillotine and Brooks very quickly tapped.
Official result – Nik Lentz (28-8-2) by submission (guillotine) at 2:05 of the 2nd round
Nik Lentz said he’s a pro in there and would submit his mother in the Octagon if he had to. He said he’d put 50 grand of his own money on the line against anyone at American Top Team and sent that message straight to Dan Lambert. Good promo.
> Ryan Benoit (9-5, 2-3 UFC) vs. Ashkan Mokhtarian (13-2, 0-1 UFC) Flyweights* (Benoit missed weight by 3 pounds)
Round 1 was almost entirely Mokhtarian trying to stay away from Benoit. Mokhtarian landed one shot that rocked Benoti about a minute in. Benoit had a nice combo at the end of the round. Other than that, it was just Benoit following Mokhtarian around the cage and the crowd was turning on this fight by the end of the round. 10-9 Benoit but almost a 10-10 round
Round 2 was similar but with a little more action. Mokhtarian was more agressive and rocked Benoit a couple of time with a really hard leg kick hurting him at one point. Crowd was booing pretty heavily at the end of the round when Mokhtarian was running away but Benoit got a late takedown and landed some punches right before the buzzer. Another very close round. 10-9 Mokhtarian, 19-19 overall
Final round had more action as Benoit, in particular, was much more aggressive. Mokhtarian landed a nice spinning back fist at one point and shortly after, Benoit landed a Superman punch. From out of nowhere, Benoit landed a head kick and knocked Mokhtarian out cold. He tried to go to the ground to land more punches but the ref stepped in to stop it.
Official result – Ryan Benoit (10-5) by KO (head kick) at 2:38 of Round 3
Benoit put over his training partners and eventually got around to saying Ashkan was a good opponent but these two had a lot of heat going into this. No callout.
FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
> Alexander Volkanovski (15-1, 2-0 UFC) vs. Shane Young (10-3, 0-0 UFC) 150-pound Catchweights
Volkanovski primarily used leg kicks for the whole round but would switch to punch combos to set up takedown attempts. Young managed to block all but one of the takedowns but that’s pretty much all he did as Volkanovski had a 21-3 advantage in strikes landed, easily taking the round. 10-9 Volkanovski
Volkanovski was able to land 3 takedowns in round 2, even though Young’s standup game was a little more effective. Not much, though, as Volkanovski had a 48-12 advantage in strikes landed by the end of the round. Young was able to get up fairly easily every time he was taken down though. 10-9 Volkanovski, 20-18 overall
Young tried but was just completely outclassed here. He actually managed a takedown but Volkanovski was quickly up and then landed an Angle Slam type takedown. After that, Volkanovski kept Young down for most of the rest of the round and never stopped landing punches and elbows. Strike count was 71-14 with about a minute left. Easy 10-9 Volkanovski, 30-27 overall. Only question is whether any of the rounds were dominant enough for a 10-8. I don’t think so.
Official result – Alexander Volkanovski (16-1) by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26 x 2)
Volkanovski said that Young was a tough opponent and one of the region’s best fighters and thinks he’ll do better with a full camp next time out. He said that he’s getting tired of having late opponent changes all the time and would like to see what he can do when he gets a proper amount of time to prepare for his opponent.
> Elias Theodorou (13-2, 5-2 UFC) vs. Dan Kelly (13-2, 6-2 UFC) Middleweights
Tough round to score as the entire round was standing but Theodorou threw almost exclusively kicks and Kelly was landing punches, mostly in small flurries. Crowd exploded whenever Kelly did anything but it’s tough to tell whether he did damage or not. Kelly was starting to block a lot of the kicks by the end of the round though. 10-9 Theodorou but could go either way.
Theodorou started to take over in the 2nd as he never let up the pace with the constant barrage of kicks but Kelly was definitely slowing down. Kelly did manage a trip takedown but Theodorou got right up. There was a lot of clinch action in the center but Kelly was not able to land many punches. 10-9 Theodorou and 20-18 after 2.
Kelly had his best moment of the fight when he got a takedown and secured a rear naked choke early in the last round. Theodorou escaped fairly quickly and got to his feet and for the rest of the round, it was basically Theodorou landing kicks from distance to the head, body and legs. Kelly never stopped advancing though. 10-9 Theodorou and 30-27 overall
Official result – Elias Theodorou (14-2) by unanimous decision (30-28, 30-27 and 30-26)
Crowd booed the hell out of Theodorou in his post-fight promo, mostly because he refused to touch gloves pre-fight. He said it’s because Kelly is two-faced and said nasty things to him in the elevator a couple days before the fight. He said he’s been doing this less than 8 years and just beat someone who’s been doing judo longer than he’s been alive.
> Jake Matthews (10-3, 4-3 UFC) vs. Bojan Velickovic (15-5-1, 2-2-1 UFC) Welterweights
Matthews spent nearly the entire round trying to secure takedowns. Velickovic was landing a lot of punches and elbows with his back to the cage while defending it. Matthews did manage to get him down twice but did almost no damage when he got there and Velickovic got up quickly both times. Some judges might give it to Matthews for the takedowns but I have it for Velickovic for more effective striking. 10-9 Velickovic
Matthews got a takedown early but Velickovic secured a guillotine on the way down. He used it to gain top position and eventually mount. He took the back of Matthews with a full body lock and controlled him the majority of the round. Matthews was able to get to his feet and was starting to land a bit at the end of the round. At one point the strike count was 83-8 for Velickovic, mostly on the strength of the first. 10-9 Velickovic, 20-18 overall
Matthews opened by throwing more strikes from his feet than he had the entire fight. He used that to set up a takedown and he did more damage than he had in either of the two in the first. Velickovic was able to get to his feet and then take Matthews down. He held him down, while doing damage, but eventually Matthews reversed into top position and did a lot of damage in the last minute. Probably enough to take the round but not the fight on my card. 10-9 Matthews, 29-28 Velickovic overall
Official result – Jake Matthews (11-3) by split decision decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)
> Tim Means (27-8-1 1 NC, 9-5 1 NC UFC) vs. Belal Muhammad (12-2, 3-2 UFC) Welterweights
Round was entirely on the feet and both guys threw exclusively punches and almost all to the head. Strike count was 23-20 Muhammad right before the end of the round so it was razor thin. Muhammad did attempt a takedown late, which Means stuffed. I gave it to Muhammad but this was almost a 10-10. 10-9 Muhammad
Similar round although both guys started to throw more kicks and Muhammad had a couple of takedown attempts, even landing one. Means got up right away though. Means had a slight advantage in strikes landed and was starting to mix up his striking a lot more by the end and I gave him the round but another very close one. At the end of the round, strike count was 48-47 Means. 10-9 Means, 19-19 overall
Very close to the first round as no one got any takedowns and the fight was entirely on the feet. Means had a slight advantage in strikes landed but it seemed as it Muhammad landed the harder shots. Muhammad had a couple of takedown attempts. All three rounds were so close this fight could have any score. 10-9 Muhammad, 29-28 overall
Official decision – Belal Muhammad (13-2) by split decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)
Muhammad called out Colby Covington after the fight, saying he’s a coward for putting down other people’s countries. That’s a bit step up for him but a great name if he can get that fight.
> Bec Rawlings (7-6, 2-3 UFC) vs. Jessica-Rose Clark (7-4 1 NC, 0-0 UFC) Women’s Flyweights* (Clark missed weight by 2 pounds)
Rawlings was more aggressive early but Clark was managing to avoid most of her shots. Rawlings got a takedown but didn’t do much damage on the ground. Clark reversed into top position and actually held the position longer than Rawlings. Clark eventually stood up on her own, forcing Rawlings up. In the last minute, the standup was pretty even on both sides. Very close round. 10-9 Clark
They were stuck in a cage clinch for almost 2 minutes at the beginning of the round with both ladies trading control. After separating, Clark scored a takedown and maintained top control for the rest of the round. She was getting fairly close to a head and arm choke but she used that to set up taking the back. She did enough damage to avoid a standup and easily won the round. 10-9 Clark, 20-18
Rawlings was more aggressive to start, knowing that she probably needed a finish and she was landing good shots on the feet. She got a takedown and did some damage there as well. After Clark got up, she scored a takedown and did damage as well. Rawlings got up right at the end of the round. 10-9 Rawlings, 29-28 Clark overall
Official result – Jessica-Rose Clark (8-4) by split decision (29-28 x 2; 28-29)
Clark said that it was a tough weight cut and she needs to stop taking short notice fights. Not much else. Pretty underwhelming night overall for promos.
> Fabricio Werdum (#2, 22-7-1, 10-4 UFC) vs. Marcin Tybura (#8, 16-2, 3-1 UFC) Heavyweights
Werdum was busier on the feet, landing combos and mixing in kicks to the body and legs, which were starting to show their effects by the end of the round. Werdum got a late takedown but Tybura was up right away and took the back of Werdum by the end of the round. 10-9 Werdum
2nd round entirely on the feet and again Werdum was the busier fighter. Tybura did land a nice head kick and Werdum scored with one of his own later on. Tybura was starting to throw leg kicks by the end of the round but Werdum should take it pretty easily. 10-9 Werdum, 20-18
Another round totally on the feet and dominated by Werdum. Tybura had his moments but really looked to be tiring at the end of the round. Werdum hurt him with a few knees to the head from the clinch with about a minute left and tried to take him down but Tybura managed to block that. Total strikes 95-58 for Werdum 10-9 Werdum, 30-27
Round was playing out the same as the previous three until Werdum finally secured a takedown halfway through the round. Werdum looked to be setting up a head and arm choke and moved into side control with a minute left. Tybura somehow escaped that and made it to his feet. Tybura scored a takedown right before the buzzer and Werdum secured a guillotine on the way down. 10-9 Werdum, 40-36
Final round entirely on the feet. Tybura rocked Werdum with a head kick that he’s used to knock others out with early. He landed a second one halfway through the round but Werdum stayed on his feet. Werdum was probably slightly busier in the round but Tybura had his best round of the right and was still in there at the end. I gave the round to him but too little, too late. 10-9 Tybura, 49-46 Werdum overall
Official result – Fabricio Werdum (23-7-1) by unanimous decision (50-45 x 2; 49-46)
Werdum said Sydney is beautiful and he wants to bring his family here. He says he has two title belts on the wall at home and wants another one. He thinks he’s done enough to earn another title shot. Until Cain Velasquez is ready, it’s probably either him or the winner of the Overeem/N’Gannou fight in two weeks who will get the shot.
This show was the longest in UFC history in terms of total cage time and it really felt like it by the end with every main card fight going the distance.
If you want to read my play by play, you can find it here.
