As part of Saturday’s UFC 299, Joanna Jedrzejczyk was announced as joining the 2024 UFC Hall of Fame class that will be inducted in late-June during International Fight Week in Las Vegas.
She is only the second female inductee in UFC history and the first from the strawweight division where she held the title from March 2015 through November 2017.
She will be the 13th inductee into the modern wing, established for fighters who turned pro after November 2000, are a minimum of 35 years old, and have been retired for more than one year.
After five straight defenses and an unblemished 12-0 record, Jedrzejczyk ran into Rose Namajunas at November 2017’s UFC 217 who dethroned her and then defeated her again in a rematch the following spring.
Jedrzejczyk, the company’s only Polish champion in history, then moved to flyweight where she was unable to defeat then-champion Valentina Shevchenko at December 2018’s UFC 231.
But it was her March 2020 loss to strawweight champion Zhang Weili at UFC 248 that perhaps is her most memorable moment. The two earned fight of the year honors on many ballots with Jedrzejczyk (16-5 career record) sustaining a massive hematoma on her head that made her look more like a funhouse mirror image than an actual person.
The two rematched at June 2022’s UFC 275 where Weili won via 2nd round KO and Jedrzejczyk retired afterward at 35 years old.
She joins Wanderlei Silva (pioneer wing) and Frankie Edgar (modern wing) as the announced inductees thus far.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 275: Teixeira vs. Prochazka, emanating from the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore.
The Octagon returns to Singapore for first time since 2019, bringing a marquee pay-per-view event there for the first time ever, highlighted by two title fights and a rematch of one of the greatest fights in UFC history.
UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Glover Teixeira makes his first title defense against the top contender, Jiri Prochazka, in the main event. Teixeira became an unlikely 42-year-old champion when he submitted Jan Blachowicz in the second round at UFC 267 in October. It culminated a long journey for Teixeira. Prochazka gets a title shot in just his third UFC fight, but is coming off one of the best knockouts of 2021 with his knockout of Dominick Reyes in May 2021.
In the co-main event, UFC Women’s Flyweight Champion Valentina Shevchenko looks to continue her reign of dominance as she welcomes her next challenger, Taila Santos. Shevchenko hasn’t fought since September, when she won seventh title fight over Lauren Murphy. Santos has put together an impressive four-fight win streak, which includes a win over Joanne Wood in her last fight in November.
Also on the main card is a rematch of the 2020 Fight Of The Year as Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk square off in a strawweight fight. Joining them on the main card is a pair of welterweight bouts, one pitting Andre Fialho against Jake Matthews, and the other between Jack Della Maddalena and Ramazan Emeev.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on tonight’s event, so send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and a worst fight to Dave at [email protected].
They both throw leg kicks early. Edwards with a body kick. They trade in close range and Edwards lands some good shots. Edwards continuing to land with more volume as Pascual shoots for a takedown against the fence. Edwards lands a right hand as they break. Pascual lands a body kick but eats a counter right hand from Edwards. Edwards with a leg kick. Edwards with some side kicks. Edwards with some body kicks. They clinch against the fence and Edwards tries a takedown. Pascual lands some knees as they break and Edwards was hurt but she goes back for the takedown. They break and Pascual lands a big head kick. 10-9 Pascual.
Pascual with a high body kick and she shoots for a takedown as they tie up against the fence. They break. Edwards with a leg kick and Pascual lands a nice combination. They continue to trade and Pascual is landing slightly more. Pascual with a leg kick. Edwards with more leg kicks. Edwards keeps landing leg kicks and is mixing them to the body. Edwards with a push kick and Pascual gets a late takedown but doesn’t do anything with it. Close round. 10-9 Edwards, 19-19.
Edwards landing body and leg kicks to start the third. Pascual tries for a takedown against the fence. Edwards escapes and lands a combo as they separate. Edwards with a body kick. Edwards lands an uppercut as Pascual shoots in for a takedown. Edwards lands a flurry as they separate. They trade leg kicks. Edwards continues to land leg kicks as Pascual rushes in. Edwards with a combination. Edwards keeps landing kicks and lands a right hand. Pascual tries a takedown but Edwards defends. Edwards with a nice body kick. Pascual is tired and tries a takedown but Edwards slips away. They trade late. 10-9 Edwards, 29-28 Edwards.
Official Result- Joselyne Edwards def. Ramona Pascual by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
> Women’s Strawweights- Liang Na (19-5, 0-1 UFC) vs. Silvana Gomez Juarez (10-4, 0-2 UFC)
Na throwing punches early and lands some. Na shoots for a takedown but Juarez defends and they break. Na slips on a head kick and eats a left hand from Juarez on the way up. Juarez lands a big right hand that rocks Na and then unloads with a flurry that knocks Na out cold. What a finish by Juarez!
Official Result- Silvana Gomez Juarez def. Liang Na by knockout (punches) at 1:22 of Round 1
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> Bantamweights- Kyung Ho Kang (17-9 1 NC, 6-3 1 NC UFC) vs. Danaa Batgerel (12-3, 3-2 UFC)
They’re trading leg kicks early on. Kang with a leg kick. Kang with the jab. Kang with a leg kick and Batgerel checks it. Kang with a jab. Kang with a body kick. Batgerel lands a nice combo. Batgerel with a right hand and then lands a nice uppercut. Batgerel with a right hand. Kang lands the jab. Batgerel with a leg kick. He lands a right hand. Batgerel lands a flurry and Kang was hurt. Batgerel with a flurry against the fence. Batgerel with a late flurry again and lands a knee. 10-9 Batgerel.
They trade leg kicks to start the second. Kang snapped the head of Batgerel back with a punch but missed a flying knee. Batgerel with a front kick. They trade kicks and Batgerel looked hurt after Kang landed his. Kang shoots for a takedown but Batgerel defends and lands a left hand. Kang lands a nice jab. Batgerel with a leg kick. Batgerel with a nice combo. They trade in close and Kang slipped to the mat and Batgerel landed a clear illegal knee but the referee never called it. Kang lands a spinning back fist. Kang with the jab. Batgerel lands a jab. Kang with a right hand. 10-9 Kang, 19-19.
Kang lands a right hand. Kang with a leg kick. Kang lands a nice right hand. Batgerel with a leg kick. Kang with a right hand. Kang with a right hand. Kang with a nasty leg kick. Kang with a left hook and follows it with a jab. Batgerel with a leg kick. Kang lands a right hand. Kang landing more as the fight is drawing near the end. They both land solid right hands. Kang with a right hand. Kang with a stiff jab. Kang with a solid combo. Batgerel tries a takedown but Kang defends and lands as they stand. Batgerel lands a left that stuns Kang late. 10-9 Kang, 29-28 Kang.
Official Result- Kyung Ho Kang def. Danaa Batgerel by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
> Middleweights- Brendan Allen (18-5, 6-2 UFC) vs. Jacob Malkoun (6-1, 2-1 UFC)
Allen lands a couple of leg kicks early on. Allen connects with a right hand but Malkoun lands a nice counter. Malkoun lands a solid jab. Allen with a leg kick. Malkoun lands a right hand. Allen lands a leg kick and Malkoun grabs the leg and scores a takedown against the fence but they start to scramble. Malkoun has the back as they stand. Malkoun drags it back down but Allen is in a good position. They get up but Malkoun still has the back. Malkoun is trying hard for the takedown. Allen gets a big judo throw takedown and right into mount. They scramble up but Allen has the neck as they go back down and Allen lets go. Malkoun is in the half-guard and moves to the back. They get to their feet. Fun opening round. 10-9 Allen.
They’re trading to start the second and Malkoun lands a jab. Malkoun gets the single leg and goes for the takedown and is able to get it even though Allen tried to grab the fence. Malkoun working from the half-guard and lands some right hands. They get to their feet but Malkoun still has the single leg and gets Allen back down. Malkoun with some punches from the top. They both land on the mat and Allen gives up his back and Malkoun tried for a choke but Allen escaped and gets into the half-guard. Allen moves to side control. Allen with a nice elbow from the top. 10-9 Malkoun, 19-19.
Malkoun tries for a takedown and they scramble down for a moment but they get right up. Malkoun landing the jab. Allen lands a right hand and Malkoun gets a takedown but they get up. Malkoun grabs the back standing and gets it back down. Allen lands an elbow from the bottom. Allen sweeps to the top and is in the guard of Malkoun. Allen landing from the top and Malkoun tries for a triangle and Allen ends the fight on top. Close fight. 10-9 Allen, 29-28 Allen.
Official Result- Brendan Allen def. Jacob Malkoun by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
> Lightweights- Hayisaer Maheshate (8-1, 0-0 UFC) vs. Steve Garcia (12-4, 1-1 UFC)
Maheshate is making his UFC debut. They’re trading early and Maheshate rocks Garcia and they tie up against the fence as Garcia is trying to recover. They break and Garcia starts rushing forward and throwing and Maheshate lands a short right hand and Garcia goes down out cold and face plants. What a finish by Maheshate!
Official Result- Hayisaer Maheshate def. Steve Garcia by knockout (punch) at 1:14 of Round 1
They’re feeling each other out early and pawing at each other and Choi lands a punch. Culibao lands a left hand. They trade in close range and Culibao lands a nice right hand following a jab. Choi with a leg kick. Culibao with a head kick and Choi lands a big left hook. They brawl inside the pocket. They trade in close range and Culibao rocks Choi and Choi was having trouble on the feet. Culibao drops Choi with a flurry and is landing big shots but they stand and break and Choi starts landing a flurry. They separate as Culibao retreats and they end up clinching. What a crazy sequence. They survive a wild first five minutes. 10-9 Culibao.
Choi with a leg kick. Choi lands a right hook as Culibao rushed in. Choi with a right hand. Culibao lands a left hand. Choi with a body kick. Culibao drops Choi with a right hand but Choi gets right up and they clinch and Culibao with a knee and they break. Choi with a high kick. Culibao with a right hand. They keep trading and both are landing some solid shots. Choi with a leg kick. They trade punches. Culibao with a body kick. Choi lands a right hand. Another round of madness. 10-9 Culibao, 20-18 Culibao.
Choi with a body kick. Choi with a body kick and lands a head kick. Culibao lands a jab in return. Culibao lands a nice combo. They clinch against the fence and Culibao was landing some knees. The pace and craziness from the first two rounds has slowed here. Choi gets a takedown and is able to get the back. Choi is looking for the rear-naked choke but Culibao is defending. Choi lets go and still has the back and Culibao is shaking his head no like he’s not in trouble. Choi lands some shots from the back and they scramble up and trade at the end. Really fun fight. 10-9 Choi, 29-28 Culibao.
Official Result- Josh Culibao def. Seungwoo Choi by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
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> Welterweights- Jack Della Maddalena (11-2, 1-0 UFC) vs. Ramazan Emeev (20-5, 5-2 UFC)
Emeev’s left side of his body is all red. Emeev with a right hand. Maddalena lands a right hand. Emeev with a right hand. Maddalena is throwing more and lands a right hook to the rib cage. Emeev shoots for the single leg and they scramble to the mat and Emeev has the back. They scramble and Emeev looks for a D’Arce choke and is in a weird position but is able to roll to a better position but Maddalena somehow rolls out. Maddalena lands a big combo with a left hand to the body and Emeev falls to the mat and Maddalena lands a right hand and it is all over. Great finish by Maddalena!
Official Result- Jack Della Maddalena def. Ramazan Emeev by TKO (punches) at 2:32 of Round 1
> Welterweights- Andre Fialho (16-4 1 NC, 2-1 UFC) vs. Jake Matthews (17-5, 10-5 UFC)
Matthews with a leg kick. He lands another. Matthews with a hard leg kick. Fialho with a hard leg kick. Matthews lands a right hook and then a leg kick. Matthews with a head kick and Fialho shakes it off. Matthews with a leg kick. Matthews with a left hand. Matthews with a right hand. Fialho hasn’t done much in the round. Matthews with a left hand. They trade in close range and Matthews lands a nice right hand. Fialho with a leg kick. They trade kicks. Fialho with a leg kick. They trade in close range and Matthews lands some huge punches including a left hook. Fialho lands a right hand and Matthews slips to the mat at the end. 10-9 Matthews.
Matthews lands a big right hand and Fialho backs up. Matthews rocks him again with a right hand and then lands another. Fialho has his back against the fence. Matthews lands a quick combo. Matthews with a right hand. Fialho with a right hand. Matthews with a big right hand. Matthews rocks Fialho with a big left hand. Matthews then lands a flurry against the fence and drops Fialho and Fialho is out and it is all over. What a performance from Matthews!
Official Result- Jake Matthews def. Andre Fialho by knockout (punches) at 2:24 of Round 2
Weili with a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. They trade in close range and it looked like barely landed. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick and Weili gets tripped up. Weili with a body kick. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Weili gets a takedown and lands some hammerfists and lands more as Jedrzejczyk gets to her feet. Weili has the back standing. Weili gets it back down and is landing right hands as Weili has side mount. They get to their feet and Jedrzejczyk goes for the takedown but Weili reverses. Weili with a big right hand from the top. Weili gets the mount and lands some elbows. Jedrzejczyk trying to escape from the bottom. Weili with more big elbows from the top. They get to their feet. Jedrzejczyk lands a right hand. Weili lands a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a flurry late but Weili gets a late takedown and they scramble up. 10-9 Weili.
They trade leg kicks to start the second. They trade in close range. They continue to both land close and Jedrzejczyk lands with slightly more volume. Weili then lands a nice combo that hurts Jedrzejczyk. Weili then lands a spinning back fist that knocks Jedrzejczyk out cold as she falls face first to the mat. What a brutal finish by Weili!
Official Result- Zhang Weili def. Joanna Jedrzejczyk by knockout (spinning back fist) at 2:28 of Round 2
*After the fight, Joanna Jedrzejczyk took off her gloves, left them inside the Octagon and announced her retirement.
> UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship- C Valentina Shevchenko (22-3, 11-2 UFC) vs. #4 Taila Santos (19-1, 4-1 UFC)
Shevchenko with some quick leg kicks. Shevchenko lands a left hand. Santos with a leg kick. Santos throws a flurry but Shevchenko ducks under and gets the body lock against the fence. Shevchenko has it pressed against the fence but not a lot of action is happening. Shevchenko tries a throw but she slips and Santos grabs the back and is trying to find a choke. She’s still working for it but Shevchenko is fighting it off. Shevchenko lands some left hands. Shevchenko with some back punches at the end. 10-9 Santos.
Shevchenko with a leg kick. Shevchenko with a left hand. They clinch against the fence and Santos is able to get a trip takedown. Santos is in the guard but they aren’t doing much though Shevchenko was doing a lot of offense on the back and they are stood up by Jason Herzog. Shevchenko tries a judo throw and Santos ends up on top and is in the guard of Shevchenko at the end of the second. 10-9 Shevchenko, 19-19.
Shevchenko is landing leg kicks to start the third. She just misses a spin kick. Shevchenko gets the fight to the mat but Santos is able to get right back up. Santos lands some leg kicks but Shevchenko is landing with more volume. Shevchenko with a left hand. She lands a leg kick. Santos gets a takedown and has the back. Santos is going for the choke again. Shevchenko is escaping it. Shevchenko is landing back punches. Santos still going for the choke as she’s getting hit by Shevchenko. 10-9 Santos, 29-28 Santos.
They trade to start the fourth. Santos has a swelling eye from a clash of heads. Shevchenko with a big kick and then we have a timeout for a groin strike. They get back to action and Shevchenko with a leg kick. Shevchenko with a left hand. Shevchenko with a body kick. They trade in close range. Shevchenko with a body kick and a couple of left hands. Shevchenko with a big combo ending with a head kick. Santos with a leg kick. Shevchenko with a combination. Santos with a leg kick. Shevchenko with a body kick. Santos gets a late takedown but is unable to do much with it. 10-9 Shevchenko, 38-38.
Shevchenko with a body kick. Shevchenko lands a left hand. Shevchenko with a body kick. Shevchenko with a nice combination and Santos goes for a takedown and gets it and has the back. Santos lands some right hands. They get to their feet and Shevchenko with a big combination. Santos with a leg kick. Shevchenko gets a takedown and is in the half-guard. Shevchenko working from the top as she has Santos pinned down and lands some open hand strikes then some body punches. Shevchenko gets into side control for a moment but moves back to the half-guard. Shevchenko ends the fight on top. 10-9 Shevchenko, 48-47 Shevchenko.
Official Result- Valentina Shevchenko def. Taila Santos by split decision (48-47, 47-48, 49-46) to retain the UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship
> UFC Light Heavyweight Championship- C Glover Teixeira (33-7, 16-5 UFC) vs. #2 Jiri Prochazka (28-3-1, 2-0 UFC)
Teixeira throws a high kick but Prochazka blocks it, then Teixeira lands a heavy body kick. Teixeira lands to the body. Teixeira gets the single leg and works hard for it but gets the takedown. Teixeira in the guard of Prochazka and both land on the ground. Teixeira lands a few elbows from the top. Teixeira trying to get the back as Prochazka is trying to scramble up. They’re back on the mat and Teixeira in side control. They get to their feet. Prochazka with a body kick. Teixeira with a right hand. They scramble to the mat and Teixeira has the mount and is landing punches. Teixeira with more punches and elbows and gets the back as Prochazka gets to his feet. Prochazka escapes. Prochazka with some big right hands as he gets on top at the end. Prochazka with big shots at the end. 10-9 Teixeira.
Prochazka looking to explode with something as they’re feeling each other out. Prochazka tagging Teixeira on the feet. Teixeira with a body kick. Teixeira barely lands a right hand. Prochazka with a right hand. Prochazka with a flying knee. Prochazka with a combo and Teixeira drops for a takedown. Teixeira on his back and Prochazka lands some hammerfists. They get to their feet. Prochazka with an uppercut and another right hand. Prochazka teeing off on Teixeira standing. Teixeira tries a takedown but Prochazka defends. Prochazka with a flurry and then Teixeira lands a left hook and Prochazka slips to the mat. Teixeira gets the back and has the mount and now in the half-guard as he lands some punches. Teixeira gets the mount and lands some big shots at the end and Prochazka is cut open badly. What a finish to the round for Teixeira. 10-9 Teixeira, 20-18 Teixeira.
Prochazka lands early and clips Teixeira and Teixeira was wobbly and went for a takedown but missed. Prochazka with a left hand. Prochazka lands some big shots and Teixeira tries a takedown but Prochazka gets out and Teixeira is ordered up. Prochazka with a combo and lands a knee but Teixeira is able to isolate the leg and get the takedown. They get to their feet and both men are bleeding. Prochazka with some elbows and left hands. Prochazka with a left hand to the body and a left hook and Teixeira tries a takedown. Prochazka lands a big flurry and is mixing to the body. Prochazka with a big knee to the body. Prochazka gets on top on the ground and is landing big shots. Prochazka goes for an arm-triangle choke but Teixeira is able to use it to get inside the closed guard of Prochazka. Teixeira with a big elbow. 10-9 Prochazka, 29-28 Teixeira.
Teixeira lands a head kick. Prochazka with a flurry of punches. Prochazka with a hard left hand. Teixeira lands a combo and tries for a takedown against the fence and gets it. Teixeira is in side control. Teixeira gets the mount and lands and is now looking for an arm-triangle choke. Prochazka with a left hand to the body on the bottom. They scramble and Prochazka sweeps to the top and starts landing big punches. Prochazka with a big elbow from the top. Teixeira is able to reverse and takes the back. Prochazka now gets on top inside the guard of Teixeira. Prochazka with a big right hand from the top. 10-9 Teixeira, 39-37 Teixeira.
Prochazka with a left hand and then Teixeira lands a big combo that hurts Prochazka and goes for a guillotine choke but Prochazka slips out and is now in the full guard of Teixeira. They get to their feet. Prochazka lands the jab. Teixeira lands a big right hand. Teixeira with a left hook. He lands a combo and goes for the takedown. They break. Teixeira with the jab. He lands a big right hand and Prochazka shakes it off. Prochazka lands a left hand as Teixeira goes for the takedown, which he gets. Teixeira gets the full mount and lands some left hands. Prochazka slips out and now has the back of Teixeira and lands some punches. Teixeira rolls and Prochazka passes to side control. Prochazka goes for a rear-naked choke late and Teixeira tapped! What a finish out of nowhere! Jiri Prochazka is the new light heavyweight champion.
Official Result- Jiri Prochazka def. Glover Teixeira by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:32 of Round 5 to win the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 248: Adesanya vs. Romero, emanating from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Octagon heads back home to Las Vegas for a big event featuring two title fights with some of the rising superstars in the sport defending their championships against long-time contenders and a former champion.
In the main event, UFC Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya makes his first title defense since becoming the undisputed champion in October as he defends against Yoel Romero. Adesanya is looking to keep his undefeated record going as he continues his rise to superstardom, but Romero is looking to finally capture gold despite losing his previous two fights. This fight has quickly become one of the most anticipated fights on the upcoming UFC schedule.
In the co-main event, UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Weili Zhang makes her first title defense when she defends against former champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Zhang won the title from Jessica Andrade in August, extending her win streak to 20 straight. Jedrzjeczyk was the champion in the division from March 2015 until November 2017, and she looks to regain the title after coming up short in two prior chances to become a champion once again.
Also on the main card are a pair of welterweight bouts as Neil Magny returns from a long layoff to fight the always exciting Li Jingliang, and a slugfest between Alex Oliveira and Max Griffin is also on tap. Headlining the preliminary card is the long-awaited return of rising prospect Sean O’Malley, who looks to remain undefeated when he takes on Jose Quinonez.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on tonight’s event, so send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and a worst fight to Dave at [email protected].
They trade low kicks to start. Cannetti with a head kick that gets checked. Cannetti with a leg kick. Batgerel lands a straight right hand. Batgerel with a combo and they are trading punches. Cannetti lands a right hand. They are trading hard punches. Batgerel lands a left hand and Cannetti goes down and Batgerel finishes it off with punches on the ground. Great finish by Batgerel.
Official Result- Danaa Batgerel def. Guido Cannetti by knockout (punches) at 3:01 of Round 1
They were trading early and Chikadze was landing some good shots. They trade leg kicks. Chikadze with a right hand that drops Emmers for a moment. Emmers recovers and gets up. Chikadze with a body kick. Emmers with some calf kicks. They are throwing wild kicks and punches and not much is landing. Chikadze with a left hand. Chikadze with a leg kick. They trade at the end. 10-9 Chikadze.
Emmers with a right hand. Emmers with a right hand as Chikadze lands a body kick. Chikadze with a high body kick. Chikadze lands a combo. Emmers with a big takedown and passes into half-guard. Chikadze is able to reverse and ends up on top and lands a big right hand before they stand. Chikadze with a left hand that wobbles Emmers. They clinch and Emmers has the double underhooks. They break. They trade kicks and Emmers shoots for a takedown and lands a knee to the body. Emmers lands a right hand and Chikadze counters with a high kick. 10-9 Chikadze, 20-18 Chikadze.
Emmers lands the jab and Chikadze with some leg kicks and then a high body kick. They are trading and Chikadze is landing some good distance punches as Emmers is just standing right in front of him. Emmers lands some good punches. They trade in close range. Chikadze is starting to slow and showing signs of gassing. Emmers with a right hand as Chikadze backs up. Emmers coming forward and landing but Chikadze is landing some counters. Emmers with a right hand. Emmers gets a takedown. Chikadze is holding on a tries a triangle but Emmers gets out and lands some good punches to close the fight. 10-9 Chikadze, 29-28 Chikadze.
Official Result- Giga Chikadze def. Jamall Emmers by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Meerschaert with a body kick and then a low blow early. Meerschaert using his length well as he lands a left hand and body kick. Winn lands a hard left hand. They clinch and Winn with a foot sweep takedown. Winn stands and lets Meerschaert up. Winn lands a combo and a knee in close range. Meerschaert lands a left hand. Winn with an uppercut. Meerschaert with a left hand. Winn lands a big combo. Meerschaert with a high kick. Winn with a high kick and follows it with a jab and right hand. Meerschaert with a left hand. Close round. 10-9 Winn.
Meerschaert lands a left hand. His right eye is swollen a little. Meerschaert lands a left hand. Winn with a leg kick and follows with a body punch. Meerschaert with a left hand. Meerschaert with a soft body kick. Meerschaert with a leg kick and follows with a left hand. Meerschaert with a left hand. Winn with an inside leg kick. Winn with a body kick. Meerschaert with a body kick. Meerschaert with some jabs. Winn with a leg kick but misses a hard right hand. Winn with a jab and Meerschaert lands a hard body kick. Meerschaert with a left hand as Winn is retreating. Meerschaert with a left to the body and Winn lands a hard right hand. Meerschaert with a knee to the body. 10-9 Meerschaert, 19-19.
Meerschaert landing the left hand to the body. Winn with a leg kick and then follows it with a right hand that rocks Meerschaert. Winn lands another right hand. Meerschaert has recovered and land a left to the body. Meerschaert hurts Winn with some punches and he’s chasing Winn around the cage. Meerschaert landing and Winn stumbles and they go to the ground. Meerschaert grabs the neck and then gets the back of Winn and has a rear-naked choke locked in and Winn taps! Big win for Meerschaert.
Official Result- Gerald Meerschaert def. Deron Winn by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:13 of Round 3
Vieira is jacked. Safarov with a leg kick. He lands a front kick that hurt Vieira. Vieira gets a huge takedown but Safarov able to scramble up. Vieira gets a big takedown again and takes the back. Vieira with some big punches from the back. Safarov was grabbing the gloves and the fence and clearly trying to find ways to treat. Vieira takes the back again and then gets the mount and is looking for an arm-triangle and Safarov taps. Dominant showing from Vieira once he got Safarov to the ground.
Official Result- Rodolfo Vieira def. Saparbeg Safarov by submission (arm-triangle choke) at 2:58 of Round 1
> Mark O. Madsen (9-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Austin Hubbard (11-3, 1-1 UFC) Lightweights
Hubbard with a leg kick. Madsen coming forward and grabs the body and works for the takedown and gets a big suplex and has the back. They got up but Madsen still has the back and drags Hubbard down. They got up and Hubbard was able to escape. Hubbard with a leg kick and Madsen was able to grab him and got another takedown. Madsen is looking for a D’arce but Hubbard is able to roll out. Madsen still looking for a choke. Hubbard escapes and Madsen gets in his full guard. Madsen lands before the round ends. 10-9 Madsen.
Madsen gets a takedown to start the second and is trying to work on the top but Hubbard is showing good defense on the ground. They scramble and Madsen has the back. They stand and Madsen gets another takedown and lands a left hand. They stand and break. Madsen gets another takedown. He doesn’t want to strike on the feet. Madsen lands some hammerfists. Madsen is trying for a choke. They stand. Hubbard lands a knee to the body. 10-9 Madsen, 20-18 Madsen.
They trade to start the third. Hubbard was trying to land hard punches but Madsen took him right down and is in the guard of Hubbard. Hubbard able to scramble up. Madsen is looking tired. Hubbard lands a huge knee right to the chin and Madsen was rocked but Madsen is able to grab the body lock and is recovering. They break and Madsen lands a right hand. Hubbard with another knee. Hubbard with a left hand to the body. Hubbard lands some leg kicks. Hubbard with a low kick and Madsen tries for a takedown and has the back against the fence. Madsen drags him down. They stand and break. Hubbard lands a right hand. They trade. Hubbard lands a right hand. Hubbard with another knee and an elbow. 10-9 Hubbard, 29-28 Madsen.
Official Result- Mark O. Madsen def. Austin Hubbard by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
> Sean O’Malley (10-0, 2-0 UFC) vs. Jose Quinonez (8-3, 5-2 UFC) Bantamweights
O’Malley with a kick that stumbles Quinonez up right out of the gate. O’Malley with a right hand that hurts Quinonez and then throws him to the mat. Quinonez gets up and O’Malley with a head kick that hurts Quinonez. O’Malley follows it with an uppercut that keeps Quinonez down and he follows it up with punches and O’Malley finishes Quinonez off. What a performance by O’Malley.
Official Result- Sean O’Malley def. Jose Quinonez by TKO (punches) at 2:02 of Round 1
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> Alex Oliveira (20-7-1 2 NC, 9-6 1 NC UFC) vs. Max Griffin (15-7, 3-5 UFC) Welterweights
Griffin coming forward with some pressure as he’s looking to land. Oliveira lands a right hand and they clinch but break. Oliveira lands a right hand and then a front kick to the body. Griffin lands a right hand. Oliveira with a right hand and they clinch. Griffin gets a takedown. Griffin working in the guard of Oliveira. Griffin landing from the top. Griffin gets the back and they stand. They scramble up and Oliveira with a knee. 10-9 Griffin.
They are trading to start the second and Oliveira lands an uppercut that opens a cut on Griffin. Oliveira shoots in for a takedown and they are clinched. They break and we have a timeout to check the cut on Griffin. They get back to action and trade leg kicks. Oliveira with a right hand as he has his timing down. Oliveira with an inside leg kick followed by a right hand. They trade right hands. Griffin shoots for a takedown but Oliveira defends and they break. They clinch again and break and Oliveira with a front kick. Oliveira shoots for a takedown and the round ends. 10-9 Oliveira, 19-19.
Oliveira with a front kick to the body and then a head kick. They clinch and Oliveira has the body lock. Griffin fights off and is looking for a takedown but eats some elbows from Oliveira. They break and Oliveira shoots for a takedown and gets it. Oliveira takes the back but moves to the mount. Oliveira lands some punches from the top. Griffin is able to slip out and reverse to the top and steps over to half-guard and is landing punches and elbows. Griffin with short elbows from the top and he is trying to finish late. Close last round. 10-9 Griffin, 29-28 Griffin.
Official Result- Alex Oliveira def. Max Griffin by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
> Neil Magny (21-7, 14-6 UFC) vs. Li Jingliang (17-5, 9-3 UFC) Welterweights
Magny lands the jab and Jingliang lands a right hand. Magny with a leg kick. Jingliang grabs the back of Magny against the fence. He drags him to the mat but Magny pops right back up. They break and Jingliang with a big right hand. Jingliang landing some more shots and now Magny looks for a takedown and has the back and gets it. They get up and trade position against the fence. Magny with some knees to the body of Jingliang. Jingliang gets a takedown but didn’t do anything with it and they scramble up. Magny with a right hand. Magny lands a jab and then another. 10-9 Magny.
Magny lands the jab as Jingliang rushes in for a body lock. Jingliang is just holding on. Magny reverses and goes for a takedown but Jingliang grabs the fence to block. Magny takes the back and is landing right hands. Jingliang is warned multiple times about grabbing the fence. Magny lands a knee and a shoulder strike. Magny gets a takedown but they scramble up. Magny still has the back. Magny with some more shoulder strikes. They break and Magny lands and they clinch. They separate and Magny with a barrage of punches and knees and Magny pours on the punches and gets a late takedown and steps into mount. 10-8 Magny, 20-17 Magny.
Magny comes forward and lands a leg kick. Jingliang lands a combo. Magny lands some jabs and then a right hand. They trade and Magny shoots for a takedown. Jingliang grabs the back but Magny defends the takedown attempt. Magny lands some jabs. Jingliang lands a left hand. Jingliang with a leg kick. Magny with some knees in the clinch. Magny gets a takedown against the fence. Magny landing punches from the top. Magny gets the back and is landing more punches. They stand and Magny lands some punches. Excellent showing from Magny. 10-9 Magny, 30-26 Magny.
Official Result- Neil Magny def. Li Jingliang by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Dariush with a body kick. Klose with a left hand and then a right hand. Dariush gets a takedown against the fence. They get up and Dariush has the back. Dariush was going for a takedown but Klose was grabbing the fence. Klose repeatedly grabbing the cage. Dariush jumps up on the back standing. Dariush looking for a standing rear-naked choke. Dariush still has the back and is landing punches. Dariush is looking for the choke and has it locked in around the jaw. Klose is fighting it off. Big round for Dariush. 10-8 Dariush.
Dariush lands a low blow to start the second. Back to action and Klose lands a leg kick and a right hand. Klose lands a big right hand and is pouring it on. A barrage of punches by Klose. Dariush landing punches. They are just trading punches back-and-forth and then Dariush suddenly knocks Klose out with a big left hand. That was a wild exchange and a crazy finish by Dariush. That was insane.
Official Result- Beneil Dariush def. Drakkar Klose by knockout (punch) at 1:00 of Round 2
They trade leg kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. Zhang with a leg kick and follows it with a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a hard right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a combo. They trade in close range and Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Zhang with a right hand. Zhang with an inside leg kick. They trade in close. Zhang lands a right hand. Zhang with a side kick. Jedrzejczyk with a combo and Zhang counters and lands a low kick. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. They trade in close. Zhang with a combo. Jedrzejczyk with a combo. Zhang with a right hand as she counters a front kick from Jedrzejczyk. They trade body kicks. Jedrzejczyk lands some punches. Zhang with a combo. Jedrzejczyk landed after the bell rang. 10-9 Zhang.
They trade in close range. They each land a right hand. They trade leg kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a combo ending with a leg kick. They trade hard kicks. Zhang lands a right hand. Zhang goes for a takedown and Jedrzejczyk defends and pushes Zhang against the fence. Jedrzejczyk with a knee in the clinch. Jedrzejczyk with some knees to the body and Zhang with an elbow as they break. Zhang with a right hand. She lands another. Jedrzejczyk is retreating. Zhang with a side kick. Zhang gets a trip takedown but Jedrzejczyk gets up. Jedrzejczyk with a front kick. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. They trade. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a body kick. 10-9 Zhang, 20-18 Zhang.
Jedrzejczyk with a right hand followed by a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a body kick. Zhang with a right hand. Zhang with a left hook. Jedrzejczyk with a combo. Jedrzejczyk with a left hand. Jedrzejczyk with a combo and she’s tagging Zhang. Zhang is slowing a little. They trade kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a left hand as she’s switched stances. Jedrzejczyk with a combo and a front kick. They clinch and Zhang gets a brief takedown. They break. Zhang with a body kick. They trade leg kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. They trade kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a left hand. Jedrzejczyk has a big hemotoma on her forehead. Jedrzejczyk with a body kick and they exchange late. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk, 29-28 Zhang.
Zhang with a body kick. They exchange in close range. Zhang with a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a left hand. Zhang with a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a head kick and follows with a left hand. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. They both land hard punches. Jedrzejczyk with a knee to the body. Zhang is throwing hard but looking more tired. Nice combo from Jedrzejczyk. Jedrzejczyk with a head kick. Jedrzejczyk with a left hook. They trade in close range. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Zhang with a right hand. Zhang with another hard right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a big elbow in close range and they clinch. They trade in close range. Jedrzejczyk with a left hand and a head kick. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk, 38-38.
They trade in close range to start the fifth. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Zhang with a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a left hook. Zhang also with a left hook. Zhang with another left hook. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a left hand and then another. Zhang with a right hand. They exchange. Zhang with a right hand. They trade kicks. Zhang with a left hand and they clinch. They break and Jedrzejczyk with a body kick. Jedrzejczyk with a body kick. They trade kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a spinning back fist. Zhang with a right hand. This was an all-time classic fight and arguably the greatest women’s fight in history. 10-9 Zhang, 48-47 Zhang.
Official Result- Weili Zhang def. Joanna Jedrzejczyk by split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47) to retain the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship
> Israel Adesanya (C, 18-0, 7-0 UFC) vs. Yoel Romero (#3, 14-4, 9-3 UFC) UFC Middleweight Championship
Romero standing there with his hands up and not moving. Nothing has happened over a minute in. Still nothing happening two minutes in. Adesanya with a low kick. Romero with a low kick. Romero lands a left hook. Adesanya with a leg kick. Romero with a jumping body kick. 10-9 Romero.
Adesanya with a leg kick and Romero lands a counter left hook. Adesanya just misses a head kick. They trade kicks. Adesanya with a high kick. Adesanya with a body kick followed by a low kick. Adesanya with a low kick. Romero explodes with a flurry against the fence. Adesanya with a high kick. Adesanya with a leg kick. Adesanya with a leg kick and then a high kick. 10-9 Romero, 20-18 Romero.
Romero ducks under a high kick from Adesanya. Adesanya with a leg kick. Romero with a left hand. Adesanya with a body kick. They trade leg kicks. Romero with a leg kick. Romero lands a left and slips. They trade leg kicks. Romero with a body kick. Adesanya with a front kick to the body. Adesanya with another body kick and then a leg kick. Adesanya with a high kick. 10-9 Adesanya, 29-28 Romero.
Adesanya with a low kick and Romero acting all weird. Adesanya with the jab and a leg kick. Adesanya with a leg kick. Adesanya with a leg kick. We have an eye poke and a timeout. We get back to action and Romero with a brief takedown. Adesanya with a body kick. Adesanya with a leg kick. Romero’s right leg is red. Adesanya with a hard leg kick. Romero shoots and Adesanya defends. 10-9 Adesanya, 38-38.
Adesanya with a high kick and then a low kick. Adesanya with a leg kick. Adesanya with a leg kick and Romero with a left hand that gets checked. Romero tries a takedown and Adesanya defends and then lands a leg kick. Adesanya lands a left hand. Romero with a left hand. Adesanya with a leg kick and then trips trying to evade. Adesanya with a head kick. Adesanya with a right hand and then a leg kick. This was not a pretty fight. 10-9 Adesanya, 48-47 Adesanya.
Official Result- Israel Adesanya def. Yoel Romero by unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46) to retain the UFC Middleweight Championship
We’re looking for your thoughts on NJPW King of Pro Wrestling which starts at 4 a.m. Eastern tonight, thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbs in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]” target=”_blank”>[email protected]
We’re also looking for reports on the WWE weekend shows in Odessa, TX last night, Amarillo tonight and Evolve shows in Atlanta and Concord, NC to [email protected]
NEW JAPAN KING OF PRO WRESTLING AT 4 A.M. ON NEW JAPAN WORLD
The most important week in recent pro wrestling history reached strong heights before ending with an embarrassing low.
The Wednesday Night War began, with AEW Dynamite debuting on TNT opposite a stacked episode of NXT on USA. SmackDown made its move to FOX two days later and featured an appearance by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, a WWE Championship change, and the debut of Cain Velasquez. Sunday’s Hell in a Cell pay-per-view looked like it was only going to be a footnote, but the main event made the show memorable for all the wrong reasons.
Here’s a look at three stories that defined the week:
1. AEW wins first night of Wednesday night ratings war
Pro wrestling returned to TNT last Wednesday as the premiere of AEW Dynamite averaged 1.409 million viewers. That topped the 891,000 viewers that NXT averaged. In the 18-49 demo, AEW posted a 0.68 rating — second for the night on cable and more than double what NXT did.
Smackdown on FOX, the ratings, what they mean, how this relates to Raw, the Velasquez vs. Lesnar and Fury vs. Strowman matches is the lead story in the new issue of the Wrestling Observer.
This week’s Observer also covers:
How FOX did with the competition, how FOX did compared to last season’s premieres, how the show did in Canada, note on how the kickoff show did, match-by-match and how the ratings changed, who drew big and who didn’t, the usage of legends, the story behind Velasquez’s negotiations, the end of Kingston’s reign, plus match-by-match coverage.
What went wrong with Hell in a Cell, the disaster of a main event, the reactions by fans, Vince McMahon’s reactions to those reactions, how the match order hurt the show, plus match-by-match coverage with star ratings and poll results.
Wednesday night war with ratings, where both sides lost viewers the most, the fall from the first week on TNT, the average viewer age for AEW and NXT and how different the makeup is, how every segment on both shows did.
What segments were strong set with what age groups, and how teenage viewership both shows differs greatly.
Smackdown draft, 205 Live going forward, the plans for Saudi Arabia, why the cruiserweight distinction in NXT makes no sense anymore, new WWE signings, Mae Young Classic, WWE injuries, Goldberg and Matt Riddle situation, Hulk Hogan wants a match with Vince McMahon, former Miss America contestant signs with WWE, U.K. star moves to Florida, remake of “Badstreet USA,” value of WWE stock, most-watched shows on WWE Network over the past week, plus notes on every live event by the WWE main roster and NXT this past week with business notes, results and highlights.
Jeff Hardy’s recent arrest and a look back at his other issues over the years.
A full report on the UFC show from Australia, the record crowd, business notes, and a look at Israel Adesanya.
The situation with Dragon Lee going forward as well as where WWE and AEW may fit in, his being pulled from the New Japan tour as well as a look at this year’s Junior heavyweight tag team tournament that starts this coming week.
A full report on the debut of NWA Power, the new Internet television show Billy Corgan and Dave Lagana have put out, glory days of Georgia Championship Wrestling and its ratings, a look at Nick Aldis as NWA champion, business notes and economic realities regarding the company as well as what kind of Youtube numbers the different shows are doing.
Full coverage of all the WWE television shows from the past week.
In-depth looks at the ratings of all the major shows, the key demos and quarters for AEW and WWE, what happened head-to-head and what can be learned from them.
Results of all the major pro wrestling events around the world over the past week.
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SUNDAY NEWS UPDATE
Bryan and I did a weekend show last night covering UFC and the Smackdown ratings among other subjects.
The only thing in combat sport that trended this weekend was Saturday night’s UFC show at No. 16 with 100,000 searches. Obviously football dominates along with the major news. Notably, nothing from the WWE press conference on Friday with Cain Velasquez, Brock Lesnar, Braun Strowman or Tyson Fury cracked Friday’s top 20.
ONE did run its show today at Sumo Hall in Tokyo that aired last night in prime time on TNT with Demetrious Johnson. New Japan’s show at Sumo Hall tomorrow is still on. The Tokyo area has been threatened with a major typhoon. There are a lot of travel issues but we haven’t heard anything regarding guys flying in as of yet. Stardom and Ice Ribbon both canceled their shows. The Ice Ribbon show was to have Tequila Saya’s retirement, and the company said they would have a retirement show on a new date. Stardom canceled their show at Shinkiba First Ring, but tomorrow’s Korakuen Hall show was not canceled.
Bray Wyatt, who had been injured on Sunday, but not significantly, was cleared for matches and wrestled in last night’s main event in Odessa, TV against Seth Rollins. Rollins won via DQ in the main event for the Universal title.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk last night after her win over Michelle Waterson, said she wanted a title fight with Weili Zhang next, and said she wanted it in the spring at the stadium in Warsaw., Poland that KSW drew 57,000 fans in.
WWE
Akira Tozawa, Cesaro, Chad Gable and Humberto Carrillo will all be playing free agents evidently since they went undrafted and also weren’t mentioned in today’s updates.
There has been a split in the Hardy family with at least the wives. It started when Matt made a comment about Jeff’s recent arrest, saying on Twitter,”Since so many have asked me about my brother. I love my brother & want him to be happy & healthy. I’ve expressed that to him as much as I can. Jeff has to make his decisions about his life. I have to focus on my
2 boys & soon to arrive son. I can only control MY actions.” Really, it should have ended there, but Beth Hardy, Jeff’s wife, responded to Matt, saying, “Kept my mouth shut for too long. Don’t take ANY info seriously from `family’ when it comes to me or Jeff. ‘Family’ quotes are BS. Family should have contacted us first before they made a statement to Twitter.
Looks like they’re more worried about their online presence than Jeff.” This led to Reby Hardy, Matt’s wife, writing, “No matter how much you dislike him, MATT IS STILL HIS BROTHER, here LONG before your ass & is family, not `family, ’ PERIOD. Any statements from Matt about Jeff don’t need YOUR approval; it ain’t about YOU. I know it kills you to have anyone acknowledge that the facade of a perfect life you try to maintain is a f***ing joke, but not everyone thinks the sun shines out of your asses, Beth, and not everyone wants to be complicit in your `protecting’& enabling of a man who is well on his way to killing himself or someone else. You’re an idiot if you really believe Jeff’s actions don’t affect Matt; they do & he has every f***ing right to speak his mind on HIS OWN BROTHER. Remember, he speaks from EXPERIENCE. Unlike you, we don’t run & hide from our issues & pretend nothing is or was ever wrong in this house. Matt was the absolute worst & I’ve seen how bad it can truly get. I know how this story ends if you don’t f***ing wake up already. Worry about THAT instead of what is said to `f***ing nobodies online,’ as you so eloquently describe their fans. It’s not `talking s***.’ it’s living in REALITY & holding people accountable when they need it. Maybe it’s time to put the wine emojis away, drop the Twitter stuntin & put that energy into keeping your man from driving f***ed up on the streets I drive WITH MY CHILDREN before trying to come at a man for addressing his own blood/business partner. In short, & as always, MIND YOUR f***ING BUSINESS.” And this led to Beth’s response, `It was kept private from me. I’m blocked. ???????’.
MMA managers Abe Kawa and Ali Abdelaziz were involved in an altercation backstage at Friday’s PFL show in Las Vegas. According to Kawa, Abdelaziz came up to him and slapped him in the face. Las Vegas police were called and one of the subjects was issued a citation and then released. Neither man was injured. ESPN first reported the story.
Paul Adams, who managed in the Northeast on independents, as well as in Tennessee, passed away on Friday.
WAR Wrestling on 12/6 in Lima, OH at the Bradfield Community Center.
Hector Lombard, a former UFC and Bellator star, has signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championships.
KSW’s biggest drawing card, Mariusz Pudzianowski (12-7) faces bodybuilder and social media star Eriko Jun (3-0) in the main event of the KSW show on 11/9 at Arena Zagreb in Croatia.
PWP on 11/21 returns to the Waiting Room lounge in Omaha.
Hoosier Pro Wrestling on 11/2 in Columbus, IN at the 4-H Fairgrounds with its 16th annual Fireman’s Cheer Fund Toy Drive Show.
Wrestling Go from Friday night in Sydney, Australia: Tree Hugger Luchi b Sam Osborne, Gatt b AJ, Alex Irvine & Big Fudge & Cesar b Massive Q & Nikki Van Blair & Will Kiedis, Unsocial Jordan b Rory Gulak to win the 24/7 watermelon title, Kai Drake DCOR Robbie Eagles, Lex Lennock & Silvio Milano b Jay Sorbet & Tieson, Azalea & Bel Pierce b ASPN & Shazza McKenzie, Bee Boy b Julien Ward
Melbourne City Wrestling from Friday night in Melbourne, Australia: Kellyanne b Kingsley Jett Rouka b Emman the Kid and Royce Chambers, Candy Lee b Xena, Slex & Adam Brooks b Caveman Ugg & Hartley Jackson, Jessica Troy b Tarlee, Ritchie Taylor b Shaun Young, Steph De Lander b Avary, Will Ospreay & Kyle Fletcher b Tome & Stevie Filip (thanks to Kevin Chiat)
Melbourne City Wrestling from last night in Melbourne: Steph De Lander b Candy Lee, Kellyanne b Jessica Troy, Hartley Jackson b Caveman Ugg, Brat Pack b Will Ospreay & Kyle Fletcher to retain the tag titles due to interference from Gino Gambino, who promised Bullet Club vs. Chaos in MCW next year, Mike Burr b DCT, LUX b Avary & Tarlee, Danny Psycho b Jett Rouka to keep Intercommonwealth title, Steph De Lander b Kellyanne to win tournament and become first MCW women’s champion. Dowie James vs. Adam Brooks vs vs. Slex is the main event of the next show on 11/9 DCT is returning to the U.K. (thanks to Kevin Chiat)
Pro Wrestling EVE from today in London, UK: Mercedes Martinez & Laura Di Matteo b Rhia O’Reilly & Livvii Grace in a semifinal match for the tag team titles, Gisele Shaw b Nina Samuels, Valkyrie & Debibe Keitel b Jinny & Kanji in another tournament semifinal, Kasey b Roxxy in a She-1 tournament qualifier, Angel Hayze b Nightshade in a She-1 tournament qualifier, Leyla Hirsch b Skye Smitson, Valkyrie & Debbie Keitel b Mercedes Martinez & Laura Di Matteo to win vacant tag titles. Kris Wolf was at the show but didn’t wrestle. Skyle Smitson said she was going abroad to get more experience. Erin Angel announced that she was pregnant (thanks to Chris Gannon)
Sendai Girls from today in Sendai: Ryo Mizunami b Yurika Oka, Hikaru Shida won Battle Royal throwing out Jaguar Yokota, Namami b Mikoto Shindo to win jr.title, Meiko Satomura & Syuri (UFC) b Aja Kong & Yuu, Dash Chisako & Hiroyo Matsumoto b Millie McKenzie & Charli Evans to win tag titles, Chihiro Hashimoto b Saree to win the Sendai Girls world title (thanks to Shannon Walsh and wrestlingwithdemons.net)
Southern Championship Wrestling from last night in Deltona, FL: Amber Nova b Chasyn Rance to win Florida cruiserweight title, Djokovic Rabbit won three-way over Josh Dawkins and Christian Mills, Cisco Sucio b Gorilla Blanco, Josh Dawkins b Djokovic Rabbit, Chasyn Rance b Christian Mills, Kwame Nas & Josh Dawkins b Cisco Sucio & Djokovic Rabbit, Chasyn Rance b Amber Nova 2/3 falls to win back the Florida cruiserweight title (thanks to Al Haft).
CWA from last night in Hot Springs, ARK before 650 fans: Gary Gram b Meklakov, Jakob Edwinn b Jon Michael, Matt Riviera b Buff Bagwell, Barrett Brown b Elijah Burke, Matt Boyce & Derrick King b Genetic Perfection, Tim Storm b Greg Anthony, Matt Riviera won Battle Royal to become the first CWA Arkansas champion. Arn Anderson gave Bagwell a spinebuster during the show. Bob Orton did a meet and greet. Next show is 1/18 in Hot Springs at the Maumelle Events Center with Jerry Lawler.
Evolve from Friday night in Atlanta: Anthony Henry b Slim J, Arturo Ruas b JD Drake, Anthony Gutierrez b Colby Corino, Babatunde NC Eddie Kingston, Shotzi Blackheart b Aja Perera, Adrian Alanis & Liam Gray b Anthony Greene & Harlem Bravado, Leon Ruff b Sean Maluta, Cameron Grimes b Curt Stallion, Josh Briggs b Kassius Ohno, Austin Theory b AR Fox to keep the Evolve title (thanks to Leonard Brand)
The Hannibal TV did an interview with UFC Hall of Famer and former WWE Superstar Dan Severn today talking about subjects such as his recent wrestling match with Ken Shamrock, Connor McGregor’s Legal Issue, Cain Velasquez getting into wrestling and other current MMA topics.
There is an Indiegogo fundraiser for Jessica Kresa (ODB) to help her replace her food truck that burned down in a fire. On 9/7, Kresa’s food truck burned down. It was not only a major source of income but also a lifelong passion with cooking and meeting people. After sinking a fortune into her streamline, something caught fire late one night and the insurance company is only willing to recoup a small percentage of the total price. Perks are available at every level for those willing to donate including an autograph photo, signed ODB hot sauce, a personalized video, t-shirts, special packages as well as once in a lifetime opportunities including ring worn gear and memorabilia for pro wrestling collectors.
The UFC’s return to Tampa on Saturday is currently in danger of losing its main event.
The main event is scheduled to be a strawweight bout between former UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Michelle Waterson. However, Jedrzejczyk informed the UFC over a week ago that she will be unable to make the strawweight limit of 116 pounds, and now the fight is in jeopardy of being called off.
There have been several options discussed in an attempt to fix the situation. One of those options included the fight being made a 120-pound catchweight, but Waterson’s camp has turned that down so far. Waterson is already a small strawweight, so giving up extra weight would be even more of a disadvantage for her.
Negotiations are still going on to try to save the fight, as Waterson has also been presented with an offer to face Jessica Andrade at UFC 244 on November 2 if the fight with Jedrzejczyk falls apart. Waterson’s camp also reportedly turned down facing either Mackenzie Dern or Amanda Ribas in a replacement main event.
Another option discussed has included Angela Hill replacing Waterson in the main event and facing Jedrzejczyk if Waterson chooses to fight Andrade instead. One last option has included taking both Jedrzejczyk and Waterson off the card altogether and moving the semi-main event between featherweights Cub Swanson and Kron Gracie to the main event.
This story will be updated as more news becomes available.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 231: Holloway vs. Ortega, emanating from the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The Octagon heads back to Toronto for the first time in two years with two title fights that are among the best match-ups of the year.
UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway walks to the Octagon for the first time in a year to make his second title defense as he takes on the undefeated challenger Brian Ortega. Holloway has amassed an impressive 12-fight win streak and is coming off back-to-back wins over future Hall Of Famer Jose Aldo, while Ortega has won all 15 of his professional fights, and is also coming off a win over a future Hall Of Famer, Frankie Edgar.
In the co-main event, the vacant UFC Women’s Flyweight Championship is up for grabs as Valentina Shevchenko finally gets her shot at that belt as she takes on former UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Shevchenko was scheduled to fight for this title in September before former champion Nicco Montano was forced out of their fight on weigh-in day and subsequently stripped of the title. Jedrzejczyk is moving up to 125 pounds for the first time in the UFC as she looks to become the first woman to win UFC gold in two weight classes.
Also on the main card is a welterweight bout between Alex Oliveira and Gunnar Nelson, and a light heavyweight bout between Jimi Manuwa and Eryk Anders. There are plenty of prelim fights with intrigue, including Claudia Gadelha and Nina Ansaroff in a women’s strawweight bout, a potential title eliminator in the women’s flyweight division between Katlyn Chookagian and Jessica Eye, and a middleweight bout pitting Elias Theodorou against Eryk Anders.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:15 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on tonight’s event, so send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and a worst fight to Dave at [email protected].
UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 6:15 PM ET/3:15 PM PT
> Devin Clark (9-2, 3-2 UFC) vs. Aleksander Rakic (10-1, 2-0 UFC) Light Heavyweights
Clark lands a right hand into a takedown right away. They clinch against the fence and Clark has the body lock. Rakic reverses and they break. Rakic landed a right hand to the body on the break and then a leg kick. They trade leg kicks. Rakic with a high kick. Clark then drops Rakic with a right hand. Rakic gets up but is eating knees from Clark. Clark landed a lot of knees but may have tired himself out. Some of those knees were illegal. Rakic reverses position. Rakic now lands a few knees. They break. They trade kicks. Rakic now lands some big punches on Clark and he finishes him off. Big win for Rakic as those were heavy punches he was landing.
Official Result- Aleksander Rakic def. Devin Clark by TKO (punches) at 4:05 of Round 1
> Carlos Diego Ferreira (13-2, 4-2 UFC) vs. Kyle Nelson (12-1, 0-0 UFC) Lightweights
Ferreira with a heavy leg kick but Nelson counters with a left. They exchange in close range. Nelson with a left hook. Ferreira with a leg kick. Nelson with a body punch. Ferreira shoots but it is stuffed and Nelson lands some punches. Ferreira shoots again but it is stuffed. Nelson lands some punches and Ferreira takes some time to get to his feet. Ferreira with a couple of body kicks. Nelson lands a straight right hand. They throw big punches in close range and Ferreira gets a takedown. Ferreira working for an arm but Nelson defending. Ferreira lands some punches on top and gets mount late and is landing big punches as Nelson gives up his back. Ferreira with big punches but Nelson survives the round. 10-9 Ferreira.
Ferreira lands some punches to start the second round and gets a takedown. Ferreira with some short elbows. Ferreira gets the mount and is landing punches as Nelson is covering up. Ferreira mixing some elbows in and Nelson is in big trouble. This is finally stopped as Ferreira gets the win after surviving some early trouble.
Official Result- Diego Ferreira def. Kyle Nelson by TKO (strikes) at 1:23 of Round 2
> Chad Laprise (13-3, 6-3 UFC) vs. Dhiego Lima (12-7, 1-5 UFC) Welterweights
Laprise landing some leg kicks early. They trade some punches as Laprise has Lima’s back to the fence. Lima drops Laprise with a left hook and the referee quickly steps in and stops the fight. Wow. The fans aren’t happy but that was a hard punch and Laprise went right down. Big win for Lima.
Official Result- Dhiego Lima def. Chad Laprise by knockout (punch) at 1:37 of Round 1
> Brad Katona (7-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Matthew Lopez (10-3, 2-3 UFC) Bantamweights
Lopez lands some punches early. Katona with a head kick. They trade and Lopez lands a nice right hand. Katona goes for a takedown but Lopez defends. Katona with a body kick. Lopez with a high kick. Lopez lands a left hand. Katona with a straight right hand followed with a left hook. Lopez counters with a left hand and then an overhand right. Katona lands a right. Lopez lands a combo. They trade punches and Lopez is getting the better of it. Lopez gets a takedown and into the guard. Katona lands a couple elbows from the bottom. 10-9 Lopez.
Lopez lands a left hand and gets a takedown. Katona gets to his feet and lands some short lefts in the clinch before breaking. Katona lands a right hand. Katona with a short uppercut. Lopez with a body kick. Katona with another short uppercut. Lopez with a leg kick. Katona lands a left hand. Lopez gets a takedown and into side control. Katona able to get to his feet. They trade punches. Katona lands a right hand. They trade lefts to end the round. 10-9 Katona, 19-19.
Lopez with a high kick. Katona with a leg kick and a short uppercut. Katona with a short leg kick and they exchange punches in close range. Lopez lands a right hand. Katona with a right hand to the body. Katona lands a right hand. They exchange in close. Lopez looks to shoot but Katona snuffs it out. Katona with a body kick. Katona grabs a single leg but doesn’t get the takedown. He grabs the back and Lopez tries to roll out. Katona had a choke locked in but time ran out. That might have gotten him the fight. 10-9 Katona, 29-28 Katona.
Official Result- Brad Katona def. Matthew Lopez by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28. 29-28)
FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> Elias Theodorou (#14, 15-2, 7-2 UFC) vs. Eryk Anders (11-2, 3-2 UFC) Middleweights
Theodorou throwing some kicks and Anders presses him against the fence but they break away. Theodorou with some leg kicks. Theodorou lands a right hand but eats a left from Anders. Anders lands a left as Theodorou comes inside but they break. Theodorou with a body kick. They clinch and Theodorou has the back and lands some knees. They break. Theodorou lands some inside punches and a body kick. Anders has been unable to do much. Theodorou with a leg kick. Anders lands a left hand late. 10-9 Theodorou.
Anders comes out strong and lands a knee in a brief clinch. They clinch and Anders lands a good punch. Theodorou works to the body as Anders is looking for a takedown. They break. Anders lands a left hand and a kick. Anders lands two left hands. Anders with the jab. Anders with a left hand. Anders lands some good punches and rocks Theodorou. Anders with a flurry. Anders with some more left hands. Anders with some big punches and Theodorou is hurt as he stumbles but gets to his feet and circles away. Anders drops him with a left hand and then hits another left. 10-9 Anders, 19-19.
They circle around the first minute of the third with neither able to find an opening to land. Eye poke from Anders and we have a timeout. Back to action and Theodorou lands some kicks. Theodorou with a body kick. Anders with a left hand. Anders with some short punches in a clinch. Theodorou with a leg kick. They trade punches. Anders lands a combo. Theodorou with a body kick. They trade close. Anders lands a left hand late. Close fight. 10-9 Anders, 29-28 Anders.
Official Result- Elias Theodorou def. Eryk Anders by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Ryan lost internet connection at the Scotiabank Centre so Paul Fontaine here taking over for the time being.
All three rounds were similar and very close. Eye was moving forward for almost the entire fight. Strike counts were very close with a slight advantage to Eye in each of the first two rounds and Chookagian had a slightly larger advantage in the third. There was one takedown, also in the 3rd, by Chookagian. I scored it 29-28 Eye.
Official result – Jessa Eye (14-6) by split decision (29-28 x 2; 28-29)
Eye requested a title shot in her post-fight interview. She’s won 3 straight since moving to the division and just beat the #3 fighter so probably earned it.
Aubin-Mercier was pushing the pace early. Burns got a takedown but didn’t do any damage and Aubin-Mercier got to his feet without taking a single shot. Burns knocked him down and was all over him with punches and elbows and it was close to being stopped. Aubin-Mercier gave up his back and Burns had a couple submission attempts and did some ground and pound but Aubin-Mercier survived the round. 10-8 Burns
Much closer 2nd round. Strike count with 90 seconds left was 12-10 Burns and Aubin-Mercier may have been slightly more active after that point. But Burns scored a late takedown and obtained side control and that may have stolen a close round but he could’ve already have been winning the round. 10-9 Burns, 20-17 overall
Burns got a takedown 2 minutes in. He did a lot of damage on the ground but Aubin-Mercier managed to get to his feet. Burns took his back standing and dragged him to the canvas. Burns quickly locked on a body lock and was landing a lot of punches while setting up a choke. Aubin-Mercier managed to avoid the choke and somehow escaped to his feet with 20 seconds left. Both guys were landing bombs as the fight ended. 10-9 Burns, 30-26 overall
Offiicial result – Gilbert Burns (15-3) by unanimous decision (30-27 x 2; 29-28)
Gadelha came out strong, throwing all kind of punches and Ansaroff was reeling early. Gadelha got a takedown and was landing punches and elbows on the ground while trying to advance position. Gedelha was on her back for a couple minutes but eventually escaped. Ansaroff was doing better on her feet late, landing a nice head kick and really good punch combo. She also defended a couple of takedown attempts. 10-9 Gadelha
Round 3 was mostly Gadelha advancing and eating punches and leg kicks from distance by Ansaroff. Significant strikes count for the fight was 94-38 for Ansaroff. Gadelha defended several takedown atttempts in the 3rd round as well. Gadelha was landing more in the last minute but her face was all bloodied up by the end of the fight. 10-9 Ansaroff, 29-28 overall
Official result – Nina Ansaroff (10-5) by unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
Crazy first round. Seconds in, Santos dropped Manuwa twice with punches but Manuwa recovered and clinched up. The rest of the round was basically clinch work separated by wild flurries where one or both guys would land and also get hurt. They took turns going to the cage clinch. Santos was also throwing wild kicks, sometimes connecting, sometimes missing badly. He missed a jumping spin kick late in the round and ended up on his back. Manuwa took the back and was working for a sub at the end of the round. 10-9 Santos
This didn’t go long. Santos rocked Manuwa early. Manuwa fought back with punches of his own. Santos backed up Manuwa to the cage and landed an uppercut that almost took Manuwa’s head off and then landed a clean left hook that dropped him instantly.
Official result – Thiago Santos (20-6) by KO (punch) at 41 seconds of round 2
Dawodu was more active on the feet, throwing punches in spurts. Bochniak was mostly throwing a single strike at a time, mixing in leg kicks and punches. Dawodu caused some swelling under Bochniak’s left eye with a nice combo and then Bochniak almost immediately secured a takedown. Dawodu was up right away but Bochniak controlled his back the rest of the round. 10-9 Dawodu
Very boring 2nd round. Bochniak got a takedown but Dawodu was up immediately. Dawodu was probably throwing 4 times as much as Bochniak and even though he was landing at only 31%, he was landing more as well. Bochniak was acting like he may have hurt his left hand as he wasn’t using it much. Bochniak’s corner told him he was down two rounds and I agree. 20-18 Dawodu
Very similar to the 2nd round. Bochniak got a takedown in the middle of the round and did manage to hold Dawodu down for about 30 seconds but did no damage. On the feet, Dawodu was constantly moving forward and landing punches and kicks. He had some particulary nice combos in the last minute and landed a hard body kick late in the round. He had 34 body strikes in total. 10-9 Dawodu, 30-27 overall
Official result – Hakeem Dawodu (9-1-1) by split decision (30-27 x 2; 28-29)
> Alex Oliveira (#13, 20-4-1 2 NC, 9-3 1 NC UFC) vs. Gunnar Nelson (#14, 16-3-1, 7-3 UFC) Welterweights
As Jon Anik put it, a little bit of everything in round 1. Oliveira was landing solidly on the feet early. Nelson managed to get a takedown and quickly took the back. He had a solid body lock on but Oliveira was throwing punches behind his head. Nelson never really got close to a submission. Eventually Oliveira reversed and ended up on top, landing hard shots. He postured up and was landing hammer fists to the head and body. Nelson eventually captured a leg and they were in 50/50 for awhile. Oliveira did manage to escape before the round ended. 10-9 Oliveira
Oliveira was landing more on the feet early and the significant strike count was 28-1 for Oliveira. Then Nelson got a takedown and fairly quickly gained mount. Nelson was just lying there in mount and not doing anything and, twice, the ref warned him to work. Then Nelson just started landing elbows and opened a nasty cut on Oliviera’s face and it started bleeding like a faucet. The ref moved in to look at it but Oliveira was tapping, likely from the blood loss. Nelson did have a choke on at the end, which was the official result.
Official result – Gunnar Nelson (17-3-1) by submission (rear naked choke) at 4:17 of Round 2
Joanna throwing a lot of punches early but missing most of them. Shevchenko got a takedown and moved right into side control. Shevchenko landed elbows and punches to the face but Joanna eventually got to her feet. Shevchenko controlled her in a clinch for most of the rest of the round. 10-9 Shevchenko
Shevchenko controlled Joanna almost the whole round, taking her down a few times and doing damage on the ground when they were there. On the feet, Shevchenko was generally controlling the clinch and dominating her. 10-9 Shevchenko, 20-18
Joanna was much more aggressive in round 3 and managed to stay on her feet the entire round, blocking several takedown attempts. Shevchenko didn’t land a lot but when she did, she landed hard. Joanna likely won the round due to her volume but she took more damage as she was bleeding from her nose as well as a cut on the bridge of her nose. 10-9 Joanna, 29-28 Shevchenko overall
Joanna came out strong in round 4 as well but Shevchenko was able to get a power takedown and move right into side control. Joanna quickly worked her into half guard and didn’t take a lot of damage. Joanna eventually worked to her feet and they spent a long time in the clinch with both landing shots that did damage. After separating, Joanna seemed to be coming on stronger at the end of the round. 10-9 Shevchenko, 39-37 overall
Shevchenko took it to a cage clinch early but did nothing from the clinch. Joanna was landing light punches to the body and head. Ref eventually broke it up. Joanna was more aggressive on the feet. Total strikes landed in the round were exactly 96 each but Shevchenko had the takedowns. Shevchenko did land some nice combos in the last minute but Joanna was very active as well. 10-9 Joanna, 48-47 Shevchenko overall
Offiicial result – Valentina Shevchenko (16-3) by unanimous decision (49-46 x 3)
> Max Holloway (C, 19-3, 15-3 UFC) vs. Brian Ortega (#1, 14-0 1 NC, 6-0 1 NC UFC) UFC Featherweight Championship
Holloway set a furious pace early, landing punches from all sorts of angles. Ortega was landing hard and did open a cut under Holloway’s left eye, but not often. Ortega got a takedown in the middle of the round but did no damage and Holloway was up quickly. Holloway was taunting him any time he landed anything and Ortega seemed to be slowing down at the end of the round. Crowd was really loud with chants for Holloway throughout. 10-9 Holloway
Holloway came out strong and actually picked up the pace from the first round. Early on, Holloway opened up cuts on the face of Ortega and somewhere must have broken his nose because it was bleeding heavily and he was having trouble breathing. But as he should’ve been getting more tired, Ortega actually picked up his output. He was still getting beaten, as signfiicant strike count at one point was 94-31, but he was getting his shots in. Holloway was landing hard jabs throughout, which was his best weapon. 10-9 Holloway, 20-18
Ortega came out firing and hurt Holloway with a punch combo. He followed up with another and Holloway was on wobbly legs. Ortega briefly took him down but Holloway managed to get up quickly. Holloway looked confused for a little while and was eating more shots. Significant strike count midway through the round was 15-12 for Ortega. Holloway was cut several times on his face but started coming on in the last minute but Ortega was giving it back just as well. Duelling chants for both guys throughout the round. 10-9 Ortega, 29-28 Holloway overall
Holloway told Joe Rogan on his way out for the 4th that he was going to finish him in this round and came out like he was going to do it. Holloway was relentless, with a constant barrage of punches elbows and kicks throughout the round. Ortega stayed on his feet almost the entire time, except for when he’d go to the ground voluntarily but he never stopped taking shots. His face was a bloody mess by the end of the round and he had swelling under his left eye at the end of the round. The doctor’s looked it and stopped the fight. I had it scored 10-8 Holloway but it didn’t matter as the fight was stopped.
Official result – Max Holloway (20-3) by doctor’s stoppage due to injury (eye) at 5:00 of Round 4
Holloway landed 296 total strikes in the fight and over 100 in the fourth round. He threw almost 500. Holloway said that he’d probably see Ortega in a higher weight class, maybe at heavyweight since they both like to eat. As he always does, he asked Dana White to book a show in Hawaii so they could escape the cold weather.
He asked for a fight at lightweight and said he’d even fight Daniel Cormier. That was his 13th win in a row and he’s easily the best featherweight of all time and fast becoming one of the all-time greats in any weight class. And he’s only 27 years old.
Nearly a year after the title was officially created, the UFC will have their second-ever women’s flyweight title fight.
On Thursday night, the promotion announced that the vacant title will be decided between former strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and former women’s bantamweight title challenger Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 231 in Toronto, Canada, on Saturday, December 8th.
It’s unknown whether the fight will be the main event or co-main event as the previously canceled featherweight title fight between Max Holloway and Brian Ortega has been rumored to be the headliner.
Shevchenko was scheduled to face then-champion Nicco Montano earlier this month at UFC 228, but Montano fell ill during her weight cut and couldn’t compete. Plagued by injuries and other setbacks, Montano was stripped of the title she won by defeating Roxanne Modaferri in the TUF finals to crown the first-ever champion in December 2017 without ever actually defending it.
The 31-year-old Jedrzejczyk has yet to compete at flyweight in the UFC having spent nearly all of her Octagon tenure as either strawweight champion or competing for the title. She last fought at 115 pounds for another organization in 2014, and is coming off a July decision win over Tecia Torres.
The 30-year-old Shevchenko made her promotional debut at flyweight with a dominant performance over Priscilla Cachoeira in February. That followed a close split decision loss to bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes in September 2017, her only UFC title fight to date. Before the Cachoeira fight, her last flyweight tilt was in 2006 for another promotion. She did make weight for the canceled Montano fight.
The two have fought in the past, albeit in muay thai fights nearly a decade ago.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 217: Bisping vs. St. Pierre, emanating from Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York.
The UFC returns to the Big Apple for their biggest event of the year, with three title fights, and featuring the return of arguably the greatest fighter in UFC history looking to capture gold in a second weight division.
Former UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre makes his long-awaited return to the Octagon after four years as he challenges Michael Bisping for the UFC Middleweight Championship.
The fight has been a roller coaster since first being announced in March, and at many times it looked like it wasn’t going to happen, but they will finally step across from each other tonight. St. Pierre looks to regain gold and win his 13th straight fight while Bisping looks to make his second title defense successful. Both men have vowed to retire the other.
In the co-main event, it is another long-awaited title fight as rivals and former teammates go to war. UFC Bantamweight Champion Cody Garbrandt makes his first title defense when he takes on former champion T.J. Dillashaw. They have gone back-and-forth all over the last year, and after being scheduled to fight in July only to be postponed, they finally square off.
In our third title fight, it will be UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk looking to continue her dominance at 115 pounds when she defends against Rose Namajunas. Namajunas has won four of her last five and will pose an interesting test for Jedrzejczyk, who is looking to remain undefeated and win her 15th straight fight.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on tonight’s event, so send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and a worst fight to Dave at [email protected].
Zahabi was on the attack early and got the clinch and landed a knee before they scrambled to the mat with Ramos on top. They scrambled a bit on the mat before getting to their feet. Ramos lands a couple of heavy leg kicks. They traded and Zahabi was looking to set up the takedown. Ramos got a brief takedown but Zahabi got up. Zahabi landed a right hand. Zahabi landed some good punches and took the back of Ramos. Zahabi tried a judo throw but Ramos reversed out and got a slam as they got to their feet before the round ended. 10-9 Ramos.
Zahabi is pressing the action but not doing much on the attack as Ramos lands a leg kick to start the second round. Zahabi landed a couple of right hands. Ramos went for a kick but it was caught by Zahabi who missed taking him down. Zahabi landed an uppercut. The pace slowed at the end as both were looking to set something big up. Zahabi landed the jab a couple of times towards the end. 10-9 Zahabi, 19-19.
They came out trading to start the third round. Zahabi applying the pressure. Zahabi landed an uppercut. Zahabi looking for a big punch. Zahabi landed another uppercut. All of a sudden Ramos landed a spinning back elbow that knocked Zahabi out cold. Wow. It came out of nowhere. One of the best knockouts of the year.
Official Result- Ricardo Ramos def. Aiemann Zahabi by knockout (spinning back elbow) at 1:58 of Round 3
> Aleksei Oleinik (#9, 52-10-1, 4-1 UFC) vs. Curtis Blaydes (#12, 7-1 1 NC, 2-1 1 NC UFC) Heavyweights
Blaydes gets a quick takedown but Oleinik is dangerous on the mat. They got back up. Oleinik landed an uppercut. They traded punches. They clinched and Oleinik landed a heavy uppercut. Oleinik landing more punches. Blaydes got a takedown. They got to their feet and traded strikes before Blaydes got another takedown and is in side control. Blaydes landed a big right hand and Oleinik landed some punches in return. They clinched and both landed uppercuts. Blaydes then droped Oleinik with a hard punch. Oleinik got back up and had Blaydes clinched against the fence. Oleinik then fell as he tried to drag Blaydes down. Blaydes landed some big right hands at the end, it was a surprise that Oleinik survived. 10-9 Blaydes.
Blaydes came out landing punches and kicks. Oleinik was landing in return but not with the volume of Blaydes. Blaydes got a big takedown and is working in the guard. Blaydes got to his feet and then landed an illegal kick as Oleinik was getting to his feet. It barely touched his ear. We have some controversy now. The fight was stopped by the doctor and the referee as Oleinik was deemed unable to continue. Blaydes is furious. We are going to instant replay to determine a decision. Blaydes was then announced as the winner. This is weird. Even Blaydes is confused.
Official Result- Curtis Blaydes def. Aleksei Oleinik by TKO (doctor stoppage) at 1:56 of Round 2
FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> Randy Brown (9-2, 3-2 UFC) vs. Mickey Gall (4-0, 3-0 UFC) Welterweights
Brown landed a solid combo inside the first thirty seconds. Gall is on the retreat. Gall fired back with a big right hand. They clinched and Brown landed a hard knee to the body. Brown with another knee and then got a takedown. Brown landed some big hammerfists. Gall went for a kimura but it allowed Brown to posture back up. Brown in total control from the top but Gall is working from the bottom. Brown landing some big elbows from the top. Gall can’t get up. Brown with more hard elbows and Gall is cut open. 10-9 Brown.
Gall still bleeding pretty good to start the second. Brown landed a kick and Gall tried a takedown but ended up on the bottom but was able to reverse and is in the guard of Brown. They were scrambling on the mat and Brown may have landed an illegal upkick but they continued. Gall is in side control. Gall landing some punches as he’s trying for the mounted crucifix position. They scrambled and Gall went back into the full guard. Gall looking for a choke in side control but didn’t have it. Brown escaped but Gall got into the full mount but Brown was able to slide out from the bottom. Strong round for Gall. 10-9 Gall, 19-19.
Gall went right for a takedown but ate an uppercut from Brown on the way in and Brown started to tee off on Gall on the mat looking to finish. Gall was able to survive and recover by grabbing the neck. Gall is pouring blood. Brown landing enough punches to keep the fight down and Gall isn’t doing anything on the bottom. Brown landing more from the top inside the guard. Gall grabbing the neck and grabbed the fence and has a guillotine locked in but Brown was able to escape. Gall can’t get up from the bottom. Brown stands up and Gall follows but the fight ends with no action. 10-9 Brown, 29-28 Brown.
Official Result- Randy Brown def. Mickey Gall by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27)
NEWS: The UFC announced their schedule for the first three months of 2018. There will be nine events. It kicks off January 14 in St. Louis, Missouri. Following that will be UFC 220 in Boston, Massachusetts. Rounding out January will be a January 27 event in Charlotte, North Carolina. February has three events- February 3 in Belem, Brazil, UFC 221 on February 10 in Perth, Austraila, February 18 in Austin, Texas, and February 24 in Orlando, Florida. Two events take place in March, with UFC 222 on March 3 in Las Vegas, and an event on March 17 in London, England.
> Ovince Saint Preux (#6, 21-10, 9-5 UFC) vs. Corey Anderson (#7, 9-3, 6-3 UFC) Light Heavyweights
Saint Preux landed a hard left hand to start off. Anderson got a couple of big takedowns back-to-back inside the first minute and has the back. They got back to their feet and Anderson is working hard to get another takedown. Anderson was landing punches as Saint Preux was back up and Anderson went for another takedown against the fence. Anderson with a spinning elbow and back to work for the takedown. They broke the clinch and back to the center. Saint Preux with a knee to the body as he stuffs a takedown attempt. Saint Preux with a late flurry that drops Anderson. 10-9 Anderson.
Saint Preux with a big head kick to start the second and Anderson is in trouble. Anderson got a quick timeout as he lost his mountpiece and it allowed Anderson to recover. Anderson working for a takedown. They broke and Anderson went right back working for another takedown. They broke away again. Anderson attempts another takedown and finishes it this time. Anderson gets to the back. They get to their feet. Anderson drags the fight back to the mat and Anderson is landing punches but they get back up. Slower pace at the end. 10-9 Anderson, 20-18 Anderson.
Anderson went for a takedown but it was defended though he landed a right hand on the break. Anderson lands a right hand followed by a left. Saint Preux then knocked Anderson out cold with a head kick out of nowhere. That is a comeback win there and we have another contender for a bonus. That was nasty. OSP called for a fight with Ilir Latifi next on December 30.
Official Result- Ovince Saint Preux def. Corey Anderson by knockout (head kick) at 1:25 of Round 3
> Walt Harris (10-6, 3-5 UFC) vs. Mark Godbeer (12-3, 1-1 UFC) Heavyweights
Harris coming out firing with some kicks. They trade punches. Harris with a grazing head kick. They are both throwing with lots of power. Harris gets a takedown into side control and goes right to mount and landed some big punches. Harris working inside the full guard. They trade punches on the mat, Harris with more power being he’s on top. Harris with heavy left hands inside the guard. Godbeer able to get to his feet but eats some knees to the body before they break. Harris with a left hand and Godbeer with a body kick. Harris landed a low blow and the referee called timeout and Harris landed a head kick after timeout was called. That seemed blatant and is definitely a foul. The fight is stopped as Godbeer is unable to continue. This should be a disqualification win for Godbeer.
Official Result- Mark Godbeer def. Walt Harris by disqualification (illegal kick) at 4:25 of Round 1
> James Vick (11-1, 7-1 UFC) vs. Joseph Duffy (16-2, 4-1 UFC) Lightweights
They were throwing feints early. Vick landed a body kick but got tripped up as Duffy grabbed his leg. Duffy with the pressure. Duffy lands some punches but Vick counters with a straight right hand followed by an uppercut. Duffy lands a right hand. Duffy landing the jab. Duffy grabs the leg on a kick and gets a takedown. Duffy trips Vick on an inside leg kick. Duffy with a right hand to the body. Vick just misses a head kick. Duffy lands a right hand and scores a takedown. Vick grabs the neck. They each land in the final seconds of the round. 10-9 Duffy.
Duffy with a body kick to start the second round. Duffy with a head kick. He’s able to keep away from Vick’s attacks, which is good with Vick’s reach advantage. Vick lands a left hand after ducking under a right hand. Vick lands the jab and a leg kick. Neither man unable to get a big advantage over the other but both landing. Vick just misses a head kick. More methodical pace to this round. Vick lands a head kick after hurting Duffy with a low kick. Vick then drops Duffy with a right uppercut and starts landing punches and finishes him right before the horn to end the round. Wow. Big win for James Vick. Vick calls for a main event spot on the February UFC event in Austin.
Official Result- James Vick def. Joseph Duffy by TKO (punches) at 4:59 of Round 2
PPV MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
> Johny Hendricks (18-7, 13-7 UFC) vs. Paulo Costa (10-0, 2-0 UFC) Middleweights
Costa with a leg kick and then a big body kick. Costa with another body kick. Hendricks with a leg kick. Hendricks went for a takedown but Costa broke the clinch with a knee. Costa misses a spinning head kick. Costa with a body kick and Hendricks lands a left hand. Costa controlling the Octagon and lands a right hand. Hendricks with a leg kick following a combo. Coata with a knee to the body. Hendricks lands two left hands followed by a leg kick. Costa misses again on a spinning head kick. Costa with a big knee and a body kick at the end. 10-9 Costa.
We have an eye poke to start the round and a quick timeout but back to action quickly. Costa hurts Hendricks with a head kick and is teeing off with punches. Costa with a head kick and then another. Costa with a right hand and Hendricks is in trouble. Costa with an uppercut and more punches on the ground as Hendricks was going for a takedown and the fight is stopped. Costa with the big win.
Official Result- Paulo Costa def. Johny Hendricks by TKO (punches) at 1:23 of Round 2
> Stephen Thompson (#2, 13-2-1, 8-2-1 UFC) vs. Jorge Masvidal (#4, 32-12, 9-5 UFC) Welterweights
Thompson looking for leg kicks early. Both being patient. Masvidal with a body kick. Thompson with a side head kick. Masvidal with a leg kick and Thompson fires back with a combo. They are both looking for openings but not much is there. Masvidal with a body kick. Thompson lands a right hand. Thompson with a front leg side kick to the body that drops Masvidal. Masvidal with a leg kick and Thompson fires back with a left hand. Thompson with another straight left hand. 10-9 Thompson.
Thompson with a front leg side kick to the head. Masvidal then landed a good combo of punches against the fence. Thompson knocks Masvidal down with a right hand. Masvidal gets up. Both men being patient. Thompson lands a left hand. Masvidal has been unable to get inside the range of Thompson. Masvidal clipped Thompson with a left hook. 10-9 Thompson, 20-18 Thompson.
Masvidal went for a takedown against the fence but it was defended. He needs to win this round. Thompson lands a good combination. Thompson with another good combo and just misses a wheel kick to the head. Masvidal with a body kick and Thompson counters with a side kick to the body. They traded right hands. Thompson lands a good series of punches. Thompson is cut underneath his eye. Thompson with a good combo of punches. Thompson with a right hand. They trade punches at the end of the fight. 10-9 Thompson, 30-27 Thompson.
Official Result- Stephen Thompson def. Jorge Masvidal by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
> Joanna Jedrzejczyk (C, 14-0, 8-0 UFC) vs. Rose Namajunas (#4, 6-3, 4-2 UFC) UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship
Intense stare down. Both ladies land early. Jedrzejczyk with a combo and a leg kick. Namajunas knocks Jedrzejczyk down with a big right hand. Namajunas gets the mount then has the back but lets Joanna up. Namajunas with a right hand. Namajunas then drops Jedrzejczyk with a left hand and then finishes her off. WOW. This is a huge upset. Namajunas is the new champion. Jedrzejczyk also tapped out due to the strikes.
Official Result- Rose Namajunas def. Joanna Jedrzejczyk by knockout (punches) at 3:03 of Round 1, Namajunas becomes the new UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion
No glove touch here either. Garbrandt looking for a heavy right hand early as Dillashaw works his movement. Garbandt just misses a body kick. Dillashaw missing on his leg kick attempts. Garbrandt lands a combo on Dillashaw. Wild flurry from both. Garbrandt lands a right hand and then a combo. Garbrandt with some body punches. Dillashaw just misses a head kick. Dillashaw landed a big right hand. Garbrandt dropped Dillashaw with a right hand with just five seconds left. Dillashaw stumbled to his corner and is in trouble. Garbrandt shot him the finger and told him he’s number one. 10-9 Garbrandt.
Dillashaw misses a head kick and Garbrandt taunts him over it. Dillashaw then knocked Garbrandt down with a head kick but Garbrandt got back up. Garbrandt seems okay after the knockdown. Dillashaw then rocks and drops Garbrandt down with a right hand and finishes him! Dillashaw is once again the champion at 135 pounds. Another upset on this card.
Official Result- TJ Dillashaw def. Cody Garbrandt by knockout (punches) at 2:41 of Round 2, Dillashaw becomes the new UFC Bantamweight Champion
> Michael Bisping (C, 30-7, 20-7 UFC) vs. Georges St. Pierre (25-2, 19-2 UFC) UFC Middleweight Championship
They touched gloves! Both men patient in the opening thirty seconds. St. Pierre lands a right hand. He lands the jab. Bisping missing his punches. St. Pierre with a roundhouse kick. Bisping lands a right hand. St. Pierre with a leg kick followed by a right hand then rocks Bisping with a jab but Bisping fires back with a right hand. St. Pierre gets a takedown. Bisping tried to grab the fence to block it. They got back up. St. Pierre with a Superman punch that rocks Bisping and just misses a spin kick. 10-9 St. Pierre.
Bisping unable to establish his range and is fighting conservative. St. Pierre lands a left hand. Bisping misses a right hand. Bisping with an inside leg kick. St. Pierre with a side kick. St. Pierre with a body kick. Bisping lands a right hand. St. Pierre with the double jab and gets the takedown. St. Pierre in half-guard. Bisping tried to grab the shorts of GSP to get up. They got to their feet. Bisping with a right hand. Bisping with a jumping head kick. St. Pierre with a body kick. 10-9 Bisping, 19-19.
St. Pierre gets a takedown to start the third. Bisping has St. Pierre in his full guard. St. Pierre is cut open. Both men landing strikes on the mat. They get back to their feet and GSP is a bloody mess. Bisping lands a right hand. GSP lands a couple of overhand rights. St. Pierre with a side kick to the body. St. Pierre drops Bisping with a left hand and is dropping elbows and has Bisping in a lot of trouble. GSP looking for the fnish and grabs the back and locks in a rear-naked choke. It is in deep and Bisping is out! GSP has choked Bisping unconscious. GSP wins in his return. We have a new champion.
Official Result- Georges St. Pierre def. Michael Bisping by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:23 of Round 3, St. Pierre becomes the new UFC Middleweight Champion
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 211: Miocic vs. Dos Santos 2, emanating from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
The UFC presents their most stacked card of 2017 thus far in an event headlined by Stipe Miocic defending the UFC Heavyweight Championship against Junior Dos Santos in a rematch of their epic clash in 2014.
Miocic and Dos Santos met in a five-round war in December 2014, a back-and-forth encounter that ended with Dos Santos taking home the win by decision. Since then, Miocic has won four straight fights by knockout, defeating Fabricio Werdum to become the UFC Heavyweight Champion in the process, and making a successful defense against Alistair Overeem.
Dos Santos has only fought twice since then, going just 1-1, and hasn’t fought since an April 2016 win over Ben Rothwell.
In the co-main event, the most dominant female fighter in the world, Joanna Jedrzejczyk, defends the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship against Jessica Andrade. Jedrzejczyk is undefeated in her career at 13-0 and defends the title for the fifth time. Andrade gets a title shot on the heels of three straight wins since moving to 115 pounds.
Also on the main card is a welterweight bout with title shot implications on the line as Demian Maia goes for his seventh straight win against Jorge Masvidal, winner of three straight, and former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar looks to get back to a title fight when he faces rising star Yair Rodriguez in the biggest test of Rodriguez’ young career.
In a featured prelim bout, Eddie Alvarez returns for the first time since losing to Conor McGregor at UFC 205 in November as he takes on Dustin Poirier.
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on tonight’s show, so send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and worst fight to Dave at [email protected].
UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 6:30 PM ET/3:30 PM PT
> Joachim Christensen (14-4, 1-1 UFC) vs. Gadzhimurad Antigulov (19-4, 1-0 UFC) Light Heavyweights
They were trading early and Antigulov got a takedown. Antigulov was landing knees to the body as he took the back. Antigulov was looking for the choke early on. Christensen was defending but Antigulov had it locked in and Christensen taps! Antigulov with the quick first-round submission win.
Official Result- Gadzhimurad Antigulov def. Joachim Christensen by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:21 of Round 1
> Gabriel Benitez (19-5, 3-1 UFC) vs. Enrique Barzola (12-3-1, 2-1 UFC) Featherweights
Benitez landed a big leg kick early on. Barzola landed a head kick as they were going back and forth with kicks. Barzola scored a takedown. Benitez scrambled out from the bottom and they got back to their feet. Barzola scored another takedown but Benitez was quick to get back up. Benitez scored with a straight left and then landed another. Barzola landed a good combination and scored a big takedown and was landing from the top at the end. 10-9 Barzola.
They were trading early on and Barzola got a quick takedown but Benitez was quick back to his feet. Barzola got another takedown- Benitez has been unable to stop them. They got back up. Another takedown from Barzola and he was looking to take the back. Benitez landed a knee to the body. Benitez landed a big body kick. Barzola started firing back punches and landed a knee to the body. 10-9 Barzola, 20-18 Barzola after two.
Benitez tried a spin kick but it almost went badly as he slipped to the mat and Barzola pressured on for a takedown. Benitez was scrambling but gave up his back in the process and Barzola was looking to lock in a choke. He had it in and Benitez was fighting it off and able to escape. They got to their feet and a big crowd reaction. Benitez landed a sharp left hand. Barzola is relentless with his looking for takedowns. They traded punches. Barzola got another takedown into the guard. Benitez scrambled to his feet but Barzola had the back. Benitez landed a body kick but Barzola fired back with a big right hand. Benitez hurt Barzola bad at the horn and knocked him down. Excellent fight. 10-9 Barzola, 30-27 Barzola.
Official Result- Enrique Barzola def. Gabriel Benitez by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Casey was landing some punches early. Aguilar tripped Casey to the mat and swarmed on top landing some good hammerfists. Aguilar got to her feet and Casey was looking for upkicks. They got to their feet and Casey landed a lot of punches and Aguilar had to run away as she was trapped against the fence. Casey landed a combo but Aguilar was able to get a takedown. Aguilar drug Casey by the foot to the center of the mat. Aguilar went into the guard and was landing short punches before they were stood up. Casey landed a nice combination. Casey with a head kick and a nice combo at the end. 10-9 Casey.
Aguilar got Casey to the mat quickly to start the second. Aguilar got up and was looking for an opening to the guard but Casey was using push kicks on the mat until she was stood up. Casey with some solid combinations. Aguilar got a quick takedown. Casey landed some upkicks. Aguilar got on top in the half-guard. Aguilar ended on the top. 10-9 Casey, 20-18 Casey.
Casey was landing punches and then pushed Aguilar against the fence. Aguilar was able to get away. Casey was landing some big punches and had Aguilar in trouble. Aguilar is busted open and bleeding all over. Aguilar landed a knee to the body but is just eating shots from Casey. Casey landed some good punches and defended some takedown attempts. Aguilar with a nice combo at the end. Casey looked very good in this fight. 10-9 Casey, 30-27 Casey.
Official Result- Cortney Casey def. Jessica Aguilar by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
FX PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT
> James Vick (10-1, 6-1 UFC) vs. Marco Polo Reyes (7-2, 3-0 UFC) Lightweights
Reyes landed a quick opening flurry and then they were trading kicks. Reyes landed a solid combo. They clinched and Reyes was landing to the body. They were trading and Vick dropped Reyes with a big right hand and after a few more punches on the ground it was stopped. Vick gets a big win in front of a hometown crowd.
Official Result- James Vick def. Marco Polo Reyes by TKO (punches) at 2:39 of Round 1
Sherman with a high kick early on but Coulter fired back with a right hand. They were trading again and Coulter landed a right hand. Sherman landed a jab that hurt Coulter and was then landing some leg kicks. Sherman landed a big shot and hurt Coulter. Coulter landed a big right hand that hurt Shetrman. Sherman has Coulter hurt with leg kicks. 10-9 Sherman.
Sherman with a leg kick but Coulter landed a big right hand. Sherman has Coulter hurt after a leg kick. Sherman dropped Coulter and was pounding away. Lots of punches on the mat but Coulter got to his feet. Coulter was firing back punches but is visibly hurt. Sherman with leg kicks and Coulter can barely walk. Coulter with heavy punches. Sherman with punches against the fence. Coulter with big punches. They traded punches. The crowd is really into this. Sherman with a combo. Sherman finishes Coulter off with a flurry of strikes to a big reaction. Excellent fight.
Official Result- Chase Sherman def Rashad Coulter by TKO (strikes) at 3:36 of Round 2
> Chas Skelly (17-2, 6-2 UFC) vs. Jason Knight (16-2, 3-1 UFC) Featherweights
They were trading early and Knight landed a nice combo. Skelly landed a nice combo. Skelly got a takedown into the guard of Knight. Skelly got to his feet and was looking to slam Knight but Knight held onto the fence. Skelly went back down and Knight reversed positions to the top. A scramble ended with Skelly back into Knight’s guard. They scrambled all over the mat looking for dominant position until they separated and just stood up. Knight got a late takedown. 10-9 Knight.
They were trading and Knight got a quick takedown. Knight is talking trash inside the Octagon. Skelly landed a left hand. Skelly landed an uppercut and a body kick which cause Knight to stumble a little. Knight was saying all sorts of things to Skelly after he hit him. Skelly went for a takedown but Knight sprawled. They were battling for underhooks against the fence. Knight scored a takedown. Skelly scrambled to the top but Knight was looking for an armbar. Skelly got up and landed a head kick on Knight right as he got to his feet and then a hard right hand. 10-9 Knight, 20-18 Knight.
Knight has a big cut underneath his right eye. Knight knocked Skelly down with a right hand and was looking for the finish with punches on the ground and he got it. Jason Knight with a huge win. Skelly not happy about the stoppage but it was the right call.
Official Result- Jason Knight def. Chas Skelly by TKO (punches) at :39 of Round 3
> Eddie Alvarez (#3, 28-5, 3-2 UFC) vs. Dustin Poirier (#9, 21-5, 13-4 UFC) Lightweights
Poirier landed a big body kick to start. Poirier with a hard leg kick. Poirier landed a straight right hand that stunned Alvarez. Alvarez missed on two right hand attempts but landed a high kick. Poirier with a leg kick. Poirier lands another straight right hand. They traded and Poirier landed a body kick. Alvarez just missed a hard right hand. Alvarez lands a right hand at the end. 10-9 Poirier.
Alvarez came out firing with punches to start the round and was working for a takedown. Alvarez was landing left hands in a tie-up before they broke apart. Alvarez’ left eye is showing some good damage. Alvarez landed a clean right hand but Poirier rocked him back with a left hand. They started throwing bombs at each other and Poirier had Alvarez in huge trouble. Alvarez was almost finished with a head kick but survived. Poirier then started teeing off again and they were throwing back and forth. Alvarez with a head kick. Alvarez was teeing off on Poirier and had him in a ton of trouble. Incredible. Incredible. Loud chants for Alvarez. Alvarez got a takedown.Alvarez with an illegal knee that sent Poirier down and we have a break. This might be a DQ. It was a very illegal knee.
Herb Dean waved off the fight after the doctors looked over Poirier. It was an incredible fight up until that point. We’ll see what the decision is here. WHAT??? They are declaring it a no contest. That is all sorts of wrong. It was called an accidental foul by Herb Dean. Blown call there.
Official Result- Eddie Alvarez vs. Dustin Poirier declared a no contest due to an accidental foul at 4:12 of Round 2
PPV MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT
> Krzysztof Jotko (#9, 19-1, 6-1 UFC) vs. David Branch (20-3, 2-2 UFC) Middleweights
They were trading and Branch scored a takedown after ducking under a punch from Jotko. Branch was landing from the top but Jotko managed to get to his feet. Branch with some knees but Jotko able to reverse position. Jotko got a brief takedown but they stayed clinched against the fence. Not a lot of action and the crowd boos. I don’t blame them considering the action we’ve had on this card. Not much of a round. 10-9 Branch.
They clinched right back up and nothing was happening. They broke and Branch kicked Jotko right in the cup so we had a brief timeout. Back to action and there isn’t a lot of action going on here. Branch got a takedown but Jotko got right back up. Branch pushed Jotko against the fence and was blanketing him before they were broken up by the ref. Jotko got a head kick but Bramch scored a takedown. They each landed left hands on the way up. Crowd still booing this. 10-9 Branch, 20-18 Branch.
Jotko landed a spin kick but Branch fired back with a jumping body kick. Jotko landed a left hand off a takedown attempt from Branch. They clinched and Branch blanketed Jotko against the fence. This fight has been really boring and the crowd is letting them know it. This should have been on Fight Pass. They were broken up by the ref. They clinch again and Branch is punching the thighs of Jotko. Broken up again. Jotko with a late punch. Terrible fight. 10-9 Jotko, 29-28 Branch.
Official Result- David Branch def. Krzysztof Jotko by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
> Frankie Edgar (#2, 21-5-1, 15-5-1 UFC) vs. Yair Rodriguez (#7, 9-1, 6-0 UFC) Featherweights
Edgar with a quick combo. Rodriguez was landing some shots until Edgar stunned him with a combo an pushed the fight against the fence. Edgar got a takedown. The hockey horn blew twice. Edgar was landing from the top but Rodriguez working hard from the bottom. Edgar landing a lot of punches from the top. Edgar with elbows from the top and more punches and he’s looking to finish it. Edgar with a huge round but Rodriguez survived though he has huge swelling under the eye. 10-8 Edgar.
Edgar landed a combo to start the second. Rodriguez with a wheel kick but Edgar was able to score a big takedown in return. Edgar landing from the top but Rodriguez is working for a leg from the bottom. Edgar with more punches from the top and it’s getting close to being stopped. Edgar looking to set up a choke. Rodriguez gives up his back. Rodriguez trying to roll out from under but Edgar back in the guard and landing elbows. Edgar with more stuffing punches from the top. Rodriguez is doing all he can to survive. Rodriguez looking for a triangle but Edgar transitioning out of the way. Another huge round for Edgar. 10-8 Edgar, 20-16 Edgar.
They’ve stopped the fight in between rounds. Edgar gets the win after a corner stoppage.
Official Result- Frankie Edgar def. Yair Rodriguez by TKO (doctor stoppage) at 5:00 of Round 2
Maia went right for a takedown and Masvidal defended it but Maia got him down for a moment. Masvidal got back up but Maia still had the body lock and got the takedown and has the back of Masvidal. Maia got him back down and is on the back. Masvidal to his feet but Maia has the backpack on him. Masvidal backs Maia into the fence. Maia looking to get his arms free. He does and is looking for the choke. Maia is cut on his eye. Maia still has the back and is working for the choke but Masvidal defending well. Masvidal able to shake off Maia and is on top throwing lots of punches. Masvidal has Maia in trouble bt the round ends. 10-9 Maia.
Masvidal landed a punch and then a head kick and a leg kick. Maia has another takedown stuffed. Masvidal with a high kick. Masvidal with a leg kick. Maia went for another takedown but it is defended and Masvidal landed an elbow on the way up. They went back to the mat and Maia scrambled to the top position. Maia looking for the mount but Masvidal holding him in the half-guard. They get to their feet but Maia has the back. Maia with another brief takedown. Masvidal drops down to the mat and gives up his back. Maia looking to get the choke in. Maia landing from the back. I think Masvidal gave this round up. 10-9 Maia, 20-18 Maia.
Masvidal with a body kick. Maia looks very tired, Masvidal more fresh. Masvidal with a high kick. Maia is circling around the cage avoiding the attacks of Masvidal. Masvidal not really chasing after either. Masvidal with a head kick. Maia grabs the leg and gets Masvidal down and quickly jumps to the back. Maia has the neck of Masvidal but lets go. Maia now has the hooks in on the back. Masvidal has now officially given up on this fight. Maia in full control of the back and working to finish but too little, too late. Dominant showing from Maia though. 10-9 Maia, 30-27 Maia.
Official Result- Demian Maia def. Jorge Masvidal by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
It’s official. Demian Maia will get the next title shot at Tyron Woodley and the UFC Welterweight Championship.
Jedrzejczyk attacking the legs early. She lands a solid combo. Andrade lands some big punches. They were trading some hard shots and Andrade clinched up. Jedrzejczyk with a hard knee in the clinch. Andrade gets a big takedown and is on top. They get to their feet and Jedrzejczyk with some hard knees to the body.They break and Jedrzejczyk with some leg kicks. Loud Joanna chants. Jedrzejczyk with a head kick. Jedrzejczyk with a front kick. They trade leg kicks and Jedrzejczyk lands a nice left hand. They clinch again and Andrade with another takedown but Jedrzejczyk right back up.Jedrzejczyk with a couple of late leg kicks. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk.
Jedrzejczyk starts off with some leg kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a quick jab. Jedrzejczyk with another power jab. She’s defending all of Andrade’s attacks before they are even thrown. Jedrzejczyk with a head kick. Andrade unable to land her punches as Jedrzejczyk is circling away perfectly. They trade leg kicks. Jedrzejczyk with a big right hand. Andrade ate it and then missed all of her return punches. Jedrzejczyk’s footwork is incredible. Andrade got a half-second takedown. Jedrzejczyk with a jumping head kick. Jedrzejczyk with some more jabs that are slowing Andrade down. Jedrzejczyk tagged her with a head kick and Andrade stumbled into a takedown late. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk, 20-18 Jedrzejczyk.
Jedrzejczyk with some leg kicks but Andrade is able to land a nice left hand. Jedrzejczyk with a body kick. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick and a hard right hand. Andrade chases her down looking for a takedown but it’s defended. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a big head kick that stunned Andrade. Jedrzejczyk lands a right hand and just misses a spinning head kick. Andrade got a late takedown. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk, 30-27 Jedrzejczyk.
Andrade’s leg is a mess from the leg kicks. And she eats a right hand from Jedrzejczyk to start the fourth. Jedrzejczyk lands another right hand. Jedrzejczyk with a leg kick. Jedrzejczyk with a big head kick. Andrade is tough. They clinch and Andrade is trying to get a takedown but is eating knees from Jedrzejczyk. Andrade got a brief takedown. Jedrzejczyk with a combo left hand and leg kick. She then lands a big right hand. Jedrzejczyk with another head kick. Jedrzejczyk with a knee in the clinch and a quick combo on the break. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk, 40-36 Jedrzejczyk.
Andrade has to finish this. They were trading inside the clinch. Andrade was landing some short punches but Jedrzejczyk was landing the same in return. They clinch but not much happens and Jedrzejczyk lands an elbow on the break. Andrade lands a nice right hand. Jedrzejczyk just keeping the distance and landing whenever Andrade rushes in. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. One minute left for Andrade to find a finish. Jedrzejczyk ducks under a right hand and lands a front kick to the body. Andrade had nothing for Jedrzejczyk. Another dominant performance from the defending champion. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk, 50-45 Jedrzejczyk.
Official Result- Joanna Jedrzejczyk def. Jessica Andrade by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-44, 50-45), Jedrzejczyk remains the UFC Strawweight Champion
> Stipe Miocic (C, 16-2, 10-2 UFC) vs. Junior Dos Santos (#4, 18-4, 12-3 UFC) UFC Heavyweight Championship
Miocic with an early leg kick. They started throwing big bombs at each other. Miocic with a right hand. Miocic lands some punches as Dos Santos circles away. Dos Santos has landed a couple but Miocic has more volume thus far. Miocic rocks Dos Santos. Miocici with a ciplle of clean right hands and he drops Dos Santos with another right hand. Miocic swarms on top with more punches and Herb Dean finally steps in and stops the fight! Miocic with another first-round knockout win as he remains the champion.
Official Result- Stipe Miocic def. Junior Dos Santos by TKO (punches) at 2:22 of Round 1, Miocic remains the UFC Heavyweight Champion
In terms of fight quality and star power, UFC presents its biggest pay-per-view of the year so far tonight with UFC 211.
In the main event, heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic looks to avenge a decision loss at the hands of former champ Junior dos Santos in ia rematch from December 2014.
In the co-main event, strawweight queen Joanna Jedrzejczyk will be looking for her sixth straight title defense and eight UFC win overall as she faces former bantamweight and top contender Jessica Andrade.
Two other main card fights could have immediate title implications as Demian Maia aims for his seventh straight win as he takes on the surging Jorge Masvidal, a former lightweight who has rung up three consecutive wins. The winner will have the best claim to a title challenge against division champ Tyron Woodley.
Former lightweight champ Frankie Edgar hopes to finally earn another featherweight title shot as he faces Yair Rodriguez, one of the most dynamic contenders in any division. With Jose Aldo and Max Holloway set to meet at UFC 212 to determine an undisputed 145-pound king, this fight could determine the next challenger for that belt.
Headlining up the FX-aired prelims is a key lightweight tilt as former champion Eddie Alvarez squares off with Dustin Poirier, one of the hardest hitters in the division. Alvarez will be fighting for the first time since losing his title to Conor McGregor last November at Madison Square Garden.
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 (23-10; .697) — Wrestling Observer publisher
Favorites (23-10; .697)
John Pollock (23-10; .697) — Fight Network analyst, Live Audio Wrestling co-host, MMA Report co-host
Consensus Picks (22-10; .688)
Mike Sawyer (22-11; .667) — Tough Talk MMA publisher
David Bixenspan (22-11; .667) – Deadspin pro wrestling columnist, Between the Sheets podcast host
Steve Juon (21-12; .636) — MMA Mania writer, Angry Marks publisher
Mike Sempervive (19-14; .576) — Wrestling Observer Live and Big Audio Nightmare co-host
Ryan Frederick (18-15; .545) — WrestlingObserver.com UFC writer
Paul Fontaine (16-17; .485) — MMADraws.com publisher, WrestlingObserver.com writer
Front Row Brian (15-18; .455) — MMA newsbreaker, beloved internet personality, podcast host
UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic (16-2) vs. Junior dos Santos (18-4) II
Many, myself included, feel that Miocic won their first fight, which headlined a Fox show in late 2014. Miocic went on to defeat Fabricio Werdum to win the heavyweight crown and will be aiming for his second title defense here against the former champion.
Dos Santos has been relatively inactive as this will be just his third fight since beating Miocic and his first fight in over a year. He has not finished an opponent in nearly four years since stopping Mark Hunt on Memorial Day weekend in 2013.
The betting lines are very close on this one, but our panel doesn’t see it quite that close.
UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk (13-0) vs. Jessica Andrade (16-5)
Andrade has fought more times than any woman in UFC history as tonight marks her 11th time stepping into the Octagon. She will fight for a title for the very first time as she goes up against the unstoppable-to-this-point “Joanna Champion”.
While flyweight king Demetrious Johnson recently tied the long-standing record for consecutive title defenses at 10, Jedrzejczyk is quietly approaching that record herself and has shown no signs of slowing down. Despite her long winning streak, the oddsmakers have set a fairly close line on this one.
Andrade is one of the hardest hitters in the division and the former 135-pounder will likely have the size advantage here as well. She has three straight wins in her new division including two stoppages and a one-sided beatdown of former Invicta champion Angela Hill in her last outing.
Demian Maia (24-6) vs. Jorge Masvidal (32-11) WELTERWEIGHTS
Many feel that Maia has already earned a UFC title shot as the 39-year-old’s seven-fight win streak is the longest in the division. He’ll once again try to hold serve against former lightweight Masvidal, one of the gutsiest brawlers in the division who will try to pick up his fourth straight win.
Maia has an obvious advantage if the fight goes to the ground, but Masvidal is a very tough fighter to put away. His last three losses have been by split decision and he has not been finished since a submission loss in Bellator to Tody Imada in 2009.
At some point, age has to catch up to the veteran Maia, and the oddsmakers surprisingly have the former middleweight title contender set as the underdog. This should be a very close fight either way.
Frankie Edgar (21-5-1) vs. Yair Rodriguez (10-1) FEATHERWEIGHTS
This is a big step up in competition for Rodriguez, who has picked up main event wins in each of his last two fights, beating journeyman Alex Caceres and the legendary BJ Penn. He faces another future Hall of Famer here, although Edgar is much closer to the peak of his abilities than Penn was.
Edgar’s only loss in the last four-plus years came at the hands of division champ Jose Aldo where he took the champ the distance. Sandwiched around that loss at UFC 200 were wins over top contenders Chad Mendes, Urijah Faber, Jeremy Stephens, Cub Swanson, Charles Oliveira, as well as the aforementioned Penn.
Edgar has already lost to Aldo twice, so his best shot at another title fight would be if Holloway were to win that fight at UFC 212, but should Rodriguez emerge victorious here, he could immediately step into the next featherweight title bout.
Edgar #3; -122 betting favorite: Juon, Fontaine, Nason, Pollock, Meltzer
Eddie Alvarez (28-5) vs. Dustin Poirier (21-5) LIGHTWEIGHTS
Alvarez scored one of the most surprising title wins in recent UFC history when he stopped former champ Rafael dos Anjos last July. His reign was short-lived, however, as McGregor blitzed him to capture the belt.
Another past McGregor victim stands in the way this time out as Poirier shoots for his sixth win in his last seven fights. Many have this one pegged as the leading contender for Fight of the Night as Poirier in particular has a penchant for picking up performance awards.
With the division somewhat on ice with champion McGregor focused on a boxing match with Floyd Mayweather, both guys badly need a win here to maintain relevance in a tough weight class.
Dave Branch (20-3) vs. Krzysztof Jotko (19-1) MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Branch #16; +135 betting underdog
Jotko #13; -147 betting favorite
Chas Skelly (17-2) vs. Jason Knight (17-2) FEATHERWEIGHTS
Skelly #17; -123 betting favorite
Knight #36; +113 betting underdog
James Vick (12-1) vs. Marco Polo Reyes (7-3) LIGHTWEIGHTS
Vick #36; -335 betting favorite
Reyes #178; +353 betting underdog
Jessica Aguilar (19-6) vs. Cortney Casey (6-4 STRAWWEIGHTS
Aguilar NR; +103 betting underdog
Casey #19; -116 betting favorite
Rashad Coulter (8-1) vs. Chase Sherman (9-3) HEAVYWEIGHTS
Coulter #205; +130 betting underdog
Sherman NR; -126 betting favorite
Enrique Barzola (12-3-1) vs. Gabriel Benitez (19-5) FEATHERWEIGHTS
Barzola #192; +137 betting underdog
Benitez #66; -140 betting favorite
Gadzhimurad Antigulov (19-4) vs. Joachim Christensen (14-4) LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHTS
Antigulov #25; -345 betting favorite
Christensen #57; +363 betting underdog
Action begins with the Fight Pass prelims at 6:30 p.m. ET and moves over to FX at 8 p.m. ET. The main card airs on PPV at 10 p.m. ET, covered by our Ryan Frederick, who will be live at cageside.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor, eminating from Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York.
This is the much anticipated debut of the UFC in New York, and they are bringing the most stacked card in company history for the Octagon’s first visit to famed Madison Square Garden, capping off a night of action with the biggest draw in company history looking to make history.
In the main event, UFC Featherweight Champion Conor McGregor looks to become the first fighter to hold championships in two divisions at the same time as he challenges Eddie Alvarez for the UFC Lightweight Championship. McGregor is coming off two high-profile fights with Nate Diaz while Alvarez makes his first title defense after knocking out Rafael Dos Anjos in July.
In addition, there are two other championship bouts. UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley makes his first title defense against top contender, Stephen Thompson, winner of seven straight fights. Woodley knocked out Robbie Lawler to win the title at UFC 201 in July, while Thompson is getting his title shot on the heels of a dominant win over Rory MacDonald.
UFC Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk makes her fourth title defense against fellow Polish strawweight, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, in the third title fight on the card. Jedrzejczyk last fought in July, successfully defending against Claudia Gadelha, while Kowalkiewicz is coming off a decision win over Rose Namajunas in July. Both women are undefeated in their professional careers, but Jedrzejczyk holds a win over Kowalkiewicz in an amateur bout.
The main card also has a middleweight bout as former champion Chris Weidman takes on Yoel Romero, and Miesha Tate battles Raquel Pennington in women’s bantamweight action. The most stacked prelims of all-time includes featherweights Frankie Edgar and Jeremy Stephens doing battle as well as top lightweight contender Khabib Nurmagomedov taking on Michael Johnson.
We’re looking for your thoughts on the show, so you can leave a thumbs up, thumbs down or thumbe in the middle along with a best and worst match to [email protected]
Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 PM eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
We are looking for your thoughts on the event so leave your thumbs up, thumbs in the middle, or thumbs down along with a best and worst fight to [email protected].
The place is fairly empty at this point. More than a Las Vegas crowd but not like a lot of first-time markets. Carmouche is ripped, more than most of the guys.
First round: Carmouche with low kicks. Chookagian landed a right., Carmouche back with a right. Carmouche with a low kick and a right and a takedown. Carmouche is in side control Chookagian back up with minimal damage. Carmouche trying for another takedown. Carmouche has her against the fence. High slam by Carmouche with 1:05 left. Carmouche is just holding her down. Fans chanting Ole for no reason. Carmouche with some short elbows. Carmouche 10-9
Second round: Carmouche has her and trying to throw her. Both landed knees. Chookagian broke the clinch. Chookagian with a low kick. Carmouche took her down with a back suplex. She moved to side control. Carmouche with short elbows. Chookagian regained guard and wants a triangle. Carmouche with some short punches. The crowd is starting to boo them. Carmouche is staying busy but they could stand them up. Chookagaian up. Knee by Chookagian. Left by Chookagian. Chookagian whiffed on a combo. Right by Chookagian landed. Low kick by Chookagian. Carmouche’s round 20-18.
Third round: Chookagian dropped her with a great head kick. Carmouche back up. The crowd exploded. Knee by Chookagian. Carmouche going for a takedown. Chookagian momentarily got behind her but Carmouche turned her into the fence. Knee by Carmouche. Chookagian landed a combo. Big right by Chokagian. Chookagian landed solid punches now. Carmouche is bleeding from the nose. Carmouche took her down which drew a groan from the crowd. Carmouche is holding her down. Chookagian up and Carmouche threw a knee. Chookagian broke free. Head kick by Chookagian. Low kick by Carmouche. Chookagian in with punches. Low kick by Carmouche. Good right by Chookagian. Carmouche shot for a takedown but doesn’t have it. But she’s taking seconds off the clock. Chookagian’s round but Carmouche should win 29-28.
> Jim Miller (27-8 1 NC, 16-7 1 NC UFC) vs. Thiago Alves (21-10, 13-6 UFC)
Catch weight of 162.5
Alves missed weight by 6.5 pounds.
First round: Knee by Alves. Miller with a left. Miller in with an uppercut. Miller landed a punch and took Alves down off a kick. Miller is working to get his back. Alves scrambled up. Left kick to the body by Miller. Both landing now with Alves landing a good knee. Right by Alves and head kick by Alves. Alves came on strong at the end but 10-9 Miller.
Second round: Body kick by Alves. Body kick by Alves. He tried another and Miller tried to take him down off it. Alves defended the takedown. Miller with a blast double leg takedown. Miller cradled him on the ground. Miller is keeping him down. There was a USA chant. Miller landed a few punches as Alves got up. Miller with a left. Alves with a right. Body kick by Alves. Punch and knee by Alves. Alves missed a spinning backfist. Alves landed the backfist. Miller is bleeding. Close round. 20-18 Miller.
Third round: Body kick by Alves. Mller slipped. Alves landing punches and a body kick. Both swinging. Miller hit the blast double again. That could clinch him the fight. Alves back up. Alves with a body kcik. Miller got another takedown. Miller got his back. Alves almost got up but Miller wrestled him back down. Miller tried a guillotine and Alves slipped out and on top. Alves landed some elbows and punches from the top as the round ended. Another close round. Miller 30-27.
Scores: 30-27, 29-28 and 30-27 for Miller
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> Vicente Luque (10-5-1, 3-1 UFC) vs. Belal Muhammad (10-1, 1-1 UFC) Welterweights
First round: Luque dropped him with a left hook and landed a few brutal shots on the ground before it was stopped. 1:19′
Luque said he dropped 30 pounds for the fight.
> Rafael Natal (#14, 21-7-1, 9-5-1 UFC) vs. Tim Boetsch (19-10, 10-9 UFC) Middleweights
First round: Boetsch landed a right as Natal went for a takedown. Boetsch is the one moving forward. Natal missed a spinning backfist. Trading punches and Boetsch got the better of it. Body kick by Natal. Boetsch dropped him with a right hook that knocked Natal flying and finished him on the ground. It was weird. It was like Natal wasn’t himself at all. 3:22
Boetsch credited the win to the Irish Hand Grenade Marcus Davis for the win. Joe Rogan and Boetch said the first punch early shook up Natal and he was tentative from there.
> Khabib Nurmagomedov (#2, 23-0, 7-0 UFC) vs. Michael Johnson (#6, 17-10, 9-6 UFC) Lightweights
First round: Johnson throwing early. He landed a nice left. He’s landing good punches on Khabib. He’s got Khabib hurt now. Johnson landed a hard left. Johnson blocked the takedown attempt. But Khabib powered him down into side control USA chants Khabib with lefts. Now he’s dropping elbows and throwing hard punches on the ground. Khabib dropping more elbows. Big punches by Khabib. He’s got his back and throwing more punches. Khabib 10-9. The crowd went nuts giving both a standing ovation after the round.
Second round: Johnson landed a left. Left to the body by Johnson. Khabib landing punches now and tied him up. Johnson got away from the takedown attempt. Johnson blocked another takedown,. Knee and punch and Johnson sprawled. Johnson going for a guillotine but Khabib popped out and is on top. Khabib immediately passed to side control and throwing punches. He’s got a crucifox position on Johnson and punching. More punches by Khabib. Khabib with hard lefts from the top. Now Khabib has back position and is throwing a ton of punches. More punches from side position. Now he’s throwing hard rights. 10-8 Khabib’s round so 20-17 after two.
Third round: USA chant to start the round. Both throwing punches. Khabib took him down again. The crowd booed. Khabib is landing punches again from that position. Khabib is trying for a finish with punches but Johnson can take his shots. Johnson tried to kick off the cage to reverse. Now Khabib is working for a Kimura and got the tap. Very interesting because his win was more dominant than Ferguson but Ferguson is a more entertaining fighter 2:31
Khabib said I want to stay humble but I have to talk. I show the crazy power the UFC PR is. He cut a promo on Conor and the crowd stared to boo him. He wanted to face the Irish chicken, said
Irish only six million, Russia 150 million. He then talked Russian. He got great heat. The crowd hated him. He said Joe Rogan knows MMA for 20 years and asked Rogan if he desreved a title shot. Rogan said he deserved it which the crowd didh’t like.
> Frankie Edgar (#2, 20-5-1, 14-5-1 UFC) vs. Jeremy Stephens (#7, 25-12, 12-11 UFC) Featherweights
First round: Edgar got the biggest pop so far. The place is pretty packed now, I’d say 90-95%. Stephens looks 15 pounds heavier in the cage. Edgar tried a takedown and Stephens sprawled. Low kick by Stephens. Edgar moved in for a takedown but Stephens disengaged. Body kick by Edgar. Knee by Stephens. Low kick by Stephens. Edgar with a two punch combo. Let’s Go Frankie chant pretty loud. Edgar with a front headlock and throwing knees. He’s working for the takedown and not getting it. Edgar slammed him but Stephens right baacck up. Edgar slammed him again but Stephens up. Stephens poked Edgar in the eye and a time out was called. Stephens with punches. Edgar 10-9 but closer than you’d think.
Second round: Stephens complained of a low blow. Edgar with a right. Jumping kick by Stephens. Body kick by Edgar. Low kick by Edgar. Edgar got a momentary takedown . He got a back slam takedown. Stephens right back up again. Edgar in with punches. Good right by Edgar. Edgar with punches. Stephens with a great kick to the chin and Edgar went down. Edgar is hurt. Stephens with a right. Stephens going for the finish. Another right by Stephens. Stephens with a left. Hard left by Stephens. Let’s go Frankie chants. Stephens with a right. Edgar back with a combo, and got the takedown and got a guillotine. Stephens out of it. What a great round. Edgar on top. Loud Frankie chants. He’s going for the guillotine again. Edgar landed punches from the top late. 10-9 Stephens for 19-19 after two. Standing ovation for the round.
Third round: Let’s go Frankie chants. Stephens threw a kick and Edgar used it to take him down. Stephens working for a Kimura but Edgar out of trouble. Edgar elbowing the ribs. Edgar staying on top. Edgar trying to work for a choke. Edgar with a back suplex slam. Edgar is behind him working for a choke again. Stephens up with 2:13 left. Big right by Stephens. Edgar went for a takedown and couldn’t get it. Edgar with a left. Edgar with a right. Uppercut by Stephens. Both throwing and Stephens landed some good shots and Edgar back as the fight ended. Edgar 29-28. The crowd gave them a standing ovation again.
First round: Tate didn’t get nearly the reaction she usually gets. Tate with a right. Pennnington landing jabs. Pennington hurting her with punches. Rocky chant. Tate landing punches to the body and head and working for a takedown. Pennington lifted Tate up with a guollotone. It was crazy. Tate tried to kick off the cage. Tate finally go the takedown. Pennington back up. Pennington looks like she wants to do the old pump handle move. That’s a pro wrestling joke. Nothing much happening and crowd starting to get restless. Tate had her back. Tate did control the positioning but Pennington did more damage. Hard to score, 10-9 Pennington.
Second round: Pennington with a nice right. Left by Pennington. Anohter left by Pennington. Penningotn landed solid shots. Tate with lefts. Knee by Tate from the clinch. Tate trying for the takedown. Knee by Tate. Both throwing punches. Pennington got behind Tate. Tate throwing elbows. Crowd is bored by this fight. Pennington landing punches from the clinch. Tate with knees and Pennington with body shots as they’re in the clinch. Body shots by Pennington. Both landed punches as the round ended. Pennington 20-18.
Third round: Both the rounds were close so it’s anyone’s fight. Tate tried to pull guard to get it to the ground. She almost got an armbar. Pennington landing punches from the top. Tate again working for an armbar. Pennington landing punches from the top. Tate now trying for a triangle but doesn’t have it. Tate now going for a leglock. She tried a heel hook but didn’t get it. They’re in a clinch and Pennington is landing some short punches. Pennington took her down and is throwing more punches. Rare boring fight from Tate. Pennington landing a lot of punches late. Pennington 30-27.
Scores: 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27 Pennington. Bad time for a loss for Tate.
Tate announced her retirement after. She said it’s not her time anymore and she’s been around for a long time and she couldn’t pull it off.
> Chris Weidman (#2, 13-1, 9-1 UFC) vs. Yoel Romero (#4, 12-1, 7-0 UFC) Middleweights
First round: This is a really big fight because a strong Weidman win can make him a New York superstar. Not to mention he’ll probably get a title match with a win. Romero is a freak athlete, but he’s also 39 years old. They showed Bisping watching the fight. USA chant to start. Hard body kick by Romero. Weidman tried a takedown but not hard, more diversion. Body kick by Weidman. Ole chants. Weidman took him down once but Romero back up. Body kick by Weidman. Body kicks by Weidman. Another takedown by Weidman and Romero back up. Low kick by Weidman. Left by Romero. Romero with lefts. Body kick by Romnero. Weidman took him down and got his back. Weidman 10-9.
Second round: The referee wiped Vaseline off Romero’s back at the start of the round. Left by Romero. Left by Romero. Body kick by Weidman. Knee by Weidman. Romero claimed an eye poke after the knee. Weidman in on the single but gave it up to land a head kick. Romero took Weidman down and got his back after Weidman got up. Romero with another takedown. Weidman escaped and Romero took him down again. Romero has his back on the ground. Romero’s round so 19-19.
Third round: Boyd kick by Weidman. Romero killed him with a flying knee that nailed Weidman in the left eye and and pounded on him and finished him. That’s not a good thing for UFC. Romero is strutting around the ring like he’s a foreign military soldier saluting the crowd. The crowd didn’t even boo him. They were just stunned. The two hugged. :24 The crowd was eerily quiet when this ended.
Romero said he wanted the belt. Joe Rogan said that Romero will be challenging for the title next. Michael Bisping said he wouldn’t face Romero. Bisping gave Romero the thumbs down and then flipped him off with both hands. Romero kept saying “I love you Mike, see you soon, boy.” Romero said you see now the real champion.
First round: Joanna with low kicks. Ole chants. Joanna with a combo. Both landing. Nice combo by Joanna. Karolina landed some punches. The Irish are singing to entertain themselves. Joanna with another combo. Joanna 10-9
Second round: Karloline pushed her against the fence and went for a takedown but didn’t get it. Joanna with a flurry. Karolina working for a takedown. Joanna has her against the fence and threw a knee. Front kick by Joanna. Spijnning backfist by Joanna. Joanna 20-18.
Third round: Joanna with a knee and punches. Joanna outlandig her. Arolian landed a right. The crowd is so quiet for this fight except a few chants having nothing to do with the fight. It’s like this is Raw from last Monday. Body kick by Karolina. Karolina with a floury. Joannan back and landed a body kick and knee. Elbow and punches by Joanna. Trading punches. Joanna 30-27. Some boos at the end. I can’t tell you how little the people care about this fight.
Fourth round: Joanna with a few kicks and they are back against the fence. Karolina with elbows. Spinning backfist by Karolina. Karolina hurt her bad with a right to the nose. Both are trading. Both trading some more. Karolina landed a big right. Karolina is landing big rights. Joanna took her down but Karolina back up. Joanna looking at the clock. Karolina with more punches from close range. Joanna landed aan elbow. Karolina landed a good right. Trading punches. Joanna seems recovered now. Backfist by Karolina. Joanna tried the same. Joanna with a combo. Both traded punches. Hard knee by Joanna. Joanna got good shots In late in the round. The crowd completely turned and gave both a huge ovation. Karolina’s round 39-37 Joanna.
Fifth round: Good combo by Joanna. Karolina with punches and Joanna with an elbow. Joanna using her kicks to keep Karolina at a distance by Karolina got in and landed a punch. Front kick by Joanna. Joanna landing more punches. Joanna with a left. Karolina back with punches. Joanna with solid punches now. The crowd came alive. Karolina with a spinning punch and Joanna back with punches. Joanna landed punches and elbows. Knee by Joanna. Body kick by Joanna. Joanna 49-46. After all that, the whole place is standing. The fourth round turned the crowd around.
Scores: All three had it 49-46 for Joanna.
Joanna was charming, said she wasn’t hurt in the fourth round. The crowd cheered Karolina a lot after the fight. Karolina said Joanna was the best in the world. She said she’s proud she gave a good fight and the crowd cheered big.
> Tyron Woodley (C, 16-3, 6-2 UFC) vs. Stephen Thompson (#2, 13-1, 8-1 UFC) UFC Welterweight Championship
First round: Body kick by Thonpson. Thompson threw a kick, Woodley countered with a right and took him down. Woodley with body shots. Woodley with a lot of short punches on the ground to smother him . He land hard body shots late, bloodied him with elbows and landed a hard shot at the horn. 10-9 Woodley, almost a 10-8.
Second round: Thompson landed some punches and Woodley tied him up. Thompson turned him around and then Woodley turned him back around. Spin kick to the body by Thompson. Left by Thompson. Right by Thompson. Thompson with punches. Thompson landing more. Woodley with a nice right. Body shot by Thompson. Another body shot by Thompson. Woodley with a nice right. Thompson’s round so 19-19 after two.
Third round: Side kick by Thompson. Woodley moved forward with punches. Woodley moved forward and landed again. Ole chants. Head kick by Woodley. Low kick by Thompson. Thompson moved in with punches. Good right by Thompson. Left by Woodley. Left by Thompson and landed more punches. Woodley moved in but didn’t connect. Thompson landed a few. Woodley with two nice rights late in the round. Close round. Thompson’s so 29-28 Thompson after three.
Fourth round: Thompson in with a few punches. Woodley dropped him with hard right. Woodley throwing punches. Woodley dropped him again with a right and throwing punches on the ground. Thompson is in trouble. Woodley is landing shot after shot. Knees by Woodley and punches. Woodley going for a guillotine. Thompson out of it but he’s hurt. Woodley went for a guillotine again and it’s tight. Thompson is surviving so far. Thompson punching back. The crowd went nuts seeing Thompson punch back. He popped out for the biggest pop so far this show. Wonderboy chants. Thompson landing big punches late. This place is now really alive. 10-8 but that comeback could keep it 10-9, but I’ve got 38-37 Woodley after four. This is going to be very interesting how it’s judged.
Fifth round: Jumping kick by Thompson. Body kick by Thompson. Low kick by Thompson. Loud Wonderboy chants. Right and a head kick by Thompson. Body kick by Thompson. Spin kick to the head by Thompson. Left and right by Thompson. Right by Thompson. Left and right by Thompson. Body kick by Woodley. Left by Thompson. Low kick by Thompson. Woodley landed a right. Body shot by Thompson. Left and right by Thompson. Thompson with a left. Two lefts by Thompson. Thompson with a good right. Thompson’s round, I’ve got it 47-47 all. This could go either way depending on a 10-8 in the first or fourth rounds.
Scores: Derek Cleary scored it 47-47, Doug Crosby scored it 47-47, Glenn Trowbridge 48-47 Woodley. That’s a screw-up, as that’s a majority draw but Woodley would still retain on the draw. Bruce Buffer later corrected himself a majority draw. The problem is Trowbridge looks to have given 3 rounds to Woodley and Thompson won three rounds and it came down to 10-8s in round one or four. Either way, Woodley retains on the draw.
> Eddie Alvarez (C, 28-4, 3-1 UFC) vs. Conor McGregor (C FW, 20-3, 8-1 UFC) UFC Lightweight Championship
This crowd is now totally electric. They’re booing the hell out of Alvarez. Not the number of Irish flags as Vegas but a totally pro-McGregor crowd. Alvarez is called The Underground King. I wonder if he knows Sami Zayn.
First round: McGregor landed and stumbled. Low kick by Alvarez. Body kick by McGregor. McGregor dropped him with a left and Alvarez back up. Head kick by Alvarez. The crowd is really loud. Alvarez shot for a takedown. McGregor with a body kick. Alvarez landed punches and then slipped. Head kick by McGregor. McGregor dropped him with a left . McGregor with punches on the ground. Now he’s dropping elbows on him. Alvarez back up. Loud Conor chants. Alvarez shot in and McGregor evaded and landed an elbow. McGregor with a left. Body kick by McGregor. Right by McGregor. Alvarez with body shots. Alvarez with a body kick. Alvarez landed a good left. Body kick by Alvarez. McGregor 10-8.
Second round: Big left by McGregor hurt him. Alvarez shot for a takedown and it was easily stuffed. McGregor put his arms behind his back and dared Alvarez a free shot. Alvarez didn’t do anything. Body kick by McGregor. Right and left by McGregor. Alvarez with a right. He missed a left and McGregor put him down with a left. Alvarez working for a takedown. Alvarez pushing hard and couldn’t get the takedown. Push kick by Alvarez. McGregor with a series of punches put Alvarez down and ref John McCarthy waved it off. McGregor is the first two division champion in UFC history. It was a left hook, a right, a left and another right that put Alvarez down. A great combo, all four shots landed hard and McCarthy waved it after two punches on the ground. 3:04
McGregor wanted his second belt. McGregor said they’re not on my level, you need size and reach to beat him. He kept saying he wants that second belt. He I’ve ridiculed everyone on the roster, and I’d like to apologize to absolutely nobody. The place erupted on that one. Then he had both belts. He made no big announcement or anything.
Here’s some advice for who to pick in your DraftKings lineup for Saturday’s UFC 205 event in New York City, New York, headlined by UFC Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez defending against Conor McGregor on pay-per-view.
Top Target: Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($9,300)
Joanna Jedrzejczyk is the biggest betting favorite on the UFC 205 card as she defends the UFC Women’s Strawweight Championship against Karolina Kowalkiewicz. She also has the highest salary of all the fighters on the card, but that still makes her our top target for your fantasy line-ups at UFC 205. Jedrzejczyk is the most polished striker, not only out of all womens fighters, but perhaps in the entire sport.
She racks up a lot of points with significant strikes, so that is where she will excel in getting fantasy players points. She is also a finisher, and if she finds an opening, there is no doubt she will be going for the kill. The biggest key for Kowalkiewicz is to get ahead early. Jedrzejczyk can start off slow, but she has shown to have a never-ending gas tank, and she gets much stronger the later the fight goes. Kowalkiewicz fights at a fast pace, but Jedrzejczyk can match it, and her counterstriking will slow Kowalkiewicz down.
A key to the standing battle is that Jedrzejczyk has a punishing jab, and her technique on the feet is unmatched. Jedrzejczyk also trained for this camp with American Top Team, which will be her new home, so she won’t have to adjust due to traveling from overseas. It shouldn’t affect her power or speed.
This is a bad match-up for Kowalkiewicz, but anyone going against Jedrzejczyk is going to be a bad match-up for the opponent, as Joanna is the best in the world at 115 pounds. I expect her to score a lot of points and to get a finish late, and she is definitely the top play on this fight card.
Value Target: Eddie Alvarez ($7,600)
Eddie Alvarez is the underdog as he defends the UFC Lightweight Championship against the biggest star in the sport, Conor McGregor, in the main event of UFC 205. McGregor is looking to make history in becoming the first fighter to hold titles in two weight classes at the same time, and Alvarez is looking to play the spoiler. Alvarez is going to be giving up some length and reach to McGregor, and that is going to come into play.
McGregor likes to keep his opponents on the outside where he can set up leg kicks, spinning kicks and set up his straight left hand. Alvarez fights better inside the pocket where he can start a brawl, so he is going to have to navigate himself inside that five inches of reach that McGregor has the advantage of. Alvarez has talked of how this is an easy fight, and I hope he truly doesn’t believe that, because he’s in for a rude awakening if he does. It’s easy to knock McGregor, but he may truly be the best fighter that Alvarez has fought, and that spans a lot of high-level territory. Alvarez is very quick on his feet and with his hands, and he has solid takedowns.
He may utilize a wrestling-based attack, and takedowns score a lot of fantasy points. He could end up getting into a brawl with McGregor on the feet, and both can take a lot of punishment and dish it out. We’ve never seen McGregor knocked out, nor have we Alvarez, but Alvarez has been in a lot of trouble. I expect to see McGregor use a strategy similar to the one Donald Cerrone had against Alvarez, and that would spell trouble for Alvarez.
However, this is a very winnable fight for Alvarez, and for fantasy reasons, his salary is very valuable. It really is a tough fight to pick, but if you’re looking for someone to use on your roster, Alvarez is a solid selection.
Target To Avoid: Miesha Tate ($9,100)
Miesha Tate returns to the Octagon for the first time since losing the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship to Amanda Nunes at UFC 200 in July. Tate fights an opponent she has some familiarity with in Raquel Pennington, who she coached on The Ultimate Fighter. When you look at this fight, from an outside perspective, this looks like a rebound fight for Tate. Pennington is only 8-5 in her career. However, don’t let that record fool you.
She has won three straight fights and four of her last five, and the improvement has been very clear. She also has a style that could give Tate a lot of trouble. Pennington has some solid striking, but she tends to fight without a clear gameplan. She’s only lost to top-level opponents, and Tate is a top-level opponent. Tate is better all around, but it remains to be seen if she is over losing the championship. She is also coming back sooner than she anticipated as she was expecting to return in December.
Tate will be best served to make this a battle on the mat as her wrestling and ground game is light years ahead of Pennington. Where Pennington could give Tate fits is inside the clinch. She makes good use of dirty boxing and her elbows, and she is good at finding openings. Tate is a big favorite when it comes to fantasy value, but this fight is a lot closer on the betting odds than their salaries show. I do expect Tate to win, but Pennington is going to make her work for it.
I don’t see Tate finishing Pennington, so that takes her value down a little. With Tate having the third-highest salary on the card, without the sure thing of her getting a finish, it’s tough to justify having her on your roster. I’m saying avoid her just because of her salary, but I do think she will win this fight, but it won’t be easy.
Underdog Target: Tyron Woodley ($7,400)
Tyron Woodley is making his first defense of the UFC Welterweight Championship as he defends against Stephen Thompson on Saturday night. If you look at the betting odds and the fantasy salaries for this fight, Woodley is clearly getting no respect as it seems everyone is expecting him to lose the championship. It wouldn’t be a surprise as Woodley’s only fight in 19 months was hist first-round knockout over Robbie Lawler to win the title.
In that same time frame, Thompson has won three fights, and he has won seven straight overall to earn his title opportunity. Woodley and Thompson have completely different styles, and it makes for an interesting match-up. Woodley is a strong wrestler with heavy hands, and Thompson employs a unique karate-style striking attack. Thompson is crafty on his feet and knows how to keep a distance, and Woodley fights badly from the outside. Woodley also has a questionable gas tank, while Thompson can go a full 25 minutes.
Everything being said favors Thompson, so why should Woodley be considered an underdog target? It is because of that knockout power. Thompson is very hard to hit, and we haven’t seen his chin tested yet, but if Woodley can land that right hand, it could be lights out. Woodley also will test the wrestling of Thompson, who has improved his takedown defense, but he hasn’t been put to the test in recent fights. Woodley is also strong in the clinch, but Thompson isn’t easy to keep there.
You have to have underdogs on your roster, and honestly, the pickings are slim on this card. Woodley is going to have a tough time getting a win, but he has that equalizing right hand. He’s the best underdog target bet.
Our Line-Ups
Ryan Frederick: Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($9,300), Stephen Thompson ($8,800), Conor McGregor ($8,600), Chris Weidman ($8,500), Jim Miller ($7,800), Jeremy Stephens ($7,000)
I have Joanna Jedrzejczyk on my roster for all of the reasons she is my top target, and I am confident that she will finish Karolina Kowalkiewicz. I have Eddie Alvarez and Tyron Woodley as targets above, but I have their opponents, Stephen Thompson and Conor McGregor, in my line-up. I just have more confidence in them getting the win and am not taking the risks and am going for the win. I have Chris Weidman, Jim Miller and Jeremy Stephens rounding out my roster.
Finally fighting in New York will give Weidman some added confidence, and he wants an impressive showing to get that title shot. He’s going to bring a fight to Yoel Romero. Miller gets Thiago Alves debuting at lightweight, and it is a tough fight. I need underdogs on my roster, and Miller has a good chance. Stephens is the best that is left with what I have, and if he can connect on Frankie Edgar, he can finish him. I’m hoping so for fantasy sake.
Paul Fontaine: Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($9,300), Donald Cerrone ($8,900), Chris Weidman ($8,500), Belal Muhammad ($8,300), Eddie Alvarez ($7,600), Tyron Woodley ($7,400)
My top pick is the strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk. I believe that she is far and away the best in her division and should handle her challenger with ease, either scoring a quick KO or an extended beatdown. Either is good for a lot of points. Donald Cerrone is next up for me. I see this fight going similar to the Joanna fight in the sense that Cerrone is very prolific on his feet. If it goes to the ground he has an underrated submission game. I think that age is finally going to catch up to Yoel Romero when he gets into the Octagon with former world champion Chris Weidman, allowing the All American to score a KO win.
I’m going with Belal Muhammad as one of my picks as I think he’s one of the better guys in the division and under a lot of people’s radar. His opponent, Luque, has shown to be vulnerable to submissions in the past and Muhammad should take advantage of that. My last two picks are the other two title holders on the card, Eddie Alvarez and Tyron Woodley. Alvarez hits harder, in my opinion, than anyone Conor McGregor has faced to date and the featherweight champion has shown in the past that he’ll eat a lot of punches. Woodley just needs to catch Thompson one time and I think he can do it. I’m glad I can get the two champions in under budget and really like my team here.
Peach Machine: Joanna Jedrzejczyk ($9,300), Frankie Edgar ($9,200), Miesha Tate ($9,100), Eddie Alvarez ($7,600), Tyron Woodley ($7,400), Kelvin Gastelum ($7,300)
I love Eddie in this match up. He’s too fast AND he can take a monster beatin’. T-Wood will simply outclass Thompson. He may be an awesome kick boxer, but he’s never wrestled a Mizzou Tiger. Joanna Champion is my current favorite fighter since Hendo retired. I just named my newest dog, Miesha, so I’m going with her. Gastelum could win this match with wrestling. I think he’ll decide to do that, since getting kneed in the mouth by Cerrone is bad for business. Frankie is gonna stomp Stephens, and he’d better, since he’s being screwed on title contention.
Welcome to F4WOnline.com’s live coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale: Jedrzejczyk vs. Gadelha 2 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. This is the second of three straight nights of UFC action as International Fight Week continues in Las Vegas.
This event is headlined by a rematch between UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk taking on Claudia Gadelha, this time with Jedrzejczyk’s title on the line. In addition, there will be the crowning of two new winners of The Ultimate Fighter as the finals take place. Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 PM eastern time with preliminary action all the way thru the main card.
WELTERWEIGHTS LI JINGLIANG (10-4, 2-2 UFC) VS. ANTON ZAFIR (7-2, 0-1 UFC)
ROUND 1- Zafir with a leg kick and then lands a right hand. They trade punches. Zafir scores a takedown and is in the full guard of Jingliang. He passes to half-guard. They get back to their feet and Zafir gets another takedown. Jingliang reverses and knocks Zafir right out with a series of right hands. That came out of nowhere and Jingliang gets the big knockout win.
Official Result- Li Jingliang def. Anton Zafir by knockout (punches) at 2:46 of Round 1
LIGHTWEIGHTS JAKE MATTHEWS (10-1, 4-1 UFC) VS. KEVIN LEE (12-2, 5-2 UFC)
First round: Lee picked him up and slammed him down. Lee landing punches from the top. Matthews back to his feet. They traded kknees. Matthew sin with punches and landed a high kick. Lee acted like it was nothing. Lee landed a big shot knocking out his mouthpiece. Lee with another takedown and got his back. He’s got the hooks in and is landing punches. Lee landed a lot of punches and it was stopped. Matthews didn’t seem hurt and was blocking most of the punches. 4:06
Lee made the most use of his interview time, he directly challenged Al Iaquinta for November in Madison Square Garden. Iaquinta is logical for that show as a New Yorker.
PRELIMINARY CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 8 PM ET/5 PM PT)
MIDDLEWEIGHTS CEZAR FERREIRA (9-5, 5-3 UFC) VS. ANTHONY SMITH (25-11, 1-1 UFC)
First round: Body kick by Ferreira. Body kick by Smith. Smith threw a kick and Ferreira took him down. Ref Chris Tognoni ordered a stand-up. Body kicks by Ferreira. Smith landed a punch and Ferreira took him down. Ferreira landed a few elbows from the top at the end of the round. 10-9 Ferreira
Second round: Smith with a body kick. Ferreira with a takedown. Smith rocked him with a punch and landed a spin kick to the body. Smith landed a left. Ferreira got a takedown with 2:12 left in the round. Ferreira did nothing from the top and a standup was ordered. Smith landed hard elbows and a punch. Smith’s round so 19-19 after two.
Third round: Both trading punches. Ferreira with a takedown. Smith is bleeding. Another standup was ordered and I have no idea why. Ferreria shot for another takedown but Smith has him in a guillotine. Ferreria is out of trouble. Ferreira landing weak strikes from the top but he’s busy. Ferreira 29-28. Not too exciting of a fight.
First round: Hendricks with a body kick. Stansbury hurt him with a wild punch. Hendricks with a body kick. Another body kick by Hendricks. Both swinging and missing. Stansbury went for a takedown but Hendricks threw some elbows. Stansbury is bleeding from the left side of the head. Body kick and punches by Hendricks. Spinning backfist by Stansbury. Hard right by Stansbusy and Hendricks back. Close round. Hendricks 10-9
Second round: Stansbury tried a takedown but it was blocked. Hendricks tried a takedown, but Stansbury blocked it and landed on top. A standup was ordered. Body kick by Hendericks. Stansbury with a right. Body kick by Hendricks. Both are in a clinch as the round came to an end. Another close round. Stansbury so 19-19.
Third round: Stansbury took him down into side control. He’s keeping position but doing little in the way of damage. Noting happened at all this round but Stansbury kept his position. He threw a few punches here and there. Stansbury’s round for sure, but first two could go either way 29-28 Stansbury.
Scores: 29-27 Stansbury 29-27 Stansbury 28-28 draw. All the judges must have given a 10-8 third. It was one-sided but not enough damage for me to score it that way.
FLYWEIGHTS (#6) JOHN MORAGA (16-4, 5-3 UFC) VS. MATHEUS NICOLAU (11-1-1, 1-0 UFC)
First round: Nothing much happened. Finally they traded punches. Nice right by Nicolau. Uppercut by Moraga. Very little happened. Nicolau 10-9.
Second round: Nicolau landed a nice right. Moraga landed a left. Low kick by Moraga. Right by Nicolau. They traded body kicks. Left by Nicoalu sent Moraga backwards. Nicolau’s round 20-18.
Third round: Low kick by Nicolau. The crowd is finally booing these guys. It’s really been a non-fight so far. Spinning backfist by Nicolau. Right by Nicolau. I don’t know what’s going on in Moraga’s head because he’ s not trying to win this fight. The crowd is booing again. Nicolau with a takedown. Nicolau has his back. Nicolau 30-27. Crowd booed heavily when the fight ended.
Scores: 29-28 Nicolau 29-28 Moraga 29-28 Nicolau
FEATHERWEIGHTS GRAY MAYNARD (11-5-1 1 NC, 9-5-1 1 NC UFC) VS. FERNANDO BRUNO (15-3, 0-1 UFC)
First round: Both swinging wildly. This is a crazy fight. Both swinging wildly. Bruno took Maynard down and Maynard reversed to the top. Bruno knocked Maynard down with a left. Bruno landed a hard left. Both swinging big punches again. Head kick by Bruno. Maynard knocked him to a knee with a punch. Knee by Maynard. Maynand is bleeding. Bruno trying for a takedown and got him down. Maynard back up. Bruno working for another takedown but Maynard blocked it. Bruno 10-9
Second round: Bruno swinging and missing. Bruno landed a number of punches. Maynard back with a right. Maynard with a left. Bruno took him down. Maynard reversed to the top. Maynard working for a guillotine. He gave it up. Bruno landing several punches. Maynard got another takedown and has his back. Maynard took him down again. Maynard’s round so 19-19 after two.
Third round: Maynard got another takedown. Bruno has a guillotine. But Mayanrd escaped. Both look tired. Bruno missed punches, and then slipped and Maynard controlled him on the ground. Maynard’s round so he should win 29-28. Can’t say he resembled the old Maynard.
Scores: All three had it 30-27 for Maynard
MAIN CARD (FOX SPORTS 1- 10 PM ET/7 PM PT)
LIGHTWEIGHTS JOAQUIM SILVA (8-0, 1-0 UFC) VS. ANDREW HOLBROOK (11-0, 1-0 UFC)
First round: Holbrook threw a kick, Silva grabbed his foot and took him down and landed several punches on the ground and it was over. Silva was bouncing his head on the ground with five hard punches. :34
FEATHERWEIGHTS DOO HO CHOI (14-1, 2-0 UFC) VS. THIAGO TAVARES (20-6-1, 10-6-1 UFC)
First round: Choi with a knee. Tavares then took him down. Tavares took him down again. Choi back up. Choi landing punches and knocked him out on the third shot, a right cross. Choi has some amazing firepower in that right. 2:42
Choi issued a challenge to Cub Swanson next, but said that if Tatsuya Kawajiri beats Swanson, he wants him.
LIGHTWEIGHTS ROSS PEARSON (19-10 1 NC, 11-7 1 NC UFC) VS. WILL BROOKS (18-1, 0-0 UFC)
First round: Trading low kicks. Knee by Brooks. Body kick by Pearson. Knee by Brooks. Pearson bleeding from the forehead. They traded body kicks. They’re in a clinch. Brooks with a punch, Pearson with knees. Very close round, Brooks 10-9.
Second round: Body kick and knee by Brooks. Both trading. Brooks with a knee. Brooks with a takedown. Brooks has his back. Knee by Brooks. Brooks with an elbow. Brooks with a body shot Front kick by Brooks. Brooks lost his balance and Pearson ended up on top as the round ended. Brooks 20-18.
Third round: Trading body kicks. Brooks tried a takedown and didn’t get it. Knee by Brooks and he pushed Pearson into the cage. Pearson landed some punches and a knee. Pearson starting to land. Hard body kick by Pearson. Brooks landed a right. Pearson landing a lot of punches now., especially to the body. Best offense of the fight. Pearson with punches and an elbow and a low kick. Pearson continues to work the body. Knee by Brooks . They area trading knees and Brooks took him down. Pearson up and they are trading knees again. Brooks with an elbow. Pearon with a knee. Pearson landed punches at the end. Pearson won the third round, so it’ll come down to the first round, I’ve got 29-28 Brooks
Scores: All three had it 29-28 Brooks. A lot of booing the decision. But it was a fair decision. Brooks challenged Eddie Alvarez, he talked about Alvarez running from him “in another organization.” He put over how talented Pearson is.
TUF 23 WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT FINALS TATIANA SUAREZ (3-0, 0-0 UFC) VS. AMANDA COOPER (1-1, 0-0 UFC)
First round: Suarez is the crowd favorite. Suarez took her right down. Suarez ground and pounding her. Cooper went for an armbar form the bottom. Suarez out and on top. Suarez with punches and Cooper reversed to the top. Suarez up. Suarez with a takedown. Suarez landing punches. She’s working for a D’arce choke and it’s over. The crowd is going crazy. Pretty clear a lot of people watched this season in the crowd and liked her.
Suarez said she got a D’arce onher in practice and talked about beating cancer. The crowd likes her a lot. She came across like a star. Jon Anik talked about her mic skills.
TUF 23 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT FINALS ANDREW SANCHEZ (7-2, 0-0 UFC) VS. KHALIL ROUNTREE (4-0, 0-0 UFC)
First round: Sanchez took him down. Another takedown by Sanchez. Sanchez with some punches on the ground but mostly just controlling him. Rountree back up. Crowd popped when Rountree broke free. Sanchez took him right down. 10-9 Sanchez.
Second round: They traded punches. Sanchez is fighting for a takedown but Rountree i s defending well. Sanchez finally got him down. The crowd is booing as Sanchez has his back and keeping him there. Rountree is from Las Vegas so he’s the crowd favorite but he’s not getting any offense. Sanchez is throwing punches from back position. Sanchez 20-18.
Third round: Rountree blocked a takedown. Rounhtree landed a punch. Sanchez is going for a takedown but doesn’t have it Sanchez got him down again. Sanchez has his back and is working for a choke. Sanchez is keeping the position and the crowd is booing. Sanchez keeps landing punches from that position. The crowd is booing heavily. Sanchez 30-27, the crowd is heavily booing.
Scores: 30-25, 30-25 and 30-26. Crowd booed this pretty heavily.
First round: Gadelha got a big reaction. Joanna got very light boos, mostly cheers, also a big reaction. Great staredown. The crowd is really psyched for this. Gadelha dropped her right away with a punch and then took her down. JJ back up Both trading punches. Gadelha pushed her into the cage. Another takedown by Gadelha. Gadlelha landing punches from the top. She’s now landing elbows to the body. JJ back up. Big trade of punches. Body kick by JJ. Big trade. Gadelha hurt her left knee. Shje’s not moving well and JJ kicking at the knee. Gadelha 10-9
Second round: Gadelha pushed her into the fence but can’t take her down. Gadelha with some punches and got the takedown. Gadelha with punches on the ground. JJ back up. Knee by JJ. Gadelha trying for a takedown. JJ blocked it. She tried it and JJ blocked and on top but Gadelha back up. Gadelha 20-18.
Third round: JJ starting to land now. Gadelha landing back and took her down once again. JJ back up. Trading elbows as JJ is back up. JJ going after the left knee. Body kick and punches by JJ. JJ landing while Gadelha has slowed down. JJ landed a flurry of punches. Gadelha back with punches. Gadelha took her down again. JJ reversed and punched her on the ground, then backed off and told Gadelha to get up. Both trading. JJ is landing a lot and Gadelha threw a hard right that hurt JJ. This is a great fight. JJ with hard elbows and Gadelha aback with an elbow. Elbow by JJ and punches back by Gadelha. The whole place is standing after that round. JJ’s round so 29-28 for Gadelha after three.
Fourth round: JJ landing a lot of punches. She’s also kicking the bad leg. Hard right by JJ. Gadelha is really tired. Gadelha back with punches. Front kick by JJ. JJ landing lefts and low kicks. JJ continuing to land. JJ landed a head kick and punches and is just taking her apart now. Gadelha’s in trouble. Elbow by JJ. JJ with punches and kicks. 10-8 for JJ so I’ve got JJ ahead 38-37 after four.
Fifth round: JJ taking her apart now. JJ landing hard shots. Gadelha rushed in. She’s fighting for a takedown. JJ escaped and landed punches a a high kick. JJ continuing to jab. Front kick by JJ. JJ landing punches. Gadelha tried a takedown but JJ on top and threw a few punches. She told Gadelha to get up. JJ landing al kinds of punches as has Gadelha hurt now. JJ’s round, could be another 10-8, but I’ll go 10-9 and have JJ winning 48-46.
This season, both the women’s strawweight division and the men’s light heavyweight division will be competing. At the end of the season Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Claudia Gadelha fight on the TUF 23 Finale with Joanna Champion defending her strawweight title. Last week Claudia Gadelha’s team won again and took a 4-0 lead. She picked Eric Spicely vs. Elias Urbina IV for this week’s fight. Here we go!
*****
We open with Dana White talking about Gadelha’s lead and Abdel Medjedoub’s personal problem. On last week’s show, his wife threatened to divorce him if he didn’t quit UFC. After talking to Medjedoub, he agrees to allow another phone call. He tries to explain to her that if he leaves the show, he’ll never do anything in MMA again, but she’s not having it. She basically gives him an ultimatum – come home or we’re done.
White makes Medjedoub a very unique offer – leave the show for a few days but if he comes back before the next fight, Sunday he can stay on the show. White’s position is he doesn’t want Medjedoub to have to choose between his career and marriage. Medjedoub takes him up on the offer and backs his bag to fly to Montreal and try to straighten things out.
Finally we get to see some actual training with Elias Urbina IV. He admits he’s the baby of the show and talks about how growing up his family was intent on keeping him and his siblings in the sport of wrestling. If they had one dollar left that dollar went to wrestling shoes. Urbina says he doesn’t fear anything and that he feels relaxed in the cage whether it’s on the feet or on the ground.
Meanwhile, Team Jedrzejczyk is game-planning for what they’ll do if Medjedoub can’t return. While they believe Khalil Rountree would get a second shot, he’s having so much pain in his knees training Jedrzejczyk advises him to take time off and heal up.
Eric Spicely talks about his girlfriend dying in a camping accident when her canoe flipped under a bridge and she smashed her head into a pillar – she drowned while she was unconscious. He talks about how she never had any vices or issues – all she cared about was family, sports and school. He vows to continue to win in her memory.
Pranking has infected the house. The guys put baby powder in the blow dryers. The girls respond by pouring baby powder on them while they’re in the hot tub. Khalil pranks Myron by jumping out of the shower when he goes to use the bathroom. Etc.
Weigh-in. Urbina is 203.5 and Spicely is 205.5.
Medjedoub flies back and is welcomed by Team Gadelha with hugs and smiles all around. Whatever he did it has been resolved. He refuses to talk about it on the camera, only saying he admits 1000% all the fault was his, and it will remain between him and her.
* Eric Spicely (Team Gadelha) vs. Elias Urbina IV (Team Jedrzejczyk)
Spicely nearly catches Urbina in an armbar, and Urbina does something I’ve never seen before – he picks up his opponent and SWINGS HIM into the fence trying to shake him off. Spicely rolls for a leg and Urbina ends up dropping hard elbows on his ribs, but Spicely just won’t let go. He makes a transition to the back and get one hook in at the point Urbina nearly had top mount. Urbina keeps his chin tucked and concentrates on controlling Spicely’s arms. Spicely tries to soften Urbina up with rights to the head. The rest of R1 is Urbina defending.
Whatever happens now, this fight’s not going three rounds given the TV time left.
Urbina is attacking with kicks. Spicely shoots in for a single and misses. He shoots for the double and Urbina keeps his footing until 56 seconds. He nearly gets to his knees and pops up but Spicely drags him down to the ground and gets both hooks in. Chris Tognoni warns Spicely about shots to the back of the head. Urbina keeps defending and blocking as best he can but that’s all he can do. Dana is pissed off.
Spicely 20-18 X3. Team Gadelha is 5-0. Gadelha predicts a clean sweep and picks Amanda Cooper to fight Jamie Moyle next week. See you then!
This season both the women’s strawweight division and the men’s light heavyweight division will be competing. At the end of the season Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Claudia Gadelha fight on the TUF 23 Finale with Joanna Champion defending her strawweight title. Last week, Gadelha’s team won again and took a 3-0 lead. She picked Lanchana Green (Gadelha) vs. Helen Harper (Jedrzejczyk) for this week’s bout.
**********
Green opens up the show talking about her roots in England, how getting beat up as a girl inspired her to be a fighter, and how nobody’s beaten her up ever since. “We’ve been working on takedown defense. I’m not giving Helen a chance to even get close to me.” Dana White says she’s the single best striker on Claudia’s team.
Jedrzejczyk brings in Carla Esparza to talk to her fighters and hopefully give the team some inspiration. She takes Helen Harper and the rest of the fighters through catching kicks and throwing opponents to the mat. Jedrzejczyk says Harper is a “little tornado” and will show everybody how tough she is. Harper: “I’m kind of a rhino. I have the refuse to lose attitude. I want it more.”
Harper talks about how being in an abusive relationship made her want to learn self-defense even though she was in denial and still tried to stay with her tormentor. “It was just a bully, a nasty person, trying to get into my life and ruin it day by day.”
Abdel Medjedoub called the house and even though fighters are supposed to be isolated and not take outside calls, she tells the producers it was an emergency and gets them to take it. They try to tell her if they take the call it’s being recorded and she starts cussing them out. Then she threatens to divorce Medjedoub if he doesn’t leave the show and come back to Montreal immediately. It sounds like he’s going to quit.
* Lanchana Green (Team Gadelha) vs. Helen Harper (Team Jedrzejczyk)
Green is in the black trunks, Harper is in the red. You can hear Jedrzejczyk barking out to Harper not to wait and to be aggressive. The ref warns them to watch their fingers. Harper closes the distance but eats some hooks and knees in the process. Harper nearly has a takedown at 1:30 but Green keeps her balance. They break at 1:59. Harper charges at her and gets her on the fence again at 2:15. Green’s height and strength are making the takedowns difficult and she’s punishing Harper with big knees to the body. Harper tries so hard to get a takedown she actually lets Green on top pounding her in the face. She’s only had one strategy all round and it doesn’t work.
Green is winning the striking war for the first minute of R2, but Harper gets her on the fence again and digs hard for a single leg. She can’t get it. Green is teeing off with the right hook repeatedly. Harper finally body locks Green and drags her to the ground at 2:01. She’s quickly warned to stay busy on top. She slowly inches her way to a full mount but gets another warning with 90 seconds left. Once she clears her foot from between Green’s hips she really starts to hammer on Green’s face, who tries and fails repeatedly to buck her off. This one’s going to a third round.
As you’d expect Harper is looking for a takedown in the opening minute of R3 but can’t get it. She closes the distance again at 1:30 and manages to get Green’s back and throw her to the ground at 2:05 but can’t keep her down. Green bloodies up her face once she gets loose. Harper finally drags her to the ground at3:53 but that may be too little too late – and Green gets back up at 4:08 anyway. Harper goes for one last leg trip late to no avail. I’ve got Green two rounds to one.
Green gets a unanimous decision and Team Gadelha goes up 4-0. Jedrzejczyk is insulted that Gadelha didn’t shake her hand after the fight. Harper is emotionally broken but she should be happy she had her team’s best fight this season.
Next week’s fight chosen by coach Claudia Gadelha is Eric Spicely (Team Gadelha) vs. Elias Urbina IV (Team Jedrzejczyk). We will see you then!
