UFC 183 was headlined by a matchup that could best be described as unusual.
The rest of the card followed suit.
Sure, some fights went to plan. Al Iaquinta‘s boxing was expected to best Joe Lauzon on the feet. The 27-year-old Iaquinta chalked up his third consecutive TKO victory.
But there was plenty of strange to go around in the MGM Grand. For starters, Thiago Alves turned back the clock and scored a thrilling TKO victory over the younger Jordan Mein. Tyron Woodley and Kelvin Gastelum—one of the most exciting fights on paper—turned out to be a dud.
Here’s a look at the complete results and biggest winners from an interesting night in Las Vegas.
UFC 183 Main Card
- Anderson Silva def. Nick Diaz, unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45)
- Tyron Woodley def. Kelvin Gastelum, split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
- Al Iaquinta def. Joe Lauzon, TKO (Round 2, 3:34)
- Thales Leites def. Tim Boetsch, submission (Round 2, 3:45)
- Thiago Alves def. Jordan Mein, TKO (Round 2, 0:39)
Prelims on Fox Sports 1
- Miesha Tate def. Sara McMann, majority decision (29-28, 29-27, 28-28)
- Derek Brunson def. Ed Herman, TKO (Round 1, 0:36)
- John Lineker def. Ian McCall, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Rafael Natal def. Tom Watson, unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Fight Pass Prelims
- Diego Brandao vs. Jimy Hettes—CANCELLED
- Ildemar Alcantara def. Richardson Moreira, split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Thiago Santos def. Andy Enz, TKO (Round 1, 1:56)
Biggest Winners
Miesha Tate Remains Relevant in Women’s Bantamweight Division
Miesha Tate needed an impressive performance at UFC 183. She entered the bout on a two-fight win streak since losing to Ronda Rousey but really didn’t look all that impressive in her victories.
You’d be hard-pressed to find anyone that wasn’t impressed with her comeback win against Sara McMann. Going against a former Olympic wrestler, Tate found herself in some bad positions in the first round. Not only did McMann have some strong top control, but she knocked Tate down in the stand-up.
However, there’s a reason Tate is a former champion. She has heart, and it was on full display in this one. “Cupcake” mounted a comeback in the second round and even earned a 10-8 score in the eye of two judges, which was noted by Damon Martin of Fox Sports:
With the victory, Tate now has three wins in a row and once again stands as one of a few fighters who look intriguing for a title shot. Two losses to the champion hurt her chances of getting another title shot, but she is going to be hard to ignore with one more win over a quality opponent.
Thiago Alves Tells Welterweight Division He’s Back
Some UFC fighters do their talking with their mouths. Some do it with their fists (and feet). At UFC 183, veteran Thiago Alves did the latter.
Considering his advancing age (31 years old) and extensive layoffs, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that Alves is on the roster or that he once put together a seven-fight win streak and fought Georges St-Pierre for the title at UFC 100.
Going against a 25-year-old fighter with a 5-1 record in his last six fights, it felt like Alves was meant to be a resume booster for Mein. The first round even lived up to that expectation. “Young Gun” opened up a 37-15 striking differential in the opening frame.
However, Alves showed he’s still capable of turning back the clock. A devastating body kick turned things around in the second stanza as Alves buckled Mein and followed up with punches to earn the nod.
To illustrate just how long it’s been since Alves fought at that level, it was his first TKO since 2008, per Mike Bohn of MMAjunkie:
Alves wasn’t shy about proclaiming his comeback either. Per MMAFighting.com, he’s ready for bigger and better things now that he’s showcased the power that made him a terror at his best:
It might be premature to say that “Pitbull” is a contender once again, but rumors of him being a gatekeeper may have been greatly exaggerated.
Al Iaquinta Makes Case for Top 15 Ranking
Iaquinta vs. Lauzon had a similar feel to Alves vs. Mein but a completely different result. Iaquinta played the role of younger rising fighter, while Lauzon played the part of familiar name/gatekeeper. But rather than Lauzon proving he isn’t quite done yet, Raging Al took advantage of the resume-building opportunity.
Iaquinta proved he’s ready for bigger and better opponents.
After a surprising round that saw Lauzon and Iaquinta each land 21 significant strikes, the 27-year-old took over in the second.
The Ultimate Fighter 15 runner-up displayed the same power that earned him TKO victories over Rodrigo Damm and Ross Pearson his last two times out. At this point, it’s tough to deny that Iaquinta should be considered for the next batch of UFC rankings at 155 pounds.
All statistics via FightMetric unless otherwise noted.
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