Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Live, blow-by-blow updates for Saturday’s UFC 240 main card from Edmonton, with the men’s featherweight title on the line in the main event.
Join us today (Saturday, July 27th) on Bloody Elbow for live results, discussion, round scoring, and play-by-play as UFC 240 takes place at the Rogers Arena in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
The main event will see reigning UFC men’s featherweight champion Max Holloway put his title on the line against former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. In the co-main event, former Strikeforce/Invicta/UFC women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg returns to action against undefeated Felicia Spencer.
The show kicks off on UFC Fight Pass at approximately 7 PM ET with two fights. The card then moves to ESPN 2 at 8 PM ET for four more bouts, then onto the main PPV card at 10 PM ET/7 PM PT. Remember that you can only order UFC PPVs now through ESPN+, so you have to sign up for that service beforehand if you haven’t already.
The full lineup and schedule follows.
UFC Featherweight Title – Max Holloway (c) vs. Frankie Edgar
Round 1 – Edgar opens up with a leg kick as Holloway stays on the outside. Two jabs are thrown by Holloway to measure the distance. Another leg kick is landed by Edgar before Holloway throws a left hook. Edgar lands a good right hand as he moves forward to he tries to gain Holloway’s respect on the feet. Edgar lands another kick which buckled Holloway’s knee before Holloway landed a nice uppercut. Both men are looking for reads and gathering information about how their opponent will react to inform their decision making later on in this bout. 10-9 Edgar but close.
Round 2 – Holloway opens up by throwing two left jabs and follows up moments later with an overhand right. Edgar lands a sneaky, short left which is answered by a right hand from Holloway after. Edgar shoots for a takedown but Holloway stuffed the takedown attempt. Holloway throws a one two and the right hand lands. Lovely, stiff left lands by Holloway who appears to be getting into a rhythm here. Holloway lands a nice right hand after Edgar looked to change levels. Holloway is starting to work some really nice angles with shots being thrown from everywhere. A spinning back kick lands for Holloway at the end of the round. 10-9 Holloway.
Round 3 – Really good takedown defense on display from Holloway as it becomes clear Edgar is going to really struggle getting this one to the ground. Edgar lands a nice right hand over the top that clips Holloway. Not a lot of clean strikes are landing on the feet as Holloway keeps distance really well. Holloway stuffs another takedown attempt as Edgar tries the single and hurts Edgar on the break. Edgar gets Holloway to the ground but he bounces back up to end the round. 10-9 Holloway.
Round 4 – Edgar lands a good right hand early but Holloway answers with a stiff jab. Holloway still doing a good job of maintaining distance as he fires off a series of more jabs. Edgar lands a left hook coming in and Holloway blocks a body kick. Edgar doing well but Holloway lands some more huge shots to change the course of this round. He is taking the punches well though and still moving forwards. Think Edgar needs a finish now though. 10-9 Holloway.
Round 5 – Holloway lands a good right hand and Edgar fires back with a leg kick. Edgar dives in for the single leg but Holloway defends and gets separation. Edgar looks for a right hand over Holloway’s guard but it doesn’t quite land. He attempts another one which does land but he hasn’t had the power or volume to worry Holloway. The jab of Holloway is beautiful as he keeps stinging Edgar’s face and then successfully sprawls on the mat. Edgar fires off a double left hand but Holloway replies with a right of his own. The fight was more competitive than many thought it may be but Edgar never put Holloway in compromising positions. 10-9 Holloway so he picks up every round other than the first based on this scorecard.
Max Holloway defeats Frankie Edgar by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 48-47) to retain the UFC featherweight title.
Women’s Featherweight – Cris Cyborg vs. Felicia Spencer
Round 1 – Spencer lands a few punches but Cyborg lands with a big body kick. Cyborg is cut with an elbow thrown by Spencer but doesn’t appear to have any respect for Spencer’s power as she continues to throw wildly. Cyborg landed some big punches on the break but Spencer has eaten them so far. Cyborg landed a jab followed by an overhand right but Spencer is still there. Spencer lands another elbow on Cyborg and establishes the clinch against the cage. Cyborg lands some good knees to the body to end the round. 10-9 Cyborg.
Round 2 – Cyborg opens this round with a leg kick before Spencer pushes her back onto the cage. Spencer works for the single leg but Cyborg resists the takedown attempt. Spencer drops down to the ground and Cyborg lands some big shots from above. Cyborg allows Spencer back to her feet and lands a left hook. Cyborg lands a leg kicks followed by a right hand that lands flush on Spencer. Two successful right hands are landed at the end of the round by Cyborg. 10-9 Cyborg.
Round 3 – More successful leg kicks by Cyborg before she lands more knees to the body as Spencer moves in. Good left jab lands for Cyborg followed by another Spencer takedown attempt but she still hasn’t got close to completing one. Cyborg hurts Spencer with a series of punches but the Canadian is still hanging tough. During the final minute, Cyborg stays offensive on the feet and beats Spencer to the punch every time. Cyborg pours forward with a number of punches to close this bout. Spencer gains a lot of credibility in defeat.
Cris Cyborg defeats Felicia Spencer by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
Welterweight – Geoff Neal vs. Niko Price
Round 1 – Price lands a right kick to the body. Neal just misses with a punch as he begins to feel out Price. A superman punch is landed by Price before Neal lands a takedown. Price gets back to his feet. Price opens up with a series of kicks but Neal lands with a straight left afterwards. He pushes Price against the cage in the over/under position before both men fall down as they land big strikes. Price recovers the quicker and stays on top of Neal for a few seconds. Neal lands a takedown of his own, takes Price’s back before moving to mount. The pace has finally picked up here! 10-9 Price.
Round 2 – Both men come out swinging with huge punches and then Price drops down for the guillotine. Neal moves to side control but Price regains guard. Neal lands some big punches from the top and Price desperately tries to control posture. The fight is waved off after Neal lands a series of left hands from the top that Price had no answer for. Good stoppage.
Geoff Neal defeats Niko Price by TKO at 2:39 of the second round.
Lightweight – Olivier Aubin-Mercier vs. Arman Tsarukyan
Round 1 – OAM opens with a big leg kick and Tsarukyan returns by going for a takedown. Tsarukyan catches a high kick and pushes OAM against the cage. OAM tries to push away on the head but Tsarukyan resists the attempt at separation. OAM steps in witha big knee as both men work for outside foot position. Tsarukyan moves in and gets one hook in against the cage as he tries to move to the back. He can’t advance position but lands some knees to OAM. 10-9 Tsarukyan.
Round 2 – Tsarukyan lands a three shot combination finishing with a kick to the body. OAM gets Tsarukyan against the cage with underhooks and attempts the trip but Tsarukyan get straight back to his feet and gains separation. OAM lands a left kick to the body. OAM lands a big knee but Tsarukyan recovered fairly quickly. Tsarukyan dropped down for a takedown but OAM pulls him up off of his legs. OAM lands another good body kick and Tsarukyan returns with an uppercut. Much better round for OAM as he continues to land on the feet. 10-9 OAM.
Round 3 – Tsarukyan shoots for an early takedown but OAM defends. OAM almost successfully trips Tsarukyan but Tsarukyan ends up on top. He is working in OAM’s guard and is peppering his opponents with short shots. OAM gets one butterfly hook but isn’t able to elevate Tsarukyan. OAM briefly works for a triangle but Tsarukyan shrugs it off. Tsarukyan lands some elbows and finishes the round on top. 10-9 Tsarukyan so he should get the win.
Arman Tsarukyan defeats Olivier Aubin-Mercier by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Middleweight – Marc-André Barriault vs. Krzysztof Jotko
Round 1 – Barriault comes in with a leg kick early before Jotko replies with a punch of his own. Jotko clinches up against the cage but Barriault turns out and reverses position. Jotko puts him back on the cage and lands knees to the inside of Barriault’s thigh. Barriault attempts a right hand but Jotko gets his guard up. The Pole lands with a good uppercut. Barriault lands a short elbow against the cage but can’t get meaningful separation before Jotko reverses position. Jotko lands a kick to the body. Barriault drops Jotko to the mat but he climbs straight back up. 10-9 Jotko.
Round 2 – Barriault advances out of the gate and crowds Jotko against the cage. Jotko partially lands a left hand while moving around the cage to maintain distance. Jotko changes level to go for the takedown but Barriault defends it easily. Not a lot of action in this round so far. Jotko lands a good undercut through Barriault’s guard. Barriault attempts to clinch after Jotko rushed in but wasn’t successful in his attempt. Both jockey for position against the cage. Barriault got a very late takedown but Jotko ended on top. Tough one to score with neither fighter exerting any kind of dominance. 10-9 Jotko.
Round 3 – Jotko goes for an early takedown but the result is a stalemate against the cage. Both men separate before Barriault advances attempting to land strikes. Jotko attempt some knees up the middle but nothing lands clean. Barriault lands a leg kick but it isn’t enough to stifle the movement of Jotko. Barriault lands an elbow inside the clinch which is the most significant strike of the round so far. Jotko lands an inside leg kick before taking Barriault down. Not very watchable that one. 10-9 Jotko to give a 30-27 score overall but neither man did much clean work.
Krzysztof Jotko defeats Marc-André Barriault by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29).