At UFC 157, Court McGee made an auspicious debut in the welterweight division, landing a massive volume of strikes to hurt and ultimately overwhelm Josh Neer in a unanimous decision victory.
McGee (14-3) began with crisp one-two combinations and opened up from there on Neer (33-13-1) as the fight wore on. Neer rallied in the second round and displayed serious toughness, but McGee buckled back down in the third to take the win.
What we’ll remember about this fight
McGee landed a liver kick toward the end of the first round that badly hurt Neer. Neer gritted his teeth and gutted it out, but that shot took the starch right out of him.
What we learned about McGee
He just might be viable at 170 pounds. McGee looked no worse for wear after his first cut to welterweight, bouncing over the mat and landing powerful combinations.
However, his failure to attack the midsection after the liver shot, then tiring and eating more jabs than necessary over the course of the fight, showed he lacks a bit in the killer instinct department.
What we learned about Neer
This was the third straight time Neer didn’t put up much of a fight in the Octagon. He’s a solid veteran of the sport, but not every man with 44 pro fights is automatically Jeremy Horn. Neer fought well in spots, but for the most part, he seemed to be waiting for some kind of opening that never came.
What’s next for McGee
I’d be interested to watch a fight with Kenny Robertson, who won earlier Saturday night with an unorthodox but beautiful kneebar.
What’s next for Neer
With both men on two-fight losing streaks coming in, this was a classic loser-leaves-town match, especially in the current UFC climate, in which fighters are cut based on things like hairstyles.
Unfortunately, Neer was on the bad end of the equation Saturday night and will almost certainly receive his UFC walking papers.
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