Author: Matt Erickson

UFC Live Blog: Court McGee vs. Dongi Yang Updates

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for Court McGee vs. Dongi Yang, a middleweight bout on tonight’s UFC on Spike telecast from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

McGee (13-1, 2-0 UFC), the winner of Season 11 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” has not competed since a submission win over Ryan Jensen at UFC 121 last October. It was his second straight submission win after tapping out Kris McCray to win TUF 11.

Yang (10-1, 1-1 UFC) is coming off a TKO victory over Rob Kimmons at UFC on Versus 3 in March. Prior to that, he dropped a split decision to Chris Carmozzi at UFC 121 in his UFC debut, which also was the South Korean’s first fight in the United States.

The live blog is below.

Round 1: McGee opens with a leg kick followed by traded jab fakes. Not much happening for 90 seconds, but Yang lands a kick and a punch, then ducks out of the way of McGee’s combo until McGee lands a right uppercut. Inside leg kick from Yang lands, and a right cross from McGee just misses. Another inside leg kick from Yang hits, then another, and he just dodges a high kick from McGee. The crowd starts chanting for more action. A left from McGee lands, and it looks like Yang slips and hits the mat for a second. Another couple good kicks from Yang. He’s landing them reguarly, but McGee is coming forward a little more. It’s a close round. We’ll give it to Yang 10-9 based on the leg kicks, but it could go either way.

Round 2: Nice combo from McGee gets things started. Yang ducks under a punch, but McGee rushes in looking for a takedown. He can’t get it and we go back to the center 90 seconds into the round. A long stall of not much action beyond traded jabs and some OK inside leg kicks, but with 90 seconds left McGee lands a nice 1-2. The crowd is booing and wants more than it’s getting from this fight. High kick from McGee finds the mark, but not enough to drop Yang. But a couple short uppercuts hit home and wobble Yang briefly. It’s a 10-9 second round for McGee on our card.

Round 3: Good jab from Yang lands. McGee looks briefly for a takedown, but it’s not there, and he backs out of Yang’s counter. We trade jabs and then out of nowhere, Yang lands a left that drops McGee, and as McGee gets back up Yang lands a knee moving in. We move into rock ’em sock ’em robots mode all of a sudden with 2:40 left, and the crowd appreciates it greatly. Both fighters are cut up on the face. They clinch and look for a takedown, but no dice. Yang now is bleeding a little more, and he spits some blood out onto the canvas. McGee is coming forward and just misses a roundhouse kick. He shoots for a takedown, but Yang defends. They clinch, and McGee gets a nice takedown, then looks to transition to mount but Yang gets up. McGee goes for a tired shot and somehow gets a short takedown. He lands some good elbows at the 10-second mark, then looks to lock in a choke. Yang survives the round, but it’s an obvious 10-9 for McGee. We’ve got the fight for him 29-28.

Result: Court McGee def. Dongi Yang, unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-28)

 

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for Court McGee vs. Dongi Yang, a middleweight bout on tonight’s UFC on Spike telecast from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

McGee (13-1, 2-0 UFC), the winner of Season 11 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” has not competed since a submission win over Ryan Jensen at UFC 121 last October. It was his second straight submission win after tapping out Kris McCray to win TUF 11.

Yang (10-1, 1-1 UFC) is coming off a TKO victory over Rob Kimmons at UFC on Versus 3 in March. Prior to that, he dropped a split decision to Chris Carmozzi at UFC 121 in his UFC debut, which also was the South Korean’s first fight in the United States.

The live blog is below.

Round 1: McGee opens with a leg kick followed by traded jab fakes. Not much happening for 90 seconds, but Yang lands a kick and a punch, then ducks out of the way of McGee’s combo until McGee lands a right uppercut. Inside leg kick from Yang lands, and a right cross from McGee just misses. Another inside leg kick from Yang hits, then another, and he just dodges a high kick from McGee. The crowd starts chanting for more action. A left from McGee lands, and it looks like Yang slips and hits the mat for a second. Another couple good kicks from Yang. He’s landing them reguarly, but McGee is coming forward a little more. It’s a close round. We’ll give it to Yang 10-9 based on the leg kicks, but it could go either way.

Round 2: Nice combo from McGee gets things started. Yang ducks under a punch, but McGee rushes in looking for a takedown. He can’t get it and we go back to the center 90 seconds into the round. A long stall of not much action beyond traded jabs and some OK inside leg kicks, but with 90 seconds left McGee lands a nice 1-2. The crowd is booing and wants more than it’s getting from this fight. High kick from McGee finds the mark, but not enough to drop Yang. But a couple short uppercuts hit home and wobble Yang briefly. It’s a 10-9 second round for McGee on our card.

Round 3: Good jab from Yang lands. McGee looks briefly for a takedown, but it’s not there, and he backs out of Yang’s counter. We trade jabs and then out of nowhere, Yang lands a left that drops McGee, and as McGee gets back up Yang lands a knee moving in. We move into rock ’em sock ’em robots mode all of a sudden with 2:40 left, and the crowd appreciates it greatly. Both fighters are cut up on the face. They clinch and look for a takedown, but no dice. Yang now is bleeding a little more, and he spits some blood out onto the canvas. McGee is coming forward and just misses a roundhouse kick. He shoots for a takedown, but Yang defends. They clinch, and McGee gets a nice takedown, then looks to transition to mount but Yang gets up. McGee goes for a tired shot and somehow gets a short takedown. He lands some good elbows at the 10-second mark, then looks to lock in a choke. Yang survives the round, but it’s an obvious 10-9 for McGee. We’ve got the fight for him 29-28.

Result: Court McGee def. Dongi Yang, unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-28)

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UFC Live Blog: Jonathan Brookins vs. Erik Koch Updates

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for Jonathan Brookins vs. Erik Koch, a featherweight bout on tonight’s UFC on Spike telecast from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

Brookins (12-3, 1-0 UFC) has not fought since winning Season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter” with a unanimous decision win over Michael Johnson last December. Brookins was scheduled to return against Jeremy Stephens in June, but had to pull out of the fight with an injury.

Koch (12-1, 1-0) has won three straight, all in the first round. His last two fights have been Knockout of the Night winners – one with a head kick in his final WEC fight against Francisco Rivera last November and one against Rafael Assuncao in his UFC debut in March.

The live blog is below.

Round 1: Cautious start for both fighters, and after 30 seconds Brookins moves in looking for a single-leg and has Koch against the fence. They spend a full minute there, with not much activity. They’re trading knees here and there, though. Brookins really wants this takedown. He appears strong enough to keep Koch on the fence, but not strong enough to get it down. The crowd grows slightly restless halfway through the round. Then Koch finally gets out and hits a nice left. Then a left outside leg kick. Brookins misses and uppercut. Koch dodges out of a couple jabs, almost Anderson Silva-sytle, then lands another left. Brookins again wants the takedown, but Koch defends along the cage. Koch reverses, then Brookins reverse. Brookins lands a big throw takedown, but it’s after the horn. Not a lot of action, but Koch seemed to get the better of things and we’ll give him a 10-9 first round.

Round 2: Snapping outside left leg kick from Koch. Then he goes back to it. Brookins shoots for a single, Koch defends again and lands a right as they scurry to the fence. Decent elbow from Brookins just before the break, but back in the middle Koch lands a nice right kick to the head that gets Brookins’ attention. Brookins continues to work to get the fight to the ground, and Koch continues to defend it mostly well. A little scramble sees the fight go to the ground briefly, but it’s right back up and into teh clinch along the cage. After a minute, they break and go back to the middle. Another nice leg kick from Koch. Then he tags Brookins with a short combo before Brookins again works for a takedown. This time, he finally makes it work and Koch works out of guard. As he pops up, Brookins lands a nice right. But Koch still gets back to his feet. It’s a round very similar to the first – not a ton happening, but enough from Koch that we’ll give it to him 10-9 again.

Round 3: Koch peppers Brookins with jabs to open the round. He eats a knee, but gets back to the middle and looks to stay standing. Brookins shoots for another single, but Koch avoids it. Good head movement from Koch in his standup game. Brookins again shoots for a single, but it’s not there and it’s more clinch work on the fence. After the separate around the 2 minute mark, Koch lands a nice kick, then continues to work his jab. A Superman punch from Brookins doesn’t find a home. But they clinch up and Brookins lands his best takedown of the fight. They pop up immediately, though, then clinch again. A nice exchange at the 30-second mark gives the fans some hope, but there’s not much to it. Little tougher to score this round, but we’ll give it to Koch 10-9 and the fight to him 30-27.

Result: Erik Koch def. Jonathan Brookins, unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)

 

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for Jonathan Brookins vs. Erik Koch, a featherweight bout on tonight’s UFC on Spike telecast from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

Brookins (12-3, 1-0 UFC) has not fought since winning Season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter” with a unanimous decision win over Michael Johnson last December. Brookins was scheduled to return against Jeremy Stephens in June, but had to pull out of the fight with an injury.

Koch (12-1, 1-0) has won three straight, all in the first round. His last two fights have been Knockout of the Night winners – one with a head kick in his final WEC fight against Francisco Rivera last November and one against Rafael Assuncao in his UFC debut in March.

The live blog is below.

Round 1: Cautious start for both fighters, and after 30 seconds Brookins moves in looking for a single-leg and has Koch against the fence. They spend a full minute there, with not much activity. They’re trading knees here and there, though. Brookins really wants this takedown. He appears strong enough to keep Koch on the fence, but not strong enough to get it down. The crowd grows slightly restless halfway through the round. Then Koch finally gets out and hits a nice left. Then a left outside leg kick. Brookins misses and uppercut. Koch dodges out of a couple jabs, almost Anderson Silva-sytle, then lands another left. Brookins again wants the takedown, but Koch defends along the cage. Koch reverses, then Brookins reverse. Brookins lands a big throw takedown, but it’s after the horn. Not a lot of action, but Koch seemed to get the better of things and we’ll give him a 10-9 first round.

Round 2: Snapping outside left leg kick from Koch. Then he goes back to it. Brookins shoots for a single, Koch defends again and lands a right as they scurry to the fence. Decent elbow from Brookins just before the break, but back in the middle Koch lands a nice right kick to the head that gets Brookins’ attention. Brookins continues to work to get the fight to the ground, and Koch continues to defend it mostly well. A little scramble sees the fight go to the ground briefly, but it’s right back up and into teh clinch along the cage. After a minute, they break and go back to the middle. Another nice leg kick from Koch. Then he tags Brookins with a short combo before Brookins again works for a takedown. This time, he finally makes it work and Koch works out of guard. As he pops up, Brookins lands a nice right. But Koch still gets back to his feet. It’s a round very similar to the first – not a ton happening, but enough from Koch that we’ll give it to him 10-9 again.

Round 3: Koch peppers Brookins with jabs to open the round. He eats a knee, but gets back to the middle and looks to stay standing. Brookins shoots for another single, but Koch avoids it. Good head movement from Koch in his standup game. Brookins again shoots for a single, but it’s not there and it’s more clinch work on the fence. After the separate around the 2 minute mark, Koch lands a nice kick, then continues to work his jab. A Superman punch from Brookins doesn’t find a home. But they clinch up and Brookins lands his best takedown of the fight. They pop up immediately, though, then clinch again. A nice exchange at the 30-second mark gives the fans some hope, but there’s not much to it. Little tougher to score this round, but we’ll give it to Koch 10-9 and the fight to him 30-27.

Result: Erik Koch def. Jonathan Brookins, unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)

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UFC Live Blog: Alan Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald Updates

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for Alan Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald, a middleweight bout ontonight’s UFC on Spike telecast from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

Belcher (16-6, 7-4 UFC), from nearby Biloxi, Miss., returns for the first time in 16 months following successful surgeries to repair a detached retina. Despite the lengthy layoff, Belcher’s last four fights have resulted in fight night bonus awards – two Fight of the Night wins and two Submission of the Night checks. His only loss in his last five fights was a controversial split decision against Yoshihiro Aikyama at UFC 100.

MacDonald (25-14, 6-6 UFC) knows what it’s like to return after a long layoff. The Canadian came back following a severe broken leg suffered at UFC 113 to submit Ryan Jensen in the first round at UFC 129 in April. MacDonald’s first two UFC wins, in 2006, were submissions of Ed Herman and Chris Leben.

The live blog is below.

Round 1: This has the potential to be a fun little scrap. Belcher’s been out for 16 months, but is fighting in front of his home bayou fans. MacDonald got some momentum after a submission win in April coming off a near-year layoff. They touch gloves and get rolling. MacDonald misses a couple strikes to start. Belcher ties him up with a quick Thai clinch, but he can’t land anything from it. Only 30 seconds in, the crowd is chanting “Alan!” MacDonald reverses and is looking for a takedown, but winds up on his back with Belcher looking for some ground and pound. Belcher postures up and lands a couple good shots, then starts bringing them with a little more intensity. The crowd goes crazy hoping for a finish, but MacDonald covers up and stays mostly safe. Belcher moves into side control, then gets up and lands some good shots from his feet. MacDonald looks to be in a little trouble and is mostly just trying to survive. And soon after, he’s taken a few too many. Dan Miragliotta jumps in to stop it, and Belcher has a nice win in his return.

Result: Alan Belcher def. Jason MacDonald, submission (verbal tapout, strikes), 3:48 Round 1

 

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for Alan Belcher vs. Jason MacDonald, a middleweight bout ontonight’s UFC on Spike telecast from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

Belcher (16-6, 7-4 UFC), from nearby Biloxi, Miss., returns for the first time in 16 months following successful surgeries to repair a detached retina. Despite the lengthy layoff, Belcher’s last four fights have resulted in fight night bonus awards – two Fight of the Night wins and two Submission of the Night checks. His only loss in his last five fights was a controversial split decision against Yoshihiro Aikyama at UFC 100.

MacDonald (25-14, 6-6 UFC) knows what it’s like to return after a long layoff. The Canadian came back following a severe broken leg suffered at UFC 113 to submit Ryan Jensen in the first round at UFC 129 in April. MacDonald’s first two UFC wins, in 2006, were submissions of Ed Herman and Chris Leben.

The live blog is below.

Round 1: This has the potential to be a fun little scrap. Belcher’s been out for 16 months, but is fighting in front of his home bayou fans. MacDonald got some momentum after a submission win in April coming off a near-year layoff. They touch gloves and get rolling. MacDonald misses a couple strikes to start. Belcher ties him up with a quick Thai clinch, but he can’t land anything from it. Only 30 seconds in, the crowd is chanting “Alan!” MacDonald reverses and is looking for a takedown, but winds up on his back with Belcher looking for some ground and pound. Belcher postures up and lands a couple good shots, then starts bringing them with a little more intensity. The crowd goes crazy hoping for a finish, but MacDonald covers up and stays mostly safe. Belcher moves into side control, then gets up and lands some good shots from his feet. MacDonald looks to be in a little trouble and is mostly just trying to survive. And soon after, he’s taken a few too many. Dan Miragliotta jumps in to stop it, and Belcher has a nice win in his return.

Result: Alan Belcher def. Jason MacDonald, submission (verbal tapout, strikes), 3:48 Round 1

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UFC Fight Night 25 Undercard Live Blog: McKenzie-Rocha, Dunham-Bailey, More

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for all the preliminary bouts on tonight’s UFC fights from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

The prelims, which will stream live on the UFC’s Facebook page, include a pair of lightweight bouts between TUF 12 competitor Cody McKenzie and Vagner Rocha and TUF 12 fighter Shamar Bailey and Evan Dunham.

The live blog is below.

Justin Edwards vs. Jorge Lopez

Round 1: Wanderlei Silva protege Lopez is making his UFC debut and is a pretty sizable favorite in this one. He’s got “The Axe Murderer” in his corner, naturally. Bruce Buffer runs the intros, and we’re ready to roll with Kevin Mulhall the third man in the Octagon. They trade in tight early, and Edwards looks for a throw, but settles for a clinch against the cage. But Lopez lifts him for a nice slam – right into a guillotine. Edwards cranks on it, but Lopez rolls out and eventually pops back to his feet. He throws a nice right kick that Edwards counters with some more clinch work. In tight, Edwards lands a couple nice hooks, then a soft slam. But again Lopez pops up. And again Edwards softly takes him down. He looks for a guillotine again, but settles for keeping position on the mat, trying to work ground and pound. The fight moves back to the feet halfway through the round. Jabs are traded, with each fighter landing a nice one in close. A nice knee from Lopez briefly has Edwards on the canvas with Lopez looking for some quick short strikes. But back on the feet, Edwards ties things up again with his back on the fence. Another nice knee from Lopez lands, but Edwards chases him down with a flurry and they trade position along the fence. Lopez landed some decent shots in the round, but MMA Fighting will score the round 10-9 for Edwards.

Round 2: Edwards opens with a left jab, then eats a high right kick. But he comes back with a spinning back kick right to Lopez’s gut. Back along the fence, Edwards again lands a little takedown and has good position in side control. He works to sink in a guillotine and gets it. It looks tight, but Lopez barely pops out and briefly has top position until they go back to their feet. After several Edwards near-chokes so far, Lopez might believe he needs to keep this standing. Edwards again works for a little takedown and works to take Lopez’s back. Lopez looks absolutely exhausted as Edwards starts laying on the ground and pound. It’s getting close as Mulhall looks in, but Lopez gives one burst of energy and reverses to pop out. After a short stall in the clinch, Mulhall splits them up with 30 seconds left in the round. Edwards lands a couple nice kicks as we get to the end. We’ll give another 10-9 round to Edwards heading to the last.

Round 3: They touch gloves for the last. Lopez has probably been told he’ll need to finish, and he lands a nice right hand early. Lopez ties Edwards up, and Edwards throws knees. Then Lopez lifts him for a nice slam. Edwards is looking for an armbar from his side. But Lopez finally gets out of it, gets mount, then takes Edwards’ back and starts looking for ground and pound. Edwards is squirming to try and get out, and Lopez gives up the back. He keeps dominant position on the ground, moving from side control to north-south briefly, then back to side control. He lands some short right elbows as Edwards looks for a way out. And finally, Edwards gets back to his feet. With 1:20 left, Lopez again gets a short takedown, but Edwards falls into guard. Edwards gets an armbar with 20 seconds left, but he can’t hold it. We’ll give the third to Lopez, 10-9, but the fight should go to Edwards 29-28 in a fairly major upset.

Result: Justin Edwards def. Jorge Lopez, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Mike Lullo vs. Robert Peralta

Round 1: High kick from Lullo to open. Then he eats one to the outside. They trade a few kicks, then Peralta ties up and lands some knees. He uses them to get a soft taekdown before letting Lullo back up. They trade jabs. Then several kicks each. After his UFC debut loss against Edson Barboza last November, you’d think Lullo would be pretty fed up with eating kicks by now. But he’s throwing plenty himself. Peralta checks a kick, then comes with a nice combo. Then again. Lullo’s left thigh is blistering red from kicks already. Nice right hand from Peralta lands, and he comes back with two more huge kicks to Lullo’s lead leg. Peralta then again lands some big kicks that take Lullo off his feet – it’s literally like watching a replay of the Lullo-Barboza fight. It’s a 10-9 round for Peralta.

Round 2: More kicks from Peralta. And Lullo has a large hematoma on the left side of his head. Peralta goes right after it. More kicks from Peralta force Lullo to shoot, and he ties things up along the fence. Things stall out for a minute as Lullo keeps Peralta tied up – at least he’s not eating kicks. They break at 1:30 and trade leg kicks. Again Lullo shoots, but it’s not there. A nice kick from Lullo closes the round. It’s definitely a closer round, but we’re going to give it to Peralta again, 10-9.

Round 3:

Mike Stumpf vs. T.J. Waldburger

Round 1:

Seth Baczynski vs. Clay Harvison

Round 1:

Ken Stone vs. Donny Walker

Round 1:

Lance Benoist vs. Matt Riddle

Round 1:

Shamar Bailey vs. Evan Dunham

Round 1:

Cody McKenzie vs. Vagner Rocha

Round 1:

 

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NEW ORLEANS – This is the UFC Fight Night 25 live blog for all the preliminary bouts on tonight’s UFC fights from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

The prelims, which will stream live on the UFC’s Facebook page, include a pair of lightweight bouts between TUF 12 competitor Cody McKenzie and Vagner Rocha and TUF 12 fighter Shamar Bailey and Evan Dunham.

The live blog is below.

Justin Edwards vs. Jorge Lopez

Round 1: Wanderlei Silva protege Lopez is making his UFC debut and is a pretty sizable favorite in this one. He’s got “The Axe Murderer” in his corner, naturally. Bruce Buffer runs the intros, and we’re ready to roll with Kevin Mulhall the third man in the Octagon. They trade in tight early, and Edwards looks for a throw, but settles for a clinch against the cage. But Lopez lifts him for a nice slam – right into a guillotine. Edwards cranks on it, but Lopez rolls out and eventually pops back to his feet. He throws a nice right kick that Edwards counters with some more clinch work. In tight, Edwards lands a couple nice hooks, then a soft slam. But again Lopez pops up. And again Edwards softly takes him down. He looks for a guillotine again, but settles for keeping position on the mat, trying to work ground and pound. The fight moves back to the feet halfway through the round. Jabs are traded, with each fighter landing a nice one in close. A nice knee from Lopez briefly has Edwards on the canvas with Lopez looking for some quick short strikes. But back on the feet, Edwards ties things up again with his back on the fence. Another nice knee from Lopez lands, but Edwards chases him down with a flurry and they trade position along the fence. Lopez landed some decent shots in the round, but MMA Fighting will score the round 10-9 for Edwards.

Round 2: Edwards opens with a left jab, then eats a high right kick. But he comes back with a spinning back kick right to Lopez’s gut. Back along the fence, Edwards again lands a little takedown and has good position in side control. He works to sink in a guillotine and gets it. It looks tight, but Lopez barely pops out and briefly has top position until they go back to their feet. After several Edwards near-chokes so far, Lopez might believe he needs to keep this standing. Edwards again works for a little takedown and works to take Lopez’s back. Lopez looks absolutely exhausted as Edwards starts laying on the ground and pound. It’s getting close as Mulhall looks in, but Lopez gives one burst of energy and reverses to pop out. After a short stall in the clinch, Mulhall splits them up with 30 seconds left in the round. Edwards lands a couple nice kicks as we get to the end. We’ll give another 10-9 round to Edwards heading to the last.

Round 3: They touch gloves for the last. Lopez has probably been told he’ll need to finish, and he lands a nice right hand early. Lopez ties Edwards up, and Edwards throws knees. Then Lopez lifts him for a nice slam. Edwards is looking for an armbar from his side. But Lopez finally gets out of it, gets mount, then takes Edwards’ back and starts looking for ground and pound. Edwards is squirming to try and get out, and Lopez gives up the back. He keeps dominant position on the ground, moving from side control to north-south briefly, then back to side control. He lands some short right elbows as Edwards looks for a way out. And finally, Edwards gets back to his feet. With 1:20 left, Lopez again gets a short takedown, but Edwards falls into guard. Edwards gets an armbar with 20 seconds left, but he can’t hold it. We’ll give the third to Lopez, 10-9, but the fight should go to Edwards 29-28 in a fairly major upset.

Result: Justin Edwards def. Jorge Lopez, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Mike Lullo vs. Robert Peralta

Round 1: High kick from Lullo to open. Then he eats one to the outside. They trade a few kicks, then Peralta ties up and lands some knees. He uses them to get a soft taekdown before letting Lullo back up. They trade jabs. Then several kicks each. After his UFC debut loss against Edson Barboza last November, you’d think Lullo would be pretty fed up with eating kicks by now. But he’s throwing plenty himself. Peralta checks a kick, then comes with a nice combo. Then again. Lullo’s left thigh is blistering red from kicks already. Nice right hand from Peralta lands, and he comes back with two more huge kicks to Lullo’s lead leg. Peralta then again lands some big kicks that take Lullo off his feet – it’s literally like watching a replay of the Lullo-Barboza fight. It’s a 10-9 round for Peralta.

Round 2: More kicks from Peralta. And Lullo has a large hematoma on the left side of his head. Peralta goes right after it. More kicks from Peralta force Lullo to shoot, and he ties things up along the fence. Things stall out for a minute as Lullo keeps Peralta tied up – at least he’s not eating kicks. They break at 1:30 and trade leg kicks. Again Lullo shoots, but it’s not there. A nice kick from Lullo closes the round. It’s definitely a closer round, but we’re going to give it to Peralta again, 10-9.

Round 3:

Mike Stumpf vs. T.J. Waldburger

Round 1:

Seth Baczynski vs. Clay Harvison

Round 1:

Ken Stone vs. Donny Walker

Round 1:

Lance Benoist vs. Matt Riddle

Round 1:

Shamar Bailey vs. Evan Dunham

Round 1:

Cody McKenzie vs. Vagner Rocha

Round 1:

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UFC Fight Night 25 Weigh-In Results: Jake Shields, Jake Ellenberger on Weight

Filed under: UFC, NewsNEW ORLEANS – For a bunch of fighters cutting weight all week, there might not be a better city in the country to put a few pounds back on than New Orleans.

All 24 fighters for UFC Fight Night 25 made weight Friday at Spanish Pl…

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NEW ORLEANS – For a bunch of fighters cutting weight all week, there might not be a better city in the country to put a few pounds back on than New Orleans.

All 24 fighters for UFC Fight Night 25 made weight Friday at Spanish Plaza in New Orleans on the banks of the Mississippi River. UFC Fight Night 25 takes place Saturday at the Ernest R. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, the UFC’s first trip to “The Big Easy” since UFC 29.

Main event fighters Jake Shields (171) and Jake Ellenberger (170) each made weight for their welterweight bout. Shields fights for the first time since the death of his father and manager, Jack Shields, last month. Shields is coming off a five-round decision loss to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. Ellenberger seeks his fifth straight win.

Also on the main card, co-main event fighters Court McGee and Dong-Yi Yang weighed in at 184.5 and 186 pounds, respectively, for their middleweight bout. McGee returns for the first time since a UFC 121 submission win over Ryan Jensen, moving him to 2-0 on the UFC after winning Season 11 of “The Ultimate Fighter.” Hand and knee injuries have kept him on the shelf since then.

Another TUF winner, TUF 12 champ Jonathan Brookins, weighed in at 145.5 for his fight against Erik Koch, who is looking for his third straight fight night bonus award and fourth straight win. Koch was 146.

And Alan Belcher returns for the first time in 16 months following a pair of surgeries for a detached retina to fight Jason MacDonald in a middleweight bout to open the televised card on Spike TV. MacDonald returned in April after a nearly yearlong layoff for a broken leg and submitted Jensen at UFC 129. Belcher was 186 after stripping down; MacDonald was 185.

On the preliminary card, “The Ultimate Fighter” vets Shamar Bailey (156) and Cody McKenzie (155.5) were each on weight for their fights against Evan Dunham (156) and Vagner Rocha (155.5), respectively. The eight-fight preliminary card streams live on the UFC’s Facebook page.

The complete weigh-in results are below:

Main Card
Jake Shields (171) vs. Jake Ellenberger (170)
Court McGee (184.5) vs. Dongi Yang (186)
Jonathan Brookins (145.5) vs. Erik Koch (146)
Alan Belcher (186) vs. Jason MacDonald (185)

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Erik Koch Believes Another Quick Win Should Earn Him a UFC Title Shot

Filed under: UFC, NewsNEW ORLEANS – “Good habits formed at youth make all the difference.”

That quote is from Aristotle, not Erik Koch. But even if the 22-year-old featherweight has never heard it before, he seems to be putting that advice to good us…

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NEW ORLEANS – “Good habits formed at youth make all the difference.”

That quote is from Aristotle, not Erik Koch. But even if the 22-year-old featherweight has never heard it before, he seems to be putting that advice to good use.

Koch has made a good habit of first-round wins – three straight – and Knockout of the Night bonuses – two in a row – and he’s of the belief that one more of each on Saturday will make all the difference that could get him a title shot.

Koch, one of the rising stars from Duke Roufus’ Roufusport gym in Milwaukee, fights season 12 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” Jonathan Brookins on Saturday at UFC Fight Night 25 in New Orleans. And teeming with confidence, Koch said he’s ready to have his name officially on the map.

“I think if I can do what I want and get another Knockout of the Night or (win) fast in the first round, I think I deserve (a title shot) right away,” Koch said Thursday after a workout at the New Orleans Athletic Club.

Koch (12-1, 1-0 UFC) last lost in March 2010, a unanimous decision to current featherweight contender Chad Mendes. Since then, he’s been on a tear, closing out his WEC career with a pair of wins before making a big statement with a first-round knockout of Rafael Assuncao in his UFC debut at UFC 128 in March.

Featherweight champ Jose Aldo has, of course, been on the division’s biggest streak. He defends his belt next month against Kenny Florian, who will fight for just the second time in the weight class. But aside from Mendes, who is unbeaten at 11-0, Koch doesn’t see why his name isn’t right there at the top of the list.

“That would be four in a row in the first round – it’s a hell of a streak,” Koch said. “I don’t know anyone else at 145 with a (winning) streak like that other than Chad, and I know he definitely deserves it.”

The beauty of all of this, as Koch sees it, lies in the ambition with which he’s attacking his goal of becoming a UFC champion. At only 22, one would think he has more than his fair share of time ahead of him in the sport. But that has made Koch all the hungrier.

“I definitely want a Top 3 spot (if I win) – Aldo for a title, or Florian, or the loser of that, or Mendes,” Koch said. “I want one of those top fights – I want my title. And I want to do it while I’m still young. I want it by the end of 2012.”

It’s a lofty goal, but one that seems to suit Koch’s personality.

“My confidence level has always been really high,” he said, before also explaining that he sure is having fun with it. “It’s hard work, and it’s my job, but I’m fortunate that I love my job. It’s a roller coaster ride, but I’m enjoying it.”

Koch and Brookins fight on the main card of UFC Fight Night 25 at the Ernest R. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans on Saturday. The main card airs live on Spike TV at 9 p.m. Eastern.

 

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