Author: Nathan McCarter

Joanne Calderwood vs. Jessica Andrade Results: Winner and Reaction from UFC 203

The strawweight division was put on notice after Jessica Andrade (15-5) dispatched Jessica Penne at UFC 199, and now the upper echelon is on red alert. Andrade walked through Joanne Calderwood (11-3) at UFC 203 without much issue.

Calderwood fought a …

The strawweight division was put on notice after Jessica Andrade (15-5) dispatched Jessica Penne at UFC 199, and now the upper echelon is on red alert. Andrade walked through Joanne Calderwood (11-3) at UFC 203 without much issue.

Calderwood fought a smart fight. She opened the fight trying to establish her distance. Calderwood utilized leg kicks and a long jab. Andrade timed Calderwood to dart inside and score with strikes of her own.

Andrade got the clinch early in the round, landed solid knees to the body and forced Calderwood to the fence. Once there, her strength came into play. Andrade took her to the mat, and when Calderwood got up she slammed her to the mat even more emphatically for a second takedown.

Andrade took her time from top. She worked in body shots to soften up Calderwood while working into better positions. Calderwood’s defense was up to par as well. It was a high-quality strawweight contest while it lasted. The end came when Calderwood tried to stand. Andrade peppered her with shots, waited as she turned and jumped on a guillotine. It was a perfectly timed choke that she baited Calderwood into.

The official end to the contest came at 4:38 of the first round.

Andrade called out Carla Esparza in the cage after beating Jessica Penne (h/t MMAJunkie.com), but the fight never materialized; it should now. And it should be a title eliminator. Andrade is in a position to challenge for gold with one more win. The other contenders are not in a spot to call out Joanna Jedrzejczyk just yet. This is a window of opportunity Andrade can capitalize on, and the UFC can make it happen.

Calderwood made a mistake and got caught, but she didn’t fight a bad fight. She should just go back to the drawing board and continue working on her wrestling defense. If the fight stays standing, she is a big threat in the division.

Andrade’s fight was a great way to open the main card. She announced a new contender at strawweight in a dominant performance.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Joanne Calderwood vs. Jessica Andrade Results: Winner and Reaction from UFC 203

The strawweight division was put on notice after Jessica Andrade (15-5) dispatched Jessica Penne at UFC 199, and now the upper echelon is on red alert. Andrade walked through Joanne Calderwood (11-3) at UFC 203 without much issue.

Calderwood fought a …

The strawweight division was put on notice after Jessica Andrade (15-5) dispatched Jessica Penne at UFC 199, and now the upper echelon is on red alert. Andrade walked through Joanne Calderwood (11-3) at UFC 203 without much issue.

Calderwood fought a smart fight. She opened the fight trying to establish her distance. Calderwood utilized leg kicks and a long jab. Andrade timed Calderwood to dart inside and score with strikes of her own.

Andrade got the clinch early in the round, landed solid knees to the body and forced Calderwood to the fence. Once there, her strength came into play. Andrade took her to the mat, and when Calderwood got up she slammed her to the mat even more emphatically for a second takedown.

Andrade took her time from top. She worked in body shots to soften up Calderwood while working into better positions. Calderwood’s defense was up to par as well. It was a high-quality strawweight contest while it lasted. The end came when Calderwood tried to stand. Andrade peppered her with shots, waited as she turned and jumped on a guillotine. It was a perfectly timed choke that she baited Calderwood into.

The official end to the contest came at 4:38 of the first round.

Andrade called out Carla Esparza in the cage after beating Jessica Penne (h/t MMAJunkie.com), but the fight never materialized; it should now. And it should be a title eliminator. Andrade is in a position to challenge for gold with one more win. The other contenders are not in a spot to call out Joanna Jedrzejczyk just yet. This is a window of opportunity Andrade can capitalize on, and the UFC can make it happen.

Calderwood made a mistake and got caught, but she didn’t fight a bad fight. She should just go back to the drawing board and continue working on her wrestling defense. If the fight stays standing, she is a big threat in the division.

Andrade’s fight was a great way to open the main card. She announced a new contender at strawweight in a dominant performance.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC 203 Weigh-in Results: CM Punk Easily Makes Weight, Overeem Fined $500

All but one of the UFC 203 competitors made weight on Friday morning, and everyone on the main card came in on the mark.
The most anticipated was CM Punk. The former WWE Superstar has had a treasure trove of questions surrounding him pri…

All but one of the UFC 203 competitors made weight on Friday morning, and everyone on the main card came in on the mark.

The most anticipated was CM Punk. The former WWE Superstar has had a treasure trove of questions surrounding him prior to his first MMA bout, not the least of which was if he could make weight. He answered that promptly, as he was the fourth fighter in line and hit the 170-pound mark on the button, as captured by Fox Sports’ Damon Martin:

Stipe Miocic came in at 246 pounds for his first title defense. Miocic won the title over Fabricio Werdum earlier in 2016 and defends against Alistair Overeem (248.5) in the main event. Miocic, a son of Cleveland, gets to perform in the friendly confines of Quicken Loans Arena for the defense. Overeem was the final man on the scale, but was well within the heavyweight limit.

The drama, if it could be called that, was that Overeem was late to the scale. He was stuck waiting on an elevator. The Ohio Athletic Commission fined him $500 for being late, per Martin:

Werdum is also on the card. He came in at 239.5 pounds for his co-main event fight against Travis Browne (241.0).

Other notable fighters on the card are Urijah Faber (136), Jessica Eye (135) and Joanne Calderwood (116). Each veteran has a stiff challenge in Jimmie Rivera (135.5), Bethe Correia (135.0) and Jessica Andrade (115.5), respectively.

The lone fighter who failed to make weight was Michael McBride (158). By being overweight he forfeited 20 percent of his purse directly to his opponent, Nik Lentz, according to MMAjunkie’s John Morgan:

The fighters will return to The Q in the afternoon for the official weigh-in show where they will stare down their opponents. The staging of the scale is merely there for show as fighters are free to begin rehydrating after the morning weigh-ins.

UFC 203 is official and ready to go down from the home of the 2015-16 NBA champions. The atmosphere should be rocking with the hometown champion leading the charge, and Bleacher Report will be on site chronicling the entire show.

The evening weigh-in show will begin at 6 p.m. ET.

     

UFC Weigh-In Results

  • Stipe Miocic (246) vs. Alistair Overeem (248.5)
  • Fabricio Werdum (239.5) vs. Travis Browne (241)
  • CM Punk (170) vs. Mickey Gall (170.5)
  • Urijah Faber (136) vs. Jimmie Rivera (135.5)
  • Joanne Calderwood (116) vs. Jessica Andrade (115.5)
  • Jessica Eye (135) vs. Bethe Correia (135)
  • Nik Lentz (156) vs. Michael McBride (158)
  • Brad Tavares (186) vs. Caio Magalhaes (185.5)
  • Francimar Barroso (205.5) vs. CB Dollaway (205)
  • Yancy Medeiros (171) vs. Sean Spencer (170)
  • Jason Gonzalez (156) vs. Drew Dober (155)

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UFC 203 Primer: Stipe Miocic vs. Alistair Overeem Head-to-Toe Breakdown

UFC 203 will feature the king of Cleveland, Stipe Miocic (15-2), in his first UFC heavyweight championship title defense.
Miocic ended his city’s long championship drought by knocking Fabricio Werdum out cold in front of Werdum’s home crowd. He’ll…

UFC 203 will feature the king of Cleveland, Stipe Miocic (15-2), in his first UFC heavyweight championship title defense.

Miocic ended his city’s long championship drought by knocking Fabricio Werdum out cold in front of Werdum’s home crowd. He’ll try to avoid the same fate when he takes on the No. 3 contender Alistair Overeem (41-14, 1 NC) in Cleveland.

Overeem earned his title shot with a four-fight winning streak featuring two TKOs and a knockout. The most recent was a finish against Andrei Arlovski. It has taken him nearly five years, but Overeem finally has a shot at the ultimate glory.

Miocic and Overeem both enjoy a slugfest. While neither man is scared of going to the mat, they prefer to do their work on foot. Cleveland should prepare for stand-up attrition on Saturday.

The hometown kid achieved his dream, but now he will try to make his mark by defending the crown. It is a championship that has never been defended successfully more than twice. It is one of the most volatile pieces of hardware in part because of the massive power the heavyweights wield.

Miocic and Overeem are both seeking history on Saturday. How will it shake out?

Read on to discover who the scales favor in UFC 203’s heavyweight main event.

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UFC Fight Night 93 Results: Matches to Make for the Winners and Losers

UFC Fight Night 93 took place in Hamburg, Germany, and it was not the greatest of fight cards. Thankfully, the veterans on the main card saved it from complete annihilation.
Heavyweights Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett put on a memorable affair i…

UFC Fight Night 93 took place in Hamburg, Germany, and it was not the greatest of fight cards. Thankfully, the veterans on the main card saved it from complete annihilation.

Heavyweights Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett put on a memorable affair in the main event. Barnett took over the fight after the first round and got a third-round submission to move forward in the heavyweight division.

The two preceding fights both took place in the light heavyweight division, and contenders Ryan Bader and Alexander Gustafsson re-established their position in the division.

Everything else? Good luck to the UFC matchmakers in deciding what’s the next step.

Need help? Well, I suppose I can lend some assistance in this area. Do not fear Sean Shelby and Joe Silva. A list of suggestions for each fighter on the UFC Fight Night 93 card is coming your way. Read on, UFC matchmakers, to find out who you should be calling and drawing up contracts for in the wake of the latest UFC outing.

And, dear readers, I guess you should lend your thoughts too.

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UFC Fight Night 93: Live Results, Play-by-Play and Fight Card Highlights

It’s the first full Saturday of the college football season, but the UFC will sneak in an afternoon of action before the prime-time games. UFC Fight Night 93 offers a solid card built around fighters seeking to reassert themselves in their respective d…

It’s the first full Saturday of the college football season, but the UFC will sneak in an afternoon of action before the prime-time games. UFC Fight Night 93 offers a solid card built around fighters seeking to reassert themselves in their respective divisions.

Veteran heavyweight contenders, and each former UFC title holders, Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett are locked in for the main event from Hamburg, Germany. A loss could be the final stamp, for either man, on their days as relevant heavyweights. A win puts them right back into the hunt.

Also in action, Alexander Gustafsson takes on Jan Blachowicz in the co-main event. But they aren’t the only light heavyweight contenders battling it out on Saturday. Ryan Bader meets Ilir Latifi on the main card as well.

Bleacher Report will be here throughout it all to deliver all the hard-hitting action from the curtain jerking bout to the heavyweight showcase.

The event is slated for an 11:45 a.m. ET start time on UFC Fight Pass. Keep it here for complete coverage.

     

UFC Fight Night 93 Fight Card

  • Andrei Arlovski vs. Josh Barnett
  • Alexander Gustafsson vs. Jan Błachowicz
  • Ryan Bader vs. Ilir Latifi
  • Nick Hein vs. Tae Hyun Bang
  • Jessin Ayari vs. Jim Wallhead
  • Peter Sobotta vs. Nicolas Dalby
  • Ashlee Evans-Smith vs. Veronica Macedo
  • Taylor Lapilus vs. Leandro Issa
  • Jarjis Danho vs. Christian Colombo
  • Scott Askham vs. Jack Hermansson
  • Rustam Khabilov vs. Leandro Silva

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com