It was selected as the main card opener as it was expected to deliver and that it did, as featherweights Dustin Poirier and Akira Corassani each earned $50,000 for their Fight of the Night honors at the The Ultimate Fighter: Nations Finale in Quebec City, Quebec on Wednesday night. All awards were announced by UFC President Dana White at the post-fight press conference.
The fight, expected to be a blowout for Poirier according to the oddsmakers, was surprisingly competitive in the first round. Poirier and Corassani exchanged back and forth with the American Top Team talent in Poirier being rocked early and having to loosen up to fight his way back into the round. Poirier managed a late takedown that he attempted to turn into a Peruvian necktie submission, but Corassani hung tough and the fight moved to the second frame.
From there, however, it didn’t last long. Poirier came out aggressive and landed a leaping, lead uppercut that snapped Corassani’s head back. The shot appeared to damage the already historically-damaged nose of Corassani and he collapsed to the mat. After a few follow-up shots, the referee had no choice but to stop the action.
The end came officially at :42 of round two. Poirier moves to 16-3 in his MMA career while Corassani slides to 12-4 with 1 no-contest.
Claiming the other Performance of the Night bonuses were preliminary card fighters K.J. Noons and Ryan Jimmo.
Noons, facing Sam Stout at welterweight, managed the fastest finish of the night, as he stopped the Canadian lightweight in just 30 seconds. The two barely felt each other out until Noons cracked Stout with a right hand that sent Stout down immediately. Two additional shots on the ground from Noons connected before the referee was forced to stop the action. The win moves Noons to 13-7 in MMA while Stout drops to 20-10-1.
Last, but certainly not least, Ryan Jimmo also scored an impressive knockout win his first-round stoppage of Sean O’Connell. O’Connell had his way early, but Jimmo stayed patient and was able to time a bruising right hand that crumpled O’Connell virtually where he stood. The end was declared at 4:27 of the round. The result brought Jimmo’s record to 19-3 while O’Connell fell to 15-5.