Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is back in action this weekend, bringing mixed martial arts (MMA) fans a slew of compelling match ups in the light heavyweight division and beyond. Front and center will be the 205-pound showdown between former title contenders, Alexander Gustafsson and Anthony Smith, who collide for prime real estate in the Top 5 of the division. But before “The Mauler” goes to war with “Lionheart,” international power punchers, Jimi “Poster Boy” Manuwa and Austria’s Aleksandar Rakic, will throw hands in the light heavyweight co-main event this Sat. night (June 1, 2019) inside Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden. Just remember to grab your free subscription to ESPN+ so you don’t miss any of the hard-hitting action!
MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Fight Night 153 fight card below, starting with the ESPN2 “Prelims” undercard bouts at 10 a.m. ET, followed by the ESPN+ main card start time of 1 p.m. ET.
Keep in mind that we will also be the spot for the latest news, recaps, and post-fight analysis following “Gustafsson vs. Smith.” Without further delay, see below for the updated UFC Fight Night 153 results. (Note: This will go from the bottom up; therefore, scroll toward the bottom for the latest detailed round-by-round action.)
UFC FIGHT NIGHT 153 QUICK RESULTS:
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Anthony Smith — Smith def. Gustafsson by submisson (rear naked choke) at 2:38 of Round FourIlir Latifi vs. Volkan Oezdemir — CANCELED (details here)
Jimi Manuwa vs. Aleksandar Rakic — Rakic def. Manuwa by KO (head kick) at 0:42 of Round One
Makwan Amirkhani vs. Chris Fishgold — Amirkhani def. Fishgold by submission (anaconda choke) at 4:25 of Round Two
Christos Giagos vs. Damir Hadzovic — Giagos def. Hadzovic by unanimous decision (29-27 x2, 29-28)
Daniel Teymur vs. Sung Bin Jo — Teymur def. Jo by unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)
Rostem Akman vs. Sergey Khandozhko — Khandozhko def. Akman by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Tonya Evinger vs. Lina Lansberg — Lansberg def. Evinger by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-26)
Stevie Ray vs. Leonardo Santos — Santos def. Ray by KO (punch) at 2:17 of Round One
Nick Hein vs. Frank Camacho — Camacho def. Hein by TKO (punches) at 4:56 of Round Two
Bea Malecki vs. Eduarda Santana — Malecki def. Santana by submission (rear naked choke) at 1:59 of Round Two
Darko Stosic vs. Devin Clark — Clark def. Stosic by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Joel Alvarez vs. Danilo Belluardo — Alvarez def. Bellluardo by TKO (punches and elbows) at 2:22 of Round Two
UFC FIGHT NIGHT 153 PLAY-BY-PLAY:
205 lbs.: Alexander Gustafsson vs. Anthony Smith
Round 1: Gustafsson circling as usual. Smith looking to cut off the cage. Lead right from Smith. One minute in. Smith slings another overhand, lands a leg kick. Gustafsson sporting a cut on his shin from checking one of them. Two minutes in. Southpaw 1-2 lands for Smith. Two minutes to go.
Overhand right from Smith. One minute to go. Smith with a shifting left. Tight hook by Gustafsson and a front kick attempt on the fence. Smith sneaks a hook around the guard. 10-9 Smith.
Round 2: Gustafsson starting to send out kicks. Smith whiffs on a 1-2. One minute in. Low kick lands for Gustafsson, then one for Smith. Gustafsson to the body. Smith looks for a counter hook. Two minutes in. Head kick attempt. 1-2 downstairs, straight left to the head. Gustafsson trying to pick at the lead leg, stuffs a takedown and lands a right. Smith with a nice combination with two minutes to go.
Sharp hook. Gustafsson with a double jab. One minute to go. Gustafsson just not throwing. Smith to the body. Gustafsson tries a combo, whiffs. 1-2 misses. 10-9 Smith.
Round 3: Gustafsson flicks out some kicks and they trade bombs. Jab and leg kick. One minute in. More leg kicks and a trip attempt. 1-2 lands for him. Smith staying on him, lands a hard right hand. Two minutes in. Gustafsson looks for a lead right, eats a body kick. More low kicks. Smith with some body and low kicks of his own. Two minutes to go.
Gustafsson lands a hook downstairs. Both land low kicks. Nice jab by Gustafsson. 1-2. One minute to go. They trade low kicks. Gustafsson lands a hard body kick with his injured shin and slings Smith down into side control. 10-9 Gustafsson.
Round 4: Counter right lands for Smith. Body kick not long after, head kick attempt. 1-3 from Gustafsson. One minute in. He looks for a takedown, denied, gives up a takedown in return. Smith takes the back against the fence. Gustaffson trying to shake him off. Now strikes from Smith and Gustafsson looks like he’s turtling. He goes back to the choke and this draws the tap.
Final result: Smith def. Gustafsson by submission (rear naked choke)
205 lbs.: Jimi Manuwa vs. Aleksandar Rakic
Round 1: They start the fight trading leg kicks. Rakic steps in with 2-1-head kick that catces Manuwa flush and turns the lights off immediately.
Final result: Rakic def. Manuwa by KO (head kick)
145 lbs.: Makwan Amirkhani vs. Chris Fishgold
Round 1: Amirkhani tries for another cage rush, doesn’t get it. Fishgold takes a thumb in the eye, prompting a pause. Check hook by Amirkhani as Fishgold charges in. Low kick by the Brit a minute in. Another. Overhand right lands for him. Fishgold looking for low kicks, Amirkhani circling away from them. Two minutes in. Amirkhani jabs the body. Well-timed reactive takedown from Amirkhani into guard. Two minutes to go.
Fishgold looks for a leg, then a reverse triangle, then back to the leg, no dice. Amirkhani back in guard. He rolls for an anaconda choke at the bell. 10-9 Amirkhani.
Round 2: Low kick from Fishgold early on. Amirkhani fires a combo. Amirkhani tries a jumping knee that Fishgold catches, but can’t convert into a takedown. Amirkhani leg kick. One minute in. Overhand right by Fishgold, still pressuring. Stiff counter jab, leg kick. Overhand right just misses two minutes in. Both throw kicks at the same time and Amirkhani’s lands on Fishgold’s sensitive bits. He takes a while to recover, but does so. More leg kicks from Fishgold. Two minutes to go.
Amirkhani shoots and Fishgold locks up a guillotine, but winds up on the bottom in half guard. Fishgold rolls to his knees and Amirkhani clamps down on that anaconda choke once again, forcing the tap after a bit of rotation.
Final result: Amirkhani def. Fishgold by submission (anaconda choke)
155 lbs.: Christos Giagos vs. Damir Hadzovic
Round 1: Hadzovic tries a head kick, eats a hard body kick. Giagos gets a good entry, can’t get the takedown but lands a combo. One minute in. Not many clean connections so far, though Giagos is throwing more. Low kick from Giagos. Two minutes in. Body kick lands for Giagos and he hits a nice takedown into side control. Hadzovic sweeps to his feet, gets taken down right away. Two minutes to go.
Giagos working patiently from Hadzovic’s guard. One minute to go. Elbows from Giagos. He looks for a d’arce on the way up, abandons ship early. They trade bombs in the waning seconds. 10-9 Giagos.
Round 2: HUGE uppercut from Giagos early on and a hard knee behind it. They trade and Giagos cracks him with a left hook. Hadzovic tanks them. Another good right hand. Giagos goes low-high. He shoots, lands in guard. He passes to half guard, looks for the back, can’t get it and they stand. Giagos landing some nasty shots. Another well-timed shot by Giagos. He hops to mount and looks for the back. Hadzovic looking to turn into guard, Giagos adjusts appropriately two minutes in. Hadzovic stands and shrugs off the hooks. They separate. Two minutes to go.
Body kick from Hadzovic. 2-3 from Giagos. Uppercut to right cross. Giagos to the body, hooks upstairs. Body kick with a minute to go. Hadzovic denies a single-leg. 1-2 from Giagos, three-piece combo. Hadzovic stuffs another takedown. Surprise takedown by the Bosnian. 10-9 Giagos.
Round 3: Hadzovic continues to march forwards. He stuffs a shot. Giagos shoots under a left hook to take him down into guard. Hadzovic works his way back up. 1-2 by Giagos, left hook from Hadzovic as the former circles off. Giagos converts a single-leg into a double-leg for another takedown. Hadzovic works his way to his feet against the fence. He pulls his leg out and they trade right hands. Giagos shoots, stuffed, pulls guard with two minutes to go.
Hadzovic has yet to really throw from the top. Elbow connects with a minute to go. Giagos holding him close. Hadzovic tries to open up in the last seconds. 10-9 Hadzovic.
Final result: Giagos def. Hadzovic by unanimous decision
145 lbs.: Daniel Teymur vs. Sung Bin Jo
Round 1: Tentative start. Low kick from Teymur and a left hook rocks Jo. Teymur unloads a combination, swinging for the fences before shooting in. One minute in. They separate. Low kick from Teymur and another takedown attempt. Jo cracks him with a knee on the way up and a glancing head kick. Teymur hits a blast double into guard tow minutes in. Teymur landing from guard, avoids a well-timed armbar and a follow-up triangle. Two minutes to go.
More hard shots by Teymur but he loses position and eats a knee on the way up. One minute to go. Teymur throwing from the hip, ties up. Hard clinch blows. They separate. 10-9 Teymur.
Round 2: Counter right lands for Jo. Head kick attempt. Teymur connects with a counter hook. One minute in. Low kick from Teymur, who ducks a head kick as Jo whirligigs. Two minutes in. Teymur falls short with a 1-2. Well-timed knee by Jo. Two minutes to go.
Jo lands a body kick. Teymur low kick. Lead right just misses, Jo tries to clinch. One minute to go. Leg kick from Teymur, Jo just misses with a flying knee. 10-9 Teymur.
Round 3: Jo patiently circling. Teymur not committing to any incursions. One minute in. Jo shoots, stuffed. They trade knees in the clinch. Teymur with a well-timed shot, can’t get him down. Jo answers a long left with a counter right. Jo shoots, stuffed, tripped in return. Teymur on top in guard. Two minutes to go.
Jo turns for a kneebar, the leg slips out. Teymur tries a leglock of his own, can’t get it, and they return to the feet. BIG lead right stings Jo and Teymur ties up. Another shot from Teymur, stuffed, lands an overhand on the break. One minute to go. Jo tries a head kick that goes high. 1-2 lands. He’s showing some life. 10-9 Teymur.
Final result: Teymur def. Jo by unanimous decision
170 lbs.: Rostem Akman vs. Sergey Khandozhko
Round 1: Akman slowly advancing, Khandozhko circling. They trade and Khandozhko looks for a knee as Akman ties up. Khandozhko tries an uchi mata. They separate a minute in. Low kick from Khandozhko. Akman tries to flurry his way in. Two minutes in. Spinning back kick lands for Khandozhko. They trade near the fence. Lead right by Khandozhko. Akman lands a left. Both swing big in the center. Two minutes in.
Khandozhko lands low kicks. Akman combination, Khandozhko counter left. Akman pops him with a right hand as the latter retreats. Khandozhko tries a wheel kick. Khandozhko low kicks and jab. Akman stings him with a 2-3, lands uppercuts in the clinch and eats a knee. Khandozhko waves him on. He tries to spin again. 10-9 Akman.
Round 2: Low kick from Akman, counter right answers it. Sharp right hand and low kick. Jab from Akman, right hand from Khandozhko. Akman getting busier, landing hands as Khandozhko looks to attack the lead leg. Akman connects on the fence, continuing to pressure. Two minutes in. Hard left hook by Khandozhko on the break. Good knee soon after. Good trades, Akman lands inside. Two minutes to go.
Khandozhko tries to spin, then melts Akman with a left hook as part of a three-piece combo. He follows Akman down into half guard. Akman turns for a leg, uses it to stand. Akman shoots with a minute to go. Khandozhko denies the takedown with a whizzer. He flubs a throw and ends up in an odd position, which Akman turns into side control. 10-9 Khandozhko.
Round 3: Body kick lands for Khandozhko, then a 2-1. Left hook. 1-2. One minute in. Front kick, leg kick. Akman shoots, Khandozhko defends against the fence. Hard left hook rattles Akman on the break. Akman counters a spinning back kick with a two-piece. Two minutes in. Khandozhko shoots, denied. He shoots again, denied on the fence. Akman gets him do his knees. Two minutes to go.
Khandozhko nearly takes top position, but Akman gets double unders and an outside trip after standing. Akman looking for the back with a minute to go. Khandozhko scrambles to his feet, looks for a takedown. He briefly completes it. Akman tries an elbow on the break. BIG overhand right hurts Akman in the waning seconds. 10-9 Khandozhko.
Final result: Khandozhko def. Akman by unanimous decision
135 lbs.: Tonya Evinger vs. Lina Lansberg
Round 1: Evinger bangs the body and shoots in against the fence. Double underhooks for her. One minute in. Good takedown defense by Lansberg thus far. Two minutes to go. Lansberg lands an elbow on the break, Evinger ties right back up. Short elbows from Lansberg. Two minutes to go.
One of those elbows split Eveinger open. Knees from Lansberg. Evinger lands a knee downstairs as Lansberg reverses. One minute to go. Lansberg hits an outside trip, denies a sweep attempt, and moves into mount. Heavy shots from Lansberg despite Evinger regaining half guard. 10-9 Lansberg.
Round 2: Lansberg stuffs an immediate shot. Evinger ties up and they jockey for position. Evinger gets the outside trip into half guard. One minute in. Evinger looking for the back. Both hooks in. Lansberg trying to turn into guard, can’t do so. Two minutes in. Lansberg manages to get top position, taking half guard. Two minutes to go.
Right hands from Lansberg landing. One minute to go. Lansberg trying to pin down Evinger’s left arm. 10-9 Lansberg.
Round 3: Evinger still wants the takedown. Lansberg puts her on the fence. Short knees from the Swede. One minute in. More knees to the body. Two minutes in. Ref separates them. Nice knee from Lansberg and she denies a takedown, looking for the back. Good left hands. Two minutes to go.
Lansberg landing some heavy punches. One minute to go. Half guard now. 10-9 Lansberg, borderline 10-8.
Final result: Lansberg def. Evinger by unanimous decision
155 lbs.: Stevie Ray vs. Leonardo Santos
Round 1: Body kicks from Santos. More landing. One minute in. One minute in. Yet more body kicks. Nothing from Ray thus far. Lead left. Ray slips on a head kick. Two minutes in. Ray overextends with a 1-1-2 and Santos just lamps him with a counter right. Ray teeters to the mat, the victim of a one-punch knockout.
Final result: Santos def. Ray by KO (punch)
155 lbs.: Nick Hein vs. Frank Camacho
Round 1: Hein lands a left to the body. Two-piece by Camacho, body kick behind it. Hein with a straight left upstairs. One minute in. More lefts by Hein. He hits a nice throw, can’t establish. They separate. Camacho tries a body kick, lands a counter jab. More body kicks. Right hand downstairs. Camacho lands a hard knee on the fence. Counter jabs. Hein comes back with a straight left. Two minutes to go.
Hein with a straight left. Camacho with a combo on the fence. Low kick and straight left by Hein and they trade. Hein shoots, eats a knee. Camacho landing well to the body so far. One minute to go. Straight right by Camacho, body kick met by a counter left from Hein. Check hook from the German. Counter left by Camacho in return. Hein with some lefts. 10-9 Camacho.
Round 2: Some quick punching exchanges to start the round. Counter right knocks Hein off-balance. The body kicks still piling up for Camacho. Clinch knee from Hein. One minute in. Hein countering the body kick now. Camacho lands jabs. Two minutes in. Good clinch blows by Camacho. Hein with a left downstairs, takes a knee in return. Trading dirty boxing. Nice counters from Camacho, still staying patient. Two minutes to go.
Right hand and knee land for Camacho. Hein trying to open up but getting outworked. Another body kick. Right hands against the fence. Combinations against the fence this time. One minute to go. Hein with a left downstairs, eats another body kick. Slow takedown attempt. Another body kick and Camacho’s taking him apart on the fence. 1-2 hurts Hein and Camacho’s battering him. In comes the ref.
Prediction: Camacho by TKO (punches)
Round 3:
Final result:
135 lbs.: Bea Malecki vs. Eduarda Santana
Round 1: Trading straight punches right away. 1-2 lands for Santana. Some goo dexchanges so far. Santana landign better so far. Malecki leg kick. Santana hits a takedown near the fence as Malecki throws a minute in. Malecki works her way up, dragged back down. She rholls to her knees and Santana sprawls on her. Two minutes in. Malecki makes it back up. Santana muscles her to the mat once again. Two minutes to go.
Santana lands as Malecki stands and separates. Santana winning the punching exchanges so far. Right hands and jabs landing for Santana. Malelcki still wading in. Good right hand lands for her. 1-2 by Santana. 10-9 Santana.
Round 2: Malecki continues to advance, offering more volume. Santana still landing the better punches by a fair margin. She hauls Malecki to the fence, but Malecki lands on top in mount. Looking for the RNC. One minute to go. Santana fighting the hands so far. Malecki adjusts and gets her forearm under the chin to draw the tap.
Final result: Malecki def. Santana by submission (rear naked choke)
205 lbs.: Darko Stosic vs. Devin Clark
Round 1: Clark throwing low kicks to start, Stosic answers with a right hand. Clark suddenly drops him with a jab and bowls him over, looking for the back. One minute in. Clark with a seatbelt grip. Stosic manages to control Clark’s wrist and stand, though he was grabbing the glove to do so. Trading knees in the clinch. Clark fires a head kick on the break, but gets cracked by an overhand right and clinched. Two minutes to go.
Stosic tries to rush, dropped in turn by a spinning elbow. Back to the clinch. Stosic pressing him against teh fence. Stosic lands an elbow, then some heavy punches with a bit of separation. One minute to go. Back to the center. Stosic whiffs on a right hand. Clark shoots, stuffed. 10-9 Clark.
Round 2: Low kick lands for Clark. Stosic looking to counter. One minute in. Another takedown attempt by Clark denied. Clark reverses, gets reversed in turn. Elbow from Stosic on the break. Two minutes in. More hard kicks by Clark, Stosic waves him on. Clark shoots, stuffed. Stosic presses him against the fence. Two minutes to go.
Stosic changes levels for a takedown attempt, and despite Clark blatantly grabbing the fence twice, he slams Clark down into half guard. One minute to go. Clark regains guard after taking an elbow. 10-9 Stosic.
Round 3: Clark hits a quick takedown, lands shots on the way up. Stosic gets double unders and presses him against the fence. Left hand by Stosic on the break. One minute in. Clark shoots again, denied again. Knees against the fence. 1-2 from Clark. Stosic denies another takedown two minutes in. Clark with an uppercut to takedown attempt, Stosic stuffs it and takes him to the fence. Stosic changes levels, denied with a kimura grip. Clark looks to attack on the break. Overhand right by Stosic. Two minutes to go.
Clark tries a head kick. Right hand downstairs. Clark shoots, stuffed. Low kick lands. Stosic sprawls on another shot. One minute to go. Combination lands for Clark. Stosic digs a leg to the body and takes him to the fence. Left hand and now he’s throwing. Clark knocks him back with a left hand. Stostic stuffs another takedown and bullies his way inside with hooks. 10-9 Clark.
Final result: Clark def. Stosic by unanimous decision
155 lbs.: Joel Alvarez vs. Danilo Belluardo
Round 1: Both men opening with kicks. Two-piece and leg kick by Alvarez met by an inside low kick. Lead right connects a minute in. Inside low kick by Belluardo. Again. 1-2 from Belluardo, two-piece by Alvarez. Belluardo hits a nice takedown in center cage into half guard, avoiding a guillotine. Two minutes to go.
Alvarez regains guard and Belluardo starts looking for elbows. Belluardo staying busy with short punches as well. Alvarez with a triangle attempt in the waning seconds. 10-9 Belluardo.
Round 2: Alvarez backs him to the fence, lands a knee that kicks off a pursuit. Belluardo connects with an elbow on the way in, then takes Alvarez down off a knee attempt. Back to half guard. One minute in. Belluardo tries to move to mount and Alvarez finds a sweep two minutes in, unloading punches and elbows on a trapped Belluardo until the ref intervenes.
Final result: Alvarez def. Belluardo by TKO (punches and elbows)