UFC on FOX 24 went down tonight (Saturday, April 15, 2017) from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO. The main event featured the top pound-for-pound fighter in MMA, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, attempting to tie Anderson Silva’s consecutive title defense record at 10. Brazilian contender Wilson Reis stood in his way, but not for long.
Johnson made it look easy, dancing cirlces around the challenger, battering Reis with kicks and punches. The champion was in control of every phase as Reis struggled to keep up and land anything more than occasional leg kicks. By round three, Reis was spent, and Johnson moved in for the kill. A knee to the body dropped an off-balance Reis and DJ pounced. Ground and pound followed as Johnson advanced to mount, then immediately snatched the fight-ending armbar. When Johnson next steps into the cage, he’ll be trying to break Silva’s long-standing record.
The co-main event was a strawweight contenders scrap between “Thug” Rose Namajunas and Michelle “The Karate Hottie” Waterson. Namajunas walked through Waterson’s kicks on the feet, reveresed a head-and-arm throw to take Waterson’s back in round one, and dropped her foe with a nasty head kick in round two. Waterson recovered to some extent, but “Thug” Rose gave her no room to breathe. Namajunas jumped on Waterson’s back as she tried to stand, and finished it with the choke soon after.
Finally, former welterweight Robert Whittaker announced himself as a potential title challenger in a crowded middleweight division with an emphatic TKO over top contender Jacare Souza. The Brazilian failed to get the fight into his wheelhouse on the ground, and Whittaker made him pay. A head kick wobbled Jacare, and Whittaker followed up with punches and elbows that forced referee Mario Yamasaki to step in on Jacare’s behalf. In the aftermath, Whittaker called for a fight with Michael Bisping, who he was scheduled to fight last year before injury nixed the fight.
See how Twitter reacted to these pivotal fights below:
You know what time it is? #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/Wcm3zs6oOm
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) April 16, 2017
Oh man. The American heavyweight and the Brazilian flyweight! Cultural differences! https://t.co/zeU84iukuR
— Ben Fowlkes (@benfowlkesMMA) April 16, 2017
Retweet if you think Mighty Mouse ties the record tonight.
???? @MightyMouseUFC pic.twitter.com/cUAWMKwUq5
— Sophia Helwani (@SophiaHelwani) April 16, 2017
???? Johnson is unbelievably fast ????
— Lauren Murphy (@LaurenMurphyMMA) April 16, 2017
@MightyMouseUFC is the Lomachenko of MMA
— Matt Brown (@IamTheImmortal) April 16, 2017
@IamTheImmortal @MightyMouseUFC Such a great comparison Matt. Agree with you.
— Kevin Iole (@KevinI) April 16, 2017
Christ almighty, did DJ really just land a counter knee to the liver that dropped a dude? Reis is lucky the R2 horn was around the corner.
— Jordan Breen (@jordanbreen) April 16, 2017
Fuck. That was brutal. #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/vOajGPf8zO
— MiddleEasy (@MiddleEasy) April 16, 2017
Wilson Reis going back to his corner for advice and they just be like…. #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/nnd0MroqGb
— Champions MMA (@ChampionsFight) April 16, 2017
#UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/cvE9X6JZ3y
— Mike Jackson, Esq. (@TheTruthJackson) April 16, 2017
The thing about Demetrious Johnson is, he's just too good. At, like, everything. There's some expert analysis for you, right there.
— Chad Dundas (@chaddundas) April 16, 2017
Plot Twist: That's not even Chad's words, that's a quote from the corner of Wilson Reis. ???? #UFCKansasCity https://t.co/YiVppLqEye
— Champions MMA (@ChampionsFight) April 16, 2017
Wow…just wow. @MightyMouseUFC so proud to have share the cage with that man. I wish I could get healthy enough to give him another fight ????
— Ian McCall (@Unclecreepymma) April 16, 2017
All biz DJ. Hardly cracks a smile when White puts the belt on him.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) April 16, 2017
Reis hadn't tapped to a submission in his career. This was his 29th fight. DJ snatched an armbar in R3. Owned it. Can't be more impressive.
— Josh Gross (@yay_yee) April 16, 2017
??????????
— Lauren Murphy (@LaurenMurphyMMA) April 16, 2017
#UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/yL4bMx1OTL
— Zombie Prophet (@ZPGIFs) April 16, 2017
Congrats to the ???? #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/q19roCghx4
— esther lin (@allelbows) April 16, 2017
Michelle Waterson's flying armbar #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/fju0VokoPR
— MMA GIFS (@mma_gifs_) April 16, 2017
Thug ???? #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/qAg5CC4zU7
— MMA GIFS (@mma_gifs_) April 16, 2017
idk if it's just me, but a peak Rose seems like the most interesting challenge for Jedrzejczyk. Really looking forward to this fight.
— Eric Stinton (@TombstoneStint) April 16, 2017
Excited for this one. Tough to call it but I'm leaning towards Waterson with a submission. #UFCKansasCity
— Dan Hardy (@danhardymma) April 16, 2017
Isn't it mandatory for Waterson to give up back control from the head and arm throw?
— Yves Edwards (@thugjitsumaster) April 16, 2017
That head-and-arm throw is by far the most popular move in all of women's MMA for getting your back taken.
— Ben Fowlkes (@benfowlkesMMA) April 16, 2017
HEAD KICK OF DOOM.
— Heidi Fang (@HeidiFang) April 16, 2017
OMG. Thug Rose destroyed Waterson with a head kick. But how the hell is Waterson still alive???? #UFCKansasCity
— Andreas Hale (@AndreasHale) April 16, 2017
THIS FIGT IS FUCKING AWESOME! I loved watching both these women since Invicta… this is 1 of the most technical fights I've seen in a while
— Lauren Murphy (@LaurenMurphyMMA) April 16, 2017
That was incredible. Rose Namajunas has so much talent in her.
Michelle Waterson tried to fight through that as much as she could. Respect.
— MMA History Today (@MMAHistoryToday) April 16, 2017
Oh, and WME-IMG's favourite strawweight comes crashing down.
— Nick Baldwin (@NickUFC) April 16, 2017
Dog beats Baby. #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/KrAoRpsOnJ
— Angela Hill (@AngieOverkill) April 16, 2017
I knew that kick looked familiar, and now I'm sad.
— Coach Edmund (@CoachEdmund) April 16, 2017
Keep your head up @karatehottiemma ????????
— Cody Garbrandt (@Cody_Nolove) April 16, 2017
ANDROID 18! Congrats @rosenamajunas. That was savage. #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/DGBykgT1in
— Justin Golightly (@SecretMovesMMA) April 16, 2017
.@rosenamajunas @HypeOrDie pic.twitter.com/aCYPfo0dQe
— Zombie Prophet (@ZPGIFs) April 16, 2017
Namajunas: I was surprised by the power that Michelle had. She's tough man. Joanna or whoever is gonna win that fight I'm coming for you.
— Chamatkar Sandhu (@SandhuMMA) April 16, 2017
Rose vs JJ is the fight I've always wanted to see! #UFCKansasCity
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) April 16, 2017
.@rosenamajunas @Izi_Garcia @mma_gifs_ @ZPGIFs @MiddleEasy That choke was like out of a horror movie! Look at the blood!#UFCKansasCity@rosenamajunas @mma_gifs_ @Izi_Garcia @ZPGIFs @MiddleEasy pic.twitter.com/o8b3V6A9Pz
— Fury's Fight Picks (@FurysFightPicks) April 16, 2017
Jacare time… #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/i8hxhYfOHT
— MMA GIFS (@mma_gifs_) April 16, 2017
Souza vs Whittaker up next on FOX!!! pic.twitter.com/19X9YFzqyn
— Dana White (@danawhite) April 16, 2017
The ancient rivalry between the alligator and australian has found it's way to the octagon
— UFC YouTube Comments (@UFC_YT_Comments) April 16, 2017
???????????? #UFCKansasCity
— Yellow Power Ranger (@Sugarhigh5me) April 16, 2017
Jon Anik said the words "Bobby Knuckles!" What a guy.
— Connor Ruebusch (@BoxingBusch) April 16, 2017
"The man some call 'Bobby Knuckles.'" – Jon Anik, being rad.
— Ben Fowlkes (@benfowlkesMMA) April 16, 2017
I know I'm way in the minority here, but I'm taking Whittaker – I think this is the right matchup at the right time. #UFCKansasCity
— Patrick Wyman (@Patrick_Wyman) April 16, 2017
When you see Jacare's ground transitions. #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/oEsofI5xjp
— Champions MMA (@ChampionsFight) April 16, 2017
WOW! After establishing the jab Whittaker went with a lead right and knocked Jacare senseless. Huge knockdown!
— Connor Ruebusch (@BoxingBusch) April 16, 2017
OHHHHH MY @RJWhittaker1990 CRACKS Jacare and drops him! #UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/wpIv4wdbBc
— UFC (@ufc) April 16, 2017
It really looked like Jacare went in and out of consciousness when he hit the mat too. But ref let it go. #UFCKansasCity
— Bloody Elbow (@BloodyElbow) April 16, 2017
Robert Whittaker just TKO'd Jacare Souza in the 2nd round. Statement win. HUGE#UFCKansasCity
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) April 16, 2017
It's time to stop doubting @RJWhittaker1990 !!!!!!!! Congratulations man.
— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) April 16, 2017
Yamasaki makes it as anticlimactic as possible, but that probably wasn't getting better for Jacare. Robert Whittaker just put hands on him.
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) April 16, 2017
Jacare played the knuckle game with the wrong motherfucker.
— The Naked Gambler (@NakedGambling) April 16, 2017
#UFCKansasCity pic.twitter.com/n9XKAvrEyx
— Zombie Prophet (@ZPGIFs) April 16, 2017
Watching fights sometimes sucks. When you know your potential. When you could've/ should've won against top 5… https://t.co/ASSO7Qqiou
— Derek Brunson (@DerekBrunson) April 16, 2017
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