UFC flyweight champion Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson shined again on Saturday at UFC 186. He set a promotional record with the latest submission win in history when he forced Kyoji Horiguchi to tap out to an armbar with just one second remaining in the fight.
It was an example of what a supremely talented, skilled and superbly conditioned mixed martial artist can accomplish.
Fox Sports UFC confirmed the record-setting performance and Johnson’s well-deserved piece of the fight night bonuses:
Here’s a look at the other winners from the evening’s bouts:
Rampage Rules
In his return to the UFC, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson proved he could still stand and trade with the best of them. He won a unanimous decision over the rugged Fabio Maldonado.
Jackson added in some much-needed diversity to his striking game and more active ground defense. He employed kicks and head movement and showed off more fluidity than we’re used to seeing from him.
Maldonado did shoot for the uncharacteristic takedown—which he landed—but he ate some surprising elbows from Rampage once the legend’s back hit the canvas. In previous bouts, Rampage would be very inactive off his back and unable to improve his position.
Maldonado isn’t exactly the most skilled fighter from top control, but Rampage has still shown some willingness to expand his game. At 36 years old, he might be too old for it to have a significant impact on his career, but it’s still something.
At the post-fight press conference, Jackson gave respect to Maldonado for his toughness:
Jackson did land some shots that would have normally hurt previous opponents, but the Brazilian took them all without much issue.
Bisping Outlasts Dollaway
Cardio was king in the Michael Bisping vs. C.B. Dollaway match. After nearly knocking Bisping out in the first round with a left hand, Dollaway couldn’t keep up the pace against the Englishman in the second and third rounds.
Bisping showed a return to his stellar takedown defense and forced Dollaway to lumber around on his feet for most of the fight. Bisping exposed Dollaway‘s less-than-smooth striking and simply outworked his opponent to earn the victory.
Despite alternating wins and losses over his last eight fights, Bisping remained confident in his place among the top fighters in the world in the post-fight press conference:
Almeida Is a Future Star
At just 23 years old, the best is yet to come for Thomas Almeida. If you’re a bantamweight in the UFC, that’s got to be a scary concept. The Brazilian vanquished veteran Yves Jabouin in the first round via TKO to earn the other POTN bonus.
The win moved him to 19-0 overall in his career with 18 of the wins coming by stoppage.
The way Almeida changes levels on his strikes and gets power behind most of the attacks is impressive. UFC fans haven’t gotten an opportunity to see his grappling skills, but he’s got the basis for a solid jiu-jitsu game as well.
Jabouin did take him down impressively at one point, but Almeida was able to work his way back to his feet. If he continues to work on his jiu-jitsu and takedown defense, he’ll be a title contender in the next two to three years.
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