(Rugby: You’re doing it wrong. I think. To be honest, I’m not 100% sure what rugby’s supposed to look like. / Photo via Getty)
The UFC lands in Brisbane tonight for UFC Fight Night 33, and for a free card overseas, this thing is kind of loaded. In the main event, heavyweight contenders Mark Hunt and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva slug it out in a match that is scheduled for five rounds but probably won’t last that long. Also on the card, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua‘s continued status as an active UFC light-heavyweight is on the line against New Zealand native James Te Huna, while Pat Barry and Ryan Bader attempt to bounce back from recent TKO losses against Soa Palelei and Anthony Perosh, respectively. Plus: Julie Kedzie will attempt to humiliate Bethe Correia as badly in the cage as she did during yesterday’s weigh-ins.
Our liveblog of the “Hunt vs. Bigfoot” FOX Sports 1 main card begins at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. Get round-round results after the jump, refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest updates, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section.
Preliminary Card Results
– Takeya Mizugaki def. Nam Phan via unanimous decision (29-28 x 2, 30-28)
– Caio Magalhaes def. Nick Ring via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
– Justin Scoggins def. Richie Vaculik via TKO, 4:43 of round 1
– Krzysztof Jotko def. Bruno Santos via unanimous decision (29-28 x 2, 30-27)
– Alex Garcia def. Ben Wall via KO, 0:43 of round 1
Hey folks, BG here. It’s 9 p.m., and I’m just waiting for this Arizona State vs. DePaul game to finish up so the UFC broadcast can start. Apparently, it’ll be running on something called a “FOX Sports Too” until then, but I don’t have that goddamned channel, and I don’t think any of my neighbors do either, so I guess I’ll be liveblogging college hoops for a while. Luckily, the first 20 minutes of any free UFC card are dominated by commercials. I think we’ll be alright.
It’s 9:03. I just saw about seven seconds of Julie Kedzie and Bethe Correia shadowboxing at the camera backstage before the screen went black. Huh.
9:09. Still nothing. I know I’m not the only one having this problem.
9:13. At least I ordered pizza and wings, so the night’s not a total loss. And I’ve got twitter to entertain me. Poor Julie Kedzie, though, this sucks for her.
9:18, and Fox Sports 1 finally gets its shit together, midway through round 2. Alright, Kedzie and Correia are slugging, and Greg Jackson goes “WOWWWWWW!” Spinning shit is being thrown, my friends. We’ll start the official liveblog in round 3. Both of these fighters have nice, thick legs, and that’s something I would totally mention even if they were men.
Round 3: Correia lands a straight right. She tries a leg kick and eats a counter-right from Kedzie. Correia attacking with long hooks. Kedzie throwing out kicks without much success. Correia lands a hook while flailing some punches. Her punches are still looking sharp in the third round. Hook/cross from Correia. Correia snatches up a body kick from Kedzie and bulls her to the mat. Correia shoves Kedzie to the cage and tries to work to back control, but Kedzie reverses and escapes to her feet. Kedzie fires a wheel-kick. Is Greg Jackson yelling “JUST KIDDING” over and over again for some reason? Correia rushes forward with punches. Correia with another hook. Kedzie lands a side kick and they brawl to the bell. Like I said, I missed most of the first two rounds, but Correia looked damn good in the third.
Bethe Correia def. Julie Kedzie via split-decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29). Kedzie has lost her fourth consecutive fight. She was 0-2 in Strikeforce, and now she’s 0-2 in the UFC.
Dylan Andrews vs. Clint Hester
FYI, these guys were on TUF 17 together.
Round 1: Andrews marching forward, Hester sticking and moving with leg kicks. Hester wobbles Andrews right away with a stiff right hand. Hester clinches up and fires a knee to the body. Andrews scores a nice body-lock takedown and lands in half-guard. Andrews isn’t doing much from the top. He tries to trap Hester’s arm, but can’t do it. Hester tries to work to his feet and Andrews goes for a guillotine. Hester slips out and establishes top position. Another stalemate on the ground. Andrews gets to his feet, then briefly dumps Hester to the mat. Hester gets up, Andrews puts him right back down. Andrews hangs out in side control until the round ends.
Round 2: They trade leg kicks. Hester whiffs a big left hand and Andrews grabs him, but can’t convert the takedown. Hester with a right, Andrews returns a big right hand of his own. Hester rushes forward and drives Andrews to the mat. Hester with a few decent shots from the top, working Andrews to the body with punches. Hard elbows now. Andrews trying to lock Hester down, stalling him, and the crowd boos. Andrews is bleeding badly from his forehead. Andrews gets to his feet and Hester tees off on him. Andrews escapes danger. Hester pops the jab, Andrews returns fire. Hester gets his leg kicked out from under him, but he pops right back up. Leg kick Hester. There’s something wrong with Andrews’s right hand/arm…he’s holding it almost at his waist. There’s the bell. Clear 10-9 for Hester.
And it is all over. Andrews suffered a shoulder dislocation and can’t answer the bell. Hester goes over to him and they embrace as friends. With his one arm that still works, Andrews raises Hester’s arm.
Clint Hester def. Dylan Andrews via TKO (injury/doctor’s stoppage), 5:00 of round 2.
In the replay, we see the moment where Andrews’s shoulder fell apart. Basically, he just missed a punch and his arm swung out of it’s socket. One in a million shot, doc.
Jesus Christ. I feel like I’ve been watching UFC 168 promos for the last eight minutes, and they’re all fucking awful. Yes, yes, Andy, you back. Trust you. You back.
Pat Barry vs. Soa Palelei
My parlay bet begins…now.
Round 1: Palelei pushes Barry into the fence but Barry circles out. Barry whiffs some hard roundhouses. Palelei catches a knee from Barry and takes him to the mat. Off his back, Barry actually looks for an armlock. Wouldn’t that be something? Palelei escapes it and throws a few punches to Barry’s midsection from half-guard. Palelei jumps to mount. Oh boy, this ain’t good. After just a few punches from the top, Barry is totally unconscious. Don’t let a 265-pound man do that to you, bro.
Soa Palelei def. Pat Barry via KO, 2:09 of round 1. Barry’s face looks like he fell off a motorcycle or something. Jesus. Palelei only hit him like five times. Poor dude. Pat’s UFC record just dropped to 5-7, all losses by stoppage.
Ryan Bader vs. Anthony Perosh
Anthony Perosh is 41 years old, you guys. 41. Bader’s got a nice playoff-beard going.
Round 1: Bader takes the center of the cage. Perosh lands a wide hook. Bader grabs a clinch and whips in some uppercuts. Perosh falls to the ground and he looks to be in trouble as Bader pours it on, but Perosh gets to his feet. Bader lands another big uppercut and Perosh is on his heels. But Perosh collects himself and brushes Bader back with a big right hand of his own. Perosh rushes forward and essentially falls on his face. Bader gets on top and slugs down on Perosh. Perosh rolls to his knees, Bader sticks on him. Perosh gets to his feet. The box for a bit, and then Bader grabs Perosh against the fence and takes him down. Big elbow from Bader. Perosh is split open. Bader is briefly kicked off, but then jumps back on with a “Shogun punch,” as Jon Anik says. Bader with a little more GnP as the round ends. Easy 10-9 for Bader.
Round 2: Perosh dashes forward with punches, then follows it up with a leg kick. Bader drags Perosh down and works some knees to the body on the mat. Gnarly elbow from Bader. And some more short elbows. Perosh trying to find a way up, Bader just burying him with strikes. Perosh is totally stuck. Every time Perosh tries to kick Bader off, Bader dives right back in and punches him in the face. More hard elbows. And more, and more, and more. 10-9, bordering on 10-8 for the fact that Perosh did nothing except endure abuse.
Round 3: Bader wants to finish this thing. He swings some nasty left hooks, hard and reckless. At his earliest opportunity, he scores a takedown and puts Perosh right back against the fence. Bader, with those damn elbows. Perosh rolls, desperately. Bader slugs him in the face. Perosh briefly gets to his feet, Bader dumps him right back down and goes apeshit, looking for the stoppage. Perosh is too tough for his own good. He gets up again, Bader drags him back down. Bader’s arm is drenched in Bader’s blood. The entire mat is, actually. 30 seconds left. Bader punching and punching. There’s the last bell. Well, it’s a win, though I’m sure Bader is disappointed that he couldn’t stop an opponent who had nothing for him.
Ryan Bader def. Anthony Perosh via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 30-26). Bader says he hurt his hand in the first round, and Perosh is super tough, etc. By the way, the judges need to start handing out more 10-8′s. That last round was a mauling.
Mauricio Rua vs. James Te Huna
Round 1: Shogun comes forward swinging. He tries a leg kick. Te Huna comes in for a takedown, and Shogun tosses him to the side. Te Huna scrambles back to his feet, and covers up as Shogun swings on him. Te Huna misses a left hook but Shogun lands one of his own and Te Huna goes down, KO’d. He was stiff before he even hit the mat. Well damn, there goes my parlay. It was going so well, too.
Mauricio Rua def. James Te Huna via KO, 1:03 of round 1. Check out the GIF of the stoppage right here. Gnarly stuff. But is Shogun really “back”? Do we have to say that every time he wins a fight now?
They’re replaying Mizugaki vs. Phan from the prelims. I hear it was a good one. I’m just gonna enjoy it like a civilian.
This is a great fight, but I’m constantly checking my phone anyway. Blame it on my ADD.
Mark Hunt vs. Antonio Silva
All of Bigfoot’s cornermen are texting during the intros. Or Vine-ing. Or some shit. Just put away your damn phones, guys. Silva is booed. Hunt is carrying Oceania on his back right now; it hasn’t gone too well for the home team tonight. Hunt walked out shirtless and has absolutely no sponsors on his trunks.
Round 1: Silva makes first contact with a side-kick to the leg. He tries a front kick. And another side-kick to the leg. Dude thinks he’s Jon Jones or something. Hunt fires a punch over Bigfoot’s head. Silva slips to the mat but pops right back up. Front kick Silva. Hunt engages with a hard punch combo but Silva drops him with counter punches! Silva jumps on but Hunt scrambles to his feet. Leg kick from Hunt. Front kick to the body and a punch from Bigfoot. Leg kick Hunt. Hunt dashes in with a right straight. Silva grabs him against the fence. Hunt reverses him. Knee to the body from Bigfoot. then a body kick from Silva. There’s the bell. 10-9 Bigfoot.
Round 2: Hunt runs forward with punches, Bigfoot evades. Silva with a leg kick that knocks Hunt off balance. Silva clinches up, Hunt shakes out. Low leg kick from Silva. Bigfoot tries a spinning back kick that misses by a mile. Hook and a cross to the body from Hunt. Silva goes high with a kick. Hunt brushes Silva back with a hard right hand. Hunt with an inside leg kick. Sharp body kick from Hunt. Silva tries a front kick to the body. Hunt stalking Silva down. A leg kick from Silva wobbles Hunt, who’s clearly hurt. Hunt switches stance to avoid more damage. Hunt is limping around in southpaw. The bell gives him a moment to recover. 10-9 Bigfoot.
Round 3: Hunt comes out with some urgency, swinging hard. Hunt flies forward with a punch into a takedown. Silva tries to get up, Hunt drags him down, Silva gets to his feet again and stays there. Silva clinches, pushes Hunt against the fence. Hunt escapes, Silva throws a head kick at him. Hunt with an uppercut and right straight. Hunt clinches with Bigfoot against the cage. Silva works some knees. They separate, Hunt lands a right hand, and another one that flattens Bigfoot! Hunt gets on top and starts firing down short elbows. Hunt in half-guard. Silva stuck on his back, Hunt with steady GnP. Hunt raises up and drops some big elbows as the third round ends. We are indeed going to the championship rounds, and Hunt has regained momentum. 10-9 Hunt.
Round 4 (come on): Bigfoot ain’t done yet. He’s throwing kicks like the last round never happened. Hunt grabs him and pushes him against the fence. Bigfoot rolls out and starts attacking with punches. Hunt takes him to the mat. Hunt returns to the elbow show. Bigfoot gets to his feet and both men are slugging now. Oh baby, it’s a heavyweight fight. Bigfoot pushes Hunt against the fence and tees off with punches and knees. Hunt is exhausted. He tries for a takedown and falls on his face. Bigfoot gets on top, Hunt swinging at him from his back. Talk about a gamer. Hunt tries to roll out, and Silva gets full mount. It’s Donkey Kong time. Hunt’s forehead is split open from the abuse, but it looks like he’ll hang on to the bell, and he does. My God. Somehow, we are going to round five, and that’s a good thing. 10-9 Bigfoot.
Round 5 (WTF??): Hunt swings a right haymaker, and lands a stiff one on Bigfoot’s chin. Hunt still has a chance as long as he’s standing. Left hook lands from Hunt. Bigfoot tries for a takedown and doesn’t get it. Hunt lands a sharp standing elbow, and another hook, and a right. Bigfoot’s got a chin on him, but he’s completely gassed, and his face is covered in blood. Hunt backs Silva against the fence and tears him up with punches. The ref pauses the fight and brings the doctor in to clear Silva’s face. It’s a break for Bigfoot, and the crowd boos it. Bigfoot storms back, throwing punches, clinching, trying to stay in it. Silva lands four punches in succession, and Hunt returns the favor. Knee from Bigfoot. Holy shit, what a brawl. Pace slowing in the last minute, but both men still working, firing punches. Hunt stuffs a right hand into Bigfoot’s face as the round ends. Jesus. Hunt did all he could. Maybe he would have won if this was scheduled for seven rounds, but the scores here will likely be in Silva’s favor. Fantastic show of heart from both men.
Mark Hunt and Antonio Silva ends in a majority draw (47-47 x 2, 48-47 Hunt). Whoa…I had Bigfoot winning rounds 1, 2, and 4. But if there’s ever a fight that deserved a draw out of principle, this was it. Bigfoot tells the crowd he injured his back recently, and they rightfully boo him for it. But anyway, good God, what a fight, and for once, the draw actually feels satisfying. I loved it. What did you guys think? And should Hunt and Silva do an immediate rematch?