Many felt Amanda Nunes’ close split decision victory over Valentina Shevchenko in the main event of last night’s (Sat., September 9, 2017) UFC 215 from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, was a call that went the wrong way, and indeed one of the cageside judges agreed with that point of view. In a photo of the […]
Many felt Amanda Nunes’ close split decision victory over Valentina Shevchenko in the main event of last night’s (Sat., September 9, 2017) UFC 215 from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, was a call that went the wrong way, and indeed one of the cageside judges agreed with that point of view.
In a photo of the official scorecard from the Edmonton Commission obtained by MMA Fighting, Tony Weeks gave Shevchenko rounds 2, 3, and 5 for a 48-47 nod for the challenger, while Sal D’Amato and David Therjen scored it 48-47 for Nunes.
That sentiment was most likely persuaded by Nunes forward pressure and the fact that she got a takedown and ground control in the fifth round.
Do you think that was enough to earn Nunes a second title defense and a second win over Shevchenko?
Valentina Shevchenko believed she had done enough over the course of five rounds and 25 minutes to be declared the winner Saturday at UFC 215. And many others agreed. The judges, though, sitting Octagon-side were not those people, as they gave Amanda Nunes a split decision win in the main event from Edmonton. Nunes improved […]
Valentina Shevchenko believed she had done enough over the course of five rounds and 25 minutes to be declared the winner Saturday at UFC 215. And many others agreed. The judges, though, sitting Octagon-side were not those people, as they gave Amanda Nunes a split decision win in the main event from Edmonton. Nunes improved […]
Valentina Shevchenko believed she had done enough over the course of five rounds and 25 minutes to be declared the winner Saturday at UFC 215. And many others agreed. The judges, though, sitting Octagon-side were not those people, as they gave Amanda Nunes a split decision win in the main event from Edmonton. Nunes improved […]
Valentina Shevchenko believed she had done enough over the course of five rounds and 25 minutes to be declared the winner Saturday at UFC 215. And many others agreed. The judges, though, sitting Octagon-side were not those people, as they gave Amanda Nunes a split decision win in the main event from Edmonton. Nunes improved […]
It wasn’t pretty, but Amanda Nunes found a way to retain her UFC women’s bantamweight title over Valentina Shevchenko in the main event at UFC 215 on Saturday.
The Lioness successfully defended the strap by way of a split-decision victory over ri…
It wasn’t pretty, but Amanda Nunes found a way to retain her UFC women’s bantamweight title over Valentina Shevchenko in the main event at UFC 215 on Saturday.
The Lioness successfully defended the strap by way of a split-decision victory over rival Valentina Shevchenko. MMAjunkie provided the scores for the champion:
It was a main event light on action, but it still offered tension. The feeling-out process for both fighters—who fought each other in 2016—was a drawn-out affair that made the first two rounds difficult to score.
Regardless, the stats gave Shevchenko the advantage in total strikes landed, per Brett Okamoto of ESPN:
Stats obviously don’t tell the whole story. The fight is scored round by round, and Rounds 3 and 5 were also difficult to score with both fighters having their moments. Round 5 had a late takedown for the champion that could have been the deciding factor even if nothing was done with it.
Andreas Hale of Yahoo Sports sounded off on the impact it may have had on the scorecards:
It was a close bout that is sure to draw plenty of controversy. Given the history between the two, it’s likely that this isn’t the last time we will see them in the cage together.
The women’s championship fight wasn’t the only thing that happened at UFC 215. The card may have made headlines for losing Demetrious Johnson’s 11th title defense and Junior Dos Santos vs. Francis Ngannou, but those who did fight on the card delivered.
Here’s a glance at the quick results for the night along with a closer look at the main card bouts.
UFC 215 Quick Results
UFC 215 Main Card (10 p.m. ET)
Amanda Nunes vs. Valentina Shevchenko, split decision
Rafael dos Anjos def. Neil Magny, submission (Round 1, 3:43)
Henry Cejudo def. Wilson Reis, TKO (Round 2, 0:25)
Jeremy Stephens def. Gilbert Melendez, unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25)
Prelims on Fox Sports 1 (8 p.m. ET)
Ketlen Vieira def. Sara McMann, submission (Round 2, 4:16)
Sarah Moras def. Ashlee Evans-Smith, submission (Round 1, 2:51)
Rick Glenn def. Gavin Tucker, unanimous decision (30-25, 30-24, 29-27)
Alex White def. Mitch Clarke, TKO (Round 2, 4:36)
Prelims on UFC Fight Pass (7 p.m. ET)
Arjan Bhullar def. Luis Henrique, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Kajan Johnson def. Adriano Martins, knockout (Round 1, 0:49)
Rafael dos Anjos vs. Neil Magny
Rafael dos Anjos might just have a new home at 170 pounds. The former lightweight champion continued his campaign at welterweight with a first-round submission victory over Neil Magny in the co-main event.
Not only did Dos Anjos follow up his win over Tarec Saffiedine with a victory over a ranked opponent in Magny, but he made it look easy.
The Brazilian parlayed a failed kick by his opponent into a takedown where he established top position. It proved to be the beginning of the end. From there, RDA went to work transitioning with his slick grappling game to side control.
Dos Anjos then locked in an arm-triangle choke that drew the tap. Josh Gross of The Guardian broke down the finish:
Dos Anjos’ win comes at an opportunistic time. The welterweight division doesn’t have a clear-cut title contender, and RDA has the draw of being a former champion.
Patrick Wyman of the Washington Post already started breaking down the matchup between the former lightweight king and the welterweight titleholder:
Dos Anjos’ emergence is good news for a division that has been lackluster during the Tyron Woodley era.
Henry Cejudo vs. Wilson Reis
Henry Cejudo is an Olympic gold-medalist wrestler, but he didn’t need those skills to score a second-round TKO victory over Wilson Reis.
The usually dominant grappler switched things up against Reis, coming out in a karate stance. It wasn’t just window dressing, either. Cejudo peppered Reis with boxing combinations that flummoxed an overmatched Reis.
He eventually went back to his wrestling, scoring a takedown to end a dominant first round that MMA Fighting called the best of his career:
In the second frame, he went right back to work with his striking. A swift two-punch combination ended Reis’ night for good and gave Cejudo his most impressive performance.
Of course, the next question is whether Cejudo is ready to avenge his first-round loss to Demetrious Johnson. After the bout, he admitted it’s a question that’s crossed his mind:
Ilir Latifi vs. Tyson Pedro
There comes a time in every prospect’s career when they face a veteran who knows how to grind out a win. For Tyson Pedro, that time was this fight against Ilir Latifi.
Pedro came into the bout as a hot prospect in the light heavyweight division. His exciting size (6’3″ with a 79-inch reach) makes him someone to watch, but The Sledgehammer showed that Pedro isn’t ready for top-10 competition in the division.
Pedro had his moments, but Latifi used the clinch and his wrestling game to make Pedro work all night. It made it difficult for the Australian to create any space. Latifi even caused damage with his takedowns.
The result was two of three rounds where Latifi was the definite winner on volume and control of the fight alone.
For Latifi, this is a reminder that he is a tough out for anyone in the light heavyweight division. He’s a powerhouse wrestler and a capable striker.
This probably won’t be the last time we see Pedro in a fight between ranked opponents. The 25-year-old has improvements to make, but this was only his seventh professional fight.
Jeremy Stephens vs. Gilbert Melendez
Well-performed leg kicks can win a fight on their own.
Jeremy Stephens proved this maxim to be true in his dominant decision victory over Gilbert Melendez. The Lil Heathen went to work early on the lead leg of the former Strikeforce champion, and it paid off in a big way.
Even in the first round, the kicks were putting Melendez on his back:
Stephens—who is usually known for his boxing—had Melendez’s leg visibly damaged and swollen. The UFC provided a look at the battered leg.
With his opponent immobilized, he was able to continually open up. It was difficult to watch, but it was a masterful performance from the featherweight veteran.
For Melendez, this puts him in a scary spot on the UFC roster. He’s now lost four in a row. With his move down to the 145-pound division off to a rocky start, it’s tough to say what the organization will do with him next.
UFC 215 went down from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada tonight (Saturday, September 9, 2017), headlined by a women’s bantamweight title rematch between champ Amanda Nunes and Valentina Shevchenko. The bout was nip-and-tuck throughout, as the two women engaged in a closely contested kickboxing battle bereft of any huge moments. Nunes took the first […]
UFC 215 went down from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada tonight (Saturday, September 9, 2017), headlined by a women’s bantamweight title rematch between champ Amanda Nunes and Valentina Shevchenko. The bout was nip-and-tuck throughout, as the two women engaged in a closely contested kickboxing battle bereft of any huge moments. Nunes took the first and fifth rounds on most scorecards, the latter behind a well-timed takedown after not shooting since the first. The challenger had her best round in the fourth, where she piled up the points as Nunes seemed to finally fade as many predicted. The second and third were extremely close. In the end, the belt stayed around Nunes’ waist via split decision.
After multiple main card fights fell out in the days and weeks leading up to fight night, the welterweight clash between former lightweight king Rafael dos Anjos and workhorse Neil Magny became the co-main event. RDA announced his presense to the rest of the welterweight top ten by submitting Magny with an arm-triangle in the very first round after systematically cutting through his guard.
See how MMA Twitter reacted to these exciting clashes below:
The Amanda Nunes era of women’s bantamweight MMA continued at UFC 215 on Saturday. The Lioness defended her belt against bitter rival Valentina Shevchenko, winning by split decision in the main event at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
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The Amanda Nunes era of women’s bantamweight MMA continued at UFC 215 on Saturday. The Lioness defended her belt against bitter rival Valentina Shevchenko, winning by split decision in the main event at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting tweeted the scores for the champion:
The fight got off to an inauspicious beginning. Nunes—who is known for her fast, furious starts—slow-played the first frame, preferring to pick her battles. Shevchenko wasn’t willing to oblige, and a staring contest with light leg kicks ensued for the first few minutes.
Ben Fowlkes of MMAjunkie provided a good summary of the round:
The second frame once again slowed to a snail’s pace. Neither fighter was willing to let her hands go, but Shevchenko was able to sneak in shots that made impact. Patrick Wyman of the Washington Post noted that the slow pace favored the challenger:
The third round was difficult to score as both fighters had moments but neither landed anything that significantly changed the bout. Josh Gross of The Guardian gave the round to Nunes:
The fourth round was the best one to that point for Shevchenko. With Nunes’ timing and distance figured out, the challenger was able to land clean counters that made the fourth frame hers. The UFC passed along the highlight of the best punch from the round:
In a pivotal fifth round, Nunes looked to score takedowns early. While Bullet fended them off, she made a crucial mistake by going for a head-and-arm throw that allowed Nunes to take Shevchenko’s back. Although the challenger eventually worked her way to the feet, Nunes was then able to score the takedown and finish the round on top.
E. Spencer Kyte of The Province expressed the frustration with Shevchenko’s ill-fated throw attempt:
The final takedown was likely what convinced two judges to give the fight to the defending champion. After the bout, Shevchenko voiced her displeasure with the close decision, per Helwani:
The win closes the book for now on a rivalry that goes back to when the two combatants first met at UFC 196. Nunes’ unanimous-decision victory set her up for a championship win over Miesha Tate, and she hasn’t looked back.
Nunes went on to cement her standing as the No. 1 women’s bantamweight by demolishing Ronda Rousey in the first round in her title defense.
Still, Shevchenko was the most recent challenger to come close to dethroning the champion. Nunes dominated the first round and won the second before Shevchenko took over the fight in the third.
Things heated up between the two when Nunes pulled out of the first attempt at their rematch at UFC 213. The champion withdrew hours before the fight due to sinusitis.
Shevchenko didn’t buy the story and went to Instagram to say she believed it all came down to a bad weight cut for Nunes:
Whatever the reason for the withdrawal, she was ready at UFC 215. The champion silenced the challenger; now the question becomes: How long will she hold on to the belt?
While Rousey was the face of the organization when she was champion, Nunes doesn’t expect the same treatment.
“I honestly don’t care in this moment,” Nunes said, per Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports. “If they want to promote me, make me a focus, cool. That’s good for both of us and there would be more money for me, of course. But if no, if they don’t want to promote me, that’s cool, too. I have money. I made more money than I ever thought.”
That money will likely keep rolling in if she continues to win. With Rousey not officially retired yet and names such as Holly Holm and Cris “Cyborg” Justino just one weight class away, there will be plenty of opportunities for the champion to get big fights.
It wasn’t pretty, but Amanda Nunes found a way to retain her UFC women’s bantamweight title over Valentina Shevchenko in the main event at UFC 215 on Saturday.