Rising featherweight sensation Yair Rodriguez was looking to make a splash when he met fellow prospect Andre Fili on the main card of last night’s (Sat., April 23, 2016) UFC 197 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and he certainly did. The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Latin America winner opened up with his
Rising featherweight sensation Yair Rodriguez was looking to make a splash when he met fellow prospect Andre Fili on the main card of last night’s (Sat., April 23, 2016) UFC 197 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and he certainly did.
The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Latin America winner opened up with his trademark flashy style early and often, and even though Team Alpha Male member Fili was a game competitor, he had absolutely nothing for “El Pantera” when he opened up with a vicious flying roundhouse kick to knock “Touchy” out cold to win a well-deserved $50,000 bonus and one of the more emphatic finishes we’ve ever seen in the Octagon.
Watch the video highlights of Rodriguez’s latest — and greatest — win below:
Peerless UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson picked up one of his most scintillating finishes in the Octagon when he finished top contender Henry Cejudo in the co-main event of last night’s (Sat., April 23, 2016) UFC 197 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and not surprisingly, he took home one of the
Peerless UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson picked up one of his most scintillating finishes in the Octagon when he finished top contender Henry Cejudo in the co-main event of last night’s (Sat., April 23, 2016) UFC 197 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, and not surprisingly, he took home one of the card’s $50,000 “Performance of the Night” bonuses for his efforts.
It was much deserved, as was the second “Performance of the Night” bonus, which went to Mexican featherweight striking sensation Yair Rodriguez, who blasted Andre Fili with an absolutely monstrous flying roundhouse kick to score one of the most exciting knockouts in UFC history.
Finally, “Fight of the Night” went to Danny Roberts vs. Dominique Steele on the FOX Sports 1 preliminary section of the card, which Roberts won by close decision after an absolutely grueling back-and-forth affair.
Two “new generation” featherweights opened the main card of UFC 197 in Las Vegas. The two 145-pound bruisers were Yair Rodriguez (7-1) and Andre Fili (15-4). “Pantera” extended his winning streak to five in spectacular fashion. Rodriguez started with a thudding right leg kick. “Pantera” got hit with a punch on the jaw. Rodriguez caught
Two “new generation” featherweights opened the main card of UFC 197 in Las Vegas. The two 145-pound bruisers were Yair Rodriguez (7-1) and Andre Fili (15-4).
“Pantera” extended his winning streak to five in spectacular fashion.
Rodriguez started with a thudding right leg kick. “Pantera” got hit with a punch on the jaw. Rodriguez caught a kick and took “Touchy” down. Rodriguez landed some big hammerfists, but got hit with an axe kick. Rodriguez moved to side control. Fili scrambled and was able to push his opponent off. “Pantera” ran into a left hook. The round ended with Fili getting a takedown, but Rodriguez was back on his feet quickly.
Rodriguez threw a wild jumping kick that caught air at the start of round two. “Pantera” ducked under and scored a takedown. The fight returned standing and Rodriguez knocked out Fili with a jumping roundhouse kick.
Final Result: Yair Rodriguez def. Andre Fili via KO (Jumping Roundhouse Kick) – R2, 2:15
Round-by-round results from the UFC 172 pay-per-view broadcast will be available after the jump beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section or on twitter @cagepotatomma.
(“No disrespect to Glover, he’s a great challenger. I just think making eye-contact with other men is super-gay.” / Photo via Getty)
Round-by-round results from the UFC 172 pay-per-view broadcast will be available after the jump beginning at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section or on twitter @cagepotatomma.
UFC 172 Preliminary Card Results
– Joseph Benavidez def. Tim Elliott via submission (“joa constrictor” guillotine choke), 4:08 of round 1
– Takanori Gomi def. Isaac Vallie-Flagg via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
I know Fili is supposed to be a hot prospect, but he’s got gauged-out ears and he walked out to Mumford & Sons, so screw him. Hollaway comes out to some folk-rock as well. What the hell is happening here? It’s the first fight on the pay-per-view, guys. You’re supposed to be RIPPIN’ IT INTO PIECES!
Round 1: Fili throws out some fast jabs. Hollaway lands a sharp counter punch. Leg kick Fili. Hollaway lands a spinning back kick to the body. Inside leg kick Fili. They trade long punches. An outside leg kick from Fili. Hollaway fires the spinning back kick again. Fili lands a punch and Hollaway looks briefly rattled. Jab from Fili, and a high kick. Fili digs in with a body hook. Jab and a leg kick from Fili. Hollaway lands a cross. Fili storms back with punches of his own. Hollaway throws the spinning back kick again. Right hand from Hollaway, and another. Hard leg kick from Fili, who follows it up with a takedown, but Hollaway pops right back up. And lands a knee on Fili. Body kick from Fili, Hollaway catches it and storms forward, punching. They clinch against the fence. Elbow from Hollaway. Knee to the body from Fili. That’s the round. I give it to Fili 10-9. “EXCELLENT WORK MOTHERFUCKER,” Bang Ludwig says.
Round 2: Hollaway lands a high front kick. Hollaway lands the spinning back kick again and lands it hard to the liver. Fili is hurt. Hollaway clinches, lands a knee. Fili shakes out. Fili with a leg kick, Hollaway returns a straight right. Fili attempts a flying armbar and gets nothing. Hollaway lets him up. Right hand from Hollaway. Good jabs from Hollaway. Fili lands a body kick. Joe Rogan is marking out over Hollaway’s spinning back kicks, obviously. Fili blasts forward and scores a takedown. Kevin Mulhall stands them up almost immediately and the crowd boos. God bless this crowd…they want *less* standing-and-banging. Hollaway with that spinning kick again. Fili shoots and Hollaway defends. Good knees from Hollaway from the clinch. The round ends. I’d say Hollaway edged it out, 10-9.
Round 3: Hollaway pops the right straight. He jabs, fires an uppercut. Fili fires a high kick, tries for a takedown but is shucked off. Hollaway tries his spinning back kick but it’s a miss. Fili shoots and successfully puts Hollaway on his back. Hollaway quickly works to his feet. Hollaway lands his right hand again. Hollaway lands a jab. Hollaway grabs Fili by the neck and drags him down. Fili gets up. Hollaway swarms with punches and Fili is hurt, on his heels. Fili goes low for a desperation takedown and Hollaway locks up a savage guillotine choke. Fili taps. And taps. Eventually, Mulhall sees it.
Max Hollaway def. Andre Fili via submission (guillotine choke), 3:39 of round 3.
Jim Miller vs. Yancy Medeiros
Round 1: Medeiros opens with some front kicks. Miller fires some punches but he’s having trouble getting close to the rangy Medeiros. Medeiros keeps working that front kick, with some punches after it. Miller lands a brutal body shot and Medeiros looks momentarily stunned, but then waves Miller forward. Miller clinches, flips Medeiros to the mat and sets up a guillotine choke. Miller cranks and cranks and cranks and cranks and cranks and cranks and cranks…my God, Medeiros is doing his best to hang on, but finally he starts to tap as he passes out. Kudos to Miller for staying on it.
Jim Miller def. Yancy Medeiros via submission (guillotine choke), 3:18 of round 1. Miller has apparently tied Gleison Tibau for the most wins in UFC lightweight history (13).
Luke Rockhold vs. Tim Boetsch
Round 1: Boetsch opens with a body kick. Boetsch shoots in, Rockhold defends and sets up an inverted triangle from the top, on Boetsch’s back. Rockhold goes for Boetsch’s arm and cranks a kimura. Boetsch taps. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a guy finish an armlock from that kind of position. Lemme go find a GIF…
Luke Rockhold def. Tim Boetsch via submission (kimura), 2:08 of round 1. Rockhold says he wants to earn his way to a title shot, starting with a rematch against Vitor Belfort (!). But of course, a fight against Michael Bisping would be nice too.
Round 1: Davis staying on the outside, testing range with front kicks. Johnson dashes in, they clinch for a moment and break. Johnson lands two big right hands. Johnson catches Davis again with an uppercut as Mr. Wonderful shoots in. Davis lands a body kick but Johnson lands a big looping counter-punch in return. Johnson swarms and knocks Davis to the mat. Johnson follows and bashes down with punches. Davis somehow escapes with his life. Davis lands a high kick. Heavy jab from Johnson backs Davis up. Davis fires the high kick again. The round ends. Easy 10-9 for Johnson. Davis’s face is already shredded and bleeding.
Round 2: Leg kick from Johnson. Jab from Johnson, and an overhand right that whiffs. Davis jabbing. Davis dancing around, trying to bait Johnson into…something. Johnson with a big head kick. He stuffs a takedown from Davis. Uppercut from Johnson. 1-2 and a high kick from Johnson. Johnson still throwing with bad intentions deep into round 2. Davis with a superman punch and a pair of body kicks. Davis throws a high kick and gets blasted dead in the face with an uppercut in return. High kick Davis, and a body kick followed by a takedown attempt, but Johnson shimmys right out of it. Davis is 0-5 on takedowns so far. There’s the horn. 10-9 Johnson.
Round 3: Johnson with a straight right to the body. Davis sticking-and-moving, minus the sticking. Johnson backing Davis up with punches. Davis shoots, Johnson defends easily. Davis fires the high kick. He fires a right hand and quickly ducks under for a takedown attempt but doesn’t get it. Johnson escapes, lands a hard leg kick. More punches and another takedown-stuff from Johnson. Good oblique kick to the body from Johnson. Davis throws a high kick that sails over Johnson’s head. Davis shoots, Johnson throws him off and Davis has to run out of danger. Davis grabs a single-leg and tries to yank Johnson down, but no dice. Both guys slugging at each other in the last 20 seconds. They clinch, and Davis looks for a kimura in the closing seconds. Too little, too late.
Anthony Johnson def. Phil Davis via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3). “BALTIMORE WAT’S UP BAYBEE!!!” [*crowd roars*] Finally, somebody gives it up to B-More. Then, Johnson thanks God, and on the other side of the Good/Evil spectrum, he thanks Dana for “changing me.” It’s a great moment. Anthony Johnson might have the greatest redemption story in MMA going right now.
Jon Jones vs. Glover Teixeira
The crowd loves Jon Jones and boos Teixeira. Good to see Bones get some love, finally.
Round 1: Jones with a switch kick to the body. Teixeira wading into the pocket and throwing power punches. Jones shoots from long range and Teixeira defends. Jones jabs. Teixeria with a right hand. He catches a kick from Jones and pushes him against the fence. Jones rolls out. Teixeira landing some hard punches. Jones with a high kick. Teixeira is poked in the eye, and steps out for a moment. Kick to the shin from Jones. Jones catches a kick and takes Teixeira down, but Teixeira quickly escapes. Jab from Jones. Spinning back kick from Jones lands to Teixeira’s ribs. Teixeira chases Jones winging punches, but Jones avoids. Jones with a high kick at the bell. Close round.
Round 2: Jones immediately shoots, and Teixeira sprawls out and escapes. Jones with kicks high and low. Straight left from Jones stings Teixeira. Punches and a front kick from Jones. Jones tries an axe kick, followed by an oblique kick. Jones palms Teixeira’s forehead and holds him back, like a mean older brother. Then he very clearly sticks his fingers in Teixeira’s eyes. Referee Dan Miragliotta gives Jones a warning. (Or *another* warning, really.) Teixeira bombs out on Jones. Jones lands a straight left and an elbow. Another elbow from Jones. And a left hook. Oblique kick to the shin from Jones. Oblique kick, spinning back kick and punches from Jones, and then a shoulder-check against the fence. Jones tries a spinning kick that misses, and Teixeira shoots in at the bell. 10-9 Jones.
Round 3: Jones grabs a headlock when Teixeira rushes in and throws in a knee. Teixeira pulls out. Jones punishing Teixeira with kicks. He lands an uppercut and says a few words to Teixeira. They clinch against the fence, and Teixeira lands a pair of powerful uppercuts. They’re against the fence again, and Jones scores with elbows in tight. Teixeira responding with uppercuts, but Jones is getting the better of this position. Jones with a great pair of hooks on the exit. Teixeira’s face is opened up. Jones bombing out from long range with punches and a kick. Jones with a great body shot and uppercut on Teixeira, whose back is against the fence. Jones with an elbow, Teixeira does his best to fight back, but again, Jones is very much in control. 10-9 Jones. The replay shows that Jones knocked Teixeira’s mouthpiece straight out of his mouth at one point.
Round 4: Jones still doing that thing where he palms Teixeira’s skull. He whiffs on a spinning backfist against the fence. Jones grabs Teixeira’s wrists as he backs the Brazilian against the fence. Teixeira throws a knee up the middle. Teixeira firing back with punches. He loses his mouthpiece again after eating a jab. They rinse it off, and the fight resumes. Body kick from Jones. Inside leg kick from Jones. Lead elbow from Jones lands. Hard side kick to the thigh from Teixeira, followed by an elbow. Jones’s variety of striking is totally overwhelming Teixeira. Spinning elbow from Jones. Jones with an uppercut and an elbow as Teixeira is backed up to the cage. Jones shoots and gets a takedown, and starts firing down punches as the round ends. 10-9 for the champ.
Round 5: Jones scores a takedown, Glover pops up. Jones with some long hooks that land. Jones is beating the tar out of Teixeira against the fence, and Teixeira loses his mouthpiece again. More hooks. An upward elbow from Jones. Teixeira lands an uppercut. Another upward elbow from Jones. Teixeira wobbles away. Jones presses Teixeira against the fence again, and they trade punches. Teixeira rolls out, takes the center of the cage. Jones dances out of range for the last 30 seconds, riding the clock out. There’s the final horn.
Jon Jones def. Glover Teixeira via unanimous decision (50-45 x 3).
Jones says most of his game-plan was improvised. Once he saw Teixeira winding up on his punches and realized that Teixeira was at a disadvantage in hand-fighting, Jones decided to make it a close-range fight and jam Teixeira up against the fence as much as possible. Jones now has more wins than anybody else in UFC light-heavyweight history (14). (Correction:Tito Ortiz earned 15 wins in the UFC, but obviously, they’re not counting him.)
Teixeira says a kick from Jones in the first round jacked up his shoulder and he might have also broken a rib. Dude got chewed up. But hey, we all saw that coming, right?
With UFC 166 being a 13-fight card, it wouldn’t be hard for some of this weekend’s storylines to fly under the radar. In fact, this card is so deep that I honestly think I could find 20 hidden storylines in it if I really wanted to. But instead I’ll just run down what I think are the top four hidden storylines to be aware of while watching the fights. Let me know what you think in the comments section, and be sure to come back to CagePotato on Saturday night for our liveblog of the pay-per-view broadcast.
There has never been a four- or five-fight series in UFC history, but it’s entirely possible that Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos will meet once or twice more after this weekend’s rubber-match at UFC 166, particularly if dos Santos wins the title back.
Let’s face it, the heavyweight talent pool in MMA is very shallow, and Velasquez and dos Santos are the cream of the crop. They are truly the only two heavyweights in the UFC without any discernable weaknesses, and with their ability to consistently produce exciting matches (particularly against one another), the UFC would have no problem having these guys fight again in the future. The fact that both fighters have broad appeal in two huge markets (Velasquez in Mexico, dos Santos in Brazil) certainly helps as well. A four-fight series would make history, and you’d better believe the UFC would hammer home that point in promoting it.
But it really comes down to how the third fight goes. If it’s a blowout for either guy, a fourth fight won’t be as intriguing, and would be unlikely to happen. But if it’s a competitive war that makes the fans go nuts, we can all look forward to Velasquez vs. Dos Santos IV. And soon.
2) Did Daniel Cormier Make a Mistake by Prematurely Announcing a Drop to 205?
(Cain Velasquez shoots in on teammate Daniel Cormier at yesterday’s open workouts in Houston. / Photo via MMAFighting)
With UFC 166 being a 13-fight card, it wouldn’t be hard for some of this weekend’s storylines to fly under the radar. In fact, this card is so deep that I honestly think I could find 20 hidden storylines in it if I really wanted to. But instead I’ll just run down what I think are the top four hidden storylines to be aware of while watching the fights. Let me know what you think in the comments section, and be sure to come back to CagePotato on Saturday night for our liveblog of the pay-per-view broadcast.
There has never been a four- or five-fight series in UFC history, but it’s entirely possible that Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos will meet once or twice more after this weekend’s rubber-match at UFC 166, particularly if dos Santos wins the title back.
Let’s face it, the heavyweight talent pool in MMA is very shallow, and Velasquez and dos Santos are the cream of the crop. They are truly the only two heavyweights in the UFC without any discernable weaknesses, and with their ability to consistently produce exciting matches (particularly against one another), the UFC would have no problem having these guys fight again in the future. The fact that both fighters have broad appeal in two huge markets (Velasquez in Mexico, dos Santos in Brazil) certainly helps as well. A four-fight series would make history, and you’d better believe the UFC would hammer home that point in promoting it.
But it really comes down to how the third fight goes. If it’s a blowout for either guy, a fourth fight won’t be as intriguing, and would be unlikely to happen. But if it’s a competitive war that makes the fans go nuts, we can all look forward to Velasquez vs. Dos Santos IV. And soon.
2) Did Daniel Cormier Make a Mistake by Prematurely Announcing a Drop to 205?
Despite being 34 years old, Daniel Cormier is considered the top heavyweight prospect on the planet and this weekend puts his undefeated 12-0 record on the line against veteran Roy Nelson in the co-main event of UFC 166.
Although Nelson is coming off a loss to Stipe Miocic, he’s still regarded as one of the top-10 heavyweights in the world by many, and a win over the popular “Big Country” — especially a knockout — would be huge for Cormier in the eyes of the fans, giving him the big win he needs to get a UFC title shot.
The problem is, there are two fighters blocking Cormier’s path to an immediate light heavyweight title shot against Jones: Glover Teixeira and Alexander Gustafsson. Teixeira has already been confirmed as Jones’ next challenger – the two will fight in early 2014 – while Gustafsson has been told he will get a rematch with Jones next summer if he wins his next fight.
That means that Cormier would have to wait at least a year to get a crack at the 205-pound belt, and it means he would have to fight other top fighters like Phil Davis and Rashad Evans in the meantime; a loss, of course, would eliminate him from title contention.
I understand that Cormier is Cain Velasquez’s friend and main training partner, but there’s no guarantee that Velasquez will defend the UFC heavyweight championship against Junior dos Santos. If Velasquez loses and dos Santos becomes the champ, then a fight between JDS and Cormier would be the most marketable option, and there would be no one potentially blocking Cormier’s path to an immediate heavyweight title shot (other than Fabricio Werdum, who dos Santos has already KO’d).
At the very least, Cormier should have waited until UFC 166 was over before announcing his move down to 205.
One of the top preliminary fights on the UFC 166 card is a welterweight matchup between former top-10 middleweights Nate Marquardt and Hector Lombard. Yes, that’s right, this is a preliminary fight despite the fact both of these fighters were champions of other organizations in the last two years — Marquardt with Strikeforce and Lombard with Bellator — which says a lot to me about where both these guys stand in the eyes of Dana White, Joe Silva & Co.
In fact, I think both guys have been matched up against one another because the UFC wants to cut their losses with the loser. After all, both guys might be awesome fighters but they cost a lot — Marquardt at over 40k to show/40k to win, and Lombard gobbling up a 300k base salary. And, despite both being exciting fighters, let’s be honest, neither is a huge draw at the gate.
Therefore the return on investment isn’t there, and that’s why I think the UFC will part ways with whoever loses this match. And the fact that neither have been winning much as of late — with Marquardt on a two-fight losing streak and Lombard 1-2 in his last three — certainly doesn’t help the loser’s chances of sticking around.
4) Will Andre Fili Be the Next Great Team Alpha Male Fighter in the UFC?
In one of the Facebook prelims, featherweight prospect Andre Fili makes his UFC debut when he takes on Jeremy Larsen. Fili took the fight on only 12 days’ notice after Charles Oliveira pulled out of the Larsen matchup with an injury, but knowing the conditioning that the Team Alpha Male fighters put themselves through, I think he’ll be in good shape for this fight.
I mention his camp because one of the storylines the UFC has been selling as of late has been the recent success of the Sacramento-based Team Alpha Male. With fighters like Urijah Faber, Joseph Benavidez, Chad Mendes, and TJ Dillashaw having tremendous success in the Octagon — especially ever since Duane Ludwig took over as head coach — I’m super excited any time of their better prospects is put in the spotlight, and Fili is a guy who has been highly touted for a long time.
Only 23 and already carrying a 12-1 pro MMA record under his belt (the only loss coming via injury TKO), not to mention having one of the best nicknames in the sport (“Touchy”), Fili has a very bright future in this sport and it says a lot to me about how matchmaker Sean Shelby views him that the UFC signed him before they did his more famous and decorated teammate Lance Palmer. So definitely check this fight out if you get a chance to watch the Facebook prelims.
