In the co-main event of last night’s UFC 207 pay-per-view (PPV) event, longtime UFC bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz would defend his title against challenger Cody ‘No Love’ Garbrandt in a thrilling five round contest. The first round showed Garbrandt step up to the plate in a big way, as he showed off some impressive movement
In the co-main event of last night’s UFC 207 pay-per-view (PPV) event, longtime UFC bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz would defend his title against challenger Cody ‘No Love’ Garbrandt in a thrilling five round contest.
The first round showed Garbrandt step up to the plate in a big way, as he showed off some impressive movement abilities of his own, while landing some good shots on Cruz that had the champion noticeably flustered. ‘No Love’ would do a bit of taunting and trash-talking throughout the round as well, winning the first five minutes of the contest rather decisively.
In the second round Cruz picked up the pace and was able to retaliate with a few good shots of his own and continue his legendary movement to edge Garbrandt for the second round.
Throughout the course of the next three rounds, however, Garbrandt was able to knock down Cruz a number of times and cut him above the eye before out-classing ‘The Dominator’ in stunning fashion for the remainder of the bout’s progression.
You can check out the full fight video highlights here:
UFC 207 went down from the T-Mobile Arena tonight (Friday, December 30, 2016) in the fight capital of the world, Las Vegas, Nevada. The event marked the return of Ronda Rousey, fighting for the first time in 13 months. She took on new champion Amanda Nunes, making her first defense of the title. It was
UFC 207 went down from the T-Mobile Arena tonight (Friday, December 30, 2016) in the fight capital of the world, Las Vegas, Nevada. The event marked the return of Ronda Rousey, fighting for the first time in 13 months. She took on new champion Amanda Nunes, making her first defense of the title. It was an epic beatdown. Nunes beat the former champion from pillar to post from the very beginning. It was all over for Rousey in just 48 seconds, perhaps bringing her MMA career to a gruesome and uncermonious end.
The co-main event featured the men’s bantamweight championship, with Dominick Cruz defending against Cody “No Love” Garbrandt. Garbrandt put on a stellar performance in taking the title from Cruz by unanimous decision. Two close rounds gave way to two lop-sided ones for the challenger. Garbrandt knocked Cruz down three times in the fourth round to take a decisive lead on the scorecards, and the belt in the process.
See how Twitter reacted to these mind-blowing fights below:
Definitely. Cruz lost that fight by deciding that he should be the one to come forward. Or rather, Garbrandt won by convincing him to do so. https://t.co/WuG4mKkNia
Dominick Cruz thought he had Cody Garbrandt beat before the two men even stepped in the cage at UFC 207.
Stunningly, however, it was Garbrandt who turned out to have all the answers once the talking stopped and the fight started Friday. The 25-year-old…
Dominick Cruz thought he had Cody Garbrandt beat before the two men even stepped in the cage at UFC 207.
Stunningly, however, it was Garbrandt who turned out to have all the answers once the talking stopped and the fight started Friday. The 25-year-old challenger battered Cruz from start to finish in their co-main event bout, eventually taking the UFC men’s bantamweight title via unanimous decision [48-46, 48-47, 48-46].
For Garbrandt, it was both a breakthrough victory in his undefeated career and a cathartic moment. He and Cruz had exchanged bitter trash talk leading up to the fight, and the consensus among fans and media was that the champion had dominated the exchanges.
Two days before the fight, Cruz’s verbal needling even forced Garbrandt to storm out of a televised interview between the two. At that moment, it appeared Cruz had mentally broken the young Team Alpha Male fighter before the first punch was thrown.
But to the surprise of nearly everyone, Garbrandt looked cool and collected on fight night. After their clash was over and the belt was in his hands, he said the emotionally charged lead-up hadn’t bothered him in the slightest.
“I thrive in that environment,” Garbrandt told UFC color commentator Joe Rogan in the cage. “That’s what I grew up in—fighting. I don’t know nothing else but fighting. Hats off to Dominick and his team for making me a better person and a better fighter tonight. He’s tough as hell.”
Despite Cruz’s overwhelming confidence, it was clear early on that this was going to be a different kind of scrap than he expected. Garbrandt’s power had been well-documented as he amassed a 10-0 overall record (5-0 in the UFC), but perhaps the most astonishing thing was how polished the rest of his game looked as well.
Not only did Garbrandt hit harder than Cruz, he looked plenty slick and technical too. His footwork was nearly flawless and his hand speed quick enough that he was able to get the better of Cruz during the lion’s share of the punching exchanges.
He also stuffed most of the champion’s takedown attempts and nicked away at him with kicks to the legs and body.
Garbrandt set the tone early. As a troubling number of his punches began to land during the first round, he taunted Cruz by pulling off a few mid-fight dance moves.
As the fight wore on, Garbrandt kept it up. He continually pointed to the center of the cage and invited the notoriously mobile Cruz to meet him there. Garbrandt hung his hands low, waggled a finger at Cruz or shook his head when the champion’s strikes missed and even once dropped down into a push-up position in the middle of the action.
This would have been extraordinary behavior for any young fighter in a pay-per-view title match, but it was doubly so considering his opponent. To this point in his career, Cruz had been a puzzle no one in the Octagon could figure out.
During six previous title fights in the WEC/UFC, Cruz had befuddled his foes with his herky-jerky unorthodox style. He was used to leading the dance, beating opponents both mentally and physically, so as this fight wore on the realization that Garbrandt was getting the better of it may have been as shocking to Cruz as anyone else.
After two relatively close rounds, Garbrandt fully seized control in the third. In that stanza he stunned Cruz with an early punch, his heavier shots beginning to take a noticeable toll as he avoided most of Cruz’s normally effective counters.
The onslaught continued in the fourth, when Garbrandt dropped Cruz as many as three times over the course of five minutes. There were times when it seemed Garbrandt might be able to finish the fight, and others when it appeared as though his continual taunting of Cruz may have cost him the opportunity.
Case-in-point: When it momentarily looked as though Cruz had been knocked out by a particularly hard punch in the fourth, Garbrandt stopped to point and laugh at him instead of following up with fight-ending strikes.
Cruz used the short pause to recover, though he was never able to dictate the tenor of the action, as he had in previous UFC appearances.
For the first time, the 31-year-old Cruz, who had seen his career slowed by a string of injuries in recent years, did not have the speed or the agility to keep up with his younger opponent.
As Bleacher Report’s Patrick Wyman noted on Twitter:
Also working against Cruz was a nasty gash in his left eyebrow suffered during an unintentional clash of heads during the third round. He spent the rest of the fight with blood streaming down the side of his face, but he never faded.
The final round, in fact, was arguably Cruz’s best of the fight. Perhaps sensing the urgency of the moment, be began to pressure Garbrandt. Cruz landed a fair amount of his swarming punches, but Garbrandt weathered them.
The effort turned out to be too little, too late once the official scores were read.
Afterward, the two fighters appear at least momentarily able to bury the hatchet on their feud. They shared a hug and a few words, and then Garbrandt quickly turned his attention to the man who might be his first title challenger—former champion TJ Dillashaw.
Earlier in the night at UFC 207, Dillashaw dismantled John Lineker in a bout between the No. 1 and No. 2 bantamweight contenders in the UFC. Dillashaw—who lost his belt to Cruz in January 2016—schooled the heavy-handed Lineker with mobility and takedowns over the course of their three-round fight.
After his unanimous-decision victory was announced, Dillashaw made it clear what’s next on his wish list.
“I want my belt,” he told Rogan in the cage. “That’s my belt.”
He may get the chance to try to prove it in the near future.
For now, though, this was Garbrandt’s night.
After a tough and emotional fight week ruled by Cruz, Garbrandt was finally at his best when his best was needed.
The co-main event of UFC 207 was a bantamweight title match between title holder Dominick Cruz (22-2) and Cody Garbrandt (11-0). The heated words and confrontations finally led to the championship bout inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. In the most complete performance of his career, “No Love” walked out of Las Vegas with
The co-main event of UFC 207 was a bantamweight title match between title holder Dominick Cruz (22-2) and Cody Garbrandt (11-0). The heated words and confrontations finally led to the championship bout inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
In the most complete performance of his career, “No Love” walked out of Las Vegas with gold.
Cruz landed a right hand early and sway out of the way of a punch. Garbrandt poked fun at poked fun at the champ by dancing. “No Love” missed a head kick. Garbrandt landed a left hand as Cruz backed up. The challenger swarmed, but “The Dominator” evaded all the strikes. A leg kick connected for Cruz. Cruz caught a kick, but couldn’t take advantage.
“No Love continued to mock Cruz. The champ took him down, but Garbrandt scrambled out quickly. Garbrandt landed a right hand, but Cruz answered with a jab and a left hand. The challenger landed his own takedown, but Cruz got up quickly. The round ended and Garbrandt had some success early.
Cruz blocked a head kick at the start of the second round. A combination from the champion landed. Cruz clipped Garbrandt, who had thrown some stiff punches prior. A counter right hand landed for the challenger. A knee to the body found the mark for Cruz. The challenger landed a left hook. A kick to the body landed for “No Love.” A counter right hand connected for Cruz. The round ended shortly after.
Garbrandt tagged Cruz with a left hand early in the third frame. A cut formed above the left eye of the champion. The cut was the result of an accidental headbutt. The challenger talked trash and mocked Cruz after hitting him with a right hand. “No Love” swarmed in and landed a right hand. The challenger landed a punch that looked to drop the champion. Cruz was back on his heels quickly. “No Love” avoided a takedown. The round ended and it was clearly in favor of the challenger.
The fourth round began and Cruz threw some hard kicks. Garbrandt’s high kick was blocked. They exchanged strikes and the challenger dropped Cruz. The champ was back up and it looked as if Garbrandt let him off the hook. Cruz threw a sloppy lunging punch. “No Love” dropped Cruz again. The round ended and it was abundantly clear, the champion needed a finish to retain his gold
Garbrandt kept mocking his opponent into the final round. Cruz put together some strikes and kicks. “No Love” missed a spinning backfist. Cruz went for his own backfist that also missed. This was easily Cruz’s best round since the second up to this point. The challenger pressed his opponent against the fence. A knee to the body on the break was there for “No Love.” The final horn sounded and both men embraced.
All three judges scored the fight for Garbrandt, and he was awarded the bantamweight championship.
Final Result: Cody Garbrandt def. Dominick Cruz via unanimous decision (48-46, 48-47, 48-46)
UFC 207 is here, and the return of Ronda Rousey is upon us.
The former UFC bantamweight champion returns after more than a year away following her knockout loss to Holly Holm. In her absence, Amanda Nunes surged toward the gold and stands atop the divi…
UFC 207 is here, and the return of Ronda Rousey is upon us.
The former UFC bantamweight champion returns after more than a year away following her knockout loss to Holly Holm. In her absence, Amanda Nunes surged toward the gold and stands atop the division Rousey once dominated.
The co-main event features the men’s bantamweight championship on the line as well. Dominick Cruz defends against Cody Garbrandt. The two have much animosity between them, which adds a little spice to the contest.
Bleacher Report will be on the call all night long. The action begins at 7:30 p.m. ET. Check back for full coverage.
UFC 207 Main Card (PPV, 10 p.m. ET)
UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship: Amanda Nunes vs. Ronda Rousey
UFC Men’s Bantamweight Championship: Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt
Ahead of tonight’s UFC 207: Nunes vs. Rousey pay-per-view in Las Vegas, Nevada, Joe Rogan returns with his “Breakdown” video for the co-main event of the evening.
Featured above is the longtime UFC announcer’s analysis of tonight’s UFC Men’s Bantamweight Championship main event between current champion Dominick Cruz and dangerous knockout artist Cody “No Love” Garbrandt.
Join us here later this evening for live round-by-round results coverage of the UFC 207 pay-per-view.
Ahead of tonight’s UFC 207: Nunes vs. Rousey pay-per-view in Las Vegas, Nevada, Joe Rogan returns with his “Breakdown” video for the co-main event of the evening.
Featured above is the longtime UFC announcer’s analysis of tonight’s UFC Men’s Bantamweight Championship main event between current champion Dominick Cruz and dangerous knockout artist Cody “No Love” Garbrandt.
Join us here later this evening for live round-by-round results coverage of the UFC 207 pay-per-view.
