UFC 211 looked like quite an event on paper and, based on the headlining scrap for FX’s preliminary action, anyone who felt that way has pretty good instincts about the game.
Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, last seen on the wrong end of …
UFC 211 looked like quite an event on paper and, based on the headlining scrap for FX’s preliminary action, anyone who felt that way has pretty good instincts about the game.
Former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez, last seen on the wrong end of a Conor McGregor left hand, battled former featherweight turned streaking lightweight Dustin Poirier, 5-1 at the weight class coming into Saturday.
In the end it was a confusing finish, though, with a no-contest resulting from an illegal blow that brought things to a stop in the second round.
With both men known for their aggression, the bout started counterintuitively with a bit of a feeling-out process. Angles and calculation were largely on display, interspersed with some single shots. Poirier landed the first combo and some big kicks, but Alvarez blocked them and the two casually returned to the center of the cage.
Poirier worked with straight punches there while Alvarez tried to come over the top with big hooks, continually getting stung in the process. By the halfway point of the round, Poirier had landed more shots and done so more cleanly, with Alvarez—a noted slow starter—looking stagnant and tight. Despite some better offense in the closing seconds of the round from the former champ, Poirier was a clear 10-9 winner in the first.
The second began with Alvarez hustling to the middle of the cage and firing a combination and then shooting for a double-leg takedown. It was stuffed, but he pressed Poirier to the fence and began to grind and score points.
Poirier eventually shook him off, though, and the return to the cage saw the kickboxing exchanges look similar to those of the first round, with the Louisianan getting the better of the action. He eventually landed a big shot that wobbled Alvarez, then poured it on to the tune of some serious damage.
Alvarez, however, reminded viewers exactly how durable he is by firing back from the fringe of consciousness and landing big shots of his own, hurting Poirier in kind.
Things got very strange from there though, with the dreaded “grounded opponent” rule showing up to ruin another spirited bout.
Coming out of a furious standing exchange and with Poirier on the ground, Alvarez threw at least one illegal knee and badly hurt Poirier. Referee Herb Dean stepped in to give Poirier some time, and Poirier was heard on the UFC broadcast stating that he was having issues with his eye, which led officials to call an end to the show.
After discussing the outcome with UFC regulatory ace Marc Ratner, Dean decided the bout should be a no-contest due to Alvarez landing the blows without intent for them to be illegal. It was an unfortunate end to a wild fight that looked like it was just heating up, and this was the second straight major UFC event to be marred by a controversial stoppage coming out of the same convoluted, inexplicable rule.
The only reasonable outcome for the UFC going forward is a rematch, possibly headlining a fight night in the summer. There’s already proof the two are going to bring fireworks, and based on the two rounds at UFC 211, people should be keen to see Poirier and Alvarez do it again.
UFC Fight Night 108 ended with the image that most thought we’d see from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee: Cub Swanson getting his hand raised in victory over Artem Lobov in the main event.
But it didn’t happen as easily as most anti…
UFC Fight Night 108 ended with the image that most thought we’d see from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee: Cub Swanson getting his hand raised in victory over Artem Lobov in the main event.
But it didn’t happen as easily as most anticipated. Lobov survived all five rounds as Swanson was given the unanimous-decision victory Saturday. Bleacher Report MMA tweeted the final scores:
Lobov—who is mostly known for being Conor McGregor’s sparring partner—was a massive 4-1 underdog, according to OddsShark, due to his subpar record and skills compared to Swanson. However, in the early going, Lobov did much more than most thought he would.
The Russian surprisingly landed an early takedown and got the better of early exchanges to show he could hang around with Swanson, at least for a time. Ben Fowlkes of MMAjunkie gave the underdog some credit:
However, the second frame would be where Swanson took back over. The heavy favorite not only opened up his striking game, but also got the fight to the ground where he took Lobov’s back and landed serious strikes to the head.
The UFC gave some of the highlights for Swanson in the second round:
That was a sign of things to come as Swanson did just what most thought he would do as the fight progressed: dominate. Swanson’s more technical striking carried the day, and the difference in speed became more apparent.
The third round also served as a stage for more Swanson highlights:
Still, the Russian Hammer didn’t disappoint. He might not have won, but he made a name for himself in taking a beating from his opponent and continually coming forward. Lobov’s pressure gave him a puncher’s chance throughout.
Jonathan Snowden of Bleacher Report praised Lobov’s toughness:
Ultimately, it wasn’t enough for him to pull off the upset, but it was enough to provide an entertaining main event from an interesting night of fights.
After the bout, Swanson used his turn in the spotlight to call out the winner of the upcoming bout between Jose Aldo and Max Holloway. Mike Bohn of MMAjunkie weighed in on the merits of the callout:
Here’s a look at the complete results from Nashville, along with a closer look at each of the main card fights:
Main card (FOX Sports 1)
Cub Swanson vs. Artem Lobov via unanimous decision (49-46 x2, 50-45)
Al Iaquinta def. Diego Sanchez via first-round KO (1:38)
Ovince Saint Preux def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima via sub (von flue choke) (R2, 2:11)
John Dodson def. Eddie Wineland via unanimous decision (29-28, 30×27 x2)
Stevie Ray def. Joe Lauzon via majority decision (28-27, 29-27, 28-28)
Mike Perry def. Jake Ellenberger via second-round KO (1:05)
Fox Sports Prelims
Thales Leites def. Sam Alvey via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Brandon Moreno def. Dustin Ortiz via submission (RNC) (R2, 4:06)
Scott Holtzman def. Michael McBride via unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 30-26)
Danielle Taylor def. Jessica Penne via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Fight Pass Prelims
Alexis Davis def. Cindy Dandois via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Bryan Barberena def. Joe Proctor via first-round TKO (3:30)
Hector Sandoval def. Matt Schnell via first-round TKO (4:24)
Al Iaquinta vs. Diego Sanchez
The return of Al Iaquinta after two years away from the Octagon was one of the things that highlighted this card, and he didn’t disappoint.
The 29-year-old New Yorker turned out the lights on Diego Sanchez in just one minute and 38 seconds to announce that he’s not experiencing any ring rust from his time away.
Fox Sports: UFC tweeted out the violent finish for Iaquinta:
Obviously, it wasn’t the best news for Sanchez, who has made a 12-year UFC career based on his legendary toughness. One has to wonder just how much punishment he can take at 35 years old. He’s now just 4-6 in his last 10 fights with the last two losses coming by way of knockout.
But this wasn’t about the fall of Sanchez; this was about the return of Ragin’ Al. Michael Carroll noted that Iaquinta’s win streak, albeit mostly from two years ago, is one of the longest in the lightweight division:
This was clearly a tuneup fight for Iaquinta, but he passed the test with violent colors. It’s time to put the man right back where he was before he sat out due to a contract dispute.
As long as things between the fighter and organization are truly settled, the lightweight should be able to take time away from his side gig of selling homes to knock out more lightweights.
Ovince Saint Preux vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima
Ovince Saint Preux came into this bout with a lot of reasons to feel the kind of pressure that can cripple a fighter. With a home-field advantage in Nashville for the Tennessean and a three-fight losing streak going into the cage, Saint Preux’s only option was a win.
Fortunately for the former University of Tennessee football player, his bag of tricks on the ground includes a sneaky-good Von Flue choke.
After a first-round feeling-out process, OSP found his opportunity to end the bout. After a failed guillotine attempt by de Lima, Saint Preux was able to sneak in what has become a signature submission after picking up his second win by virtue of the choke.
UFC Canada passed along the grappling exchange:
This was a fun way for OSP to break his losing streak and probably bought him more time of fighting under the UFC banner.
Given the disappointing state of the light heavyweight division, Saint Preux’s win means that a fighter with some name recognition will remain in the Top 10 despite three straight losses.
Ben Fowlkes of MMAjunkie mused about OSP’s potential as a submission wiz in the light heavyweight division:
John Dodson vs. Eddie Wineland
What had potential to be an exciting bantamweight bout on paper quickly turned into the John Dodson show.
While Eddie Wineland’s power was supposed to be a threat to Dodson, Dodson simply showed that he had superior quickness, skills and even power, and the results were three clean rounds that were scored for the former flyweight contender.
The problem for Dodson was that his win was short on style points. Gorgeous George of MMAjunkie highlighted the importance of standing out in a division as stacked as bantamweight:
After the bout Dodson did his best to drum up interest, telling the entire division to stop ducking him, per Shaheen Al-Shatti of MMA Fighting:
The fact is that Dodson proved he’s still a fighter with superior skills, regardless of whether he’s 125 or 135 pounds. He’s going to be a tough out for anyone, but he still has work to do to rebuild his contender status after his loss to John Lineker in 2016.
Joe Lauzon vs. Stevie Ray
Scottish lightweight Stevie Ray looked like he was going to fell to longtime UFC vet Joe Lauzon through one round of action.
Utilizing his well-known ground game, Lauzon controlled his opponent for the vast majority of the first round after turning an ill-advised kick from Ray into a takedown that he never really gave up. Lauzon poured on the damage from inside Ray’s guard.
But Ray showcased an unrelenting will, while Lauzon showed a fading gas tank.
The 32-year-old was unable to draw the finish in the first round, and it allowed him the glimmer of hope he needed to get back into things. Ultimately Ray landed enough striking in the second round that it gave him a new outlook and set him up to win the third and final round by an even bigger margin.
It was far from unanimous—the fight split the judges and Twitter—but Ray ultimately got the nod in a tough fight. Elias Cepeda was among those who thought Lauzon should have been the victor.
In any event this was a fight that had its moments but should serve primarily to get Ray even bigger fights. A win over Lauzon is never easy, and he was able to find a way to get his hand raised after a difficult first round.
Mike Perry vs. Jake Ellenberger
Welterweight prospect Mike Perry might have bitten off more than he could chew taking on Alan Jouban in his last UFC outing, but he added some more hype to his halted train with a second-round TKO victory over Jake Ellenberger to kick off the main card.
The first round appeared to be evenly matched. Ellenberger had moments of control in the clinch and with his offensive wrestling, but Perry responded by getting the upperhand in the striking exchanges.
As it turns out, the clinch isn’t a great place to stick around with Perry. In the beginning of the second round, Platinum unleashed a devastating elbow that landed flush on Ellenberger’s nose. It was as close to an instant knockout as one can get.
Fox Sports: UFC passed along the highlight:
The win recoups some of that lost momentum for Perry. His ceiling is an interesting proposition. The 25-year-old has the bravado and swagger of a professional wrestling heel and some power to back up that persona, but the Jouban fight still shows some flaws.
For Ellenberger, this was showcase of just how shot his chin is. The Juggernaut is far from living up to his moniker these days. He’s now lost four of his last five and seven of his last nine fights.
This was a perfect passing-of-the-torch fight as Perry has plenty of time to make noise, while it appears that Ellenberger’s time as a recognizable name with good skills has come to an end.
It’s not often two fighters go head-to-head four times, but Patricio Freire and Daniel Straus just can’t seem to get enough of each other in the cage.
A lot was on the line for Straus as he looked to defend his featherweight title against “Pitbul…
It’s not often two fighters go head-to-head four times, but Patricio Freire and Daniel Straus just can’t seem to get enough of each other in the cage.
A lot was on the line for Straus as he looked to defend his featherweight title against “Pitbull” at Bellator 178 on Friday night at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
While Straus defeated Freire the last time they met in November 2015, it was Freire’s night, as he submitted the champ with a guillotine in the second round, recapturing the belt to become the reigning 145-pound champion.
In the first round, neither fighter really came out to take over and look for the quick finish. Pitbull broke his hand in August, and there were questions about his ability to throw strikes with confidence. He put those doubts to rest when he came out and began to show some aggression toward the end of the first frame.
Straus was looking for blood in Round 2 and attempted a takedown to knock his opponent off his feet. Unfortunately for Straus, Pitbull was ready for it.
Freire hooked Straus’ neck and got underneath his chin for the guillotine. After wrapping his legs around Straus’ torso, the end was near, and the American surrendered his title to his bitter rival.
The Brazilian now has a 3-1 advantage over Straus in the cage and will surely look to defend his title against some of the division’s new prospects.
The main event didn’t disappoint, and neither did the rest of the card. Here are the rest of the results.
Bellator 178 main card results
A.J. McKee def. Dominic Mazzotta via knockout (Round 1, 1:15)
Saad Awad def. Ryan Quinn via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Patricio Freire def. Daniel Straus via submission (guillotine choke) (Round 2, 0:37)
McKee shuts out the lights on Mazzotta
It didn’t take A.J. Mckee long to take care of business against Dominic Mazzotta. Even though McKee is an exciting fighter, it’s hard to imagine many people thought this fight would be over so early.
And surely nobody imagined seeing a brutal head-kick knockout either.
Mazzotta was running for his life the moment the fight started as McKee quickly took control on his feet.
Mazzotta did his best to create distance between himself and McKee by using a couple of body kicks, but eventually, McKee found his mark on the side of Mazzotta’s head, sending his body to the canvas.
It was an impressive victory for the 22-year-old, who immediately called out SBG’s own James Gallagher.
Apparently paying attention to the fight, Gallagher took to Twitter to begin what could be an interesting rivalry between two of the most exciting prospects Bellator has to offer.
Macfarlane makes quick work of Middleton
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane is one bad woman.
The pride of Hawaii left her mark on Bellator 178 with another impressive victory over a formidable opponent in Jessica Middleton, submitting Middleton in the first round via armbar.
Middleton didn’t stand much of a chance as Macfarlane quickly got into an advantageous position by pushing her up against the cage, eventually working her way to takedown.
From there, she was able to pass Middleton’s half-guard to get into full mount, setting up a beautifully executed armbar.
With the win, Macfarlane advanced to 6-0 in her career and will be knocking on the door for a shot at the flyweight title.
Awad cruises to decision victory
After seeing two first-round finishes, fans were probably a little disappointed to not see another quick fight between Saad Awad and Ryan Quinn.
Nevertheless, it was still a good bout. Unless you were a Quinn fan, that is.
Quinn seemed to get tagged in the first round and fell from an Awad right hook but managed to survive. He probably would’ve been better off staying on the ground and giving up, as Awad did not let up one bit after seeing Quinn show signs of vulnerability.
It what could’ve easily been a 10-8 round, Awad took advantage of Quinn in Round 2 once again. Besides a brief moment when Quinn had Awad’s back within the first minute, Awad continued to drop bombs, eventually getting Quinn’s back toward the later stages of the round while punishing him with strikes.
More of the same happened in the third in what wasn’t a competitive fight for bystanders. Quinn will have to go back to the drawing board and figure out what happened, while Awad has proved he can grind out a decision. Perhaps he’ll make up his mind whether to fight at lightweight again or move back to welterweight. Either way, he’s bound to find some type of success.
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson was a man on a record-setting mission Saturday night in the main event at UFC on Fox 24 from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, against latest flyweight title contender Wilson Reis.
Mission accomplished….
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson was a man on a record-setting mission Saturday night in the main event at UFC on Fox 24 from the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri, against latest flyweight title contender Wilson Reis.
Mission accomplished.
Mighty Mouse tied Anderson Silva for the most consecutive UFC title defenses with 10. Johnson has still never been defeated as a flyweight in his career.
After the bout, Johnson didn’t shy away from proclaiming himself as the best champion in the history of the UFC:
Reis may have been a trendy underdog pick against the dominant champion, but he didn’t have much to offer in the early going.
Reis was tentative in the first round, and Johnson was able to establish himself as the more skilled fighter early on, stuffing takedown attempts and answering with knees and kicks to the body. Mighty Mouse even found a way to throw a head kick while controlling Reis’ back, per UFC:
Brett Okamoto of ESPN summed up the early advantage for Mighty Mouse:
Johnson only widened the divide between the two combatants in the second round. Not only was it more brutality to Reis’ body, but he also nearly finished the fight in the end of the five-minute period. He floored Reis with a brutal knee to the body, then took to the ground to try to finish the fight.
The UFC passed along the highlight:
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Mighty Mouse performance without a wrestling clinic, so in Round 3 the champion went to work on his opponent on the ground. Johnson owned the transitions and did whatever he wanted as Reis hopelessly looked for ways to survive.
Like all challengers to Johnson’s throne, that didn’t work out so well.
As the third round was coming to a close, Johnson bloodied Reis and locked on to an armbar that drew the tap from the challenger. And once again, Johnson walked away from a fight as the flyweight champion.
UFC on Fox provided the highlight of the finish:
Reis wasn’t able to pull off the upset, but it was a night that was chock full of them. Beyond the record-tying performance from Mighty Mouse, it was a memorable night of fights on Fox. Here’s a look at the complete results from the night was well as a closer look at the main card fights.
Rose Namajunas can do just about everything in the cage, and she put that fact on full display against Michelle Waterson. She ultimately displayed her submission skills in ending the fight with a rear-naked choke in the second round.
But it wasn’t just the submission that had Waterson in trouble.
First, there was the grappling ability. Namajunas dominated the first round by controlling Waterson on the mat and rendering her opponent harmless.
Just when it appeared that Waterson might have the striking advantage, Namajunas landed a head kick in the second round that changed the complexion of the fight from one-sided to full-fledged beatdown, per UFC:
This matchup was close on paper, but it turns out that the 24-year-old might finally be coming into her own and elevating her own game. Waterson never really posed a threat to her as she steamrolled a highly deserving title contender.
Namajunas took full advantage of the spotlight, too. She provided a promo-worthy sound clip, warning the rest of the division that she’s coming for the title, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal‘s Heidi Fang:
Given the state of the division, it shouldn’t be long before “Thug” Rose is right in the title picture where she wants to be.
Ronaldo Souza vs. Robert Whittaker
The middleweight division has a new contender, and it isn’t Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza. It’s one Robert “Bobby Knuckles” Whittaker.
The 26-year-old had the epitome of a breakout performance against Jacare.
The question for Whittaker coming in was what would happen when Jacare was able to get the fight to the mat. As it turned out, the answer was nothing. Whittaker shrugged off the prolific grappler and got the fight back to standing position.
The UFC showed the exchange:
From there, Whittaker was able to win the striking battles with power in his hands and feet. He cracked Souza early in the second round and continued to work toward a finish:
Ultimately, he showed a little bit of everything in finishing the fight, starting with a head kick and ending with devastating ground-and-pound, per Fox Sports:
After the fight, Whittaker didn’t hesitate to call out current UFC champion Michael Bisping:
Bisping and Whittaker were actually slated to fight one another in 2015, but Bisping withdrew before the fight took place. Now it looks like that’s a realistic matchup possibility again.
Jeremy Stephens vs. Renato Moicano
What was supposed to be a high-profile showcase for Jeremy Stephens turned into a coming-out party for Renato Moicano. The unranked featherweight defeated the No. 5 ranked veteran via split decision to kick off the main card.
While Brian Stann and Jon Anik spoke of Stephens’ explosive power in his hands, Moicano got to work avoiding those strikes and setting his own pace. Every time Stephens came charging forward Moicano would answer with a leg kick or simply circle out of the way.
The UFC passed along just one example of the Brazilian landing a vicious leg kick:
It wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing strategy. Dave Doyle of MMA Fighting likened it to Kalib Starnes’ infamous performance against Nate Quarry back in 2008:
Meanwhile, Connor Ruebusch of Bloody Elbow praised Moicano’s fight IQ:
Regardless of how it was obtained, a win is a win. The 27-year-old moved his record to 11-0-1 with the win and should be back in the spotlight sooner rather than later. Even coming off a loss against Frankie Edgar, Stephens is one of the most seasoned veterans in the division.
A win over an opponent of that quality is a huge boost for a prospect like Moicano.
And just like that, “Thug” Rose Namajunas is on the cusp of a title shot.
The runner-up of The Ultimate Fighter season 20 scored an emphatic, but much-needed, win over the fast-rising Michelle Waterson in the co-main event of UFC on Fox 24, sinkin…
And just like that, “Thug” Rose Namajunas is on the cusp of a title shot.
The runner-up of The Ultimate Fighter season 20 scored an emphatic, but much-needed, win over the fast-rising Michelle Waterson in the co-main event of UFC on Fox 24, sinking in a jumping rear-naked choke after a dominant performance.
The first round was a clinic by Namajunas. After a slick hip throw by Waterson, Namajunas kept a leg in place for a back take and made the most of it, coiling around her and using the position to land savage ground-and-pound. Waterson made it to the horn but took serious damage on the mat.
Namajunas kept the pressure on in the second, too, keeping Waterson on her back foot before nailing a picturesque head kick. Waterson would never recover from that strike, absorbing more punches and elbows. She made it back to her feet, but Namajunasleapt into a rear-naked choke, dragging her to the canvas and squeezing a tap from the Karate Hottie.
This is a critical win for Namajunas. Both women entered UFC on Fox 24 as interesting talents, both in terms of their in-cage prowess and their popularity among UFC decision-makers.
A favorite of the company since her time on The Ultimate Fighter season 20, Namajunas has been featured prominently on numerous cards despite struggling to perform against top-end competition. Still, few can match her pure talent and at 24 years old, she has the time to grow both technically and physically, making her a long-term investment for the promotion.
That wasn’t necessarily the case with Waterson, however. The former Invicta FC champion achieved overnight stardom when she made quick work of promotional darling Paige VanZant at UFC on Fox 22, choking her out cold in the first round of their December bout.
While the UFC traditionally tries to punish competitors who defeat its preferred talents, WME-IMG opted to give a push to its hot hand and began rolling her out as a star ahead of this bout, hoping for the kind of consistency they haven’t found with the likes of VanZant.
While Namajunas was coming off a fresh split-decision loss to Karolina Kowalkiewicz, this win immediately puts her back at the front of the line for a title shot, something she is well aware of. “I’m just having fun with life and appreciating my life because it could always be worse,” she said. “I think this win puts me right up there in title contention. Whoever wins the belt, I’m fighting.”
If the strawweight champ, Joanna Jedrzejczyk, can get past Jessica Andrade at UFC 211 in May, expect Rose to get another crack at gold this summer.
The main event for Bellator 177 hit a speed bump before it began, as title challenger Leandro Higo missed weight on Thursday, making the bout a non-title fight.
But that didn’t take anything away from the bantamweight champion, Eduardo Dantas, who defe…
The main event for Bellator 177 hit a speed bump before it began, as title challenger Leandro Higo missed weight on Thursday, making the bout a non-title fight.
But that didn’t take anything away from the bantamweight champion, Eduardo Dantas, who defeated Higo via split decision in a less than stellar fight.
Higo started out the fight sluggish, almost afraid to generate any offense. Dantas was too quick for his opponent and kept the fight on the outside for the majority of it. The best part of the fight came in the final 30 seconds of the third and final round when Dantas pulled off a well-executed spinning back-kick, although it did seemingly no damage.
In terms of style points, it’s what you want to see from dynamic strikers.
Dantas was the better fighter all night, but he somehow lost on one scorecard. It didn’t matter, as he won 30-27 on the other two scorecards. While the main event didn’t live up to the hype, the prelims sure didn’t disappoint.
Main card results:
Adam Borics def. Anthony Taylor via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:12
Lena Ovchynnikova def. Helen Harper via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) – Round 2, 5:00
Daniel Weichel def. John Teixeira via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
It didn’t take long for for 23-year-old Adam Borics to make a statement to the organization that he’s the real deal, as he took out Anthony Taylor in the first round via submission in his Bellator debut.
It was a statement win for Borics, who had fun playing to the crowd after his victory.
It’s not often that young, exciting fighters can put it all together so quickly. Borics has a dangerous ground game and has shown that he can be a threat on the feet, although there was a moment in the first round where Borics delivered a low blow to Taylor, which isn’t good for any party involved.
Taylor did recover from the low blow, but he could not get his head right. Taylor will go on to face stiffer competition in the lightweight division, while Borics improves to 6-0 with four finishes, all by way of submission.
Ovchynnikova does enough to earn TKO victory
There’s nothing worse than seeing a fight get disrupted by a doctor’s stoppage, as was evident in the now-infamous GegardMousasi vs. Chris Weidman stoppage that happened a little more than a week ago at UFC 210. But for Lena Ovchynnikova, a win is a win.
Helen Harper didn’t make it to the third round after coming out of the second a bloody mess thanks to some stiff jabs courtesy of Ovchynnikova. Harper arguably had the advantage in the first round and was able to give her opponent fits with submission attempts, but she couldn’t seal the deal.
Submissions are exhausting, both for the fighter attempting to submit his or her opponent and for the one who is fighting for his or her life in the cage. Harper felt the fatigue set in and was a sitting duck in Round 2.
Ovchynnikova will take the win, even though I’m sure she would’ve rather finished Harper on her own terms. She now improves to 12-4, earning her first-ever KO/TKO finish in her career.
Weichel narrowly defeats Teixeira
This is one of those fights that was too close to call.
Daniel Weichel won over two judges for the victory over John Teixeira, but it’s safe to say the fight easily could have gone the other way. But then again, this is the exact reason fighters should never put their fate in the judges’ scorecards.
Teixeira almost won the fight in the first round after he dropped a bomb on Weichel‘s chin, sending him straight to the canvas. It appeared that the fight was seconds away from being stopped as Weichel‘s body crumpled to the ground, but somehow Teixeira couldn’t put him away.
The second round was evenly matched. Teixeira was the aggressor for the majority of the round. But Weichel did land some pretty powerful strikes, including a right that probably won him the round.
UFC 211 looked like quite an event on paper and, based on the headlining scrap for FX’s preliminary action, anyone who felt that way has pretty good instincts about the game.