UFC Albany kicked off from the Times Union Center in Albany, New York tonight (Friday, December 9, 2016) as the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s second event in the Empire State. The Fight of the Night went to light heavyweight sluggers on the main card. Gian Villante and short-notice replacement Saparbek Safarov duked it out for the
UFC Albany kicked off from the Times Union Center in Albany, New York tonight (Friday, December 9, 2016) as the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s second event in the Empire State.
The Fight of the Night went to light heavyweight sluggers on the main card. Gian Villante and short-notice replacement Saparbek Safarov duked it out for the better part of two rounds. At first it appeared that Villante’s more poised striking and big-show experience would carry him over the Russian newcomer, but Safarov refused to give in. He dropped the New Yorker in the second, and though bloodied, searched for his own finish. When it failed to materialized, Villante went back to work on his gassed adversary, eventually earning the TKO with punches and elbows against the fence. Safarov covered up but offered no other intelligent defense, forcing the referee to intervene.
Still, Safarov’s stock should rise in the aftermath. From unknown and unheralded debutante to Fight of the Night winner in less than ten minutes of action. Both 205-pounders took home an extra $50,000 for their efforts in Albany.
Elsewhere in main card action, fellow heavyweight Francis Ngannou earned himself a $50,000 bonus check for Performance of the Night against Anthony Hamilton. The Frenchman got the first round finish many predicted, but certainly not in the fashion that was expected. After escaping
After escaping to his feet following a Hamilton takedown, Ngannou countered another takedown attempt with a standing kimura. He took the Jackson-Wink product down while maintaining the hold, moved to side control, and wrenched the arm for the tap. It was the first submission of Ngannou’s UFC career, and his fourth straight victory in the promotion.
Finally, UFC newcomer Gerald Meerschaert banked a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus of his own with his first round submission of Joe Gigliotti. Back and forth stand-up and scrambles ultimately resulted in Meerschaert taking Gigliotti’s back, then transitioning to an anaconda choke as his foe tried to escape. The 32-fight veteran tightened the hold and walked his legs toward Gigliotti, forcing the submission. Meerschaert’s was the first finish of the card after five straight decisions.
Stay locked to LowKickMMA for all the coverage of this fight-packed weekend.
The opening bout on the main card of UFC Fight Night 102 featured two light heavyweight bruisers. The fighters stepping inside the Octagon in Albany, New York were Gian Villante (15-7) and the debuting Saparbek Safarov (8-1). Villante gave the New York crowd something to cheer for. Villante got into a rhythm early. He dropped
The opening bout on the main card of UFC Fight Night 102 featured two light heavyweight bruisers. The fighters stepping inside the Octagon in Albany, New York were Gian Villante (15-7) and the debuting Saparbek Safarov (8-1).
Villante gave the New York crowd something to cheer for.
Villante got into a rhythm early. He dropped Safarov with a jab. The jab kept finding a home for Villante. Safarov threw a high kick and held onto his knee. Villlante pushed forward, but was clipped with a hook. Villante was dropped with an overhand right, but got up quickly. Safarov pushed his opponent against the fence. He countered a jab with a right hand as the horn sounded. Safarov limped to his corner.
Villante went for the knee of Safarov at the start of the second stanza. A hard leg kick landed for Villante. A right hand pierced through the guard of Safarov. A combination followed by a leg kick was there for Villante. He landed a knee in the clinch. Safarov went for a takedown, but couldn’t complete it. Villante was starting to pull away and swarmed his opponent. He landed a series of elbows in the clinch and the fight was stopped.
Final Result: Gian Villante def. Saparbek Safarov via TKO (Elbows) – R2, 2:54
It looks like the injury bug has already starting affecting UFC’s debut event in the state of New York.
Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com is reporting that a minor injury has forced Gian Villante off of the the historic event scheduled for Madison Sq…
It looks like the injury bug has already starting affecting UFC’s debut event in the state of New York.
Ariel Helwani of MMAFighting.com is reporting that a minor injury has forced Gian Villante off of the the historic event scheduled for Madison Square Garden in November.
Villante was booked to fight Marcos Rogerio de Lima at the UFC 205 pay-per-view event. The UFC has yet to officially announce the story, however their Brazilian TV partner, Globo, is also reporting the news.
UFC 205 takes place on Saturday, November 12, 2016 at the world-famous Madison Square Garden arena in New York City.
According to Marcos Rogerio de Lima, he’ll be part of UFC 205 this November against New York’s own Gian Villante.
The event takes place November 12 from Madison Square Garden in New York City. The state lifted the MMA ban earlier this year, clearing the way for the Octagon to set up shop there.
De Lima (14-3-1) has won three of his four UFC fights including a recent first round submission of Clint Hester. The Brazilian was a semifinalist in the heavyweight division on The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3.
Villante (14-7), meanwhile, sports a 4-4 record inside the Octagon. One of his training partners, Chris Weidman, is expected to meet Yoel Romero in a middleweight title-eliminator on the card. He has alternated wins and losses over his last four, losing to Ilir Latifi in March.
UFC Fight Night 38 is a rare Sunday event. Despite the odd timing, free MMA is always worth the watch. But page view-wise, covering lower-level Fight Night cards isn’t always worth the investment of time (ring girl galleries have a much higher rate of return). Nevertheless, we’ll be live blogging UFC Fight Night 38’s main card. It starts at 7:00 PM EST and airs on Fox Sports 1. Stay tuned, and refresh for updates!
(Photo via Getty)
UFC Fight Night 38 is a rare Sunday event. Despite the odd timing, free MMA is always worth the watch. But page view-wise, covering lower-level Fight Night cards isn’t always worth the investment of time (ring girl galleries have a much higher rate of return). Nevertheless, we’ll be live blogging UFC Fight Night 38′s main card. It starts at 7:00 PM EST and airs on Fox Sports 1. Stay tuned, and refresh for updates!
Round 1: The fight opens after they pan to a guy in the audience with a styrofoam Jason mask. Siler hits a few leg kicks. Jason attempts a counter right and misses big. He tries another and lands. Siler hits another leg kick, and Jason hits another counter right. Siler lands a front kick but misses a 1-2. Jason hits Siler with a massive right hook on the way in, which stumbles Siler. Jason lands a left hook which floors Siler. After a couple follow-up punches it’s over. Siler immediately rises to his feet and he’s pissed. Lots of people on twitter are annoyed too. Looks like Jason won’t be destroying any walls this time.
Rony Jason def. Steven Siler via KO, 1:17 of round 1.
Round 1: It’s a battle of wiki-less fighters! They touch gloves and immediately Taisumov backs up Prazeres with a front kick. They feel each other out for a minute. Taisumov lands a leg kick and Prazeres lands one of his own. Prazeres connects with a right hand, then a left. They clinch. Prazeres hits a knee to the body, pushes Taisumov against the cage. He attempts to escape but gets taken down. Prazeres gets mount. Taisumov attempts to scramble away, but only manages to down grade Prazeres to side control. Prazeres attempts a north-south choke but Taisumov escapes and the fight returns to the feet. The two fighters stall in over-under position on the cage. There are some week knees. Prazeres finally out-powers Taisumov and drags him to the mat. Prazeres mounts Taisumov and lands some punches. He’s setting up an arm bar but does it lazily, allowing Taisumov to escape back to guard. Prazeres keeps landing punches and some really nice elbows to the body; he’s far too powerful for Taisumov. Prazeres gets mount for an instant, but Taisumove sweeps him. Taisumov lands a kick to Prazeres as he’s still grounded and Mario Yamasaki deducts a point as the round ends. We score it 10-8 Prazeres because of the deduction.
Round 2: Prazeres lands a stiff right to Taismov which wobbles him. Prazeres attempts a guillotine but immediately slips off. He’s not on his back with Taisumov in his guard. A triangle attempt fails. He backs off and Yamasaki stands them up. Prazeres hits a right and and a knee. Taisumov counters with a spinning back kick. Taismov hits Prazeres in the nose with a stiff jab. Yamasaki takes a point away from Taisumov for grabbing the cage on a Prazeres takedown attempt. Prazeres lands a right head kick but it was weak. Taisumov rushes in and eats a right hook for his trouble. Both fighters trade ineffective strikes for the remainder of the round.
Round 3: Prazeres lands yet another right hand to start things off, then presses Taisumov against the cage. He briefly escapes, but winds up there again. Prazeres botches a takedown. Yamasaki warns Taisumov for grabbing the cage again. We thought he might get disqualified with the way Yamasaki has been behaving. Taisumov hits a nasty uppercut on Prazeres which stumbled him. Prazeres eats a big right hand after an atrocious, tired shot. His next takedown attempt is better though, he wrests Taisumov to the ground and gets mount for a split second. Taisumov regains guard and then rises to his feet. A minute left to go now, and miracles aren’t looking likely. Taisumov manages to take Prazeres’ back but he escapes. They reset, and the fight ends. Not surprisingly, Prazeres gets the unanimous decision win.
Michel Prazeres def. Mairbek Taisumov via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-35).
Round 1: Expect this entire fight to be a brawl devoid of technique. Villante lands a leg kick to start the fight. Maldonado rushes in and gets taken down. Villante is in side control landing short elbows. He’s flailing around ineffectively on the bottom, and manages to get to his knees. Villante scrambles quicker though, and is on his back. Maldonado puts his side to the cage and gets to his feet, but Villante is still on him like glue. Villante landing lots of knees to the ass and thighs, and then hits a trip. He remains in side control for about 30 seconds. Maldonado gains half guard for a moment and loses it. Villante can’t seem to do much with his dominant side control save for some short elbows and punches. Maldonado gets back to half guard again and the rounds end after a handful of soft punches.
Round 2: Maldonado lands two jabs and a cross. Villante looks tired and has his hands low. Maldonado lands another two crisp jabs, but Villante lands one of his own. Villante rushes for a messy takedown and gets it. Maldonado gets to his feet quickly but gets his back taken. He escapes but eats an incredible, massive knee at the same time. “Crimson mask” doesn’t quite cover how bloody Maldonado’s face is right now. Villante breathing heavy now. Villante lands a hook, but Maldonado lands two counter hooks to the body. He then lands a jab to the head and two hooks to the head. Villante’s hands are at his waist now, but he lands a very good leg kick. Maldonado lands two body shots and clinches, which is probably a bad idea. Maldonado hits a jab-cross-uppercut combo that snaps Villante’s head back a mile. The round ends.
Round 3: Maldonado lands a triple jab. Villante shoots from across the cage and, predictably, misses. Maldonado is the fresher fighter and seems to be picking Villante apart now. Villante attempts another takedown from a mile away. He follows that up with a leg kick. He goes for a third awful takedown. Maldonado lands a left hook that stuns Villante, and then another. Villante is breathing very heavily and has his hands completely down. Maldonado is pouring on the body shots now, and Villante decides to get on his bicycle. Villante lands a big counter-right but Maldonado eats it and moves forward, landing a jab and a hook. Maldonado is pouring it on it. Villante manages to grab a hold of Maldonado with a body lock. His takedown fails. Maldonado lands three brutal uppercuts. Both fighters are exhausted now and are reaching on their punches. Villante attemps a millionth awful takedown. He’s stumbling around like a drunk at this point, eating massive shots to the face and not blocking any of them. He turtles but the fight ends before it can be stopped. Maldonado gets the nod from the judges.
Fabio Maldonado def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28).
Round 1: Santos lands a strong leg kick. Park attempts a high kick and misses. Santos lands a second leg kick which sends Parke’s leg flying back. A third leg kick lands. Santos switches it up and lands a kick to the body, then he hits an uppercut. Parke misses with another high kick. We get an accidental eye poke from Santos and the referee pauses the fight. The action resumes with some wild but ineffective exchanges. Santos lands a stiff uppercut, prompting Parke to clinch. They’re both against the fence, but Parke decides to separate. Parke misses with a leg kick. Santos returns to his leg kicks from earlier in the round. Parke hits a right hand and clinches. The ref separates the two after some inaction. After a few even exchanges, the fighters clinch against the cage again with just as much inactivity. We get another separation. Santos lands a right. Parke throws two more head kicks but Santos blocks each time. Parke clinches and their on the fence again. The round ends as Parke goes for a single leg takedown.
Round 2: A messy exchange leads into another clinch with not much happening. The two start firing punches, with Santos landing more than Parke, though Parke did land a good straight right. He grabs a body lock on Santos. More stalling. The referee takes a point from Parke for grabbing the shorts. That cuold be fight changing. Santos throws a head kick, which Parke blocks. They clinch but separate quickly. On the separation, Parke lands a big right hook. They get into a slugfest and both land big punches. Another clinch occurs. Parke lands a short elbow. Some more good dirty boxing, namely uppercuts, from Parke. The round ends with both fighters clinched and Parke controlling the action. Santos appears to be fading.
Round 3:
Both fighters going insane with strikes at the start of the round, but the awesomeness leads to another clinch with little action in terms of takedowns or advancing position. There’s some strikes from Parke–light knees and punches, but that’s about it. Parke landing more uppercuts from the clinch, but the referee separates them…only for them to go right back into the same position. Great. They get separated again, and a wild slugfest ensues. Santos initiates a clinch this time, only to be backed up against the fence. That’s where the round ends. And guess what? The fight ends in a majority draw!
Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke ends in majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28).
Round 1: Ferreira hits with a left. Dolloway lands an overhand right which hurts Ferreira and backs him off. There’s a wild exchange and Dolloway lands a huge hook. Ferreira falls to the mat. Dolloway lands several more follow-up strikes and Ferreira is out cold. This one is over as soon as it started.
C.B. Dolloway def. Cezar Ferreira via TKO, 0:39 of round 1.
Both fighters start of tentative. The “you will die” chants start. Henderson counters a leg kick with an overhand right but misses. Henderson throws a weak leg kick. Shogun lands a strong leg kick. Henderson answers with his own. Henderson tries another “H-bomb” but Shogun blocks it with ease. Henderson wrestles Shogun to the mat briefly but he rises to his feet in a scramble. Both fighters are still tentative. This isn’t shaping up to be anything like their last match, sadly. Hendo lunges for a right hook and misses big. Shogun grabs a thai clinch and lands a knee to the body. The fighters reset. Both throw big right hands and miss. Hendo clips Shogun with a right hook and he’s hurt. Hendo lets his guard down trying to finish, and Shogun lands a brutal counter. Hendo is floored and nearly done. Shogun gets mount and starts landing some punches. Hendo covers up and the round ends. Maybe this will be exciting after all.
Round 2:
The two square off and Shogun lands a big right. Hendo is dazed. Shogun clinches, letting Henderson recover. Henderson hits a couple of knees from the clinch. Stalling. Shogun manages to separate. Shogun reaches with a jab. A wild exchange leads to nothing. Shogun lands a body shot that sends Henderson reeling. Shogun attempts a terrible single leg. An uppercut from Shogun floors Henderson but he doesn’t capitalize. Instead he sits in Henderson’s guard for the next few minutes. Not much activity. Herb Dean finally stands them up. Henderson throws the world’s slowest right hand. The round is over.
Round 3: Henderson moves forwards and flails his arms. Shogun can’t land a counter. Shogun misses a leg kick and twirls around. Henderson shoots. Shogun sprawls and as he rises to his feet Henderson nails him with a picture-perfect H-bomb. Shogun crumples to the mat. Henderson lands some punches and this fight is over.
Here are the card’s complete results:
Main Card
Dan Henderson def. Shogun Rua via TKO (punches), 1:31 of round 3
C.B. Dolloway def. Cezar Ferreira via TKO (punches), 0:39 of round 1
Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke ends in majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
Fabio Maldonado def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Michel Prazeres def. Mairbek Taisumov via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-35)
Rony Jason def. Steven Siler via TKO (punches), 1:17 of round 1
Preliminary Card
Thiago Santos def. Ronny Markes via TKO (body kick and punches), 0:53 of round 1
Jussier Formiga def. Scott Jorgensen via submission (rear naked choke), 3:07 of round 1
Kenny Roberston def. Thiago Perpetuo via submission (rear naked choke), 1:45 of round 1
Hans Stringer def. Francimar Barroso via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Godofredo Castro def. Noad Lahat via KO (flying knee), 2:39 of round 1
If there’s anything positive for Alan Belcher to take away from his loss to Michael Bisping in the co-main event of last night’s UFC 159, it’s that he was right about Bisping being unable to knock him out. Bisping had plenty of opportunities to do so throughout the fight, yet Belcher was too resilient of an opponent. Unfortunately, that’s right about where the positive notes end. Bisping not only outstruck Belcher by a considerable margin throughout their fight, but also avoided all of Belcher’s takedowns. Simply put, Belcher didn’t have any answers for Bisping’s jab-n-jog offense.
Perhaps the strangest thing about the eye poke is that this fight wasn’t the only bout on the card to end in technical decision due to an eye poke. Earlier in the evening, the light heavyweight bout between Ovince St. Preux and Gian Villante also ended when St. Preux inadvertently poked Villante in the eye. St. Preaux walked away with a technical majority decision victory. Kind of makes a case for changing the design of MMA gloves.
Elsewhere on the card…
(Photo courtesy of Getty Images)
If there’s anything positive for Alan Belcher to take away from his loss to Michael Bisping in the co-main event of last night’s UFC 159, it’s that he was right about Bisping being unable to knock him out. Bisping had plenty of opportunities to do so throughout the fight, yet Belcher was too resilient of an opponent. Unfortunately, that’s right about where the positive notes end. Bisping not only outstruck Belcher by a considerable margin throughout their fight, but also avoided all of Belcher’s takedowns. Simply put, Belcher didn’t have any answers for Bisping’s jab-n-jog offense.
Perhaps the strangest thing about the eye poke is that this fight wasn’t the only bout on the card to end in technical decision due to an eye poke. Earlier in the evening, the light heavyweight bout between Ovince St. Preux and Gian Villante also ended when St. Preux inadvertently poked Villante in the eye. St. Preaux walked away with a technical majority decision victory. Kind of makes a case for changing the design of MMA gloves.
Elsewhere on the card…
– Roy Nelson picked up his third straight first round knockout last night – as well as the $65,000 Knockout of the Night honors – by dropping Cheick Kongo with a huge overhand right just two minutes into the fight. While the end result isn’t particularly surprising, it is a bit odd to hear Dana White say that Nelson earned a fight against either Mark Hunt or Daniel Cormier for his next outing. Not only are both fighters gigantic steps up in competition from Kongo, but also Roy Nelson is a step backwards for each of them. Strange times.
– For all that we heard about the improved striking of Vinny Magalhaes, he certainly didn’t let it show last night. He looked lost on his feet against Phil Davis – who isn’t exactly a world-class striker himself – even though Davis threw the same combination for pretty much the entire fight. “Mr Wonderful” was able to avoid Vinny’s leg kicks for most of the fight and utilize his superior reach on his way to a unanimous decision victory. While his striking appears to have improved, the lack of aggression that Davis displayed after hurting Magalhaes with an attempted head kick early in the first round seems to suggest that he isn’t quite ready for the deep end of the division just yet.
– Don’t let his unimposing MMA record fool you: Pat Healy is tough draw for anyone right now, and he proved it last night by taking out the always game Jim Miller. Healy survived an early onslaught from Miller that saw his right eye swell up. He went on to control the second and third rounds before locking up the fight ending rear-naked choke. If anyone is still questioning the legitimacy of the Strikeforce lightweights, you can kindly stop doing so now.
– Not only did both Jim Miller and Pat Healy take home $65,000 for Fight of the Night, but Pat Healy also took home the $65,000 Submission of the Night honors. Taking home $130,000 in bonus money alone for a victory is about as successful of a return to the big leagues as one can possibly hope to make.
– Leonard Garcia lost to Cody McKenzie, making it five straight losses in a row in the UFC. He now joins Steve Cantwell as the only two fighters to lose five consecutive fights that have all been in the UFC (in other words, five straight fights, five straight losses, no time in the minor leagues between any of them). His future is officially “not looking good.”
– One last note, Sheila Gaff immediately answered our questions as to whether or not she can stop Sara McMann’s takedowns by running directly into one. I can’t remember the last time I saw a fight end up on the ground that quickly, but at least McMann wasn’t content to just coast to an easy victory. McMann earned a first round TKO in the third WMMA fight in UFC history.
Full Results:
Main Card:
Jon Jones def. Chael Sonnen via TKO, 4:33 of Round One
Michael Bisping def. Alan Belcher via Technical Decision (unanimous), 4:29 of Round Three
Roy Nelson def. Cheick Kongo via KO, 2:03 of Round One
Phil Davis def. Vinny Magalhaes via Unanimous Decision
Pat Healy def. Jim Miller via Submission (rear naked choke), 4:03 of Round Three
Preliminary Card:
Rustam Khabilov def. Yancy Medeiros via TKO (injury), 2:32 of Round One
Ovince St. Preux def. Gian Villante via Technical Decision (majority) 0:33 of Round Three
Sara McMann def. Sheila Gaff via TKO (punches), 4:06 of Round One
Bryan Caraway def. Johnny Bedford via Submission (guillotine choke), 4:44 of Round Three
Cody McKenzie def. Leonard Garcia via Unanimous Decision
Steven Siler def. Kurt Holobaugh via Unanimous Decision
