Yesterday, the UFC announced that its second UFC on FUELTV event was set to transpire in Stockholm, Sweden, prompting fight booking rumors to materialize faster than an Ikea entertainment center. First off, a clash between middleweight strikers Brian Stann and Alessio Sakara is apparently in the works, and promises to be what JR would call, “a good old fashioned slobber knocker.”
After putting together a three fight win streak between 2008 and 2010, “Legionarius” has not fought since dropping a unanimous decision to last minute replacement and fast rising middleweight contender Chris Weidman at UFC Live 3. Sakara was set to face Jorge Rivera on two separate occasions, at UFC 118 and 133, but was forced to pull out from both fights due to some bad fish and a torn ACL, respectively. Stann similarly saw a three fight streak snapped at UFC 136, when he was dominated on the mat by Chael Sonnen en route to a second round arm triangle submission. Given Sakara’s somewhat suspect chin, you gotta imagine this match is Stann’s to lose.
When the UFC first announced the location of this event, there were a couple of names, mainly Alexander Gustafsson and Papy Abedi, that most figured would have to be included on the card. Though “The Mauler” has yet to be given an opponent, Abedi has already been booked to take on James Head. Abedi will be looking to rebound from a first round submission(!) loss to Thiago Alves in his UFC debut back at UFC 138 when he takes on Head, who is also coming off an unsuccessful octagon debut. The Oklahoma native was choked out by Nick Ring in the third round of their UFC 131 battle.
(Ain’t that the truth.)
Yesterday, the UFC announced that its second UFC on FUELTV event was set to transpire in Stockholm, Sweden, prompting fight booking rumors to materialize faster than an Ikea entertainment center. First off, a clash between middleweight strikers Brian Stann and Alessio Sakara is apparently in the works, and promises to be what JR would call, “a good old fashioned slobber knocker.”
After putting together a three fight win streak between 2008 and 2010, “Legionarius” has not fought since dropping a unanimous decision to last minute replacement and fast rising middleweight contender Chris Weidman at UFC Live 3. Sakara was set to face Jorge Rivera on two separate occasions, at UFC 118 and 133, but was forced to pull out from both fights due to some bad fish and a torn ACL, respectively. Stann similarly saw a three fight streak snapped at UFC 136, when he was dominated on the mat by Chael Sonnen en route to a second round arm triangle submission. Given Sakara’s somewhat suspect chin, you gotta imagine this match is Stann’s to lose.
When the UFC first announced the location of this event, there were a couple of names, mainly Alexander Gustafsson and Papy Abedi, that most figured would have to be included on the card. Though “The Mauler” has yet to be given an opponent, Abedi has already been booked to take on James Head. Abedi will be looking to rebound from a first round submission(!) loss to Thiago Alves in his UFC debut back at UFC 138 when he takes on Head, who is also coming off an unsuccessful octagon debut. The Oklahoma native was choked out by Nick Ring in the third round of their UFC 131 battle.
In other fight booking news, Shane Roller will be stepping in for an injured Cody Mckenzie to take on TUF 12 alum Michael Johnson at UFC on Fox 2, and bantamweight contender Dustin Poirier is set to face UFC newcomer Max Holloway, who is replacing the injured Ricardo Lamas, who was replacing the injured Erik Koch. Sheesh. Not that we have anything against Holloway, but we really can’t wish the best for any fighter with the audacity to carry the nickname “Lil Evil,” because every time we hear that phrase, we are reminded just how far the real “Lil Evil” has fallen. And that makes us sad pandas.
UFC on FUELTV 2 goes down April 14th at the Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.
This is the UFC on Versus 6 live blog for all six preliminary bouts on tonight’s UFC Live card from the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. This is the UFC’s debut in the nation’s capital city.
Sass tries to stay unbeaten in his career when he meets Johnson, who won his first UFC fight in June after losing to Jonathan Brookins in the TUF 12 finals. Edwards and Oliveira had winning streaks snapped over the summer and are looking to rebound. And Neer and Wisniewski return after long stints outside the UFC, Neer more than two years and Wisniewski nearly six years.
Walel Watson vs. Joseph Sandoval
Round 1: We open up with a bout between a pair of debuting bantamweights. Watson trains at the San Diego Combat Academy with Team Hurricane Awesome, including Strikeforce women’s fighter Liz Carmouche. Sandoval is unbeaten at 6-0. Sandoval is channeling Dan Hardy, walking out with a bandana-mask covering his face, as well as a reddish-orange mohawk. Mario Yamasaki gets things rolling. Sandoval opens in southpaw stance and ducks away from two right head kicks from Watson. Then he checks one, then eats one to the mommy-daddy parts. Sandoval gets a few seconds to recover, and Yamasaki warns Watson. Watson comes back with a big head kick and he lands it big time, right under the chin. Sandoval hits the canvas, but bounces up quickly. But Watson is there to land a right kick to the side of the head, and a couple punches before Yamasaki can get in and stop it. It looks like Sandoval could’ve continued, but had he, he just would’ve eaten more shots. “I’ve been working on my striking. I just measured my distance, threw my head kick – same thing I’ve been practicing all day,” Watson tells Joe Rogan.
Result: Walel Watson def. Joseph Sandoval, TKO, 1:17 Round 1
Josh Neer vs. Keith Wisniewski
Round 1:
Both men returning for the first time in a while. Neer has been out of the UFC more than two years. Wisniewski for nearly six. They start out striking with Wisniewski getting a few short jabs in before clinching up and throwing a few knees. Wisniewski eats a right, then they clinch up again but not much comes from it. Wisniewski has a pretty good height advantage, and as Neer comes inside he lands repeated body blows until Wisniewski pushes him away. They clinch again and trade position against the fence. Neer’s mouthpiece falls out, and we take a second to put it back in. Nice low leg kick from Neer. Wisniewski throws on a Thai clinch, but there’s not much there. Wisniewski lands a left, then eats an uppercut from Neer. Wisniewski may be bloodied over his eye. Neer gets the better of a dirty boxing exchange, then eats a couple shots. Neer goes after Wisniewski’s cut with elbows trying to open it up some more. It’s a pretty interesting round, but it looks like Neer landed a few more shots and we’ll give it to him 10-9.
Round 2: Neer apparently told his corner that Wisniewski has broken his ribs with some body shots. So let’s see how that affects Neer here in Round 2. Big right from Neer backs Wisniewski up. Then a pair of jabs as Wisniewski moves in. Wisniewski told MMA Fighting on Friday he planned to get the better of exchanges and take the fight to the ground in each round. He never did that in the first. Will he look for a takedown in this round? They trade elbows along the fence in some more dirty boxing exchanges. Wisniewski goes back to the body. Wisniewski eats several elbows to the face, and then lands one of his own. Neer getting the better of all these standing elbwos, and Wisniewski looks very battered on his face and is starting to bleed pretty good. Neer lands uppercuts as Wisniewski clinches. Dan Miragliotta calls time to have a doctor look at Wisniewski’s cuts. Wisniewski says he’s fine, he can see and he wants to continue. But he is absolutely a bloody mess. Now we are looking for Wisniewski’s mouthpiece, which has fallen out against the cage and is now apparently lost under the cage! Never seen this before! They send someone under the cage to find it, and they do! Wisniewski probably will come forward with a new strategy now, and he comes forward quickly and looks for a takedown. It’s not there, and he eats some more elbows. With a minute left, Wisniewski is going to need to find some serious offense. But he eats some more elbows, then four straight left jabs. Neer goes for a standing guillotine at the end of the round, and it’s a bloodbath all over the cage. Miragliotta looks closely at the cut that was leaking all over the place as Neer squeezed the guillotine. It’s an easy 10-9 round for Neer, and it very well could be a 10-8. But it won’t matter. The doctor will stop the fight, and it’s a TKO victory for Neer, who landed probably nowhere short of 10,000 elbows.
Result: Josh Neer def. Keith Wisniewski, TKO (doctor’s stoppage), 5:00 Round 3 “I’m happy. I work on my elbows all the time. I have a lot of respect for (Keith). I wasn’t surprised the fight was stopped. It was getting hard to do anything in there, it was so bloody. I didn’t break my ribs. He definitely hurt me,” Neer tells Rogan afterward.
Shane Roller vs. T.J. Grant
Round 1: Grant walks first, and walks to “Here I Go Again” by Whitesnake, conjuring up memories of Mark Wahlberg in “The Fighter” playing boxer “Irish” Micky Ward. This is Grant’s debut at lightweight, moving down from welterweight. Grant in the middle and stalking. Roller misses a looping left, then eats a couple short jabs. Big right uppercut from Roller, and Grant takes him to the ground. But Roller gets a guillotine. They flip-flop position a couple times, and Grant winds up on top looking for a side choke, then an armbar. Roller is an Oklahoma State wrestling product, though, and pretty quickly rolls Grant over and gets on top – and nearly gets a guillotine himself. Good scramble from Grant, though, and he gets up out of the bad position and stands up looking to throw punches from standing. He dives back in and Roller stays back in full guard. Grant looks to land some body shots as Roller looks for a guillotine. Grant moves around and gets to side control, and Rogan mentions the rare “Von Flue” choke that Grant apparently doesn’t know about. Grant traps Roller’s right arm, and proceeds to land some good shots from the top as Roller covers up. It’s a 10-9 round for Grant on the unofficial MMA Fighting card.
Round 2: Head kick from Grant 20 seconds in is partially blocked. Grant then times a nice inside leg kick. Some big knees from Grant lead Roller to shoot for a takedown. Roller tries to control an arm, but as they come back up he settles for some good shots on the feet. Roller starts throwing some bombs. Grant goes for a big takedown and lands it – and lands right into a guillotine. But Grant is able to pop his head out and winds up in side control. Grant changes position, giving up a pretty good spot, and after a short scramble Grant again looks for a crucifix position. But he loses his good spot going for the back, and Roller winds up on top. Roller tries to pass, but a bizarre scramble sees Grant pull off a beautiful transition to an armbar – and Roller just barely survives the round. We’re scoring it for Grant again, 10-9.
Round 3: A little slower pace to start the third round. Both guys trade jabs until Grant lands a big right hand that cuts Roller. Roller looks like he’s having some trouble seeing, blinking a lot. Roller shoots 90 seconds in, but Grant doesn’t have much trouble sprawling to defend. Roller continues to look for the takedown and gets a single, but Grant locks on a guillotine. Roller pops his head out, but Grant throws on an armbar, and it’s a good one. Suddenly, the ref stops the fight. But Roller didn’t tap. Roller is extremely upset. The crowd boos the perceived bad stoppage from Mario Yamasaki’s brother, Fernando.
Result: T.J. Grant def. Shane Roller, TKO (verbal submission), 2:12 Round 3
“He was in there and he yelled out in pain. You’re told before the fight you can’t do that. He gave me a helluva a fight, and that’s what I expected,” Grant said. “I knew I had a short window there (with the armbar).” Roller was less than pleased, talking to Rogan: “We were getting in a scramble, and I ended up an the armbar. It got locked up tight. I moaned, but I didn’t yell. I was trying to get out.”
Mike Easton vs. Byron Bloodworth
Round 1: Both fighters are making their UFC debuts. Bloodworth takes this fight on very short notice, filling in for Doug Hougland. He couldn’t hit the bantamweight limit, though, so this is a 138-pound catchweight fight and Bloodworth is giving up 20 percent of his purse. Easton is a big fan favorite as a D.C. native. Easton is buddy-buddy with Dominick Cruz, and he moves just like him. Easton isn’t doing anything in the way of attacking yet, though. Bloodworth lands an inside leg kick. Nice high kick from Bloodworth is checked. A couple nice inside leg kicks from Easton. Bloodworth shoots for a takedown, but Easton stops it. They clinch up and move to the fence and trade knees. With about 2 minutes left in the round, the ref breaks them for a lack of action. Good spinning back kick from Easton lands to Bloodworth’s gut with 90 seconds left in the round. Bloodworth misses a 1-2 with a spinning back elbow. Easton lands a knee to the midsection, then backs up and re-sets. Bloodworth shoots, but Easton easily sprawls out of it. It’s a pretty close first round, but Easton probably takes it 10-9.
Round 2: Easton has a little more pep in his step, if that’s even possible. Or at least he’s looking more offensive minded than the first, which had a lot of time spent bouncing but not throwing much offense out there. Nice kick from Easton, and then a lazy shot from Bloodworth is pushed away. Left hook from Easton, and a beautiful right kick from Easton to Bloodworth’s left leg. Then another shot to the lead leg, and Bloodworth appears to be feelin’ it for sure. Bloodworth toggles back and forth in his stances hoping to keep Easton away from that left leg, and he’s circling all over the place. Easton throws a kick, but it lands low and Bloodworth gets some time. Easton says, “Dude, totally sorry. My bad.” (Not literally.) But we get back going, and a Bloodworth kick combined with an Easton slip has Easton briefly with a knee on the mat. They clinch with a minute left, then trade position on the fence. Easton throws some big right knees to Bloodworth’s face, then lands a big knee to the body that instantly crumples Bloodworth. Easton gets in four lefts on the ground before Kevin Mulhall steps in to shut things down.
Result: Mike Easton def. Byron Bloodworth, TKO, 4:52 Round 2
Michael Johnson vs. Paul Sass
Round 1: Flying knee-kick thing from Sass starts the fight, and Johnson moves out of the way. It gets a nice “Ooooh!” from the D.C. crowd, though. Sass is the triangle master with eight of his 11 wins by the choke finish, including seven straight at one point. Johnson lands a nice right, then a left, then a knee that sends Sass to the ground. But instead of moving to the ground to try and finish, Johnson stays well away from Sass’ strength. They stay standing. Spinning elbow from Sass misses. A scramble sees the fight hit the ground, and Sass looks for a heel hook. He loses it, but then locks it up again. He turns it over and looks for leverage. He keeps working the hold, and then he rolls Johnson over and the TUF 12 runner-up has to tap. Sass is truly a submission specialist, and he gets yet another one. Sass, from England, moves to 12-0 – with 11 submissions, and is line for a possible second straight Submission of the Night bonus to start his UFC career.
Result: Paul Sass def. Michael Johnson, submission (heel hook), 3:00 Round 1
“I was trying to go for a triangle today, but any submission I’m going for. He’s hard to tap. I didn’t hear (his knee pop), but I didn’t want to let go,” Sass says after the fight.
Yves Edwards vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Round 1: Oliveira opens with a head kick that is blocked. Then a big flurry that is followed by a press against the fence. Edwards survives the flurry and ties Oliveira up. Edwards looks for a Thai clinch, but it’s not there. Oliveira comes back with another flurry. Another high kick from Oliveira is blocked. Edwards throws a right kick of his own, but it misses. Inside leg kick from Oliveira. Nice combo from Edwards, including a high kick. Nice kick to the body from Edwards now, then a high kick that is blocked. Edwards has stayed patient, and he looks to be in a better rhythm. Edwards ducks under a left, then lands a left of his own. Another good combo from Edwards is on the mark. Oliveira shoots for a takedown, but Edwards defends it nicely and lands a shot on the way back up, then a couple more. Oliveira started fast, but Edwards was more consistent and he gets the round 10-9 on our card.
Round 2: Traded kicks in the first 30 seconds. Good scramble that Edwards defends well. On the standup, he lands a nice inside leg kick. Each guy dodges away from some combos. But Edwards lands a big right that drops Oliveira. He pounces and lands some big shots on the ground as Mario Yamasaki moves in. It looks close to being stopped, but Yamasaki gives Oliveira the chance to recover. And somehow he does. But Edwards continues to land some shots – though Oliveira fights back. But then an Edwards kick to the head drops Oliveira again, and he pounces and lands repeated shots to the head. Yamasaki probably lets it go a little too long this time, but when Edwards takes Oliveira’s back and flattens him out, it’s quickly, and mercifully at this point, over.
Result: Yves Edwards def. Rafaello Oliveira, TKO, 2:44 Round 2
“I know Rafaello’s a really tough guy and would come out hard. I just had to get my timing down. I’m faster than just about everyone out there, so I just had to figure that part out. Ultimately I’m just a guy fighting in front of a crowd, asking them to love him,” Edwards said.
This is the UFC on Versus 6 live blog for all six preliminary bouts on tonight’s UFC Live card from the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. This is the UFC’s debut in the nation’s capital city.
Sass tries to stay unbeaten in his career when he meets Johnson, who won his first UFC fight in June after losing to Jonathan Brookins in the TUF 12 finals. Edwards and Oliveira had winning streaks snapped over the summer and are looking to rebound. And Neer and Wisniewski return after long stints outside the UFC, Neer more than two years and Wisniewski nearly six years.
Walel Watson vs. Joseph Sandoval
Round 1: We open up with a bout between a pair of debuting bantamweights. Watson trains at the San Diego Combat Academy with Team Hurricane Awesome, including Strikeforce women’s fighter Liz Carmouche. Sandoval is unbeaten at 6-0. Sandoval is channeling Dan Hardy, walking out with a bandana-mask covering his face, as well as a reddish-orange mohawk. Mario Yamasaki gets things rolling. Sandoval opens in southpaw stance and ducks away from two right head kicks from Watson. Then he checks one, then eats one to the mommy-daddy parts. Sandoval gets a few seconds to recover, and Yamasaki warns Watson. Watson comes back with a big head kick and he lands it big time, right under the chin. Sandoval hits the canvas, but bounces up quickly. But Watson is there to land a right kick to the side of the head, and a couple punches before Yamasaki can get in and stop it. It looks like Sandoval could’ve continued, but had he, he just would’ve eaten more shots. “I’ve been working on my striking. I just measured my distance, threw my head kick – same thing I’ve been practicing all day,” Watson tells Joe Rogan.
Result: Walel Watson def. Joseph Sandoval, TKO, 1:17 Round 1
Josh Neer vs. Keith Wisniewski
Round 1:
Both men returning for the first time in a while. Neer has been out of the UFC more than two years. Wisniewski for nearly six. They start out striking with Wisniewski getting a few short jabs in before clinching up and throwing a few knees. Wisniewski eats a right, then they clinch up again but not much comes from it. Wisniewski has a pretty good height advantage, and as Neer comes inside he lands repeated body blows until Wisniewski pushes him away. They clinch again and trade position against the fence. Neer’s mouthpiece falls out, and we take a second to put it back in. Nice low leg kick from Neer. Wisniewski throws on a Thai clinch, but there’s not much there. Wisniewski lands a left, then eats an uppercut from Neer. Wisniewski may be bloodied over his eye. Neer gets the better of a dirty boxing exchange, then eats a couple shots. Neer goes after Wisniewski’s cut with elbows trying to open it up some more. It’s a pretty interesting round, but it looks like Neer landed a few more shots and we’ll give it to him 10-9.
Round 2: Neer apparently told his corner that Wisniewski has broken his ribs with some body shots. So let’s see how that affects Neer here in Round 2. Big right from Neer backs Wisniewski up. Then a pair of jabs as Wisniewski moves in. Wisniewski told MMA Fighting on Friday he planned to get the better of exchanges and take the fight to the ground in each round. He never did that in the first. Will he look for a takedown in this round? They trade elbows along the fence in some more dirty boxing exchanges. Wisniewski goes back to the body. Wisniewski eats several elbows to the face, and then lands one of his own. Neer getting the better of all these standing elbwos, and Wisniewski looks very battered on his face and is starting to bleed pretty good. Neer lands uppercuts as Wisniewski clinches. Dan Miragliotta calls time to have a doctor look at Wisniewski’s cuts. Wisniewski says he’s fine, he can see and he wants to continue. But he is absolutely a bloody mess. Now we are looking for Wisniewski’s mouthpiece, which has fallen out against the cage and is now apparently lost under the cage! Never seen this before! They send someone under the cage to find it, and they do! Wisniewski probably will come forward with a new strategy now, and he comes forward quickly and looks for a takedown. It’s not there, and he eats some more elbows. With a minute left, Wisniewski is going to need to find some serious offense. But he eats some more elbows, then four straight left jabs. Neer goes for a standing guillotine at the end of the round, and it’s a bloodbath all over the cage. Miragliotta looks closely at the cut that was leaking all over the place as Neer squeezed the guillotine. It’s an easy 10-9 round for Neer, and it very well could be a 10-8. But it won’t matter. The doctor will stop the fight, and it’s a TKO victory for Neer, who landed probably nowhere short of 10,000 elbows.
Result: Josh Neer def. Keith Wisniewski, TKO (doctor’s stoppage), 5:00 Round 3 “I’m happy. I work on my elbows all the time. I have a lot of respect for (Keith). I wasn’t surprised the fight was stopped. It was getting hard to do anything in there, it was so bloody. I didn’t break my ribs. He definitely hurt me,” Neer tells Rogan afterward.
Shane Roller vs. T.J. Grant
Round 1: Grant walks first, and walks to “Here I Go Again” by Whitesnake, conjuring up memories of Mark Wahlberg in “The Fighter” playing boxer “Irish” Micky Ward. This is Grant’s debut at lightweight, moving down from welterweight. Grant in the middle and stalking. Roller misses a looping left, then eats a couple short jabs. Big right uppercut from Roller, and Grant takes him to the ground. But Roller gets a guillotine. They flip-flop position a couple times, and Grant winds up on top looking for a side choke, then an armbar. Roller is an Oklahoma State wrestling product, though, and pretty quickly rolls Grant over and gets on top – and nearly gets a guillotine himself. Good scramble from Grant, though, and he gets up out of the bad position and stands up looking to throw punches from standing. He dives back in and Roller stays back in full guard. Grant looks to land some body shots as Roller looks for a guillotine. Grant moves around and gets to side control, and Rogan mentions the rare “Von Flue” choke that Grant apparently doesn’t know about. Grant traps Roller’s right arm, and proceeds to land some good shots from the top as Roller covers up. It’s a 10-9 round for Grant on the unofficial MMA Fighting card.
Round 2: Head kick from Grant 20 seconds in is partially blocked. Grant then times a nice inside leg kick. Some big knees from Grant lead Roller to shoot for a takedown. Roller tries to control an arm, but as they come back up he settles for some good shots on the feet. Roller starts throwing some bombs. Grant goes for a big takedown and lands it – and lands right into a guillotine. But Grant is able to pop his head out and winds up in side control. Grant changes position, giving up a pretty good spot, and after a short scramble Grant again looks for a crucifix position. But he loses his good spot going for the back, and Roller winds up on top. Roller tries to pass, but a bizarre scramble sees Grant pull off a beautiful transition to an armbar – and Roller just barely survives the round. We’re scoring it for Grant again, 10-9.
Round 3: A little slower pace to start the third round. Both guys trade jabs until Grant lands a big right hand that cuts Roller. Roller looks like he’s having some trouble seeing, blinking a lot. Roller shoots 90 seconds in, but Grant doesn’t have much trouble sprawling to defend. Roller continues to look for the takedown and gets a single, but Grant locks on a guillotine. Roller pops his head out, but Grant throws on an armbar, and it’s a good one. Suddenly, the ref stops the fight. But Roller didn’t tap. Roller is extremely upset. The crowd boos the perceived bad stoppage from Mario Yamasaki’s brother, Fernando.
Result: T.J. Grant def. Shane Roller, TKO (verbal submission), 2:12 Round 3
“He was in there and he yelled out in pain. You’re told before the fight you can’t do that. He gave me a helluva a fight, and that’s what I expected,” Grant said. “I knew I had a short window there (with the armbar).” Roller was less than pleased, talking to Rogan: “We were getting in a scramble, and I ended up an the armbar. It got locked up tight. I moaned, but I didn’t yell. I was trying to get out.”
Mike Easton vs. Byron Bloodworth
Round 1: Both fighters are making their UFC debuts. Bloodworth takes this fight on very short notice, filling in for Doug Hougland. He couldn’t hit the bantamweight limit, though, so this is a 138-pound catchweight fight and Bloodworth is giving up 20 percent of his purse. Easton is a big fan favorite as a D.C. native. Easton is buddy-buddy with Dominick Cruz, and he moves just like him. Easton isn’t doing anything in the way of attacking yet, though. Bloodworth lands an inside leg kick. Nice high kick from Bloodworth is checked. A couple nice inside leg kicks from Easton. Bloodworth shoots for a takedown, but Easton stops it. They clinch up and move to the fence and trade knees. With about 2 minutes left in the round, the ref breaks them for a lack of action. Good spinning back kick from Easton lands to Bloodworth’s gut with 90 seconds left in the round. Bloodworth misses a 1-2 with a spinning back elbow. Easton lands a knee to the midsection, then backs up and re-sets. Bloodworth shoots, but Easton easily sprawls out of it. It’s a pretty close first round, but Easton probably takes it 10-9.
Round 2: Easton has a little more pep in his step, if that’s even possible. Or at least he’s looking more offensive minded than the first, which had a lot of time spent bouncing but not throwing much offense out there. Nice kick from Easton, and then a lazy shot from Bloodworth is pushed away. Left hook from Easton, and a beautiful right kick from Easton to Bloodworth’s left leg. Then another shot to the lead leg, and Bloodworth appears to be feelin’ it for sure. Bloodworth toggles back and forth in his stances hoping to keep Easton away from that left leg, and he’s circling all over the place. Easton throws a kick, but it lands low and Bloodworth gets some time. Easton says, “Dude, totally sorry. My bad.” (Not literally.) But we get back going, and a Bloodworth kick combined with an Easton slip has Easton briefly with a knee on the mat. They clinch with a minute left, then trade position on the fence. Easton throws some big right knees to Bloodworth’s face, then lands a big knee to the body that instantly crumples Bloodworth. Easton gets in four lefts on the ground before Kevin Mulhall steps in to shut things down.
Result: Mike Easton def. Byron Bloodworth, TKO, 4:52 Round 2
Michael Johnson vs. Paul Sass
Round 1: Flying knee-kick thing from Sass starts the fight, and Johnson moves out of the way. It gets a nice “Ooooh!” from the D.C. crowd, though. Sass is the triangle master with eight of his 11 wins by the choke finish, including seven straight at one point. Johnson lands a nice right, then a left, then a knee that sends Sass to the ground. But instead of moving to the ground to try and finish, Johnson stays well away from Sass’ strength. They stay standing. Spinning elbow from Sass misses. A scramble sees the fight hit the ground, and Sass looks for a heel hook. He loses it, but then locks it up again. He turns it over and looks for leverage. He keeps working the hold, and then he rolls Johnson over and the TUF 12 runner-up has to tap. Sass is truly a submission specialist, and he gets yet another one. Sass, from England, moves to 12-0 – with 11 submissions, and is line for a possible second straight Submission of the Night bonus to start his UFC career.
Result: Paul Sass def. Michael Johnson, submission (heel hook), 3:00 Round 1
“I was trying to go for a triangle today, but any submission I’m going for. He’s hard to tap. I didn’t hear (his knee pop), but I didn’t want to let go,” Sass says after the fight.
Yves Edwards vs. Rafaello Oliveira
Round 1: Oliveira opens with a head kick that is blocked. Then a big flurry that is followed by a press against the fence. Edwards survives the flurry and ties Oliveira up. Edwards looks for a Thai clinch, but it’s not there. Oliveira comes back with another flurry. Another high kick from Oliveira is blocked. Edwards throws a right kick of his own, but it misses. Inside leg kick from Oliveira. Nice combo from Edwards, including a high kick. Nice kick to the body from Edwards now, then a high kick that is blocked. Edwards has stayed patient, and he looks to be in a better rhythm. Edwards ducks under a left, then lands a left of his own. Another good combo from Edwards is on the mark. Oliveira shoots for a takedown, but Edwards defends it nicely and lands a shot on the way back up, then a couple more. Oliveira started fast, but Edwards was more consistent and he gets the round 10-9 on our card.
Round 2: Traded kicks in the first 30 seconds. Good scramble that Edwards defends well. On the standup, he lands a nice inside leg kick. Each guy dodges away from some combos. But Edwards lands a big right that drops Oliveira. He pounces and lands some big shots on the ground as Mario Yamasaki moves in. It looks close to being stopped, but Yamasaki gives Oliveira the chance to recover. And somehow he does. But Edwards continues to land some shots – though Oliveira fights back. But then an Edwards kick to the head drops Oliveira again, and he pounces and lands repeated shots to the head. Yamasaki probably lets it go a little too long this time, but when Edwards takes Oliveira’s back and flattens him out, it’s quickly, and mercifully at this point, over.
Result: Yves Edwards def. Rafaello Oliveira, TKO, 2:44 Round 2
“I know Rafaello’s a really tough guy and would come out hard. I just had to get my timing down. I’m faster than just about everyone out there, so I just had to figure that part out. Ultimately I’m just a guy fighting in front of a crowd, asking them to love him,” Edwards said.
Predictions for UFC Live Cruz vs Johnson Card Preliminary card (Facebook) Bantamweight bout: Walel Watson vs Joseph Sandoval Pass Welterweight bout: Josh Neer vs Keith Wisniewski Welcome back to the UFC Neer. Lightweight bout: Shane Roller vs TJ Grant Shane Roller Bantamweight bout: Mike Easton vs Byron Bloodworth Pass Lightweight bout: Michael Johnson vs Paul
Predictions for UFC Live Cruz vs Johnson Card
Preliminary card (Facebook)
Bantamweight bout: Walel Watson vs Joseph Sandoval
Pass
Welterweight bout: Josh Neer vs Keith Wisniewski
Welcome back to the UFC Neer.
Lightweight bout: Shane Roller vs TJ Grant
Shane Roller
Bantamweight bout: Mike Easton vs Byron Bloodworth
Pass
Lightweight bout: Michael Johnson vs Paul Sass
Johnson
Lightweight bout: Yves Edwards vs Rafaello Oliveira
I haven’t seen Oliveira, but I’ll pick Edwards in the dark here.
Main card
Lightweight bout: Matt Wiman vs Mac Danzig
This is a rematch fight. Wiman won due to early ref stoppage last fight. I like Wiman to win this one. Very tough guy to finish. Well they both are really. A very compelling fight.
Welterweight bout: Anthony Johnson vs Charlie Brenneman
Although Brenneman beat Rick Story in a major upset. I think Anthony Johnson’s power and reach will be too much. Johnson.
Heavyweight bout: Pat Barry vs Stefan Struve
Barry will probably chop the legs of Struve for three rounds and take a dec.
Bantamweight Championship: Dominick Cruz (champion) vs Demetrious Johnson
Dominick Cruz. I don’t think Johnson brings enough skill to the table to defeat Cruz. Not only is Cruz awesome on the feet, but he is equally a good wrestler.
(Garza picking up the first UFC win in Ontario in impressive fashion.)
After racking up nine straight wins in the regional circuit, Pablo Garza suffered the first loss of his career under the bright lights of the WEC. Determined that he belonged in the big show, “The Scarecrow” made his way to Las Vegas to try out for The Ultimate Fighter 12, but failed to make it into the house when eventual finalist Michael Johnson knocked him out of the competition in the qualifying round.
Garza walked away from the show determined to improve. He was given another shot to prove that he belonged in the Octagon at the TUF 12 finale and he took the opportunity and ran with it as he knocked out Fredson Paxiao 51 seconds into the opening frame with a picture-perfect, $30,000 Knockout of the Night garnering flying knee.
Riding the momentum of his impressive UFC debut in December, the 27-year-old Fargo, North Dakota native wanted to make another statement in his follow-up fight last weekend at UFC 129 in Toronto against Yves Jabouin. It took him just 4:31 to silence the Canadian crowd and earn himself another performance bonus — this time for Submission of the Night and to the tune of $129, 000.
We spoke to Garza yesterday and touched on a number of topics including his win over Jabouin Saturday night, what he plans to do with his latest bonus and what his family thinks about his career path.
Check out the interview with the fast-rising featherweight after the jump.
(Garza picking up the first UFC win in Ontario in impressive fashion.)
After racking up nine straight wins in the regional circuit, Pablo Garza suffered the first loss of his career under the bright lights of the WEC. Determined that he belonged in the big show, “The Scarecrow” made his way to Las Vegas to try out for The Ultimate Fighter 12, but failed to make it into the house when eventual finalist Michael Johnson knocked him out of the competition in the qualifying round.
Garza walked away from the show determined to improve. He was given another shot to prove that he belonged in the Octagon at the TUF 12 finale and he took the opportunity and ran with it as he knocked out Fredson Paxiao 51 seconds into the opening frame with a picture-perfect, $30,000 Knockout of the Night garnering flying knee.
Riding the momentum of his impressive UFC debut in December, the 27-year-old Fargo, North Dakota native wanted to make another statement in his follow-up fight last weekend at UFC 129 in Toronto against Yves Jabouin. It took him just 4:31 to silence the Canadian crowd and earn himself another performance bonus — this time for Submission of the Night and to the tune of $129, 000.
We spoke to Garza yesterday and touched on a number of topics including his win over Jabouin Saturday night, what he plans to do with his latest bonus and what his family thinks about his career path.
Check out the what the fast-rising featherweight had to say below.
———-
Have you had to pinch yourself to make sure you weren’t dreaming since notching your impressive win and won a record-setting $129,000 Submission of the Night bonus you received from the UFC Saturday night?
“It feels good. My mind can’t comprehend what I just did and what will probably happen in the future for me.”
What was your reaction when Dana White informed you how much you would be getting for your slick flying triangle submission over Yves Jabouin?
“It sounded awesome and to tell you the truth it still hasn’t even set in. Just last night I was replaying it in my mind and I was like, ‘Geez, I can’t believe what I just did. It’s surreal to me still.”
Was it unnerving realizing that you were facing a Canadian in Canada in front of a partisan crowd of more than 55,000 people?
“I expected the crowd to be against me. I prepared myself for that. It was basically his hometown. He’s from Montreal. It’s close by. I came in knowing that I was going to get boeed, but I wasn’t going to let it bother me. What actually surprised me is that when I came out of the Octagon and was walking backstage, people were actually cheering for me, like ‘Yeah Pablo! Let’s go! Let’s go!’ and stuff like that, so it kind of added to the motivation.”
Your transition to the triangle seemed flawless. Is that a move you work on a lot in the gym?
“I wouldn’t say I work on my flying triangle a lot, but I have done it before. That wasn’t the first time I’ve done it. I’ve actually done them in jiu-jitsu tournaments and it’s a lot easier doing them in the gi. That move is a move that after jiu-jitsu class me and my training partners will just hang out and work on cool moves like that just for the hell of it. I started just messing around with it and I started getting a little better with it and doing it in jiu-jitsu tournaments, but this was the first time I ever did it in a fight.”
What rank are you in BJJ?
“I’m only a blue belt in jiu-jitsu, but I think I’m a little bit better than that. I don’t know. I’ve only been training jiu-jitsu for about two-and-a-half years or so. I’ve just recently started, maybe two months ago training really hard in the gi. Before that I was doing a lot of no-gi stuff and wrestling.”
I think too much attention is paid to belt rank and not enough is paid to experience or skill level. Jason MacDonald, who also fought and scored an impressive submission win and whose ground game is very underrated isn’t ranked because he doesn’t train in the gi. Is that why you’re only a blue when your skill level and experience is much higher, because you haven’t trained with the gi as much?
“The gi definitely helps a lot. At first I was like, ‘Why do I need a gi if I fight and we don’t wear them?’ but it’s all part of being a martial artist. There are benefits of training in a gi that correlate into fighting that you won’t be able to see until you try it.”
You fought and picked up your first loss under the WEC banner and were let go by the promotion so you decided to go another route and try out for The Ultimate Fighter but missed out on your opportunity to get into the house after you lost to eventual finalist Michael Johnson. Would you do it over again if given the opportunity?
“Getting on the show and then fighting Michael Johnson and losing to him, I definitely used that as a learning experience. It definitely motivated me to train harder. I don’t regret it. If anything it pushed me to get better. I used that stumbling block or that loss as motivation to get better. I really can’t say whether or not I would do it again because I never go to experience being in the house like my training partner Dane Sayers. He got into the house. I can’t say I would do it a thousand times over because I didn’t get into the house, but going the way I went about things as far as how the road led me back to the UFC, I’m glad and I feel blessed that things worked out the way they did.”
Have you had the chance to think about a possible opponent you’d like to face next? Not that you have a say in it, but sometimes fighters create a buzz from calling out another fighter and the UFC takes a closer look at the possibility.
“Honestly, there’s nobody I have in mind right now. I haven’t even thought about it. After I fight, I don’t even want to think about fighting. I don’t even want to do anything this week or next week but totally relax. My goal in the UFC isn’t, ‘Oh, I want to fight this guy,’ or ‘Oh, I want to fight that guy.’ My goal is to stay in the UFC. For most fighters, the goal is to get to the UFC, but the hard part isn’t getting there. It’s staying there once you make it because the competition is so high. That’s my goal. My goal is to stay in the UFC and keep my job.”
This latest bonus makes two in a row for you since you picked up one for Knockout of the Night for your flying-knee KO of Fredson Paixão at the TUF 12 finale. Have you treated yourself to anything with your winnings?
“I’m going to put the money aside for now until I can talk to some financial advisors. I want to be really smart with my money. Most guys when they get to the UFC, they say their goal is to become champion. I always told myself that if I ever got to the UFC and made enough money to pay off my college loans, I was definitely going to do that. That’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to pay back my college loans and save, invest the rest and be smart about it.”
Where did you go to school?
“I graduated from the University of North Dakota with an exercise science and personal fitness training degree.”
Do you work in the field you studied?
“Yeah. I work at the university teaching classes from Monday to Thursday.”
How has the reaction been from your students who are MMA and UFC fans?
“They’re really proud. They’re really cool. A lot of the students didn’t know what MMA and UFC was. Now they’re fans and watch it. They think I’m a really cool teacher and they’re proud for me.”
Do you integrate any of your MMA training methodologies into your lessons?
“No. I only train muay thai and kickboxing classes, so I guess I do share some of my stand-up training.”
Oh, Okay. When you said you teach at the university, I thought you might have taught kinesiology or something like that.
“No. I’d have to be a teachers assistant or something to do that. I would never have enough time to do that with training.”
Is your family supportive of what you do?
“My fiancee is really supportive and proud. She really encourages me to do well and just all around supports me. She watches my fights. As for my mom and dad, they honestly don’t understand what it is I do. A couple weeks ago I tried to explain to her what I do and I tried explaining my flying-knee win was the first knockout at 145 in the UFC and how important it was and what it meant to me. Her reaction was like, ‘Well, as long as it makes you happy.’ She has no clue what the UFC is. My mom’s old school. She’s like, ‘As long as you like your job, I’m happy for you.’”
My grandma is like that. She still thinks I cover pro wrestling for a living.
“Yeah, my mom thinks I’m a wrestler. She’ll ask me, ‘So do you wrestle or do you box?’ She tries to explain it to a friend and it’s pretty funny hearing her try.”
I know that one of your main sponsors is Rev Gear, which is who we set this interview up with. How important are good sponsors to up-and-coming fighters like yourself?
“I’m just really glad that a company like Rev Gear took the time to invest in me and believe in me. I come from pretty meager beginnings and my family has worked hard for everything we had, yet we were at the lower end of the [economic] scale. I’ve never had a lot of money. I like Rev Gear a lot because they aren’t a huge faceless corporation like some of the other bigger clothing sponsors. They’re a perfect fit for me. They really look after me and we have a great relationship. I’m glad that they believed in me and that I showed them that their investment in me is really beneficial for them.”
Filed under: UFCLAS VEGAS – This is “The Ultimate Fighter” Finale live blog for Michael Johnson vs. Jonathan Brookins, the main event of tonight’s card at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas.
This is the lightweight championship fight of Season 12 of…
LAS VEGAS – This is “The Ultimate Fighter” Finale live blog for Michael Johnson vs. Jonathan Brookins, the main event of tonight’s card at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas.
This is the lightweight championship fight of Season 12 of the Spike reality series, and the winner receives a guaranteed UFC contract. Johnson beat Nam Phan by split decision to reach the finals. Brookins beat Kyle Watson by unanimous decision.
Filed under: UFC, NewsJonathan Brookins is the Season 12 winner of The Ultimate Fighter, taking the championship of the UFC’s reality show with a unanimous decision victory over Michael Johnson on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
Jonathan Brookins is the Season 12 winner of The Ultimate Fighter, taking the championship of the UFC’s reality show with a unanimous decision victory over Michael Johnson on Saturday night in Las Vegas.
It was an impressive display by Brookins, who managed to survive even though he appeared to be badly hurt in the first round, then came back to win the second and third rounds, and win the decision.
“My game’s still got a lot to improve on,” Brookins said afterward. “I want to invite everybody to come along for the ride with me because I’ve got a lot of improving to do.”
This is the 
LAS VEGAS – This is “The Ultimate Fighter” Finale live blog for 
Jonathan Brookins