Tag: Recap

Fight Night Krakow Aftermath: The One In Poland…


(And in that moment, a million “Because PRIDE!!” chants were heard. Via Getty)

By Cody Severtson

UFC Fight Night: Cro Cop vs. Gonzaga II. — one look at the headliner of last Saturday’s mid-afternoon card could only think of one thing…or maybe one other thing. It was an event that featured many debuts, a few upsets, a tonne of terribly boring decisions, a completely uninterested crowd, and surprisingly, a pretty sweet finale. So let’s break it down, shall we?

“It wasn’t a COMPLETELY terrible card” is probably the highest praise you could give Fight Night 64. There were some spots of brilliance; Cro Cop’s vengeance, Maryna Moroz’s massive upset, and Aleksandra Albu successfully debuting, which will give CagePotato at least 6 more Hot Potato articles to “write” in the next year. There was, however, a good hour and a half stretch in the middle of the main card (and pretty much the entirety of the undercard) where absolutely nothing worthwhile happened. Fight Night 64 was a card that had us asking ourselves a question that we’ve been asking more and more these days:

Is this really what qualifies as the highest level of MMA?

The post Fight Night Krakow Aftermath: The One In Poland… appeared first on Cagepotato.


(And in that moment, a million “Because PRIDE!!” chants were heard. Via Getty)

By Cody Severtson

UFC Fight Night: Cro Cop vs. Gonzaga II. — one look at the headliner of last Saturday’s mid-afternoon card could only think of one thing…or maybe one other thing. It was an event that featured many debuts, a few upsets, a tonne of terribly boring decisions, a completely uninterested crowd, and surprisingly, a pretty sweet finale. So let’s break it down, shall we?

“It wasn’t a COMPLETELY terrible card” is probably the highest praise you could give Fight Night 64. There were some spots of brilliance; Cro Cop’s vengeance, Maryna Moroz’s massive upset, and Aleksandra Albu successfully debuting, which will give CagePotato at least 6 more Hot Potato articles to “write” in the next year. There was, however, a good hour and a half stretch in the middle of the main card (and pretty much the entirety of the undercard) where absolutely nothing worthwhile happened. Fight Night 64 was a card that had us asking ourselves a question that we’ve been asking more and more these days:

Is this really what qualifies as the highest level of MMA?

Constantly, we’ve been told that “THE UFC IS NOT WATERED DOWN!”, but can anyone from Zuffa honestly look me dead in the eye after this event and say the card that Fight Night 64 was reflective of the highest level of MMA in the world? Can the UFC really survive off cards where there are, at most, 3 ranked fighters? Or only two fights with relevance to their division? Or where 50% of competitors are making their debut? Or where the other 50% are on losing streaks?

Just look at some of the stats about the fighters featured on this card and tell me that we’re wrong.

-Tonight featured 10 fighters making their debut, 4 of whom surprisingly went 2-2 against UFC “vets.”

-Of the 14 UFC “vets” on the card (no other way to describe them), only 3 were on win streaks! That’s 11 fighters total on losing streaks of 1 loss or more, with the main eventers combined for a UFC streak of 5 losses.

-Of those win streaks, Sergio Moraes‘ stood tallest at 2 wins in a row. You read that right…THE BEST ACTIVE STREAK AT THIS EVENT WAS 2 WINS.

-The remaining 11 UFC “vets” were ALL on losing streaks.

-Despite being a card in Poland, Polish fighters went 2-7 on the night, with wins coming from Bartosz Fabinski and the guy who gave Peter Sobotta his first win in the UFC after 4 tries.

-Of the 24 fighters on the card, only 2 fighters were ranked in the top 10: Jimi Manuwa, who was somehow still ranked #7 despite a year of inactivity (smh), and Joanne Calderwood, ranked #6 in a division of 26 people.

-Speaking of layoffs, 5 fighters who competed last weekend had not seen cage time in a year or more.

-Aleksandra Albu had the longest gap between fights at 615 days (and don’t tell me she hasn’t had 4 other fights in that time not otherwise listed)

-Damian Stasiak should have some leniency when the brass is evaluating pink slips, as he had the quickest turnaround of any fighter on the card, fighting only 14 days ago..

-Fight Night 64 was the first event since Ben Henderson vs. Brandon Thatch to award a “Fight of the Night” bonus

On top of these stats, we were treated with the announcement of Jacare Souza’s new opponent; stepping up on 6 days’ notice is none other than…Chris Camozzi. This is obviously great news for Chris, who once again finds himself back in the UFC after a pretty horrible losing streak in his last run.

Chris Camozzi vs. Ronaldo Souza 2 is the co-main event for UFC on Fox. This is the state of the UFC in 2015. Clearly, you should be thrilled for this barnburner to come, as many of us were.

“At least the found someone…”

“Acceptable on short notice…”

No. Not “at least.” Not “acceptable.” If you are a fan who spent $1500 on floor tickets or $250 for the nosebleeds, you are not thinking, “Oh cool, the event I spent my hard earned money on to go see is falling to pieces. I guess that’s acceptable, at least they found someone!

Granted, I don’t think anyone in Newark, New Jersey is buying tickets to go see Jacare Souza fight. but it’s the principle. You have a top 10 opponent whose opponent was injured at the last-minute — nothing you can do about that. But since the best you can apparently do on 6 days notice is get a guy with an abysmal record in his last 5 fights, you just roll with it because of the “Any Given Sunday” mentality or whatever. This is the UFC absolutely 100% skirting around the issue that they are seriously lacking contenders, quality opponents, and/or the desire to pay these higher-ranked athletes what they deserve to accept a fight on such short notice.

And then this is how you defend it.

As a fan base, should we really just take whatever we can get? Should we be expected to applaud the fact that at the very least “somebody stepped up?” Did anyone ask “Hey, if nobody relevant to the division steps up than maybe… nobody will mind if we just delay this fight?” I mean it’s not like Chris Weidman’s rocking 3 fights a year at his pace!

From a numbers perspective, why did anyone think that a rematch between these two was really the solution? Chris Camozzi left the UFC after going 4 losses straight against decreasing quality of competitors. Jacare Souza (who I guess I should mention, absolutely smoked Camozzi LESS THAN TWO YEARS AGO) has knocked Okami out of the UFC, beat Francis Carmont AND finished Gegard Mousasi (something Lyoto fucking Machida could not do). But because Camozzi begged to take the fight well I guess then it makes sense and we should all shut up and accept it because we’re dummies and we’re not true fight fans and this card is stacked and he’s a beast and it’s a great rematch and such and such, well ok that’s the end of that discussion I guess…

Look, the MMA community is a tough group to please; it’s never going to happen where collectively everyone says “you know what, we all like this!” However, THINGS LIKE THIS are not going to change the MMA collective’s opinion on the declining quality of cards in the UFC! And no amount of dummy-calling is going to convince me otherwise!

But hey, not everything sucked about Fight Night 64. We got to watch a 40-year old Mirko Cro Cop — whose last two victories in MMA came over the same guy — score redemption by hammering out a rival who happened to be on a two-fight losing streak. And it was glorious. And that’s where the glory ends.

Excuse me while I see myself out.

The post Fight Night Krakow Aftermath: The One In Poland… appeared first on Cagepotato.

The Week in Review: Rampage Forced Off UFC 186 (UH-DOI!), The Return of Mike Swick, + A Big Step Forward in UFC Drug Testing


(Yup, that pretty much sums it up.)

Greetings, Nation. If you haven’t noticed by the all but complete lack of posts this week, I’ve been away from the office (and in fact out of the state) to deal with some legal issues pertaining to a…gambling snafu. Yeah, let’s go with that.

My recent absence aside, the cutbacks across the board here at Castle CP have forced us to severely limit the amount of posts we can put up per day. So I, in my infinite wisdom, figured a John Oliver-esque recap of the week’s events in a single post would be the best way to keep you in the know moving forward, should CP happen to be your lone source of MMA news. Which if it is…

But let us begin with perhaps the biggest story of the week…

The post The Week in Review: Rampage Forced Off UFC 186 (UH-DOI!), The Return of Mike Swick, + A Big Step Forward in UFC Drug Testing appeared first on Cagepotato.


(Yup, that pretty much sums it up.)

Greetings, Nation. If you haven’t noticed by the all but complete lack of posts this week, I’ve been away from the office (and in fact out of the state) to deal with some legal issues pertaining to a…gambling snafu. Yeah, let’s go with that.

My recent absence aside, the cutbacks across the board here at Castle CP have forced us to severely limit the amount of posts we can put up per day. So I, in my infinite wisdom, figured a John Oliver-esque recap of the week’s events in a single post would be the best way to keep you in the know moving forward, should CP happen to be your lone source of MMA news. Which if it is…

But let us begin with perhaps the biggest story of the week…

-In news no one — I repeat, no one — could have seen coming (except us, like, a month ago), Rampage Jackson has been forced out of his UFC 186 co-main event matchup with Fabio Maldonado. OH THE SHOCK AND TERROR AND ALSO AWE. If you recall, Bellator filed a lawsuit against Jackson back in March following the news that he had re-signed with the UFC while still under one of those “crazy contracts” that the Rebney Era became infamous for.

On Tuesday, New Jersey judge Karen L. Suter granted Bellator an injunction that successfully blocked Rampage from fighting at UFC 186 at the end of the month. When asked why she backed Bellator in this case, Suter claimed that “Equities plaintiff legal talk legal talk peas and carrots.” I’m paraphrasing, but you can read the bullet points here.

-In a more positive story, the UFC announced the hiring of “anti-doping crusader” Jeff Novitzky as vice president of athlete health and performance, a huge step forward in light of the promotion’s newly-instated drug testing policies. Novitzky is the perhaps best known for leading the investigation against both Barry Bonds and BALCO back in 2002 and Lance Armstrong in 2010 while working for the FDA. Why Chael Sonnen, who called out Armstrong years before any of us were ready to hear it, has not yet been brought onto the UFC’s new anti-steroid A-team remains a complete mystery.

-Speaking of steroids, Jorge de Oliveira became the most recent UFC fighter to get nailed for stanozolol, following his loss to Christos Giagos at Fight Night 62. Oliveira has been suspended for a year retroactive to the March 21st event, and his name will likely never be spoken on our tongues again.

-Alexis Dufresne (relationship status to Andy Dufresne: Uncertain) was also caught by a pre-fight medical…for pregnancy! You see how I turned that around on you like that? Bow down to the master, bitches!!! (But seriously, pregnancy is a beautiful thing and should not be trivialized.) Following her 0-2 run in the UFC, Dufresne was set to make her Bellator debut at Bellator 137 in May until a pre-fight medical exam revealed that she was with child.

-Speaking of which, Ben Henderson and his wife announced that they are also expecting. Send your congratulations with the proper stationary accordingly.

-In fight-booking news, Mike Swick has been greenlit to return to the octagon for the first time since his 1-1 run in the promotion back in 2012, which itself followed a two year absence due to injuries. The inventor of The Swickatine, Swicks Cheese, and The Swick-ffer will face off against dangerous striker Alex Garcia at UFC 189.

-For its first trip to Poland, the UFC has booked an absolutely abysmal card in Fight Night 64, as is tradition. Barring the main event rematch between Mirko Cro Cop and Gabriel Gonzaga, the four fight main card features three fighters without a Wikipedia page, one of whom is named Sheldon. Sheldon, you guys. UFC Krakow does feature the long-awaited debut of Alexandra Albu, however, which makes this a good a time as any to remind you that she is smokin’ hot…er…incredibly marketable.

-And finally, this photo. My God, this photo. (via r/mma)

My official reaction can be heard here.

-J. Jones

The post The Week in Review: Rampage Forced Off UFC 186 (UH-DOI!), The Return of Mike Swick, + A Big Step Forward in UFC Drug Testing appeared first on Cagepotato.

Fight Night 62 Aftermath/Results: Maia Dominates LaFlare, Koscheck & Baszler Edge Closer to Retirement in Night of Thrilling Finishes


(Photo via Getty.)

Fight Night 62 was one of those cards that, while appearing just abysmal on paper, actually turned out to be a rather entertaining affair. I mean, sure, the main card broadcast dragged along at it’s typical sloth-like pace — something that the UFC desperately needs to change but sadly never will — and the main event wasn’t exactly the kind of barnburner we’ve come to expect from a Demian Maia fight (sarcasm), but Fight Night 62 more than made up for its lack of name power with exciting finishes. It was also a card that signaled the (competitive) end of at least two MMA careers and the possible resurgence of another, so join us after the jump for a full breakdown of what went down in Rio over the weekend.


(Photo via Getty.)

Fight Night 62 was one of those cards that, while appearing just abysmal on paper, actually turned out to be a rather entertaining affair. I mean, sure, the main card broadcast dragged along at it’s typical sloth-like pace — something that the UFC desperately needs to change but sadly never will — and the main event wasn’t exactly the kind of barnburner we’ve come to expect from a Demian Maia fight (sarcasm), but Fight Night 62 more than made up for its lack of name power with exciting finishes. It was also a card that signaled the (competitive) end of at least two MMA careers and the possible resurgence of another, so join us after the jump for a full breakdown of what went down in Rio over the weekend.

Let’s start things off a little off the beaten path, by awarding our official GIF-Worthy Finish of the Night (GWFotN) to Fredy Serrano, who kicked off Fight Night 62 in style by absolutely starching Bentley Syler with an uppercut in the second round.

Really, the entire undercard was a veritable potpourri of violence and terrible reffing decisions, as we’ve come to expect more and more with each UFC card. Take for instance, the second fight of the night, in which Christos Giagos submitted Jorge de Oliveira with a rear-naked choke in the first round. Yet despite the fact that Oliveira CLEARLY tapped, I don’t know, 6 times? And despite the fact that referee Eduardo Hely was in no way obstructed from seeing this tap, he allowed Giagos to continue choking Oliveira for a few more completely unnecessary seconds. You can check out a gif of that absolute bullshit here.

Speaking of absolute bullshit and/or Eduardo Hely, I’m sure that you’ve already heard by now of the Drew Dober-Leandro Silva fight, which resulted in what might just be the worst stoppage in UFC history. I…I can’t even begin to explain what the Hell was going through Hely’s mind on this one, so let’s just watch the gif and angrily spit out leftover Chinese food on our computer monitors.

I swear to God, it’s like MMA refs are doing their damndest in recent weeks to make MMA judges look like the more competent of the two. For what it’s worth, Dober was given his win bonus that night, and Eduardo Hely will likely face no action of consequence for his horrendous night at bat.

Let’s move onto the main card, wherein Godofredo Pepey continued his improbable (and incredibly flashy) run of finishes with a slick flying triangle over the heavily-favored Andrey Fili. The Team Alpha Male stud was impressive early, peppering Pepey with quick shots and generally out moving him, but as soon as he entered the clinch game with the TUF Brazil runner-up, disaster struck. Pepey used the cage to leap into a flying triangle, which he then worked for next minute or so until Fili finally gave in. It marked the third straight highlight reel finish (and performance bonus) for Pepey, who is quickly rocketing up the featherweight rankings.

I suppose I could talk to you about Gilbert Burns’ hail mary armbar over late replacement opponent Alex Oliveira, or Leonardo Santos’ second round sub of Tony Martin, but really, I want to talk about two fighters who looked in need of a Joe Rogan Career Assessment: Josh Koscheck and Shayna Baszler.

The former faced a quick turnaround against Erick Silva on Saturday following his second round submission loss to Jake Ellenberger at UFC 184. For those hoping a fight against a young gun would light a fire under the longtime UFC veteran’s keester, you were right. For about 30 seconds. Though he came out aggressive early, Koscheck — as he did against Ellenberger — went into retreat mode once he felt the power of his opponent. After eating a couple shots along the fence, you could practically see the confidence start to drain from the veteran as Silva took him down and locked in a fight-ending guillotine choke. Koscheck has now lost his past 5 fights in a row, and retirement seems imminent.

Baszler, on the other hand, has looked less and less effective with each passing fight. She has secured exactly 1 victory since 2010, and had less to offer Amanda Nunes than she did Bethe Correia or Julianna Pena in her only other UFC appearances (one of which was on TUF 18, but you get what I’m saying) before succumbing to a leg kick TKO in the first round. A pioneer of WMMA she may be, but Baszler’s time as a top-level fighter has clearly passed her by, and we just hope that either she or the UFC are able to recognize this.

Which brings us to the main event of the evening. In what was similarly being billed as a passing of the guard fight from Demian Maia to Ryan LaFlare, the former utterly dominated the latter with takedowns and top control for four straight rounds. Most noticeable during the fight was the 37 year old Maia’s much-improved wrestling and sweep skills, which left LaFlare looking like an overmatched grappling partner desperate searching for a lifeline. It was a fight that was supposed to announce LaFlare’s arrival into the welterweight top 10, yet ended up being one that Demian Maia proved that he’s still got something left in the gas tank (metaphorically speaking of course, as Maia was absolutely torched by the fifth round). How much exactly remains to be seen.

Full results for Fight Night 62 are below.

Main Card (on FOX Sports 1)
Demian Maia def. Ryan LaFlare by unanimous decision
Erick Silva def. Josh Koscheck by submission (guillotine choke) at 4:21, R1
Leonardo Santos def. Tony Martin by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:29, R2
Amanda Nunes def. Shayna Baszler by TKO (leg kicks) at 1:56, R1
Gilbert Burns def. Alex Oliveira by submission (arm bar) at 4:14, R3
Godofredo Pepey  def. Andre Fili by submission (triangle choke) at 3:14, R1

Preliminary Card
Francisco Trinaldo def. Akbarh Arreola by unanimous decision
Kevin Souza def. Katsunori Kikuno by KO at 1:31, R1
Leandro “Buscape” Silva def. Drew Dober by submission (guillotine choke) at 2:45, R2
Leonardo Mafra Teixeira def. Cain Carrizosa by unanimous decision
Christos Giagos def. Jorge de Oliveira by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:12, R1
Fredy Serrano def. Bentley Syler by KO at 1:34, R3

Power-Ranking the Four Latest Stoppages of UFC 184


(Mark, are you giving up?! I need a sign Mark! Literally *any* sign! No? Well, fight on then!” via Getty.)

By CP Reader Steve Hand

It’s hard to believe that a night which saw five fighters finished inside of three minutes could feature so many late stoppages, but such is the incompetency of the modern MMA referee (second only to that of, you guessed it, Frank Stallone the MMA judge). Without using too much hyperbole, I feel comfortable saying that UFC 184 was the biggest reffing travesty since the 2007 NBA Betting Scandal, and maybe of all time. And with that, let’s take a look at just how bad the ball was dropped over the course of the night.


(Mark, are you giving up?! I need a sign Mark! Literally *any* sign! No? Well, fight on then!” via Getty.)

By CP Reader Steve Hand

It’s hard to believe that a night which saw five fighters finished inside of three minutes could feature so many late stoppages, but such is the incompetency of the modern MMA referee (second only to that of, you guessed it, Frank Stallone the MMA judge). Without using too much hyperbole, I feel comfortable saying that UFC 184 was the biggest reffing travesty since the 2007 NBA Betting Scandal, and maybe of all time. And with that, let’s take a look at just how bad the ball was dropped over the course of the night.

4. Derrick Lewis TKO’s Ruan Potts

Ruan Potts might be the worst heavyweight to fight in the UFC since that guy Gabriel Gonzaga superman punched back in 06′ (and don’t even get me started on his nickname), yet even he almost managed to pull off a leglock of some sort in the early-going of his fight with “The Black Beast.” Once Lewis escaped, however, Potts had no answer for the bigger man’s striking, and even tried to quit in between rounds. His corner wouldn’t have it, and referee Jarin Valel, having apparently never been to an MMA fight before, stood by watching with almost giddy anticipation.

“I can’t wait to see my first murder up close,” he thought to himself. “You should have never slept with my wife, Ruan, you son of a bitch.”

A minute and a half after Joe Rogan verbally threw in the towel for Potts, Valel crouched down for an even closer look. Or maybe he lost a contact, because he definitely wasn’t watching what I was watching. Lewis continued to reign down shots on a clearly broken Potts while Valel did a J nearby, then passed out in a weed-induced haze. It wasn’t until the crunching sound of the South African’s face woke him up that the fight was finally called off.

3. Jake Ellenberger North-South Chokes Josh Koscheck

LOOK AT IT. LOOK AT THE HORROR.

For those of you who might’ve missed it: Jake Ellenberger locked in a modified north-south choke on Koscheck in the final minute of the second round. Roughly 25 seconds after Kos’ body began to twitch and squirm in an attempt for air, the legend JARIN VALEL decided to step in. Did you see the foam spewing from Koscheck’s face? The look in his eyes says it all: “It’s an honor to have my unconscious pleas ignored by you, the GREATEST REF working today.”

Let me be clear: Jarin Valel should never be allowed to referee another MMA fight again. He’s going to get someone killed, and then the NSAC will be up shit creek without a paddle.

2. Roan Carneiro’s “Submission” of Mark Munoz

This was actually an even fight for the 45 seconds it was on the feet. When it got to the ground however, Carneiro took Munoz’s back and tightened up a super deep RNC. Referee Jarin Valel, THE BEST IN THE BUSINESS, proceeded to tie his shoes as Munoz began to go towards the light. Even from such an up-close perspective, Valel simply could not see Munoz’s soul escaping his body, so Roan, the nice guy that he is, tells him the fight is over. Yup, the guy doing the choking had to submit for his opponent.

This was the real-life equivalent of the guy in South Park who declared “All right boys, break it up” following a five-minute cripple fight. Note to Valel: When the guy doing the strangling tells you he’s done, YOU’RE NOT DOING YOUR JOB!

But for all of Valel’s life-threatening guffaws, the worst stoppage of the night by far goes to…

1. Joe Rogan Interviews Cat Zingano Following Her Quick Loss to Ronda Rousey

18 months of anticipation lead to 14 seconds she’ll regret forever. There’s a sex joke to made somewhere in there, but I’m simply not prepared to make it in light of this interviewing travesty.

You can see Cat trying to make sense of her greatest opportunity slipping through her fingers when Joe Rogan tries to have a chat. He inquires a visibly uncomfortable Zingano about her strategy, and she’s got nothing but F bombs to drop. It’s ugly. There is no eye contact and no coherent sentences coming from the former challenger, and yet, Rogan lets it go on. Zingano is crushed, obviously, and all Joe wants is a sound bite and a handshake. Thanks Joe Rogan, for making her relive her greatest regret at a time when she shouldn’t be talking.

Ugh, I need a shower to wash off this filth. Better luck next time, MMA.

UFC 184 Highlights/Results: Ronda Rousey’s Lightning Quick Armbar, Josh Koscheck’s Face of Death + More

(via UFC on FOX)

As Michael Bisping might say, Cat Zingano didn’t last as long as a virgin on prom night in her long-awaited title bid against Ronda Rousey last weekend, succumbing to an armbar in just 14 seconds of their UFC 184 main event tilt. “Alpha” let her emotions get the best of her, both in the fight itself and in her post-fight interview, and it cost her big time. My heart breaks for the poor woman.

Aside from it’s lightning-quick main event, UFC 184 also saw Josh Koscheck and Mark Munoz get choked within an inch of their lives, Holly Holm pick apart Raquel Pennington (sort of), and Alan Jouban announce his arrival to the welterweight division with a vicious standing hellbow. Join us after the jump for all the highlights from UFC 184, most of which totally aren’t in the form of illegal gifs. (*removes sunglasses*) (*winks*)


(via UFC on FOX)

As Michael Bisping might say, Cat Zingano didn’t last as long as a virgin on prom night in her long-awaited title bid against Ronda Rousey last weekend, succumbing to an armbar in just 14 seconds of their UFC 184 main event tilt. “Alpha” let her emotions get the best of her, both in the fight itself and in her post-fight interview, and it cost her big time. My heart breaks for the poor woman.

Aside from it’s lightning-quick main event, UFC 184 also saw Josh Koscheck and Mark Munoz get choked within an inch of their lives, Holly Holm pick apart Raquel Pennington (sort of), and Alan Jouban announce his arrival to the welterweight division with a vicious standing hellbow. Join us after the jump for all the highlights from UFC 184, most of which totally aren’t in the form of illegal gifs. (*removes sunglasses*) (*winks*)


(Here’s a full video of Rousey vs. Zingano that definitely won’t be taken down within the hour.)

There’s not much to take away from Rousey’s win, really, other than that she might actually be the most dangerous unarmed person on the planet. In less octagon time than Georges St. Pierre normally spends per fight, Rousey has managed to secure 11 professional wins and two promotional titles, with her past three title fights lasting a combined minute and thirty six seconds. My God. While Jessica Eye and Bethe Correia are chomping at the bit for their shot against Rousey, it’s become more obvious than ever that Cris Cyborg is the only woman left for the champ, and even the 175-pound Brazilian might be in over her head at this point (not that we’ll ever find out, because 175 pounds).

Holly Holm vs. Raquel Pennington

While not being nearly as dominant a victory as the hype she was riding would have predicted, Holly Holm no less managed to stay busy and outwork Raquel Pennington for the first two rounds of the co-main event, only getting briefly dropped in the third. This could only mean, of course, that one of the judges would inexplicably score the fight for Pennington. Honestly, we’re becoming convinced that MMA judges are under the impression that the losing fighter winning one round always equals a split decision.

Jake Ellenberger vs. Josh Koscheck

In what was arguably a loser-leaves-town match for the struggling veterans, Jake Ellenberger pulled a rabbit out of his hat and scored the first submission win of his career over Josh Koscheck via a modified bulldog/north-south choke that literally left Kos foaming at the mouth. The slo-mo replay of Koscheck’s “Help Me God” face will almost certainly give you nightmares. Speaking of which…

Roan Carneiro vs. Mark Munoz

It was not a great night at the office for referee Jerin Valel, who not only allowed Derrick Lewis to continue beating on Ruan Potts for approximately 90 seconds after he had given up, but who watched on in silent awe as Roan Carneiro choked the soul out of Mark Munoz. How the fans in attendance, Kenny Florian in the booth, and everyone watching at home was able to see that Munoz was out before Valel did was truly the most mind-boggling takeaway from the night, and one that he will definitely not be held accountable for in this joke of a sport.

Meanwhile, Mark Munoz has been finished in three straight fights without landing a single significant strike. That is an actual statistic.

Alan Jouban vs. Richard Walsh

One referee who actually appeared to know what he was doing over the weekend was Herb Dean, who gracefully called an end to Alan Jouban’s standing elbow massacre of Richard Walsh before the latter took too much unnecessary damage. Walsh was clearly out on his feet at the time of the stoppage, which is why fans were of course complaining that the fight was called too early. Referees, man. They can’t win.

You won’t see the actual finish from the fight here, because the folks at UFC on FOX apparently believe that you will buy the UFC 184 pay-per-view after the fact to check out a sweet finish from the bottom half of the main card, but you can probably find a gif of it somewhere out there.

UFC 184 Results

Main card
Ronda Rousey def. Cat Zingano via submission (straight armlock)
Holly Holm def. Raquel Pennington via split decision
Jake Ellenberger def. Josh Koscheck via submission (north-south choke)
Alan Jouban def. Richard Walsh via first-round KO
Tony Ferguson def. Gleison Tibau via submission (rear-naked choke)

Undercard
Roan Carneiro def. Mark Munoz via submission (rear-naked choke)
Roman Salazar vs. Norifumi Yamamoto declared no-contest (doctor’s advice)
Tim Means def. Dhiego Lima via first-round TKO
Derrick Lewis def. Ruan Potts via second-round TKO
Valmir Lazaro def. James Krause via split decision
Masio Fullen def. Alexander Torres via split decision

UFC 184 Rousey vs. Zingano: Round-by-Round Recap and Analysis

UFC 184‘s main event features the most dominant champion in the UFC today. Ronda Rousey steps back inside the Octagon on Saturday to defend her title against No. 1-ranked contender Cat Zingano. Zingano earned her title shot with a win over Miesha Tate in April 2013, but injuries and personal tragedies forced her out of […]

UFC 184‘s main event features the most dominant champion in the UFC today. Ronda Rousey steps back inside the Octagon on Saturday to defend her title against No. 1-ranked contender Cat Zingano. Zingano earned her title shot with a win over Miesha Tate in April 2013, but injuries and personal tragedies forced her out of […]

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