Gilbert Melendez has long been a staple in the lightweight division. For years, he was considered one of the best fighters of any weight class outside of the UFC. When he finally made his first Octagon appearance in 2013, it was clear that he was going…
Gilbert Melendez has long been a staple in the lightweight division. For years, he was considered one of the best fighters of any weight class outside of the UFC. When he finally made his first Octagon appearance in 2013, it was clear that he was going to be in the title picture for a time to come. However, in his second bid for the 155-pound title, he was unable to capture the belt from Anthony Pettis. With his fourth defeat in his 12-year career, these are five fight suggestions that could be used to move his career forward.
Twelve years after a 20-year-old Robbie Lawler made his UFC debut against Aaron Riley at UFC 37, the Ruthless one finally added “UFC champion” to his resume at UFC 181.
It wasn’t always pretty. The sequel between Lawler and Johny Hendricks faile…
Twelve years after a 20-year-old Robbie Lawler made his UFC debut against Aaron Riley at UFC 37, the Ruthless one finally added “UFC champion” to his resume at UFC 181.
It wasn’t always pretty. The sequel between Lawler and Johny Hendricks failed to live up to the expectations the original created. The first bout saw a combined 308 signature strikes landed between the two of them.
This one only saw the two welterweights land 227 combined.
It didn‘t come without controversy. In a sport where takedowns are usually the end-all, be-all of judging, Lawler found a way to win the fight on two of the judges’ scorecards despite a 5-0 deficit in the takedown category.
MMAjunkie tweeted out the scores from the judges:
So how did Lawler eke out the victory despite the lopsided takedown total and being outstruck in three of five rounds? Here’s a look at the keys to Lawler‘s career-defining win.
Fast Start
Effective aggression. Those are the two words that could be used to describe Lawler‘s start to the fight. As Ben Fowlkes of MMAjunkie noted, the challenger didn‘t even waste time touching gloves before going right at the champion:
It’s cliche, but in order to take the belt, the challenger needs to bring the fight to the champion. Lawler‘s early flurry of strikes didn‘t necessarily have Hendricks in any kind of trouble, but it established an early lead in the round for Lawler.
As Mike Johnston of Sportsnet tweets, every judge agreed that Lawler was the winner of Round 1:
Much of that is owed to the hot start from Lawler. He outstruck Hendricks 34-14 in the opening frame, according to the FightMetric numbers.
Weathered the Storm
After throwing caution to the wind in the opening frame, Lawler clearly started Round 2 with his gas tank on empty. After throwing 52 significant strikes in Round 1, his output was nearly cut in half. He only threw 29 and was far less effective, only landing 13.
However, a look at where the strikes were landing tells how one judge may have seen Round 2 for the new champion. Hendricks opened up a 35-13 significant strikes advantage, but 18 of those were leg kicks. That means that Hendricks only landed three more significant strikes to the head than Lawler in the second frame.
Obviously, leg kicks should count for something. By most accounts, that’s still a win for BiggRigg. But Lawler was able to maintain distance, stay out of serious harm’s way and survive the inevitable dip in production after a busy Round 1.
Took Advantage of Hendricks’ Coasting
Round 3 was the most lopsided of the fight. With Hendricks landing two takedowns and opening a wide disparity in strikes between Lawler and himself, there’s no disputing who was the better fighter for those five minutes.
With Round 2 appearing to go his way and a dominant Round 3, the momentum of the fight was definitely swung in BiggRigg‘s favor.
But Lawler wasn’t ready to concede defeat quite yet. He upped his output from eight significant strikes landed in Round 3 to 19 in Round 4. With a slight advantage in headhunting efficiency in the fourth frame, it’s not quite so egregious to think that Lawler got the nod from one judge.
With four rounds in the books, Hendricks did something that fans have seen him do before—attempt to coast his way though Round 5. The same crucial mistake that led to his loss to Georges St-Pierre once again reared it’s ugly head.
“I didn’t fight. Look at the fourth and fifth round…I just didn’t fight,” Hendricks said after the fight (via Sherdog). “I didn’t come out the fourth and fifth like I normally do. It is what it is. I’m gonna be my worst critic. … That’s what it was. I didn’t stay light on my feet like I should’ve. You get lost in the moment. That happened to me and I’ll be back.”
With Hendricks using his wrestling to do nothing more than stall for the vast majority of Round 5, it opened up the opportunity for Lawler to steal the round with a late flurry. When the final buzzer sounded, Lawler had effectively taken the belt from the champion.
Robbie Lawler and Johny Hendricks put on a show in their entertaining welterweight rematch on Saturday night at UFC 181. The hotly contested bout ultimately went Lawler’s way via split decision, evening the series between him and Hendricks at 1-1. …
Robbie Lawler and Johny Hendricks put on a show in their entertaining welterweight rematch on Saturday night at UFC 181. The hotly contested bout ultimately went Lawler’s way via split decision, evening the series between him and Hendricks at 1-1.
MMAjunkie provided a look at the scorecard, which was soundly judged and reflected the fierce competition and fighting on display from these two proud brawlers:
Lawler improved his overall record to 25-10, while Hendricks’ rare loss put him at 16-3 for his career. This bout was one of the main storylines of the year for UFC after Hendricks’ win in March at UFC 171 earned him the vacant welterweight title.
Lawler left open the possibility of a grudge match after his win, via UFC:
In the co-main event, Anthony Pettis defended his lightweight title for the first time by defeating Gilbert Melendez in the second round with a guillotine submission.
The main card was full of powerful shots and entertaining moments, with the heavyweight matches providing fans a nice warm-up to the main event with a few thunderous strikes.
Here is a look at the results from the main card, followed by a closer look at some of the top moments from all the action on display at UFC 181:
Note: The full list of bouts and results from UFC 181 can be foundhere.
Top Moments
In the first fight on the main card, Tony Ferguson scored a second round win via submission over Abel Trujillo with a diabolical rear-naked choke. Trujillo was in control of the fight in the first round, scoring two takedowns and one knockdown.
Trujillo clearly did too much in the first round of the bout. Sports Illustrated‘s Jeff Wagenheim noted fatigue was the determining factor in this contest:
Ferguson was a bit overmatched standing up, but once he found his opportunity to move the match to the ground, Trujillo had no chance. USA Today‘s Ben Fowlkes noted the ease with which Trujillo fell to the mat:
Ferguson did well to pounce on his opportunity, and his chokehold earned him a big victory over a fighter who was lacking one crucial dimension in stamina.
Todd Duffee’s knockout win over Anthony Hamilton took just 33 seconds. Suffice it to say, the decisive blow was the top moment from that matchup.
Hamilton, backing away from an aggressive Duffee, attempted to come in with a straight left followed by a quick right hand. Duffee side-stepped the first shot and caught Hamilton flush on the chin with most of the latter fighter’s momentum taking him right into the crunching strike.
MMA fighter Sarah Kaufman criticized Hamilton’s hands, while MMAFighting.com noted Duffee is known to make quick work of his opponents:
Hamilton crumpled to the ground, with his senses completely cut out. It was a truly fearsome blow and should have Duffee’s next opponent wary of his immense power.
The next fight didn’t last much longer than Hamilton’s hammering. Travis Browne scored an easy first-round technical knockout win over Brendan Schaub.
Browne and Schaub felt each other out in the beginning, but Hapa would send Schaub crashing to the canvas with a strong uppercut to the chin. From there, a vicious ground-and-pound game commenced, with Browne dishing out an immense amount of punishment and forcing the official to call the fight early.
UFC noted Browne tied a record with his knockout win:
After the big heavies were done knocking each other out, it was time for a little bit more of a tango between Anthony Pettis and Gilbert Melendez in the lightweight title fight.
Melendez did well to control the first round of the fight, scoring one takedown and landing 49 strikes to Pettis’ 22 with some aggressiveness in the standing game.
Pettis came out firing in the second but eventually found himself backed against the cage. He used his supreme agility to slip a shooting Melendez and get him into a quick guillotine, forcing the challenger to tap out.
Melendez kept things classy in his post-match comments, per UFC:
Lawler vs. Hendricks would turn out to be the only main card bout to go the distance. Lawler got off to a shaky start with Hendricks notching a takedown. However, Lawler landed 43 strikes on his opponent in the first round and come out of it in good shape.
Hendricks fared better in the second, notching yet another takedown halfway through the round and beating his opponent with slick jabs and several strong knees while fighting for that takedown. Hendricks continued his dominance in the third, notching two more takedowns and outstriking Lawler 28-13. The fourth was fairly even, but the fifth round was where Lawler made his mark and won the contest.
He was simply a different animal in the latter portion of the round, furiously pounding away at his opponent with right-handed shots, elbows and several vicious kicks. He landed a staggering 63 total strikes in the round. The judges gave Lawler the win, which caused MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani to make this sweeping statement:
A third match between these two opponents would be a coup for both UFC and the fans. Hendricks’ supporters have a strong case for him winning the bout thanks to several strong takedowns and his overall control of the middle rounds of the fight.
Lawler’s stunning finish was irresistible to the judges, and the fourth round was indeed a very close call. The welterweight division is looking strong with these two fighters valiantly battling for glory.
The stacked fight card for UFC 181 promised high-stakes action. It didn’t disappoint.
The first shock of the night didn’t even come from inside the cage, but rather from an announcement outside of it. Former WWE wrestler CM Punk was announced as …
The stacked fight card for UFC 181 promised high-stakes action. It didn’t disappoint.
The first shock of the night didn’t even come from inside the cage, but rather from an announcement outside of it. Former WWE wrestler CM Punk was announced as the latest addition to the UFC roster, per Jeremy Botter of Bleacher Report:
However, the night was about much more than the addition of a crossover star. There were plenty of big things that happened that will shake up the UFC landscape at UFC 181. Here’s a look at the results from the evening and some of the biggest storylines to develop.
Sergio Pettis def. Matt Hobar, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Clay Collard def. Alex White, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Storylines of the Night
Josh Samman Has Serious Power
Entering UFC 181, Josh Samman was best known as “that one guy on that one season of The Ultimate Fighter.” Now, he’s best known as the guy who absolutely laid out Eddie Gordon with a head kick.
The 26-year-old showed some weaknesses on the ground. Gordon most likely won the first round with a controlling ground attack. However, it didn’t take long for Samman to turn things on a dime in the second round.
An explosive left high kick immediately sent Gordon tumbling back to the mat so emphatically that Samman already raised his hands in victory before he hit the floor. A quick look at Twitter explained just how violent the knockout was:
Samman still has a long way to go in his development as a fighter. That was just his second official UFC fight, and there were some weaknesses to be exploited. However, wins like that are the kind that can get a fighter noticed and moving toward bigger and better things.
Anthony Pettis Is a Special Athlete
Gilbert Melendez had a game plan against Anthony Pettis. He executed the game plan well.
It didn’t matter. That’s what happens when a fighter runs into an opponent who is simply superior to them.
In the first round, it looked like Melendez was going to be able to turn this bout into a classic. His ability to close the distance with Pettis and force the bout into a slugfest was perfect for neutralizing Showtime’s powerful kicks.
But even a wonderfully executed game plan isn’t enough to beat someone who is just better. Ultimately, Pettis‘ superior athleticism caught up to El Nino. The champion quickly latched onto a guillotine choke in the second round and forced the tap to retain his belt.
Melendez spoke to that athleticism after the fight, per Fight! Magazine:
Pettis might not be the traditional strong wrestler that fits the mold of most champions. He’s never going to be a fighter who can go out and control an opponent with his grappling for five rounds. But he’s able to utilize his quickness and speed to capitalize on favorable positions.
That makes him a dangerous champion moving forward.
We Have a New Welterweight Champion
The post-Georges St-Pierre welterweight era is far less secure than the era that preceded it.
The rematch between Johny Hendricks and Robbie Lawler didn’t quite live up to the first one. The two combatants combined for 229 total significant strikes landed. Their first bout brought about 308 of those strikes, per FightMetric.
However, it did illustrate a simple truth about the welterweight division—it’s wide open.
Lawler earned the nod on two of the three judges’ scorecards. But this was far from an emphatic win. In fact, it only served to spark even more interest in a third matchup of the two fighters to finally even the score after two nearly even bouts in the books.
Throw in the fact that we still don’t know how No. 2 contender Rory MacDonald would do in the Octagon with either of these fighters, and it’s clear that issues are far from resolved in the welterweight championship picture.
It took a little over a decade, but Robbie Lawler finally reached the top of the mountain in UFC.
Lawler won the welterweight title off Johny Hendricks at UFC 181 on Saturday—the crowning achievement in what’s been a less than typical career arc….
It took a little over a decade, but Robbie Lawler finally reached the top of the mountain in UFC.
Lawler won the welterweight title off Johny Hendricks at UFC 181 on Saturday—the crowning achievement in what’s been a less than typical career arc.
The new champion was just one of many fighters to pick up victories inside the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. You can see the full fight card below.
The three fighters listed were among the biggest winners at UFC. They either won or retained gold and/or shocked the world.
Biggest Winners
Anthony Pettis
Ring rust is a concept completely foreign to Anthony Pettis. Prior to Saturday, the last time the 27-year-old saw the inside of the Octagon was Aug. 31, 2013 in a submission victory over Benson Henderson at UFC 164.
Despite that massive layoff, Pettis didn’t look the worse for wear, submitting Gilbert Melendez in the second round. It was the first submission defeat in Melendez’s career. Fox Sports’ Karyn Bryant praised Pettis‘ performance:
“I just showed the message right there,” Pettis said after the fight, per Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole. “The No. 1 guy in the world [and I finished him in] two rounds.”
The ease with which Pettis brushed Melendez aside was the most impressive aspect of the win. The submission didn’t come from out of nowhere. The champion landed some nice strikes on Melendez, and when the opportunity presented itself, he went in for the kill.
It’s hard see who can stop Pettis right now.
Robbie Lawler
What else needs to be said about Lawler‘s title win? Back in July 2012, the 32-year-old was fresh off his third loss in four fights, falling to Lorenz Larkin. Larkin went on to lose four of his next five to put that fight into perspective.
Lawler wasn’t exactly a long shot against Hendricks, but to witness how far he’s come and see him finally capture UFC gold, Saturday night was a special moment. Bleacher Report MMA called it “the greatest UFC comeback in history”:
Few can really argue with the result, either. Some may contend that Hendricks lost the fight more than Lawler won it, and that assessment might not be too wide off the mark. The former champion was a bit too tentative, and once it was clear the takedowns weren’t coming, Hendricks shouldn’t have shifted strategy. Instead, he seemed content to sit back.
Lawler wasn’t electrifying, but he did more than enough offensively to prove himself the better fighter. The only question was whether Hendricks would receive the proverbial champion’s advantage, which was the only way the judges could have scored the bout in his favor.
CM Punk
Technically, this guy didn’t fight, but he’s the biggest winner of the night for landing what’s almost certainly a multi-million dollar contract in UFC despite being 36 years old and having no mixed martial arts career to speak of.
Arguably the most notable event to come out of UFC 181 was UFC’s announcement that it signed CM Punk:
The UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey is one of those clamoring to see Punk’s UFC debut:
Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Snowden was one of the more vocal critics of the move on social media:
It’s hard to view UFC signing Punk as anything more than an attention-grabbing acquisition in an effort to produce short-term buzz. While Punk has a long and storied professional wrestling career, working in a WWE ring and UFC Octagon are quite different beasts.
Brock Lesnar made the transition from WWE, but that was in large part because he was an NCAA wrestling champion at Minnesota years prior and an athletic marvel. Lesnar‘s the exception to the rule.
Before the signing of Punk was made official, UFC President Dana White went on the Jim Rome Show to talk about the possibility of Punk working for the company, via MMAJunkie.com’s Mike Bohn:
He’s not a guy that we would do what we did with Brock; we threw Brock right to the wolves. Brock started fighting all the top heavyweights in the world because of his wrestling background. CM Punk, we would bring him in just like any regular fighter, and he would fight a guy with a similar record to his, which is 0-0.
Again, Punk is 36 with tons of wear and tear on his body from traveling the globe and wrestling nearly every night.
As somebody who’s followed Punk’s exploits in WWE for years, it’s hard to see how this ends well for either party in the long term.
Sergio Pettis def. Matt Hobar by unanimous decision
Clay Collard def. Alex White by unanimous decision
Next up? Consecutive Fight Nights in The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale (Friday, Dec. 12) and UFC on Fox 13 (Saturday, Dec. 13).
There is a whole lot to talk about here, and for the first time in a good long while, I had to cut down the number of questions that I considered hot enough to discuss. As the TUF season’s subtitle will tell you, a champion will be crowned on Friday night, and after that, an unusually strong television card will come up, filled with ranked names on the main card and interesting fights on the prelims.
So what should we be discussing for the next few days? Find out here!
Twelve years after a 20-year-old Robbie