The UFC put on its final free card of the year in Canada.
The UFC closed out its free cards with a night of fights live from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada on FOX with two former champions headlining. The card lost a fight on the day of the weigh-ins, but outside of that everything went on as scheduled. The card was headlined by a matchup of former title holders as Former Welterweight king “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (28-12 1NC #2 Ranked Welterweight) and Former Lightweight Champion Rafael Dos Anjos (28-9 #4 Ranked Welterweight) closed the show. This was a fun action packed card honestly with some real battles up and down the card. We saw some real contenders emerge and really intriguing storylines as we head into the last Pay Per View of 2017 in two weeks. Let’s take a look back at the card from Saturday.
The card was shuffled a bit due to the fight cancellation so it kicked off with one matchup on UFC Fight Pass between Jordan “Young Gun” Mein (30-12) and Erick “The Tiger” Silva (19-9 1NC). Silva came right out looking for a takedown, and we ended up in a clinch against the cage very early. Mein was able to stay on his feet and landed a hard judo throw to the mat. Silva battled back to his feet and we were back up against the cage. Silva backed off and Mein landed a hard left hand as they broke apart. Mein was landing on the feet and doing a solid job avoiding the return fire of Silva. Silva came forward now with a hard right-left combination. However, Mein returned fire with a left hand that connected and backed off Silva. Silva tried to change levels and partially ate a flying knee. Mein then stopped a takedown and started unloading with combinations that were semi-blocked. Mein was starting to really find a home for his striking with a flurry of body shots and some hooks to the head. Silva responded with a body kick that was partially caught by Mein. Silva tried early in round 2 with an overhand right that missed. Mein was moving forward, but Silva came back at him with two hard left hands that connected. Mein tagged him with a left hand of his own while eating leg kicks. Mein crushed a big combination and finished with a hard elbow. Mein then grabbed for a takedown and took him to the mat. Silva had a body triangle from the bottom, and Mein was just trying to posture up and look to ground and pound. Mein was able to get free and upload 5-10 elbows from the top. Silva stopped it briefly, but another flurry of elbows came right down from Mein. The top control from Mein was really the story here and he was sneaking in more and more punches from the top. Silva was trying to throw up submission from the bottom, but Mein defended them well. Silva tried to get up as the round ended, and Mein looked for a standing guillotine as the round came to an end. The two traded body kicks back and forth starting round 3. Silva ate a leg kick and responded with a combination that backed Mein up against the cage. Mein grabbed a leg kick, and turned it into a takedown and found himself on top again on the ground. Silva continued to try to work out of it, but Mein was able to trap one of Silva’s arms underneath him and unload some shots from the top. Silva final go this arm free, but was really in a disadvantaged position. Silva was working for a triangle, but Mein was able to slide out of it and remained out of danger. Mein was able to continue to grind it out as the round and fight came to an end. The judges scored this 30-26, 30-27, and 30-27 all for Jordan Mein. This was a big return to the win column for Mein. He secured his spot on the roster and finally got it back on track. At 28 with the experience, Mein has if he can continue to string some wins together he may get back to that point where he was a super exciting young prospect.
The first fight on the FS1 Prelims saw as Alessio “Manzo” Di Chirico (11-2) go head to head with Oluwale “Holy War Angel” Bamgbose (6-4). Di Chirico led right out with a body kick that grazed Bamgbose. The fighters were really looking try and find their range as Bamgbose was dancing around the outside of the ring. Referee Herb Dean was asking for Bamgbose to engage. Di Chirico landed a hard body kick and threw a nice combination that was mostly blocked. Di Chirico landed another hard body kick. Bamgbose tried to throw a spinning kick and was caught and slammed by Di Chirico. The fighters got back to their feet almost immediately after the weird exchange. You could see Di Chirico getting frustrated with the lack of willingness to exchange from Bamgbose. Di Chirico was trying to force the action, but Bamgbose was staying away. There was a hard warning from Dean about engaging and Di Chirico tried to throw a spinning kick that missed. The rather boring round ended with a blocked takedown by Di Chirico. The second round started with more of the same of Bamgbose dancing around on the outside. Di Chirico was trying to move forward to really bring it to him. Di Chirico came forward and had to block a spinning back fist. Bamgbose landed a hard leg kick and went back to dancing on the outside. Di Chirico rushed forward and landed a right hand and Grabbed for the Thai clinch and landed two hard knees. The second knee sent Bamgbose to the mat face down out cold. Di Chirico landed one hammer fist before Herb Dean was able to get in and stop the fight. Di Chirico with the power here proved he is a very real prospect. Alessio Di Chirico is still a few fights away from atop 15 spot, but he certainly has the skills to keep moving up the ranks.
A matchup of UFC veterans was up next as John “The Bull” Makdessi (15-6) returned to take on Abel “Killa” Trujillo (15-7 1NC). Trujillo was looking o move forward as these two felt each other out. Makdessi landed a hard leg kick that landed. Trujillo half went for a takedown, but Makdessi shook it off. Trujillo again danced forward, but Makdessi may have poked him in the eye and we stopped the action for a second. These two were starting to go at it a bit with Makdessi landing some nice leg kicks. Trujillo came rushing in and Makdessi landed a right hand and Trujillo ended up on his back but recovered immediately. Makdessi was throwing kicks to the downed Trujillo until letting him up. Trujillo again feinted coming in and Makdessi landed a low blow with an inside leg kick and we were stopped again. Makdessi threw a looping kick and Trujillo landed a right hand at the end of the round. Round 2 started with them again feeling each other out, and then Trujillo shooting for a takedown. Makdessi stuffed the takedown initially and a clinch battle against the cage ensued. Trujillo continued to keep pushing and got Makdessi’s bottom to the matt, but Makdessi was really fighting him and got back to his feet. Trujillo threw a few shots as they separated. Trujillo went again for a takedown, but Makdessi avoided it. Makdessi was eating Trujillo up with leg kicks including one that forced Trujillo down to a knee. Makdessi landed a hard spinning back kick to the body as well. Trujillo battled back a bit with the jab, but Makdessi was the one applying pressure and throwing a ton of kicks to the body and legs. Trujillo found some decent success with his punches late in the round. The third round started with Trujillo rushing forward, but a counter left from Makdessi sent him to the mat. Trujillo recovered very quickly and was back to his feet. Makdessi kept touching up Trujillo with body kicks in response to any shot Trujillo landed. Trujillo eventually went for a takedown, and we were embroiled in a clinch battle against the cage. Makdessi pushed him off and we were back to the center of the Octagon. Makdessi landed two more leg kicks and was controlling the center of the cage. Trujillo missed wildly with a left hook and Makdessi landed a nice body kick in return. Makdessi came in firing towards the end with multiple lefts and rights that landed. The round and fight ended and honestly the more interesting stuff happened after. Makdessi went in for an embrace and they hugged it out then Makdessi appeared to feel disrespected. Makdessi could be heard screaming, “Have some respect, this is martial arts”, Really a bizarre exchange. The judges scored this one 30-27 across the board all for John Makdessi. This was a nice comeback win for Makdessi in his return. He is still a formidable opponent in that 155lb division who needs to be dealt with.
Stepping up onto the FS1 portion of the show from Fight Pass we had Nordine Taleb (14-4) and Danny “Hot Chocolate” Roberts (14-3). Taleb started with a hard inside leg kick and had to eat one right back from Roberts. Taleb was trying to back him down and avoided a low kick. Taleb then uncorked a hard right head kick that knocked Roberts back against the cage. Taleb followed up with a straight right hand that floored Roberts who was out. The referee saved him. Taleb continues to impress time and time again inside the Octagon. Even though Roberts wanted to protest he was absolutely out cold from Taleb’s kick and punch combination. Taleb is a really scary prospect and that power is super scary. He could see a step up in competition next for sure.
The Ultimate Fighter Nations winner Chad “The Disciple” Laprise (14-2) took on Galore Bofando (5-3) next. These two came out very slow. They were dancing around, and then out of nowhere, Bofando landed a three punch combination that floored Laprise. Bofando tried to jump on him and finish, but Laprise was able to get back to his feet and started dancing around him. Laprise was able to grab for a clinch in the center of the Octagon and score a trip takedown. Laprise found himself in side control and was controlling Bofando against the mat. Laprise worked his way into the full mount. Laprise then started unloading landing shots on Bofando. Laprise just continued to pummel him until the fight came to an end. Laprise was able to survive that early knockdown, and take this fight to exactly where he wanted it. This is another nice win for Laprise, who should be getting close to a ranked opponent sooner rather than later.
A UFC debut for Julian “The Cuban Missile Crisis” Marquez (7-1) coming off his success on the Dana White Tuesday Night Contender series was next as he took on Darren “The Dentist” Stewart (7-3 1NC). Marquez tried to come forward early and go for a takedown, but Stewart was able to avoid that and almost was on top on the bottom. These two go back to the feet and they were exchanging against the cage. Marquez landed a hard knee, and Stewart was forced to go for a takedown and secure it. Marquez immediately started to try and get back to the feet and landed some hard elbows. Stewart was trying to get his back, and doing a good job keeping Marquez on the mat. Marquez worked his way back to the feet and landed a nice flurry of elbows again. They separated, and Stewart was unloading on the feet with hard combinations that included a hard knee. Stewart again closed the distance and Marquez landed a hard knee and Stewart was trying for a takedown. Stewart closed the takedown. And Marquez gave up with back briefly and Stewart was basically a backpack on a now standing Marquez. Stewart was eventually shaken off, but again went for a takedown and landed it. Marquez did not stay down long but had to eat multiple right hands for his effort. Stewart again closed the distance and went for a takedown, but found himself locked into kimura attempt form, Marquez. Stewart was able to roll out of it and into more of a straight-arm bar. Stewart was in no danger of being submitted as the round came to an end. Round 2 started with Marquez moving forward again and these guys just going for it. Marquez grabbed for a standing guillotine and was trying to lock it in. Marquez threw a jumping knee that connected as he let go. Stewart recovered and came back firing at Marquez who clinched him up. Stewart kept coming forward with huge right hands that were connecting. They were up against the fence just absolutely throwing haymakers at each other. Marquez landed another knee and transitioned into a takedown attempt. Marquez eventually gave it up and they started exchanging big shots again. Stewart went for a takedown. And found himself in a guillotine of Marquez. The guillotine was in tight and Stewart eventually went out cold. What a fight and a huge win for the Dana White Tuesday Night Contender Series contract winner Marquez. With fights like that, we could see him moving up very soon.
The 205lb division was next as Jared “The Killa Gorilla” Cannonier (10-3 #14 Ranked Light Heavyweight) and Jan Blachowicz (21-7 #15 Ranked Light Heavyweight) entered the cage. Cannonier came out pressing forward and looked to land a big right hand, but ended up in the clinch up against the cage. They eventually separated and were trading a bit on the feet, but the action was slow moving. Blachowicz followed up a partially blocked left hand with a huge left head kick that was on the button. Cannonier was able to survive and kept coming forward missing with a big right hook. Blachowicz was countering a lot of what was coming at him. Cannonier was landing some nice leg kicks that were connecting, however, Blachowicz responded with a combination that ended with a body kick just prior to the round coming to an end. Round 2 was started with Cannonier again coming forward landing a hard leg kick. Blachowicz responded with a low kick of his own, but with probably half the power. Blachowicz threw a jumping head kick that was partially blocked. Cannonier landed yet another low leg kick that landed. Cannonier landed back to back jabs and Blachowicz changed levels and secured a double leg. Cannonier tried to battle back to his feet and avoided Blachowicz taking his back and got the separation. As they circled around more Blachowicz landed a 1-2 combination and Cannonier ended up on his back. Blachowicz jumped right back on to him, but could not capitalize. Cannonier battled right back to his feet and then there was an eye poke. This halted us briefly. On the restart Cannonier was coming forward again. But it was Blachowicz who was scoring with the jab. A late takedown from Blachowicz gained him control of Cannonier on the mat. Blachowicz was trying to land, but Cannonier actually landed the hard of the shots with elbows from his back as the round ended. The third round was upon us as Cannonier was again coming forward. Blachowicz, however, was countering his way through the attack. Cannonier did land a hard right over the top, but Blachowicz was unaffected. The action was considerably slowed, as the round was moving along. Blachowicz seemed to be throwing one punch at a time as opposed to the combinations he had found a ton of success with early. Cannonier was going back to the leg kick well and landing. Blachowicz ate a right hand a returned a hard body kick. Blachowicz shot in for a takedown and secured it, however, Cannonier threated with a kimura and used it to get back to his feet. Blachowicz had him clinched up against the cage and tried to change levels again. Blachowicz secured the takedown and had Cannonier back on the mat. Blachowicz kept Cannonier on the mat for the remainder of the round and the fight came to an end. The judges scored this one 29-28 across the board for Jan Blachowicz. Another big win for Blachowicz who now should find him back in the 205lb division’s Top 15.
A Top 10 205lb matchup was next as Glover Teixeira (27-6 #3 Ranked Light Heavyweight) took on Misha Cirkunov (13-4 #7 Ranked Light Heavyweight). Cirkunov came out moving forward looking to land, and Teixeira was forced to block a head kick. Cirkunov landed a hard kick to the body that the mics really picked up. Teixeira was biding his time and moving forward trying to land his hands. Cirkunov was finding a home for his strikes and pushing Teixeira back against the fence. When they engaged Teixeira was able to clinch and actually scored a takedown. Teixeira had Cirkunov’s back and Teixeira was trying for a rear naked choke. Cirkunov was trying to survive. Teixeira gave up the coke and switched to mount and started pounding away at Cirkunov. It was just a matter of time before Teixeira had secured the stoppage victory. He immediately walked over to the broadcast area and let Daniel “DC” Cormier (19-1 1NC Light Heavyweight Champion) know that he was coming for him and his title next. Teixeira needed this after a tough loss in his last outing. To get this type of quick victory is a huge confidence booster for Teixeira.
Hard hitting Welterweights Santiago “Gente Boa” Ponzinibbio (26-3 #10 Ranked Welterweight) and Mike “Platinum” Perry (12-1) took to the Octagon next. These two came out and there was a ton of movement in the Octagon early. Perry landed the first strike of the fight with a hard sidekick to the body. Perry then got a hard kick to the legs of Gente Boa. Ponzinibbio responded in turn with a leg kick of his own. The leg kicks kept coming from Ponzinibbio and they were starting to add up. Perry avoided a high kick and responded with a right hand that briefly stumbled Ponzinibbio. Perry was rushing forward, but was just missing with his big strikes. Perry landed a kick to the body and then a hard right hand that had Ponzinibbio on his bike. Perry just kept coming forward and trying to land. Ponzinibbio threw a spinning back fist that ended in a weird takedown for him. Perry however was right back on his feet and these guys were trading. Perry missed with a wild head kick while avoiding two punches as the round ended. The second round started with a trading of shots between the two and a left hand from Ponzinibbio. Perry maintained he got poked in the eye but the action persisted. Perry landed a hard leg kick, and then followed up with a left hand that appeared to stun Ponzinibbio. Perry then went for a takedown and was able to get him to the mat. Ponzinibbio was able to get back to his feet however and separate. Ponzinibbio was starting to land his punches. He ripped a hard left hand and multiple jabs that were slowing Perry down considerably. Perry landed a low kick as Ponzinibbio swung for a spinning back fist that missed. Ponzinibbio landed a hard left hand that appeared to wobble Perry against the fence. Perry however kept coming forward and then finally ate a spinning back fist. Perry however continued to maintain his composure and stay in the fight. Ponzinibbio landed a hard right and a leg kick before unloading a huge combination against the fence. Perry recovered and landed a right hand of his own that appeared to wobble Ponzinibbio just prior to the round ending. They traded shots back and forth as the horn sounded. The final round of this one started with a hard leg kick from Perry. Ponzinibbio was finding a home for his left hand and continuing to move forward. Perry landed a hard kick to the body. Perry went for a spinning back fist after Ponzinibbio moved towards him and it partially landed. Perry was just continuing got come forward and landed a hard right and another combination however out of nowhere another spinning back fist attempt from Ponzinibbio lands and floors Perry. He did not stay down long, however Ponzinibbio battled right back to score a takedown. Perry got up again and was slammed down yet again. Ponzinibbio had his back briefly, however Perry reversed it and then had his back. They eventually separated and were back to trading with 2 minutes left. Ponzinibbio changed levels and scored a takedown and was on top of Perry. Ponzinibbio was keeping Perry on the mat and working the body while having him in a headlock as he was trying to get up. Perry was able to get back to his feet. Ponzinibbio was pressuring Perry up against the cage just throwing combinations including a hard head kick. The two ended the fight in the center of the Octagon showing respect. The judges scored this one 29-28 across the board all for the winner Santiago Ponzinibbio. This was a hard fought win for Ponzinibbio over a tough competitor in Perry. A Top 10 opponent has to be next for Gente Boa.
On the verge of a title shot Ricardo “The Bully” Lamas (18-6 #3 Ranked Featherweight) stepped up to face short notice replacement Josh Emmett (13-1). Lamas came out throwing a high kick that was blocked. Emmett was able to move forward and land a low kick followed by a nice combination that backed Lamas up. Lamas came in and landed, but a return right from Emmett also landed. Emmett came forward and landed a left-right that was blocked. Lamas landed a hard low kick in return. Lamas landed another inside leg kick and forced Emmett to block his head kicks. Lamas came in and Emmett came back with a hard combination. Lamas kept coming forward and Emmett through another combination that Lamas got out of the way of. Emmett blocked another head kick and tried to return one that was mostly avoided. Emmett moved forward and pushed Lamas back. Lamas went for a low kick and a lightning bolt of a left hand landed clean and knocked Lamas unconscious. This was an unbelievable upset for Josh Emmett. Easily the biggest win of his career and on short notice nonetheless. Emmett will most certainly now be in the rankings and after a walk-off knockout like that he will need to be recognized going forward.
In the Main Event former UFC Title holders matched up as Former Welterweight king “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (28-12 1NC #2 Ranked Welterweight) took on Former Lightweight Champion Rafael Dos Anjos (27-9 #4 Ranked Welterweight). RDA came out and landed the low kick to start out. Lawler was trying to pick his spots and move in on RDA. They both exchanged in a nice throw down with Lawler landing a hard right hand. RDA continued to feint in and out to try and get inside on Lawler. RDA threw another hard chopping leg kick that appeared to buckle Lawler’s knee a bit and then an immediate inside leg kick. Lawler was forced to close the distance and ended up in Dos Anjos’ clinch. RDA was just unloading knees to the body that were partially blocked, but a few snuck in clean. RDA again went to the outside leg kick and they were starting to pile up. He followed that up with a hard body kick to the former Welterweight Champion. They clinched against the cage and as they battled RDA just kept hammering knees to the body. The clinch against the cage from Lawler continued to result in knees to the body from RDA. Lawler responded with two hard knees of his own. Lawler landed a hard combination right at the end of round 1. RDA landed a hard body kick to start the round, but Lawler walked through it and just started unloading his hands on RDA against the cage landing several big shots. RDA returned fire, but it was Lawler finding the success early. RDA made his way off the cage and landed two hard shots finishing with another leg kick. After some pitter patter shots back and forth RDA landed a hard left hook that snuck through and wobbled Lawler. RDA pounced and was all over Lawler against the fence just digging shots to the body. Lawler was rolling with a lot of the punches to the head, but RDA was unloading tons of shots. Lawler was able to survive and RDA eventually went for a takedown. Lawler went to the mat but escaped immediately. Lawler now was pressuring RDA up against the fence trying to let off some offense. Lawler found some success up against the cage and landed a hard right that forced RDA to clinch against the fence. Lawler snuck in a hard knee to the body as he kept the former Lightweight champion up against the cage to finish round 2. Lawler again led out in round 2 moving forward. RDA was doing a great job fighting off the cage and using his jab to keep Lawler back. The clinch against the cage came from Lawler and he ripped some nice body shots. RDA, however, reversed the position and found himself scoring a takedown just a minute in. Lawler made it back to his feet, and they were back to the clinch game against the fence. These guys were trading knees to the body back and forth. RDA made his way back to the outside power position of the clinch, but it did not last long and Lawler was back on the outside and landed a nice hard left hook. Lawler stepped back and landed a flurry of body shots, but over the top, an elbow from RDA stumbled Lawler and sent him to his backside. RDA hopped right on top of him and was looking to keep Lawler on the mat. RDA started to unload a flurry of elbows from the top position. RDA closed out the round with that top position. Round 4 kicked off with Lawler again moving forward, but he ate two hard kicks to the body. Lawler again was pushing the clinch game and trying to get off his dirty boxing. RDA finally pushed him off and we were back to the center of the Octagon. RDA ripped a nice combination and you could see the instability in Lawler’s lead leg really hindering his movement. RDA ripped a hard knee to the body in the clinch and now he had Lawler pressed against the cage. Lawler battled off and landed a nice clean left hand, but RDA responded with a right of his own. RDA peppered in another hard leg kick that you could really see the effect of. RDA was controlling the rhythm on the fight and in the clinch separated with a hard elbow. RDA backed out and came in with a nice combination, but Lawler responded with a hard right hand of his own. RDA was keeping the pressure on against the cage and peppering in knees to the body. RDA landed some hard body shots and finished with a high kick that was partially blocked. Lawler swung wildly and Dos Anjos landed a big flying knee followed by an elbow just as the round ended. Lawler started the round again coming forward. However, RDA landed a stiff jab and Lawler was back on his heels. RDA had him in the clinch, and went for a takedown and secured it. Lawler was able to get back to his feet, and they were back in the clinch where most of this fight had taken place. RDA was unloading with knees to the body and just hard swinging hooks. RDA just continued to pepper Lawler with shots and keep him pressed up against the cage. Lawler was trying with all he could to get shots back at RDA, but the pressure really on from RDA. Dos Anjos would back out and then come forward back to the clinch. Lawler missed with two wild swinging punches. Dos Anjos went for the flying knee yet again, but came up just short and we ended up back in the clinch. RDA was just nonstop dirty boxing and missed with a spinning elbow just prior to the round and fight coming to an end. The judges scored this one 50-45 across the board for the winner Rafael Dos Anjos. This was a dominant performance from RDA. He was able to survive cardio wise after a huge output in the second round. RDA has looked better than ever and now has firmly made his case that he should be next in line at 170lbs.
The UFC had a nice close to their free cards on Saturday night. The undercard provided a ton of entertaining finishes and the main card was filled with excitement. The main card had 2 first round finishes mixed in with 2 really entertaining decisions. The UFC will finally take a week off for Christmas until it comes back to close out the year on Pay Per View. The last card is UFC 219 on December 30th headlined by a Women’s Featherweight title matchup Cris Cyborg (18-1 1NC Women’s Featherweight Champion) and Holly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm (11-3 #2 Ranked Women’s Bantamweight). The dream matchup really is a great headliner to close out 2017. In a year where the UFC saw some ups and downs the last quarter has really produced some entertaining fights and solid cards and this one should be no different.
