- Keita Nakamura vs. Li Jingliang via submissino (rear naked choke) at 2:17 of the third round
=====Fox Sports 1 Main Card=====
-Jon Anik and Kenny Florian open up the broadcast and run down tonight's main card. First up tonight is the finals of "Road to UFC: Japan."
FIGHT ONE: MIZUTO HIROTA VS. TERUTO ISHIHARA (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Ishihara opened with a kick to the body. He continued to fire off first as he circled around. He landed a nice counter as Hirota stepped in. Hirota had a hard time getting through despite the reach and height edge. He got dropped briefly after a kick was caught. Ishihara kept up his output. Hirota landed a hard right hand. Ishihara threw out several strikes in combination. He landed a nice strike after Hirota threw a couple. Ishihara scored a few more strikes. Hirota closed the distance and clinched up with a minute left. He backed off. Hirota landed a hard left hand late. He landed another right hand. They traded late and Ishihara dropped him in an exchange before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Ishihara. Hirota got in some hard strikes, but he got dropped and landed a lot more overall.
ROUND TWO: Hirota tried to be aggressive early and got dropped. He popped up quickly, but Ishihara continued getting the better of their exchanges. Hirota threw some hard strikes, but Ishihara continued landing more significant strikes. Hirota connected on a couple. Ishihara briefly went down but popped up. Ishihara landed another left hand. Hirota kept pressing forward. Hirota scored a late takedown. Ishihara worked back up and separated. Hirota went for another takedown but got stuffed. Ishihara fired back. They started trading strikes late with Hirota getting the best of that one. Both looked tired at the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Ishihara. Hirota did better than the first, don't think it's enough, though.
ROUND THREE:Ishihara dropped Hirota with an early left. Hirota recovered and they went back to exchanging. They traded strikes, Ishihara getting some better strikes in. They clinched with Hirota pressing in. Hirota landed a few hard strikes. Ishihara got loose but Hirota closed distance quickly. He shot in and completed a takedown. Hirota scored some strikes as Ishihara tried to cover up. Ishihara got back to his feet and separated. Hirota closed the distance and they traded late.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hirota? Maybe. Close final round. Ishihara's youth and energy were the big factor in this one.
WINNER: Split draw (29-28, 28-29, 29-29)
STAR RATING: (**-) It was an OK fight, nothing more, and the draw takes it down another notch.
FIGHT TWO: KATSUNORI KIKUNO VS. DIEGO BRANDAO (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Brandao knocked Kikuno down within 20 seconds, but Kikuno got up. Brandao stayed on him with strikes and knocked him down again into the fence. He landed a couple more and the ref stepped in. Needed win for Brandao.
WINNER: Brandao via TKO at :28 of the first round
STAR RATING: (**) Nice work from Brandao. Not unexpected in the least, but good quick finish regardless.
FIGHT THREE: TAKEYA MIZUGAKI VS. GEORGE ROOP (BANTAMWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Mizugaki landed several strikes early and pressed Roop to the cage. They separated. Mizugaki landed a hard combination, landing a right hand to the jaw. He got in another combination. Roop landed a hard strike of his own and Mizugaki clinched up. Things stalled out in the clinch a bit as Mizugaki grabbed a body lock. Roop got brief separation and scored a couple of strikes before Mizugaki clinched and turned him around. They separated again. They traded punches, but this time Roop initiated the clinch. Mizugaki got in a strike to break. Mizugaki landed a straight left. He just missed a big strike. Mizugaki landed several strikes as Roop tried to grab a clinch. Roop got in a couple late. Mizugaki fired back after separating. He got the better of a few more flurries to finish the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Mizugaki. Much more success on the feet thus far.
ROUND TWO: Mizugaki hurt Roop early with two big punches, but Roop recovered and tried to slow things down in the clinch. Mizugaki landed a hard uppercut that briefly dropped him. Roop backed off and Mizugaki scored several strikes in a row. Roop backed off again after a clinch stalemate, but came right back in. They finally separated again. Mizugaki again staggered Roop, but Roop got back up to his feet. He landed a couple of leg kicks. Mizugaki connected on another combination. Roop landed a counter. Roop closed in and clinched. They separated again and exchanged. Mizugaki connected on a couple more strikes. He pressed in and landed a right hand late. That was the finale strike before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Mizugaki. He's just the better fighter right now.
ROUND THREE: They traded strikes early. Roop connected on a few. He landed a hard right hand and they clinched. They separated and traded. Back to the clinch. Roop got in a few strikes. They jockeyed for position. Separation again. Roop missed a flying knee and clinched. Mizugaki broke with a combination. He beat Roop to the punch a couple of times and clinched. Roop turned him around. The crowd actually booed a little bit, and they traded punches. They had a couple more brief separations to trade punches, and Mizugaki again seemed to get the better of it.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Mizugaki. Roop had some offense, but I don't know that he had more or enough to take the round. Regardless, he should lose this fight.
WINNER: Mizugaki via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (*+) Wasn't much of an actual fight, but Mizugaki was the clear winner here.
-Mizugaki broke down in Japanese talking about how his loss to Dominick Cruz had him thinking he was done, and expressing how much this win meant to him.
-The UFC is giving both "Road to UFC: Japan" finalists contracts after their split-draw earlier tonight.
FIGHT FOUR: KYOJI HORIGUCHI VS. CHICO CAMUS (FLYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Horiguchi looked to work the speed game, circling around before popping in with a few intermittent strikes. Horiguchi landed a few early strikes, then circled out. He landed a couple in close. Camus landed a right hand after Horiguchi engaged. Horiguchi clinched, but gave it up after eating a knee. Horiguchi landed a nice right hand as Camus popped in. Horiguchi shot but got stuffed. Camus took Horiguchi's back standing after a missed strike, but failed to get him down. Horiguchi got free again. Camus landed a right hand. Neither was entirely establishing their offense as the round wore on. Horiguchi connected on several strikes. Camus landed a right hand. They traded punches. Horiguchi landed a body kick late. He threw a hard right hand that just missed the mark before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Horiguchi. Close round, but he seemed to do more offensively overall.
ROUND TWO: Horiguchi hurt Camus almost immediately. He tried to rush with a combo, then tried to take Camus' back, but Camus recovered and reset. Horiguchi connected on another short strike. Camus came forward, but Horiguchi landed another nice combination. Horiguchi got in another combination. Camus landed one in response. Horiguchi slipped on a strike. Both scrambled in a missed exchange. Horiguchi landed a nice combination. Camus bloodied Horiguchi up with a couple of landed strikes. They traded punches again. Horiguchi got in a nice strike. Camus landed one back. Horiguchi connected on a flying knee. Horiguchi tried to press in the final minute. He landed a nice right hand. Horiguchi landed a couple more as he continued connecting. He got in a nice left hand before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Horiguchi. He's just connecting on better strikes overall right now.
ROUND THREE: Camus tried to press in early, but Horiguchi connected on combinations while he missed strikes. Camus tried to close the distance. Horiguchi pressed him back with strikes. He landed another combination. Horiguchi continued to connect in close, though the exchanges were coming fewer and further between. Horiguchi remained busy enough, but neither was actually getting in a ton of offense overall. Horiguchi took Camus' back standing, but lost the hold late. Horicuchi added some body strikes. Camus landed a left hand late. They both threw punches late, but neither did much in the way of connecting. Horiguchi hurt Camus late and tried to rush him to the cage. Camus caught some fire late and threw out a number of counters to make it out of the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Horiguchi. Just a clear fight in his favor here without question. Camus proved hard to put away, but Horiguchi was obviously the better fighter.
WINNER: Horiguchi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (**) Decent enough fight. Horiguchi clearly better start to finish, but didn't tell us much we didn't already know about both fighters.
FIGHT FIVE: GEGARD MOUSASI VS. URIAH HALL (MIDDLEWEIGHT)
ROUND : Mousasi came straight ahead and backed Hall up. He scored a high single leg takedown and worked from the top. He postured up with a hard right hand. He tried to stack Hall up to throw down strikes. He landed a couple. Mousasi passed to half guard. He easily passed to side control and tried to set up a crucifix. He nearly got mount, but Hall escaped and pulled him back to guard. Mousasi got in a hard elbow from the top. He again easily passed, then tried to set up an arm triangle. He lost that hold, but held position in half guard. Mousasi tried to set up a pass and got to mount. Nice work. Hall bucked out and attacked for a leg. Mousasi hopped out and dropped back down. He snuck behind Hall, but gave it up as Hall attacked for the leg again. Hall went for a kimura and turned it into an armbar attempt. Mousasi escaped and retained top position. He again got to mount. Hall gave up his back. Mousasi landed a couple of hard strikes, locked on a body triangle, and looked for a choke. He gave it up, landed a few strikes, then looked for a choke. He got in another strike before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Mousasi. Good opening round effort. Mousasi's clearly the better fighter here, but Hall's showing some really good spirit in trying to keep it competitive.
ROUND TWO: Hall came out with a spinning jump kick and rocked Mousasi! He threw a jumping knee and Mousasi went down! The referee seemed to jump in multiple times only to back out, but Hall kept on the attack and the ref finally stopped it off a string of punches. Wow. That's such a huge upset and a fantastic, unbelievable finish for Hall.
WINNER: Hall via TKO at :25 of the second round
STAR RATING: (***) Highlight reel stuff from Hall. That 25 second sequence was absolute insanity, and coming off a round in which he was beaten clearly it was massively impressive. Seriously unbelievable finish, as in I still cannot believe we just saw that happen.
-Hall addressed the Japanese fans in Japanese. Well done, sir.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT SIX: JOSH BARNETT VS. ROY NELSON (HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Barnett looked a little tentative as Nelson looked to set up the right hand. Nelson threw it but it didn't connect. Barnett threw a head kick. Nelson shot in for a takedown off that, and he finished it. Interesting. Nothing much happened on the ground and they were eventually stood up. Barnett immediately moved ahead and got in some body strikes. He landed a couple of knees and grabbed a clinch. Barnett landed a few more knees. He closed distance and landed a hard kick to the body. Barnett continued to work in the clinch with knees and body strikes. Nelson went for another takedown off a body lock. Barnett held that off initially, but Nelson finished the takedown into half guard. Barnett avoided much damage there, and Nelson failed to advance before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Barnett. Nelson didn't do much with two takedowns while all the offense came from Barnett.
ROUND TWO: Nelson went for the overhand right a couple of times. He scored on a few strikes as he pressed in. Barnett covered up well. Barnett landed a solid inside leg kick, but ate an uppercut in return. Barnett landed a nice right hand. He took a strike then landed another. Barnett got in a knee to the body. Barnett's nose bled off one of the exchanges. Nelson landed another hard right hand. Barnett came back with a knee and a combination. Barnett landed a big right hand. He got in a knee to the face and a combination. He stuffed a takedown attempt. Barnett got in some elbows and punches and they clinched. Nelson lost his mouthguard, then picked it up and put it in during an exchange as he was getting hit. Barnett landed a couple of uppercuts. Barnett continued throwing punches to the gut. Nelson got in a knee to the body. Barnett landed a hard knee to the body. Both were breathing heavily up against the cage. Barnett got in another hard knee. Nelson threw some strikes back. Barnett continued to land in that clinch and they finally separated with under a minute left. Nelson threw a head kick that landed, but Barnett landed a combination in return. Barnett closed distance and did more damage in the clinch. Barnett finished out with a knee and some foot stomps before a right hand.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Barnett. Grueling round, but Barnett again got in the better offense.
ROUND THREE: Barnett scored an early uppercut and got in a few more strikes before clinching. Nelson turned Barnett around and landed some knees. They were separated as they didn't advance in that clinch. Barnett closed the distance and got in a solid combination ending in a knee. Nelson turned him around and looked for the takedown. Barnett held it off and they separated. Barnett tossed out a jab as he came back ahead. He got in a knee and it's back to the clinch. He landed a hard uppercut to the jaw. Nelson scored a strike. They separated again and Barnett continued to move forward. He landed some jabs, then a couple of uppercuts. Nelson looked to be quite tired. Nelson then scored a combination of his own. He shot in for a single leg, but Barnett held off the attempt. Nelson picked Barnett up briefly, but Barnett stayed up. They were separated again with 15 seconds left. This ref also isn't good. Barnett landed a hard kick to the body, a knee to the head, then ate a couple of body strikes to the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Barnett. He's clearly better offensively, but Nelson as hard to put away as always.
ROUND FOUR: Barnett threw out a high kick. It was blocked, but he got free and scored a few more strikes as he got into the clinch. Barnett landed a few punches and knees at the cage. He got in some more knees. Nelson went for a takedown and scored it, but Barnett reversed and immediately stood up. Nice sequence there. Barnett continued peppering in knees, elbows, and punches in the clinch as he kept Nelson up against the cage. Barnett again scored some strikes. Barnett unloaded a huge flurry of punches and knees on the cage. He added in some elbows. Nelson took it all and threw out a right hand. Barnett slowed down again, but then opened up with another combination. Ridiculous punishment being absorbed in this fight. He got in another knee, then a punch, then an elbow, and another knee. Nelson broke off with an elbow. Barnett briefly separated, and Nelson grabbed a single leg for a takedown. Barnett tried to reverse and Nelson nearly had his back. Barnett got back to his feet and held off another attempt at the cage. They were finally broken up. Barnett came ahead and scored with more strikes on the cage. Barnett got in more strikes to finish out the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Barnett. Nelson's got nothing offensively to offer here, but he's insanely tough.
ROUND FIVE: Barnett threw a spinning back kick to the body. He backed him up to the cage. Nelson threw a body kick. Barnett landed a big combination. They clinched again. Barnett got in another knee. He landed a few strikes in the clinch. He scored a knee to the body then a few more punches. He got in more elbows and continued the attack. Nelson threw a few punches to the body, and got in an elbow in the clinch. Barnett got in more uppercuts, knees and elbows himself. Nelson pawed out several jabs that didn't do much. He tried to shoot in with double underhooks but got stuffed. Nelson got a takedown late. Barnett tried to grab for a kimura, but gave it up and just stood up. He walked Nelson back to the cage and landed a big knee. They battled in the clinch again. Barnett got in more offense in the clinch before they were broken up. Nelson landed a few hard right hands late, then Barnett fired out a body kick. Barnett landed a short combination late. Nelson fired out a couple more strikes to end the round. Both bent over with hands on knees at the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Barnett. Another round for Barnett. Clearly better; Nelson's toughness is insane, though.
WINNER: Barnett via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 50-45)
STAR RATING: (***) Enjoyable fight overall, despite it dragging into deep waters. Nelson's ability to take inhuman amounts of punishment kept him standing as he was getting cracked by punches, knees, kicks, more punches, more knees, more kicks, and even more punches, knees, and kicks throughout the fight. Tons and tons of offense from Barnett, and he scored a deserved victory.
-Barnett's post-fight interview saw him speak in Japanese to the home fans. He added that he didn't feel he did his best, and then gave Nelson tons of credit for the fight they put on.
-Thanks for joining us tonight! We'll have further thoughts on the event and more into next week's UFC 192 event, so stick with us at MMATorch.com throughout the week!
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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