UFC 193
NOVEMBER 14, 2015
LIVE FROM MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA
Ronda Rousey’s latest highly anticipated headlining bout comes tonight, and we’ll have live coverage of the televised bouts all night tonight here at MMATorch. Make sure to tune in as the UFC Fight Pass prelims kick off, as we’ll have quick results and fight impressions before our full round by round report for the televised bouts!
=====UFC Fight Pass Prelims Quick Results=====
-Ben Nguyen def. Ryan Benoit via submission (rear naked choke) at 2:35 of the first round
NOTE: Really excellent work from Nguyen. He hurt Benoit early, got him to the ground, flattened him out when he had his back, and eventually worked to the choke. One-sided, and a nice showcase for Nguyen.
-James Moontasri def. Anton Zafir via TKO at 4:36 of the first round
NOTE: Sweet finishing sequence from Moontasri in a round he was losing. He landed a brutal spinning heel kick to the rib, and followed with an immediate spinning forearm that sent Zafir down, and gave him the opening to finish it with a few more strikes on the ground. Well done.
-Richard Walsh def. Steve Kennedy via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
NOTE: Walsh did a lot of damage in each round, especially to Kennedy’s lead leg, but he let himself get grappled a bit too often and gave up momentum throughout. Still, all the damage done in the fight was done by Walsh, and he got the rightful decision.
-Daniel Kelly def. Steve Montgomery via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
NOTE: Sloppy as hell, but fun enough for what it was. Montgomery allowed himself to get taken down in the third, and kind of gave the fight away after a strong second round, as that was what gave Kelly the edge in the final frame.
=====Fox Sports 1 Prelims=====
-Following the introduction from Goldie and Rogan to rundown what’s to come in tonight’s top two fights, it’s quickly on to our first televised prelim of the night.
PRELIM FIGHT ONE: RICHIE VACULIK VS. DANNY MARTINEZ (FLYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Martinez was out aggressively, throwing out strikes and trying to stalk Vaculik. Vaculik fired off some nice kicks and combinations. They traded strikes in the center, both connecting on some solid strikes. Martinez caught a kick and took Vaculik down. He got in a couple strikes, but Vaculik worked back to his feet. That was short lived, as Martinez shot in nicely and scored a second takedown. Vaculik controlled his posture for a while and forced a stand up. Martinez came in swinging, but he was getting blocked or missing. Very little accuracy from Martinez. Vaculik then scored a takedown of his own, but wound up getting reversed with Martinez back in his guard. Not much happened from there to close out the round.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Martinez. Vaculik didn’t do enough damage to offset the takedowns and the early offense from Martinez.
ROUND TWO: Martinez landed a few early strikes. He jumped in with a kick, then swung and missed on several strikes. He landed a hard body kick. Vaculik landed an inside leg kick. They traded punches and kicks in the center. Martinez shot in and scored a takedown into half guard. He still couldn’t do much with top position, and Vaculik escaped and scrambled out. Martinez landed a body punch. He got in a kick. Vaculik landed an inside leg kick. Martinez shot in again, but got held off in the clinch. Martinez connected on a right hand. He hurt Vaculik with a strike. He tried to pounce, but missed a couple. He hurt Vaculik again, but still couldn’t fully take advantage. He kept the pressure up, but Vaculik stayed in things with some counters of his own. Vaculik then scored a takedown out of nowhere and tried to sneak around to take Martinez’s back, but he lost position and Martinez landed in his guard. Martinez postured up with a right hand. Vaculik got to his feet and Martinez landed a hard strike. He shot in again and scored another takedown. Martinez ended the round on top.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Martinez. He had more success on the feet that round, and still got in some takedowns. Vaculik is well behind.
ROUND THREE: Martinez landed a couple strikes. Vaculik shot for a takedown, but Martinez scrambled out and attacked for one of his own. They stood again. Martinez then shot in and got Vaculik back to the ground in half guard. He still wasn’t doing much on top. Vaculik worked back to his feet, but ate a knee on the way up. Vaculik tried to get some pressure on. He landed a couple of strikes, got in a nice knee to the head, but then got taken down again. He briefly worked to his feet, only to get taken down right away. Martinez dragged him back down as he attempted to escape, and held top position. He landed a solid knee to the body, but wasn’t doing much else with the position. Vaculik got his back on the cage. He finally got to his feet and swung wildly before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Martinez. Wasn’t pretty, but he did enough to get a clear nod here.
WINNER: Martinez via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (*) Outside of a few moments of legitimate offense in that second round, it was just sloppy, winging strikes, along with takedowns, from Martinez. Nothing more, but Vaculik couldn’t do anything to stop it. Not a good fight to kick off the televised portion of this card.
PRELIM FIGHT TWO: ANTHONY PEROSH VS. GIAN VILLANTE (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Villante missed an early right hand. Perosh stepped in with one of his own. Villante got in a kick. Perosh staggered in to throw some strikes, but seemed to be plodding around. Villante landed a hard right hand that nearly sent Perosh down. Villante stayed patient, backing Perosh up. He landed a grazing head kick. Villante landed two hard right hands and tried to engage. He got in a hard uppercut and Perosh was clearly in trouble. Villante didn’t rush anything, instead calmly advancing and looking for more openings. He landed a push kick to the body. He landed another hard body kick. Perosh rushed in but only landed a single strike. Perosh stepped into begin a strike, but got knocked out cold with a brutal right hand. Ouch. He face planted, and the ref was right on top of things to avoid any further damage.
WINNER: Villante via KO at 2:56 of the first round
STAR RATING: (**+) Entertaining highlight reel finish, but not much to it prior to that. Still, sick KO win for Villante.
-They replayed the Ben Nguyen-Ryan Benoit fight, then show some of the UFC 193 Embedded special they aired on Fox last week.
PRELIM FIGHT FOUR: JAKE MATTHEWS VS. AKBARH ARREOLA (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Matthews landed an early strike. Arreola connected on a counter left. Matthews got in a combination. He caught a body kick from Arreola but couldn’t secure a takedown. Arreola landed a kick inside. Matthews grabbed a clinch and pressed Arreola to the cage. Arreola fought out with an elbow. Matthews slipped up and ate an uppercut. He recovered, and got back to his feet. Arreola rocked him with a head kick! He landed a few punches and took Matthews’ back on the ground. He was up high on his back, but Matthews couldn’t shuck him off. Arreola continued working, but Matthews finally escaped! He landed several big strikes and continued unleashing until the horn. Hot fight.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Arreola. Nice recovery from Matthews at the end, but he was hurt badly there.
ROUND TWO: Matthews ate an early kick, then shot in and scored a takedown. Matthews landed some big elbows and cut Arreola open badly. He postured up and continued doing damage. Arreola’s face was an absolute mess. Matthews continued the assault. Arreola tried to get to the cage to kick off it, but Matthews pulled him away, postured up, and landed some more big strikes. He landed another really hard elbow. Arreola defended, but continued to get hit by punches and elbows intermittently. Matthews tried to finish it up, but Arreola managed to make it to the end of the round.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-8 Matthews. Just so. Much. Damage. And they call the fight! Doctor’s stop it as Arreola’s eye looked horrific. It looked like someone shoved a bouncy ball under his eyelid. Gross.
WINNER: Matthews via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 5:00 of the second round
STAR RATING: (**+) Great comeback for Matthews after dropping the first round. Crazy damage done from ground and pound there. Well done by the Australian.
-Ten minutes to the main card!
=====Pay-Per-View Main Card=====
-The pay-per-view broadcast opened with the UFC offering their condolences to those affected by Friday night’s tragic events in Paris.
-Flies continue to buzz around the arena there, bothering Joe Rogan as he and Goldberg welcomed the pay-per-view audience. They ran down the main event and the co-main event before a quick recap of the rest of the card before our first main card bout of the night.
MAIN CARD FIGHT ONE: STEFAN STRUVE VS. JARED ROSHOLT (HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Slow start. Rosholt got in a short strike. He landed a couple of body punches in close more than a minute and a half in. Some boos in from the crowd as very little happened. Struve connected on a right hand. He threw a body kick that was blocked. Struve landed a body kick, but Rosholt took him down right into side control. Struve didn’t give him much room to work, and forced him to stand. The crowd booed as Struve tried to kick him off. Rosholt got to half guard and tried to sneak out. He got to side control and went for a mounted crucifix. He didn’t get it. Struve nearly escaped. Rosholt stood up. The crowd booed. He dropped back down into Struve’s guard. He ended the round there, and the crowd booed.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Rosholt. Not a good round, but his top control certainly gave it to him.
ROUND TWO: Rosholt missed an early strike. Very little happening again to kick off the round. Rosholt grabbed a clinch, but couldn’t score a takedown. More boos from the crowd. Rosholt shot in again, this time scoring a takedown into side control. Struve escaped and got back to his feet, but only briefly. Rosholt got him back to the ground. He worked in half guard. Struve took his back in an escape and looked for an arm, but lost it and landed elbows late. This is a terrible fight.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Rosholt. Struve letting himself get beat by not doing much of anything. This fight is terrible.
ROUND THREE: Struve landed a hard jab in the first minute, then got in another. Struve tried to stalk and get in some more offense, but he wasn’t throwing with much urgency. 40 seconds later Struve threw a leg kick. They both missed strikes. Rosholt shot in but got stuffed. He again clinched up, but Struve circled out. Struve went for the head kick but it didn’t connect. Struve landed a few strikes in combination with 95 seconds left. Rosholt stumbled trying to avoid a strike and Struve landed a kick. Rosholt shot back in and took Struve down. Struve escaped and got to his feet. Struve walked him down and he circled out. More boos. Struve scored a trip takedown out of a clinch with 15 seconds left. He got in a couple elbows late to the horn. Struve shook his head as he got up.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Struve. Just an awful, awful fight. Way too little too late.
WINNER: Rosholt via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (*-) As dull a fight as we’ve seen in the UFC this year.
MAIN CARD FIGHT TWO: ROBERT WHITTAKER VS. URIAH HALL (MIDDLEWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Whittaker rushed in early, but didn’t connect on anything of significance before settling down. Whittaker hurt Hall with a right hand. Hall recovered and Whittaker backed off. Hall wasn’t attacking much himself. Whittaker missed a few strikes. Hall went for a spinning attack that wound up planting him on his back. Hall tried to kick him off. Whittaker held control, transitioning between a few spots. Hall tried to get back to his feet, but Whittaker pulled him down on his back. Whittaker turned into him and stood before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Whittaker. Good work through the round for the Australian, slow start for Hall.
ROUND TWO: Hall missed a few strikes and Whittaker attacked. Whittaker connected on some strikes at the cage. They separated, and Hall took what seemed to be an eye poke. On replay it was just a punch, leading to boos. Hall started ramping up his offense, but missed on his attacks. Whittaker landed a nice right hand. Both missed as they were attempting to engage. They both got a bit tentative. Hall caught a kick, then landed a hard head kick that seemed to hurt Whittaker a bit. He recovered quickly and Hall slowed back down. Whittaker landed a counter right. Whittaker landed a leg kick, then another punch. Whittaker landed another right hand. Hall went for the spinning back kick late and missed.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Whittaker. Hall had a few moments, but Whittaker seemed to get a bit more offense in overall.
ROUND THREE: The pace picked up early. Whittaker landed a few hard strikes. Hall fired off some strikes, then Whittaker hurt him with a big combination. He covered up and Whittaker took his back standing, throwing foot stomps and punches, knees to the thighs, and more. It slowed down a bit. Hall recovered and spun around into Whittaker in the clinch. Whittaker finally broke off with a right hand. Hall tried to chase Whittaker down. He landed a few punches. He landed a big head kick. Hall got in a flying knee. He landed a hard leg kick. He shot in, then grabbed a Thai clinch to land a couple knees. It slowed down in the clinch again, with Hall landing some strikes. Hall backed off and landed a front kick to the face. He landed a right hand and Whittaker countered. Hall landed a hard jab. He blocked several strikes. Whittaker landed a combination; Hall fired back. They traded kicks. Whittaker took his back standing again and drove him to the cage. He landed a couple punches, stomped his foot, and nearly scored a late takedown.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Hall. He did more damage that round and had some big offense, but it was too little too late.
WINNER: Whittaker via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (**) It had some moments, but neither really kicked it into gear, and those stretches of inactivity dragged the fight down.
MAIN CARD FIGHT THREE: MARK HUNT VS. ANTONIO “BIGFOOT” SILVA (HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Hunt took the center early. Silva slowly circled on the outside. He tossed out a front kick. Hunt landed a punch to the body. Bigfoot landed a body kick. Hunt stepped in with a hard right hand. He got in a leg kick. After a tentative next minute, Hunt landed a hard body kick. Silva landed a knee to the body. Hunt got in an inside leg kick. Bigfoot landed a body kick in return, then missed a right hand. Hunt tried to walk him down. He landed a short right hand. Hunt landed a nice two punch combo up at the cage. He dropped Bigfoot with a right hand, then finished it off with a few strikes and that was it. Not nearly up to their last fight, lots of tentative action, but big finish from Hunt. On replay the right hand landed right on the temple to put him out.
WINNER: Hunt via TKO at 3:41 of the first round
STAR RATING: (**+) Nice work in the last minute from Hunt after a tentative start. Bigfoot just needs to be done.
MAIN CARD FIGHT FOUR: JOANNA JEDRZEJCZYK VS. VALERIE LETOURNEAU (WOMEN’S STRAWWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP)
ROUND ONE: Slightly tentative opening moments. Jedrzejczyk landed a few strikes. Letourneau caught a leg kick and brought Jedrzejczyk down. The champ tried to shrimp up and roll into Letourneau, who held control on the ground. Jedrzejczyk got back up to her feet nicely, but Letourneau held onto the clinch. Jedrzejczyk got in a solid knee to the body, and the clinch battle continued. Jedrzejczyk landed a short elbow. The clinch battle continued, until Letourneau finally backed off with two minutes left. Letourneau got in a strike. Jedrzejczyk landed a brutal front kick to the face and Letourneau seemed almost out on her feet. She recovered as Jedrzejczyk came in close and clinched. Jedrzejczyk landed a kick to the body as she backed out. They traded strikes. Letourneau was bleeding from the mouth. Jedrzejczyk went with the straight kick again. Letourneau landed a right hand. Letourneau got in a late kick, but ate a few strikes before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Jedrzejczyk. That front kick was the most meaningful thing of the round, and nearly ended her night.
ROUND TWO: Letourneau missed an opening strike. Jedrzejczyk got in a couple, then backed away from the counter. They traded strikes, each connecting. Jedrzejczyk landed a nice inside leg kick. They each caught kicks, but Jedrzejczyk avoided the takedown this time around. Jedrzejczyk connected on a nice combination. Letourneau landed a right, but ate a counter. Letourneau caught another leg kick and drove Jedrzejczyk to the cage in the clinch. Jedrzejczyk landed a nice elbow. Letourneau backed off and ate a few strikes on the way out. Jedrzejczyk brought the attack back up, throwing with a bit more consistency. Jedrzejczyk landed some hard leg kicks. Letourneau landed a counter right. She got in a nice body kick. They each connected on a few strikes. Letourneau got in a couple right hands. Jedrzejczyk landed a right hand. She got in a combo ending in a kick. Jedrzejczyk landed a nice combination. She connected to the head and body. She again fired off a combo. Jedrzejczyk again fired off a few to end the round. Picked it up by the end there.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Jedrzejczyk. Her attack increased by the end of the round, but it’s been a bit more tentative than expected.
ROUND THREE: Letourneau came forward, clinched up, and drove her to the cage. Jedrzejczyk turned her around and got in a few strikes. They separated, and Letourneau tried to move in. Jedrzejczyk landed a hard leg kick. Jedrzejczyk landed the front kick again. She landed a hard jab. Jedrzejczyk with a right hand. Front kick to the body. Jedrzejczyk landed a hard leg kick. Jedrzejczyk scored a front kick. Letourneau caught a kick but Jedrzejczyk broke out. They traded punches. Jedrzejczyk landed another inside leg kick, then a right hand on the way out. She landed a nice combination in the center. She landed another hard combo. Jedrzejczyk with a body kick. She landed the front kick again. They traded punches again. They traded once more to close out.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Jedrzejczyk. The Champ is starting to pick up the attack some more, but it’s still at a bit more of a slower pace than expected.
ROUND FOUR: Letourneau opened with a few strikes. Jedrzejczyk connected on a few strikes. After a few minor exchanges, Jedrzejczyk landed a really nice combination that hurt Letourneau. Things slowed a little once again. Jedrzejczyk got in another hard leg kick, and Letourneau was limping badly. Jedrzejczyk again scored in a combination. Letourneau attempted to come forward but ate a few more strikes. Jedrzejczyk countered a missed strike with a four-blow combination. The crowd got a little restless on some of the tentative action. Jedrzejczyk landed another big right hand. Letourneau landed her best combination of the fight in the center. Jedrzejczyk connected with a few. They traded strikes, with Jedrzejczyk landing another big combo. Jedrzejczyk landed a really nice combination up by the cage. She landed one more before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Jedrzejczyk. She remains in control, and she’s doing more and more damage throughout.
ROUND FIVE: They traded again to kick off the round. Jedrzejczyk landed a combination. Letourneau connected on a couple jabs. She got in a solid body kick. Jedrzejczyk got in a jab. She landed an elbow off a brief clinch. They traded in the center. Jedrzejczyk with a nice two-punch combo. Letourneau landed a right hand. Jedrzejczyk connected again. They traded again. Jedrzejczyk tossed out some more leg kicks. Back to the leg. She landed a nice left hand. Jedrzejczyk landed a few hard elbows as Letourneau tried to get in close. Jedrzejczyk landed another big strike. Letourneau continued moving forward, but ate another combination. Letourneau landed a couple strikes. Jedrzejczyk landed a hard left hand. Jedrzejczyk got poked in the eye late. Brief halt, but she moved back ahead. They traded strikes, but Jedrzejczyk continued getting the better of it to the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Jedrzejczyk. Letourneau was tough, no question, but that’s Jedrzejczyk’s fight without question.
WINNER: Jedrzejczyk via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 50-45)
STAR RATING: (**+) Tough, competitive fight. Jedrzejczyk really took over after that opening ten minutes, and continued scoring significant strikes throughout. Full credit to Letourneau for a damn tough performance, but she just wasn’t good enough to take this one.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT FIVE: RONDA ROUSEY VS. HOLLY HOLM (WOMEN’S BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP)
ROUND ONE: No rush from Rousey, as she circled around early. They exchanged strikes. Rousey tried to close in and Holm landed a few. Holm landed a really hard left hand that may have broken Rousey’s nose. Holm landed a hard kick. She landed a big left. She landed a right hand. Holm having lots of early success. Rousey landed a right hand and it connected. Rousey finally clinched and drove Holm to the cage. Holm threw her off. She landed a big combination. Rousey’s having trouble here early. Rousey landed a hard left hand. Holm landed a step in elbow. Rousey scored a throw, and tried to take Holm’s back, but Holm escaped! They traded punches on the feet. Holm went back to the oblique kick. She connected on it again. Rousey grabbed her arm and tried to clinch, but Holm got free. Holm landed a hard left hand. Holm landed another big left hand that hurt Rousey. She’s getting picked apart right now. Holm’s mouth guard got knocked out. Rousey rocked Holm with a left hand. Holm then took Rousey down! She stood out of her guard. Rousey tried to chase. They traded strikes. They clinched, and Rousey landed a few knees. Rousey got in one last strike at the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Holm. Wow. That was a hell of a round. Rousey got cracked by a ton of strikes, but landed some big shots herself. We’ve got a fight on our hands here.
ROUND TWO: Holm landed early strikes as Rousey tried to walk her down. Holm landed a side kick. She landed another left. Rousey missed a strike and stumbled as Holm ducked out. Holm landed a straight left. She got in another. She dropped Rousey with a head kick!!!! She landed a few more and Rousey was out cold!!!!!
WINNER: Holm via KO at :59 of the first round
STAR RATING: (****) Incredible. Absolutely incredible. I don’t even know what else to say. That was as perfect a fight as Holm could have had, and she took out the UFC’s top star on the biggest stage possible. There are not enough good things to say about Holly Holm’s performance here.
What a shocking finish to the night! We’re going to have tons and tons more reaction to what happened here tonight, including a podcast review tomorrow between myself and Todd Martin on what happened on this card. Make sure to stick with MMATorch throughout the week!
Leave a Reply