UFC FIGHT NIGHT 84
FEBRUARY 27, 2016
LIVE FROM LONDON, ENGLAND
UFC Fight Pass gets its biggest ever headliner this afternoon as former longtime Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva takes on one of England’s favorites in Michael Bisping from the O2 Arena. We’ll have quick results and commentary throughout the prelims this morning/afternoon, with a full round by round report on the main card kicking off at 4PM ET, so stick with us here throughout the afternoon to follow along. Also make sure to follow @MMATorch on Twitter, as our own Dan Moore takes over the account for a live perspective from inside the O2 Arena all day!
Note for App Users: For fastest refresh rate on our fight result updates throughout the event, we recommend you visit our mobile-friendly browser-based website at http://www.mmatorch.com. Our App unfortunately doesn’t update article changes in real time, but our mobile site does, so there will be delays in live results on our app but not on our mobile site during the event.
Also for App users, swipe right to view next article, swipe left to view previous article.
=====UFC Fight Pass Prelims Quick Results=====
-David Teymur def. Martin Svensson via TKO at 1:26 of the second round
Note: Really good finish from Teymur in his UFC debut. He was in control on the feet throughout the six and a half minute bout, stuffing takedowns and frustrating Svensson; his corner chastised him to “stop f***ing around” in between rounds, and he picked things up in the second before landing a beautiful uppercut to send Svensson down. Great way to start the card.
-Teemu Packalen def. Thibault Gouti via submission (rear naked choke) at :24 of the first round
Note: Absolutely fantastic stuff from Packalen. He dropped Gouti with an excellent uppercut in one of their first exchanges, then transitioned in slick fashion to take Gouti’s back, locking on a rear naked choke without any hooks in, rolling him over, and forcing the tap. Seriously must see work.
-Daniel Omielanczuk def. Jarjis Danho by technical decision (29-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Note: Fight went to the scorecards after a punch to the groin from Omielanczuk rendered Danho unable to continue in the third. Omielanczuk had gotten the better of the exchanges to that point anyway, so it was entirely possible he’d have taken the decision had it reached the end of the third, but there wasn’t a ton to the fight. Heavy hands from Omielanczuk, lots of solid kicks, but little cardio from either of them. Not a great debut for Danho.
-Rustam Khabilov def. Norman Parke via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Note: Competitive, but largely forgettable fight. Solid ground work between them both in the third, but there wasn’t a ton to this fight. Khabilov did enough to earn the win, but again, just not much to this fight.
-Krzysztof Jotko def. Brad Scott via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Note: Another mostly competitive but middling fight. Jotko got the better of some exchanges as Scott tried to press forward, and added a couple of takedowns in the final two rounds, but this was another one that is easily forgotten.
-Arnold Allen def. Yaotzin Meza via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Note: Great performance from Allen that almost ended in a last-second KO finish. Meza actually went out from a late flurry from Allen, but the horn sounded a split second before the final blow was landed and just before the ref got in, so it went to the scorecards. Good work from the youngster for his second straight UFC win.
-Scott Askham def. Chris Dempsey via KO at 4:45 of the first round
Note: This was a real solid grappling battle for a while, and then Askham finished things off decisively with a fantastic combination. He had Dempsey stumbling from a straight left to the temple, and then connected on a perfect follow up head kick to send Dempsey crashing down to the cage. Great highlight-reel finish.
-Davey Grant def. Marlon Vera via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
Note: Two stories in this fight; first was Grant coming back from a two year absence and having a mostly strong performance with a lot of offense both on the feet and on the ground. The second was referee Marc Goddard’s continued frustration with Vera, who repeatedly grabbed the insides of Grant’s gloves and led to a point deduction in the third round. Good homecoming for Grant in England and nice to see him back for the first time since his TUF 18 finals loss to Chris Holdsworth in 2013.
-Makwan Amirkhani def. Mike Wilkinson via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Note: Amirkhani was dominant on the ground through ten minutes. Wilkinson had a few moments in the final round, but still allowed a very tired Amirkhani to get mount late and finish the round and fight in that position. Solid work, but nothing spectacular, as Amirkhani seemed to fade quite a bit in that final round.
=====UFC Fight Pass Main Card=====
-The break from a crazy pace on the prelims was needed, and John Gooden and Dan Hardy set the stage nicely for our four-fight main card.
FIGHT ONE: BRAD PICKETT VS. FRANCISCO RIVERA (BANTAMWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Pickett tossed out some early leg kicks that Rivera was able to avoid. Pickett caught a body kick and they traded punches. Rivera got in a hard left during that exchange. Pickett ducked under a strike and landed one of his own. They traded kicks. Pickett got in a solid jab. Lots of feeling out early. Rivera landed a hard leg kick to the outside of Pickett’s lead leg. Rivera worked well keeping Pickett out of range from the outside, but Pickett continued to press in and scored a few hard body punches. Rivera landed a nice right hand and followed with a solid head kick. Rivera landed a nice left hook that floored Pickett briefly, but Pickett recovered immediately and worked to his feet after a brief takedown attempt. Pickett landed a strike but ate three counter punches for his trouble. Pickett landed a couple hard leg kicks. They traded strikes in the center and Pickett was hurting. Pickett fired off a few hard strikes of his own but ate a few, and seemed to get the worse of it. Rivera landed another clubbing left. They traded in a wild flurry with both connecting on some strikes. Pickett shot in late but got stuffed. Rivera got in a grazing head kick before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Rivera. Wild last half of the round, but Rivera was absolutely getting the best of all of it. Pickett remains dangerous, and his chin is holding up, but he gets hit a ton as he tries to land his own.
ROUND TWO: Pickett pressed in with kicks early. Rivera connected on a short combo and moved Pickett back a bit. Pickett worked the kicks some more as Rivera looked to score from range. He landed a few strikes. Pickett shot in for a single leg and pulled off a nice takedown. Rivera worked a butterfly guard briefly, but Pickett passed to half guard. Rivera then shoved him off and got back to his feet in a nice escape. Rivera got in a kick. Pickett landed another one to the lead leg. Pickett connected on a nice uppercut to the body. Rivera tossed out a solid front kick that nearly landed flush. Pickett got in a front kick to the body after a few moments of inactivity. Rivera shot in late and scored a takedown. Pickett easily got to his feet and separated. Rivera landed a hard right hand. Pickett landed a big left hook to the groin to bring things to a halt late in the round. They restart and the clappers come out for the last ten seconds. They immediately started winging blows at each other, each getting in a few effective strikes by the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Rivera. Barely. A lot less action that round, and Pickett had some solid offense of his own, but Rivera again landed the more effective blows and canceled out Pickett’s takedown.
ROUND THREE: Both missed strikes often in the opening 30 seconds. Pickett got in close to shoot in, but Rivera held off the attempt on the cage. Pickett stayed heavy as Rivera was on a knee and tried to drag him all the way down. Rivera then went for a guillotine, but Pickett nicely countered the position to get into side control. Pickett tried to get his head free and eventually popped out into half guard. Rivera locked him up and they were stood up. That was kind of a quick stand up with Pickett working to pass. Regardless, they reset on the feet. Rivera landed a hard outside leg kick. Rivera connected on some minor punches. Rivera caught a body kick and landed two hard right hands before missing a head kick attempt. Rivera shot in and scored a takedown. Pickett landed an elbow and tried to escape. He landed an up kick and rolled up to his feet. Rivera landed a hard right hand as Pickett tried to close the distance. Pickett shot in, picked Rivera up, and slammed him down into side control. Pickett didn’t do much with the position, and ended the round without getting any other significant strikes in.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Pickett. Good round for the home crowd favorite, though there wasn’t much to it. This one will come down to a close second round that could have gone either way.
WINNER: Pickett via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (**-) Not a great fight outside of a fun final two minutes in the first round, and I’m not entirely on board with the decision as I felt Rivera did just enough to take the second, but that one’s not a robbery. Second round was close enough to see the argument for those cards.
-Pickett nearly collapsed with emotion after the decision, and said he’d been battling some demons into this one.
FIGHT TWO: TOM BREESE VS. KEITA NAKAMURA (WELTERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Breese held the center early and looked to stalk Nakamura down. Nakamura threw out a solid body kick that landed hard. Breese got in close and Nakamura grabbed a body lock to clinch. Breese pressed him to the cage, but Nakamura controlled his body well and took him down. Nakamura passed easily to the mount. Breese escaped and attacked for a leg, using that to scramble back to his feet. Nice work to get out of that mounted position. They were warned to work back in the clinch and separated. Breese walked Nakamura down and landed a few strikes, but Nakamura countered and forced a clinch. Breese got in some punches in close while Nakamura landed a hard knee to the body. They traded strikes before Breese finally separated. Breese came back ahead with a nice front kick to the body. He went high with a kick that was partially blocked. Breese landed a nice jab, then an inside leg kick. They traded punches in the center and Nakamura actually got the best of that one. He then shot in but got stuffed across the cage. Breese got in a couple hard elbows in close before separating again. He landed a hard straight left with a body kick behind it. Breese got in to the body with a front kick and avoided a counter before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Breese. Solid, unspectacular round. Breese did enough to edge it, though Nakamura’s mount could sway a judge or two. Wouldn’t be the right call there, but we’ve seen worse from judges.
ROUND TWO: Breese got in close with a couple of strikes but Nakamura grabbed another body lock and tripped him for a takedown. He landed some hard strikes from half guard and again passed to mount. Breese again attacked for a heel hook to escape the mount. He used it to nicely transition to top control. He got into half guard and looked to score some elbows. He tried to pass to mount, but Nakamura held him in half guard. Breese again looked to pass out of the half guard, but Nakamura worked well to block that. Nakamura tried to turn into Breese to initiate a scramble. Breese landed a few hard strikes and held top position well, driving him back to the half guard. Breese landed some elbows and punches. Nakamura pushed him into guard. Breese continued to work effectively with his punches and elbows from the top, racking up the damage. Nakamura threw his legs up and tried to lock down an omoplata. Breese defended for a while, but Nakamura turned it into a nasty looking position. Breese managed to get his arm out but Nakamura landed on top in side control. He ended the round on top without doing anything. Competitive fight here.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Breese. Nakamura’s late top position doesn’t negate the damage done by Breese when he was on top himself.
ROUND THREE: Breese pressed forward early again, landing a couple of grazing strikes but not doing a ton offensively. Nakamura eventually shot in for a single leg. Breese defended initially but got driven to the cage. He landed a few elbows as he continued trying to hold off the attempt. Nakamura stayed on him in the clinch, but got turned around. He went for the trip again and got Breese to the ground, but Breese again attacked for a leg. He got himself sitting up in a bit of an awkward position, but Nakamura nicely swept to gain top position. He didn’t do much more as Breese tried to scramble out. Breese nicely swept out by picking Nakamura up over him with his legs and attacking for an inverted triangle. He got the hold secured and tried to tighten it up as best he could. He didn’t quite have it fully locked on but, he ended the round with that position.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Breese? Toughest round to score, but Breese had some nice scrambles and that late submission attempt, which was a bit more than anything Nakamura did on the ground there. Could be some interesting scores here, but I’d expect Breese to win this one.
WINNER: Breese def. via unanimous decision (30-27,30-27,29-28)
STAR RATING: (*) Not a great fight. Certainly not what people were hoping for out of Breese, but Nakamura proved a game opponent and made Breese fight a bit uglier than we’ve seen from him in the past.
FIGHT THREE: GEGARD MOUSASI VS. THALES LEITES (MIDDLEWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Leites closed distance early and went for a trip takedown out of the clinch, but Mousasi kept himself upright. Leites backed off and Mousasi came back ahead. Mousasi landed a solid left. Mousasi got in a kick inside, then a few more jabs. Mousasi continued working the jab well from the center. He landed another hard inside leg kick. Leites fired off a hard leg kick. Mousasi connected on a nice straight punch. Mousasi with a big left hand then avoided a counter attempt. Mousasi with another hard inside leg kick. Leites shot in and Mousasi stuffed it nicely. Mousasi got in an inside kick after separating from a clinch. Leites landed a solid left hook as Mousasi pressed in, but ate a few strikes himself in the process. They stared each other down just before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Mousasi. Not a ton of offense put out there, but Mousasi was certainly most effective with what was thrown. Decent opening round.
ROUND TWO: Mousasi pressed ahead and landed a combination. Leites tried to press back but got hit with a few more hard strikes. Mousasi again connected with a short combo. Leites stepped in an ate more strikes. He’s just getting picked apart every time he gets within range. Mousasi again popped his head back with a couple of strikes. They traded, but again Mousasi got the best of things. Mousasi landed a hard left and stuffed a single leg. Leites threw out a leg kick as Mousasi tried to walk him down. Mousasi landed several more strikes near the cage. Mousasi continued timing attacks well and mostly avoiding anything thrown by Leites. Mousasi slowed his attack a little bit, but continued to land whenever Leites pressed in himself. Mousasi stuffed another takedown attempt. He landed a hard right and Leites was having trouble with the eye. Mousasi stuffed another takedown attempt and Leites flopped to his back. This is what he wound up doing late in his last UFC run. Unfortunate. Mousasi threw some kicks to his legs before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Mousasi. He was even more comfortable that round and did some significant damage late.
ROUND THREE: Leites immediately moved in with some strikes in order to get close enough to pull guard. He held Mousasi’s arm down for a bit, but Mousasi got free and made him stand up. Mousasi went back to the jab. Mousasi landed a nice two-punch combination. Mousasi caught a kick and advanced. He landed a hard right hand. He landed another jab. The action’s been slow and methodical, but Leites’ face has gotten pieced up in this one. He threw wildly and caught Mousasi with a left. He rushed in with a few more strikes. He landed another and Mousasi asked for some more. Mousasi fired off a couple strikes and pressed back. He landed a straight kick, then a right hand over the top. Mousasi landed a huge right hand and stuffed a desperation takedown, winding up in Leites’ half guard. The crowd booed as things stalled out in the half guard. Mousasi tried to pass but got held in half guard on the other side. Leites attacked late for an omoplata but had nothing there to the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Mousasi. Not a good fight, but clear dominant performance from Mousasi.
WINNER: Mousasi via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (*) Kind of a dull fight, unfortunately. Leites was just over-matched, got completely out-worked, and he’s now lost two straight.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT FOUR: ANDERSON SILVA VS. MICHAEL BISPING (MIDDLEWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Silva circled around on the outside. Bisping tossed out a head kick and Silva moved his head to avoid it. Silva avoided an inside leg kick. He’s seeing Bisping’s attacks coming right now. Bisping tried to back him up to the cage, but Silva continued to circle well. Bisping connected on a left hook and Silva smiled. Bisping closed in and landed a right hand. Bisping got in a front kick to the lead leg. Two minutes in and Silva hadn’t thrown a strike. Bisping got in with a right hand and backed out. Silva came ahead and got in a hard body kick for his first thrown strike of the fight. He landed a side step to the leg. He nearly got in a knee as Bisping closed in. Bisping landed another couple of strikes and backed out. Silva landed a right hand. They traded and Silva missed. Silva looked to get a bit aggressive as he backed Bisping to the cage. He landed a body kick, then a leg kick. Bisping got in a leg kick as he pressed back. Bisping landed a nice right hand. They seemed to clash heads. Silva dropped his hands. Bisping pressed him to the cage and got in a right hand. Silva dropped his hands and avoided two spinning kicks. Bisping got in a few hard punches and rocked him late! Silva recovered and pressed ahead at the horn. He tried to come in smiling for a hug and Bisping shoved him back.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Bisping. Impressively effective striking from Bisping that round. Silva is notoriously a slow starter, but he got hit more that round than usual.
ROUND TWO: Bisping again pressed in early. He got him to the cage and threw out some strikes. Silva did a lot of hand movement and blocked quite a bit. Bisping landed a right hand and Silva dropped his fists and invited him in. He stood there at the cage and Bisping backed out and stood looking back at him. Alright then. So there’s that. Silva got in a tagging jab as Bisping moved back in. Bisping landed a left. Silva landed a grazing eye poke and immediately apologized. Bisping kept moving in and they traded. Bisping backed him to the cage again and barely missed a few strikes. Silva did a little shoulder roll to showboat some more and the crowd reacted negatively. Silva rushed in and missed a right hand. They traded in the center. Bisping landed a front kick. Silva landed a punch to the thigh and immediately popped Bisping’s head back with the same fist. Nice moment for Silva. He landed a leg kick as Bisping tried to advance. Silva threw out a winging strike. He looked into the crowd and came back at Bisping. Bisping connected on an inside kick with a jab behind it. Bisping knocked Silva down with a big strike. Silva landed an up kick but Bisping came back on him and threw down several strikes. Silva tried to lock him down in the guard and he survived to the horn after kicking Bisping off him.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Bisping. Well, this is either a sign Silva’s nowhere close to what he used to be, or Bisping’s stepping up for his best performance. Either way, he’s dropped Silva twice in this fight, and is up after two.
ROUND THREE: Bisping continued advancing as the round started. He landed a right hand, and a few kicks. Silva landed a hard inside leg kick with his back on the cage. Bisping landed a jab. Bisping got in some kicks to Silva’s lead leg. He landed two grazing strikes but Silva took them. Silva got in a right. Bisping got in a straight kick to the lead leg. He backed him to the cage and missed. Silva barely missed as he returned fire. Bisping again landed with Silva connecting on a counter. Bisping landed a body kick. He threw another and Silva caught it, tripping him up, but he let him stand again. Silva tossed out a jab and moved forward. He blocked a few strikes as Bisping tried to pop in. Silva missed on a short elbow. Silva landed a right hand as Bisping missed a strike. Silva backed Bisping up to the cage. He avoided a short rush. Bisping landed a nice jab. Silva got in a hard body kick. He kept Bisping on the cage and landed a nice knee. Bisping landed a right. Silva backed him up and they traded. Bisping lost his mouthguard and tried to get it back. Bisping pointed to the mouth guard and as he was told to fight Silva landed a flying knee that knocked him down at the horn! Mass confusion as Herb Dean continued saying the fight wasn’t over. Silva jumped on the cage celebrating, but the fight’s not over! Absolute insanity there. Bisping did that to himself there.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Silva. Insane end to that round that allowed Silva to steal it. This could have been over.
ROUND FOUR: They both had to reset here. Bisping’s dazed but still moving forward. His face was messed up. He rushed in and Silva threw a kick that caught him in the groin, bringing things to a pause. He needed that time, but damn. They restarted and Bisping rushed in again. He landed a few strikes on the cage as Silva tried to move around to avoid some others. Bisping landed another right hand and Silva stood on the cage. He landed a right hand. Silva just stood in the corner. Bisping landed a short strike. Silva returned fire. Bisping landed another combination. Bisping landed another combo and Silva landed a right hand. Bisping went high with a kick, then tossed out some strikes. Silva landed a hard body kick. Bisping backed him up again and threw out a bunch of strikes, though none landed flush. Silva tossed out a combo and got poked in the eye. Silva had the doctor come in to look at it. Egregious eye poke on replay. Jesus. Points have to be taken on those, come on. They restarted and Silva just missed a winging overhand right. Bisping pawed out a few jabs. Silva landed a hard push kick to the lead leg. Bisping backed him up again and got in a couple strikes. Bisping got in to the body. Silva blocked a few strikes. Bisping fired off another flurry. Silva tried to chase him down late. He got in a knee but ate a right hand. Bisping landed some strikes with his back on the cage. Silva landed a short elbow. He got in another combination. Silva landed a superman punch at the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Bisping. Silva’s offense not enough to steal it from Bisping’s activity, and though he came closest to finishing this fight, he’s going to lose if it goes the distance.
ROUND FIVE: Bisping came ahead early again. Silva landed a head kick and started backing him up. Silva continued to stay aggressive and went high with the kick again. Bisping looked a bit hurt but kept fighting. Silva slowed down and the doctor was brought in to check the cut. The doctor lets him fight on. Bisping came ahead and ate a strike. He backed Silva to the cage and fired off. Silva landed the front kick to the face and Bisping was hurt badly. He gtried to finish him at the cage but Bisping fired off. He hurt him again with an inside knee to the head. Silva fired off another big strike. Bisping was hurt badly but still fighting. Silva landed a strike. Bisping got in some lead leg kicks. Silva slowed down which was nonsensical at this point. Bisping shot in for a takedown. Silva stuffed it and got in a hard knee to separate. Silva landed a hard right hand. Bisping walked him to the cage and landed a jab. Silva playing games at the wrong time. Silva got in another jab. He barely missed a spinning elbow. He landed a front kick to the body. Bisping tossed out a jab. Silva with no urgency and he let it get to the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Silva. Not enough for a 10-8, and this is going to be too little for Silva despite him coming closest to finishing this fight. Bisping’s likely to pull out the biggest win of his career here.
WINNER: Bisping via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47)
STAR RATING: (****) Tremendous fight. Tremendously odd fight, as well. Bisping’s got heart for days, survived some massive, massive strikes from Silva that nearly finished him, but he dropped Silva twice in the first ten minutes, rebounded with a big fourth round, and survived the onslaught late. Silva has no one but himself to blame for that loss, because he had his moments to finish that fight, and absolutely let Bisping off the hook in that last round.
-It wasn’t the best event overall, but that main event had a great atmosphere, and Bisping scores the biggest win of his career by far. Not sure what’s next for Silva. It seemed early like he’d lost some steps, and though he still had the power to deliver ridiculous damage, he let Bisping off the hook time after time and didn’t do nearly enough often enough.
-Thanks for joining us here throughout the day! We’ll have plenty more reaction to the event, including a post-event report from Dan Moore with his in-person perspective of the event on Sunday, and next week we shift to UFC 196!
Note for App Users: For fastest refresh rate on our fight result updates throughout the event, we recommend you visit our mobile-friendly browser-based website at http://www.mmatorch.com. Our App unfortunately doesn’t update article changes in real time, but our mobile site does, so there will be delays in live results on our app but not on our mobile site during the event.
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