Prelims
Bam Bam Nam
Jerome Rivera vs. Tyson Nam
Bantamweight Fight
This fight seemed to be going like many others, the first round was a lot of feeling out, and Rivera was trying to build a base of strong leg kicks. Nam landed some big shots in the last minute, but it was nothing out of the ordinary. The second round however, Tyson Nam landed big shots early and put down Rivera hard, he followed up in full guard with ground and pound until the ref stopped it.
Rating: 8/10
Result: TKO for Tyson Nam in 2nd Round
Bantam Bash
Andre Ewell vs. Irwin Rivera
Bantamweight Fight
This fight had all the pieces to be a classic slugfest, the entire first round was almost spent standing, and both fighters got their best shots in. Rivera did a little bit more damage than Ewell did. The second round continued to be based on hard hits, Rivera showed off his chin and did his best to give it back to Ewell. Ewell took the edge in the second round on punches landed again, but Rivera never looked out of it. Rivera gav a flurry at the end of the third round, even scoring a takedown after another slugfest round. Ewell still landed a lot more big hits than he did.
Rating: 8/10
Result: Split Decision Win for Andre Ewell
You Don’t Mess with The Zohan
Journey Newson vs. Randy Costa
Bantamweight Fight
This fight didn’t take long, and Costa’s length certainly paid him dividends. He landed a thunderous head kick less than 2 minutes into the fight. Newson looked like he may have been immediately out, but referee Mark Smith gave it a couple more shots before he waved it off.
Rating: 8.5/10
Result: KO for Randy Costa (41 Seconds)
Cornhusker Guillotine
Darrick Minner vs. T.J. Laramie
Featherweight Fight
Darrick Minner did what he does best, he took advantage of a small mistake and locked in a guillotine choke. Laramie didn’t seem to expect it, granted that’s what Minner is best at, but given his history of winning that way you’d think Laramie wouldn’t effectively walk into it.
Rating: 8/10
Result: 1st Round Submission for Darrick Minner (Guillotine Choke)
JRC, Breaker of Noses
Jessica Rose-Clark vs. Sarah Alpar
Women’s Bantamweight Fight
The majority of the first round was Alpar trying to get a takedown, and it almost worked, but the top position went to Rose-Clark. Rose-Clark showed off amazing takedown defense in the second round. She also turned it to her advantage and got top position again to set up some ground and pound against the cage, but she couldn’t quite land enough to get a stoppage. Alpar started to fall to the mat and Rose-Clark hit a devastating knee to Alpar’s face which exploded Alpar’s nose. The ref stopped the fight because he thought the strike might have been illegal, but it wasn’t and they continued. Rose-Clark continued to dominate with strikes and got the full mount. Rose-Clark never let up and eventually the fight was stopped after a very dominant performance by Rose-Clark.
Rating: 8.5/10
Result: TKO for Jessica Rose-Clark in the 3rd Round
Hook, Line, and Sinker
Mayra Bueno Silva vs. Mara Romero Borella
Women’s Flyweight Fight
This was a brilliant mental fight from Bueno Silva. She got taken down by Borella early, even took a couple big shots while on bottom. She then worked her way, very slowly into an armbar, and once it was locked in Borella tapped out. This was a great example of classic Brazilian patience while on the bottom.
Rating: 9/10
Result: 1st Round Submission for Mayra Bueno Silva (Armbar)
Dueling Submissions
Mirsad Bektic vs. Damon Jackson
Featherweight Fight
The first round of this fight was a battle of dueling kimuras. There was a good exchange of strikes as well. The second round was again a fight for position and more dueling submission attempts. Ground and pound was almost a time passer if a submission couldn’t be applied. The battle for a submission was finally won in the third round with the second guillotine choke of the evening.
Rating: 8/10
Result: 3rd Round Submission for Damon Jackson (Guillotine Choke)Decisions Decisions
Jordan Espinosa vs. David Dvorakc
Flyweight Fight
There was a classic feeler first round in this fight, both men seemed to want to keep things standing. The second round wasn’t much different, Dvorakc seemed to be on the attack while Espinosa seemed to be more reactive. This was an interesting fight, as it was hard to find a very distinct advantage, as strikes were very even, and Dvorakc had a small cut on his face, but the decision went to Dvorakc.
Rating: 7.5/10
Result: Unanimous Decision for David Dvorakc
Main Card
Rematch Required
Kevin Holland vs. Darren Stewart
Middleweight Fight
Holland certainly used his length to his advantage in the first, and put a lot of focus on keeping the fight towards the center of the octagon. Stewarts inability to keep Holland on the edges seemed to affect him. Holland got taken down after a high kick counter and tried to get Stewart to follow him to the ground. Stewart showed his defensive ability as well, as he just didn’t give Holland the openings that we’ve seen him capitalize on so many times before. Stewart got top position toward the end of the third and did some serious damage. This was a fun fight, as both fighters were talking trash the whole time. The split decision seemed to take them both by surprise, and the body language between them seemed to indicate that they didn’t care for it. Holland even said to UFC President Dana White on his way to his post fight interview: “If you want me to do it again, I’ll do it again.” I’d like to see a rematch, and I feel I’m not alone.
Rating: 8/10
Result: Split Decision for Kevin Holland
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 101
Mackenzie Dern vs. Randa Markos
Women’s Strawweight Fight
Mackenzie Dern did what she’s known for and that’s grapple. Markos had no answers once the fight went to the ground. Dern continued to work positioning until she got hold of an arm, and kept working the armbar until Markos had no choice but to tap out. This raises questions for Markos as her record is now officially at .500 and Dern is quickly rising up the ranks in the strawweight division.
Rating: 8/10
Result: 1st Round Submission for Mackenzie Dern (Armbar)
Kryptonite
Ryan Spann vs. Johnny Walker
Light Heavyweight Fight
This was a crazy fight despite it not getting out of the first round. Spann landed an absolutely massive shot to Walker, which almost put him out, but Spann couldn’t follow up strongly enough. Walker then found his way into top position and started landing hammer fists, he caught Spann with a big one and eventually the ref had to stop the fight. Spann’s corner was screaming that Walker was hitting Spann in the back of the head, but there was no change to the decision.
Rating: 9/10
Result: KO for Johnny Walker in the 1st Round
One Punch Man
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Gerald Meerschaert
Middleweight Fight
This fight took one punch, they sized each other up for about 15 seconds and Chiamaev landed one right hand and it was all over. It makes me wonder who will actually be able to fight back against this guy.
Rating: 8.5/10
Result: KO for Khamzat Chimaev in the 1st Round (17 Seconds)
I Only have Eye Pokes for You
Donald Cerrone vs. Niko Price
Welterweight Fight
Niko Price started as fast as you would expect him to and put a ton of pressure on Cowboy, the problem was he couldn’t keep it up because of a few errant eye pokes that Price was very upset about. The ref took a point away from Price because of the eye pokes. A ton of striking went down in the second round. Price continued to up his totals seemingly trying to make it impossible for Cowboy to catch up. Cowboy got his shots in, but he just couldn’t seem to separate himself in the round. Cowboy went for a couple takedowns and even climbed Price’s back. Price always had the edge in numbers in terms of striking. There were a lot of errant eye pokes in this fight, even two at the same time by each fighter. None of them were intentional, and they were both extremely apologetic about it. The announcement of a majority draw seemed to upset Cowboy, while Price seemed thrilled with the result.
Rating: 8.5/10
Result: Majority Draw
Main Event
Bad Blood
Colby Covington vs. Tyron Woodley
Welterweight Fight
Covington scores an early takedown and seemed to have things figured out more than Woodley did. Covington did everything he could to keep Woodley up against the cage, and it worked. The first round seemed to go Covington’s way. The second round was more of the same from Covington, he kept Woodley up against the cage, and it seemed to drain Woodley. After a brief break in the action because of an eye poke, Covington continued to make it look easy to keep Woodley against the cage. In between rounds Woodley looked visibly gassed, while Covington seemed perfectly fine. Colby forced a takedown early on and got into guard, he proceeded to simply pound on Woodley for effectively the entire round while Woodley did not look like he was doing all that well. Covington had Woodley down and eventually we heard Woodley screaming about his rib and tapping out. Overall this was a very well planned and executed fight for Covington, but not terribly exciting. Covington is right back in the title picture.
Rating: 7.5/10
Result: TKO for Colby Covington in the 5th Round
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