Orion Cosce v. Blood Diamond

In the opening round of the evening Blood Diamond already is showing improvements from his dissapointing debut performance last time. He starts throwing nice combinations and landing a variety of good strikes. He begins to find his rhythm but is quickly slowed down when his back gets close to the cage and Cosce rushes in to initiate the grappling. Cosce clinches and begins to work the clinch strikes until he seizes the opportunity to land his first takedown. Diamond does a nice job to hop right back up with a quickness. However, when he is taken down again later, this time he does not show urgency to get back up and accepts the position. Diamond eventually works his way back up and lands some good strikes to close the round. A close round that could have gone to either fighter in the judges eyes. In the second round Diamond starts to land flush and even hurts Cosce on a couple different occasions. Once Cosce is hurt, Diamond rushes in to follow up but gets over excited and gets too close. Cosce takes this opportunity to once again clinch and slow the attack of Diamond. Another close round but this one appeared to be edged out by Diamond due to the damage that clearly wobbles Cosce on a couple of occasions. In the final round Cosce comes out and quickly initiates the wrestling. He gets a quick takedown and Diamond is too tired to get back up this time. Cosce controls him on the ground for almost the entire round. He lands ground strikes and is constantly threatening submissions. This forces Diamond to be in constant survival mode making it the most clear cut round of the fight. A better performance for Diamond but in the end the judges felt it was Cosce who had clearly done enough to get the nod. Cosce by unanimous decision.

Nick Negumereanu v. Ihor Potieria

In the first round Potieria comes out looking very slick with the striking. He starts landing some good shots and Negumereanu very quickly decides to initiate the grappling after feeling the immediate danger coming from Potieria. Negumereanu clinches him against the cage and begins landing shots until he is finally able to duck under and secure his first takedown of the fight. He controls Potieria for several minutes and lands some good ground strikes. Potieria finally gets back up in the final minute but he is clearly winded now and his strikes already look slightly less explosive. In between rounds Potieria is breathing very heavily. In the second round he comes back out with more urgency this time. He starts landing some good straight punches and leg kicks. Negumereanu is feeling the power and danger which compels him to once again initiate the grappling. He starts going to work and eventually has Potieria hurt and in trouble. Potieria does his best to survive but Negumereanu has him in severe trouble and is all over him with constant attacks. Negumeranu lands blow after blow and even sends the mouthpiece flying after one of his brutally landed punches. Potieria shows his heart and durability but the onslaught is just too much. After too many unanswered shots the referee has no choice but to step in and stop the fight. Another impressive performance by Negumereanu against a very dangerous and game opponent. Negumereanu by second round TKO.

Ji Yeon Kim v. Joselyne Edwards

The opening round of this bout is an all striking affair. Neither fighter ever shoots for a takedown and although Kim has a couple of moments it is Edwards who is clearly the better striker. She lands beautiful shots from distance displaying her precision and wide variety of shot selections. The straight punches and kicks are always at full length keeping Kim on the end of them to maximize the damage. A clear cut round in the favor of Edwards. In the second round Kim starts doing better and landing a good amount of her own strikes. She finds a better understanding of the distance and rhythm of Edwards which allows her to counter strike with success. Another close round but it still may have been edged out by Edwards, although not for certain. In the final round Kim tries her best to force the action but Edwards always just seems half a step ahead. She once again closes out the round with a nice discrepancy in shots landed which is plenty for her to coast to the win. Kim by split decision.

Michael Morales v. Adam Fugitt

Morales comes into this fight with a lot of hype after scoring a devastating KO in his last fight against Trevin Giles. In the first round he shows how clearly dangerous he is in the striking department. He lands beautiful straight shots from distance with such speed and precision that Fugitt is quickly on alert. After a couple of minutes of Morales eding out the striking exchanges, Fugitt finally decides to wrestle. He gets a nice takedown and uses it to make the round much closer as he is able to control for most of the second part of the round. In the second round Morales gets right back to his sniper striking. Fugitt starts getting touched up and each time he tries to initiate the wrestling Morales does much better at defending this round. Fugitt definitely has a chin on him and continues to show his durability but Morales is landing at will and it feels like this is a clear cut round for Morales. In the final round Fugitt tries hard to wrestle again but Morales is just too slick and too dangerous. He finally lands the combination that hurts Fugitt and Morales wastes no time at pouncing on his injured prey. He rushes after him landing shot after shot and drops Fugitt at least three times during the final frenzy. Fugitt continues to hop back up despite being badly hurt. The toughness and survival instincts are commendable but eventually the referee is forced to jump in and save him from himself. Another very impressive statement win from Morales who is now starting to put the division on notice. Morales by third round TKO.

Drakkar Klose v. Rafa Garcia

The first half of the opening round appeared to be going in the favor of Garcia despite Klose being the fighter who was pressuring and walking forward. Garcia was doing well at keeping distance and landing very nice counter shots at the perfect moments. Klose remains undiscouraged though and continues to press forward until he can get a takedown. From there he starts landing good ground strikes and threatening submissions. The second half of the round was in favor of Klose making the round very tough to score as it could have gone to either fighter. In the second round Klose continues to press forward but this time it is Garcia who lands a takedown. He stays on top of Klose in the middle of the cage making it much more difficult for Klose to get up. Garcia is now accruing control time and landing good ground strikes to help him score. Klose also lands some good strikes from the bottom but eventually the referee feels like there’s not quite enough action and chooses to stand them back up. Garcia once again lands another takedown and although the round is close, it feels that Garcia may have done enough to edge out the round. In the final round Klose increases the pressure and Garcia is finally starting to show some fatigue. This continued pressure of Klose is starting to pay off as Garcia is fading and is no longer able to land any takedowns. The round ends up still being close although it feels as if it was edged out by Klose. The whole fight as a whole was very closely contested but in the end the judges felt that it was Klose who had done enough. Klose by unanimous decision.

Don’Tale Mayes v. Hamdy Abdelwahab

The opening round of this bout is an interesting one. In the first part of the round Mayes is doing a nice job at landing good strikes from distance. However, as the round proceeds he starts to get sloppy and takes some questionable risks. He eventually gets clipped and wobbled and Abdelwahab follows up with an intense flurry. The crowd erupts and the blitz is so furious that it feels the fight could be stopped soon. Mayes finds a way to survive though and in the late portion of the round he starts finding success again. It is an exciting round but feels as though it will go to Abdelwahab. In the second round Mayes starts connecting flush. He hurts Abdelwahab and this time it is Mayes who is blitzing with the flurry. He lands shot after shot and this time it feels like the fight could be stopped in favor of Mayes. Abdelwahab also finds a way to survive and now the crowd is fully engaged. Going into the final round it feels as though the fight may be tied at one round a piece. Early in the third round Abdelwahab goes back to the wrestling immediately. He lands a takedown within the first thirty seconds. From there he controls Mayes for minutes and it appears that Mayes may not have the energy to ever get back up again. Abdelwahab lands ground strikes and it feels like the fight could be slipping away from Mayes. With only one minute left in the fight the referee finally stands them back up. Mayes tries a half hearted blitz at the end to try and steal the fight but it feels like the urgency was lacking and he may not have done enough. The judges agree. Abdelwahab by split decision.

Drew Dober v. Rafael Alves

The first round of this fight is all action. Both fighters are so incredibly explosive that every time they rush in the whole crowd holds their breath. Every action is full power and it feels as though the fight could be ended at any second. In one of the explosive exchanges Dober over commits and Alves capitalizes. He ends up in top control on the ground and is threatening a choke briefly but it never gets very close to completion. He lands some decent strikes from top control but eventually it is not enough action and the referee stands the fighters back up. A very exciting opening round with both fighters having their moments during their explosive flurries. In the second round the explosiveness somehow finds a way to increase. Both fighters blast each other in the first part of the round but it is the final minute that has the entire arena on their feet. Dober presses Alves towards the cage and then starts another flurry. Alves throws a flurry back at the same time and it is Alves who lands the most flush strike of the round. The strike is so powerful and fast that it seems like a miracle Dober was able to remain conscious. They continue to trade at full power and the crowd is now deafening at this point. Both fighters survive and it is the most exciting round we have seen thus far on the night. When Dober comes back out in the third round his right eye is almost completely swollen shut from that insane shot he took in the prior round. He once again presses forward and backs Alves against the cage. He waits for the right time and throws yet another blistering body shot. After all the body shots that Alves endured in this fight, this was the one that finally buckled him. It was a slightly delayed reaction but once the pain registered Alves went down and balled up on the ground. Dober followed up quickly to attack but the body language was all that the referee needed to see. The fight is stopped immediately and the crowd erupts one last time for one of the most exciting fights they’ll ever see. Dober by third round TKO.

Alex Morono v. Matt Semelsberger

The opening round of this bout is the Alex Morono show. He looks very skilled in the exchanges and not only demonstrates a speed advantage but also is showing a great fluidity in his striking. Semelsberger hangs tough and tries to counter but everything he throws looks jerky in relation to the fluid striking from Morono. Morono is constantly getting the better of the exchanges and by the end of the round the left eye of Semelsberger is almost completely swollen shut. A good round for both fighters but it feels like Morono may have won that round pretty comfortably. In the second round Morono continues to showcase his skills. He is so good at hitting and not getting hit. Semelsberger does not get discouraged and continues to press forward but Morono is very hard to find and everytime he misses Morono makes him pay. In the final minute of the round the fight hits the ground and Semelsberger ends up on top. When the clock reflects that there are about 15 seconds left Semelsberger raises up and just starts throwing bombs down at Morono. He throws full strength shots one after another but for the most part Morono is able to evade. In fact, during that insanely vicious flurry, Morono lands one single elbow from the bottom and when the fighters stand at the end of the round, Semelsberger is now cut and bleeding from the forehead. A very impressive feat for Morono considering the brutal attack he was undergoing. Now Semelsberger heads to his corner with his eye completely swollen shut and a bleeding forehead. In the final round the action and excitement continues. Before the round starts they bring the doctor in to examine the eye. Luckily we are in Texas and they let the fight continue. Semelsberger now knows he can’t waste any time as he is clearly under scrutiny. When the final round starts he rushes across the cage and throws caution to the wind. He blitzes and lands a flush shot that drops Morono. The crowd erupts as Semelsberger stands over Morono and throws shot after shot trying to close the show. Morono survives and finds his way back to the feet. As the last few minutes of the fight play out Morono gets back to his dominance and the crowd is very appreciative after all the action they have seen. A very exciting fight but a fairly clear cut win for Morono against a vicious opponent. Morono by unanimous decision.

Anthony Smith v. Magomed Ankalaev

This fight played out in a very unfortunate way. Smith comes into the fight as a huge underdog but it felt very disrespectful considering the vast amount of experience he has against high level opposition and how well he’s been fighting lately. As the fight begins to play out Smith is slowly inching forward taking away space and forcing Ankalaev backwards. The first minute is a feeling out process but eventually the fighters begin to exchange. Smith throws nice kicks and straight punches and Ankalaev is choosing to be the counter striker for the most part. Each fighter has subtle moments of success but in the final minute of the round Smith falls down awkwardly and chooses to stay there. It seems a little strange and we later find out why. In the second round Smith comes and in strange fashion he clinches against the cage and tries a half hearted takedown attempt. He locks around the body with his arms and just tries to slowly fall backwards and pull Ankalaev down with him. Ankalaev resists so it is a very slow and awkward process. Once the fight gets to the ground Smith is now on bottom and never is able to get back up even during scrambles when he had opportunities. After a few transitions it becomes very apparent that something is wrong with Smith. Ankalaev seems to realize it and starts throwing heavy flurries. Smith is unable to plant any weight on his foot to get back up. Eventually the referee has no choice but to stop the fight. The minute the fight is stopped we learn that Smith has a broken leg. We later find out that it was broken in the first round but in true Anthony Smith fashion, he presses on and continues the fight, even with a broken leg. It is a very unfortunate loss for Smith and a somewhat unearned win for Ankalaev considering that he fought a man with a broken leg. Nonetheless, Anklaev is now on a nine fight win streak and will no doubt be challenging for the title soon. Ankalaev by second round TKO.

Alexandre Pantoja v. Alex Perez

This fight was very short lived and was an absolute display of pure dominance. As the opening round starts the fighters blitz across the cage and immediately start throwin with reckless abandon. No fighter seems to care about technique as they just throw wild flurries nonstop at each other. The crowd erupts as the chaos unfolds. Pantoja then goes for a takedown and partially gets it but as Perez is getting back up Pantoja jumps on the back. This was the beginning of the end. Perez is now standing up with Pantoja on his back, body triangle tightly secured. He starts threatening rear naked chokes and Perez is defending to the best of his ability but is carrying all the weight of Pantoja. Eventually Pantoja gets his arms locked around the chin and begins to squeeze with all his might. The choke is not under the chin but the powerful squeeze is so painful just being on the jaw that Perez eventually decides he no longer wants to endure it. He quickly taps out and the fight is over after only a couple of minutes of chaos. Another insanely impressive performance for Pantoja who will likely be challenging for the title very soon. Pantoja by first round submission.

Derrick Lewis v. Sergei Pavlovich

This fight did not last long and unfortunately for Derrick Lewis he just cannot seem to buy a win in his home state. He keeps trying to right the wrongs and get a win in front of his people but he always seems to come up short. As the fight starts Pavlovich stalks forward and Lewis plants his feet and waits for him to enter. When Pavlovich does enter Lewis sits down on his punches and throws with everything he has. Early on it is mostly single strikes but once the flurries start it quickly becomes apparent that Pavlovich has a really big speed advantage. The flurries of Pavlovich start to overwhelm Lewis and he begins to turn his back while getting blasted with shots. He eventually gets hit with a hard shot and drops and although he quickly is getting back up the referee rushes in to stop the fight. Lewis protests and the crowd erupts in protest as well. It did appear that the fight was stopped too soon but Lewis definitely was getting blitzed and overwhelmed with speed. Another unfortunate loss for Lewis in Texas but a big win for Pavlovich who continues on his surge. Pavlovich by first round TKO.

Brandon Moreno v. Kai Kara-France

In the opening round of this title fight the first couple minutes are a feeling out process. The fighters inch toward each other and only throw single jabs and occasional straight punches. In the final two minutes Moreno finally goes in for a takedown. He gets in and gets his hands locked but Kara-France is patient and does a very good job at defending until he eventually breaks away. There are not a lot of flush strikes landed in the first round and it was closely contested but it felt as though Moreno may have edged it out. In the second round the two fighters are once again in the center of the cage being somewhat hesitant. Kara-France seems to be over thinking things a little too much and it is resulting in him being somewhat frozen and hesitant. Moreno on the other hand continues to inch in but when he sees his chances he is actually throwing and with serious intent. Moreno tries a couple more takedown attempts throughout the round but Kara-France does well to defend once again. Another close round with not a ton of action but it once again feels slightly edged out by Moreno. In the third round is when everything starts to catch fire. The two fighters meet in the middle again but this time they are fully committing and landing flush. Just when it feels like Moreno is pulling away with this fight Kara-France gets a takedown. When on top he rains down some strikes and one of them badly opens a cut below the eye of Moreno. When Moreno gets back up Kara-France lands some more nasty strikes and it now feels like all the momentum is in his favor. Moreno tries his best to fire back but Kara-France seems to have his number at the moment. This brings out the Mexican fighter spirit of Moreno. Out of nowhere he lands a brutal kick to the liver of Kara-France. He falls instantly and curls up in a ball. All the wind has been sucked out of his sails and he is now in the fetal position getting blasted with punch after punch. His body language clearly shows he no longer wants to fight. The bout is stopped and Moreno is now the interim flyweight champion. Moreno by third round TKO.

Julianna Pena v. Amanda Nunes

Nunes comes into this fight after one of the most shocking losses in UFC history. She comes in looking much more in shape and determined. The Lioness was officially back for this fight. As the fight begins Nunes is instantly being more strategic and measured. She inches in methodically and attacks with single punches at first. Once the fighters finally start to open up with combinations it is Nunes who is getting the better of the exchanges. Nunes lands flush and wobbles Pena and the crowed erupts. In true Pena fashion, she continues to press forward and almost flails into the pocket with nothing but pure will and gambling intentions. Nunes clearly wins the first round but Pena is trying to once again make Nunes work and empty out her gas tank. In the second round is when Nunes really gets to work. Nunes lands flush early in the round and drops Pena violently. Pena lays on her back and Nunes stays standing until she gets back up. The fighters engage again and about a minute later she drops her violently again. Nunes once again waits for her to get back up. Pena presses forward with the crowd erupting and Nunes later drops her one more time, just as violently as the first two times. This round is pure dominance for Nunes and could easily be a 10-8 round for her. In the third round Nunes gets right back to work. Pena tries her best to stay in the fight but Nunes is pulling away. She continues to dominate the striking exchanges and Nunes is now mixing in takedowns to her dominance. Another clear cut winning round for Nunes. In the fourth round Nunes is battered and swollen but she never gives up. In fact, during another dominant ground and pound sequence, Pena actually locks onto an armbar. Nunes in serious trouble and the crowd erupts at the thought of Pena coming back to win after such a brutal beating. Nunes stays patient and escapes to continue her dominant ground and pound. Another clear cut round for Nunes. In the final round Nunes focuses on a very wrestling heavy approach. She gets a quick takedown and gets right back to work with ground control and striking. Pena continues to try to threaten submissions and escape but every time she gets back up Nunes is able to put her back down. By the end of the fight it has been an absolute masterclass of pure domination. Pena is bloodied and her face is completely lumped up in several places. There are puddles of blood in all different places of the cage. The Lioness has returned and is once again the double champ. Nunes by unanimous decision.