Robert Whittaker went down two rounds right at the start, getting his knee busted up in the process by a kick to the leg from Yoel Romero. But Whittaker kept throwing his kicks and coming forward, landing a few big shots and demonstrating some of the best takedown defense ever inside the Octagon. Whittaker took the last three rounds to secure the unanimous decision, 48-47, 48-47, 48-47. Romero out-struck Whittaker 108-103, but it was Whittaker that won the significant strike differential, landing 93 to just 38 for Romero. Whittaker ended up stuffing 10 of 14 takedown attempts by Romero on his way to the win. Whittaker now is the interim champion and his win sets up a title unification bout with champion Michael Bisping later this year.
THEY SAID IT:
Robert Whittaker: “ This is unbelievable. It’s a moment I’ve always dreamed of. My knee was definitely hurt. I injured it in camp and Romero’s kick set it back weeks. I know that Romero will capitalize on any weakness he sees so I had to play it off. That’s just what champions are made of. I’m ready to fight [Michael] Bisping next. I believe it was destiny for us to meet and I am looking forward to it!”
Fabricio Werdum came on strong in the third round, rockin Alistair Overeem with a knee to the head. But he couldn’t finish “The Reem” and the judges scored a majority decision for Overeem, 28-28, 29-28, 29-28. In a weird fight statistically, Werdum unofficially out-struck Overeem, 107-29, but the first two rounds were very slow and the majority of his landed strikes came in the third round.
THEY SAID IT:
Alistair Overeem: “I feel great with the win tonight. I felt I was clearly the dominant fighter in the first two rounds. Round three was a little tough but I knew I had controlled the fight before then. Werdum is tough but I was the better man tonight. With that win, my next move is clear. I am ready for Stipe [Miocic] and I will take the championship.”
Daniel Omielanczuk stuffed all 14 takedown attempts by Curtis Blaydes, but the young Blaydes out-struck the Polish heavyweight, 93-66 in a grueling battle to pick up the unanimous decision win, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27.
THEY SAID IT:
Curtis Blaydes: “I am always happy to get the win. I was a little disappointed by the fight. I felt I could’ve done a better job of stringing my combinations together – throwing more volume. My opponent is a tough guy so I was more tentative than I should have been. That said, I’m happy with the win. In my next fight, I would love to get someone closer to the Top 10 but my goal is to stay active and keep winning.”
Anthony Pettis looked like the old “Showtime,” landing big kicks and pushing the pace against Jim Miller on his way to a convincing unanimous decision win, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27. Pettis was landing his signature body kicks against Miller, who had welts lining the left side of his stomach and back after the first round. Pettis opened up a cut on Miller in the second round with a head kick and then the two had a fun exchange on the mat as both attacked with submissions. Pettis picked up his first win since August of last year.
THEY SAID IT:
Anthony Pettis: “It feels amazing to be back at lightweight. I think the fans enjoyed that fight and we both gave it our all. I was looking for the finish the whole time. I even landed a couple of head kicks clean but Jim Miller is as tough as it gets and he just kept coming. I really feel better than ever and I tried to keep it interesting out there. I’ve been working hard on my wrestling defense and I got to show that off along with my striking tonight. It was a fun fight and now I’m just looking forward to getting back out there. I’ll tell you what’s next for me: three-time world champ.”
Rob Font shined in his move from the FIGHT PASS prelims to the main card, putting on a striking clinic (72-24) and finishing by submission (guillotine choke) at 4:36 of the second round. Font had Silva de Andrade rocked and the Brazilian fought to stay in the fight and tried to slam Font, who sunk in the choke and capitalized on the opportunity to finish the fight.
THEY SAID IT:
Rob Font: “ I am very thankful for this win. Another fight, another finish and I got to show off striking and wrestling in this one. I wanted to show that I’m a well-rounded fighter. I feel like I’m up there with the top guys in the division. With another couple wins, I want to be in the Top 5. I’m heading back to the gym to get ready and I want someone who is above me in the rankings next. I would love to fight Pedro Munhoz but I’ll talk to the matchmakers and figure out who is next.”
Aleksei Oleinik lived up to his nickname “The Boa Constrictor,” sinking in a deep rear naked choke and finishing the fight by submission at 3:44 of the second round. Browne had Oleinik hurt in the first round but his toughness was evident as he pushed to survive and extend the fight. After submitting Browne, Oleinik looked visibly exhausted, but excited to pick up the massive win.
THEY SAID IT:
Aleksei Oleinik: “This is the biggest win of my career so I feel amazing. I am thankful to all the fans around the world for supporting me. This is a great moment. Travis did everything we had been preparing for. I want to say thank you to my training partners at American Top Team because this moment wouldn’t be possible without them. This choke was a unique submission but something I use a lot. I set it up like a rear naked choke but also use my bodyweight to twist my opponent. You could say it is actually a double submission from that angle. This is why I am ‘The Boa Constrictor’.”
Chad Laprise landed a straight right to the body that forced Brian Camozzi to retreat and the Canadian pounced, landing punches and knees before finishing Camozzi by TKO at 1:27 of the third round. Laprise got out to a quick start in the first round and then Camozzi came back and controlled the second frame. But Laprise started to land consistently to the body and was able to finish the fight to win his second in a row.
THEY SAID IT:
Chad Laprise: “There were no surprises out there tonight. I knew he’d be tough but I also expected to finish him. I had a little trouble gauging his distance in the beginning but I was able to figure him out and get the job done. Now, I want another fight. I’m ready for Edmonton and I want Mickey Gall. I will smash him. He’s never fought anyone like me.”
Thiago Santos had Gerald Meerschaert hurt in the first round but wasn’t able to finish the job until the second, when he landed some nasty ground and pound to force the referee to stop the fight by TKO at 2:04. Santos landed 54 significant strikes, battering Meerschaert for the majority of the two rounds. The TKO finish gives Santos six career knockouts, good for the third-best mark in UFC middleweight history.
THEY SAID IT:
Thiago Santos: “ This fight was very important to me. Gerald is a tough fighter but I am tougher and I showed that tonight. I feel that I am getting back to where I should be in the division. With one or two more wins, I would like to rematch Gegard Mousasi. I believe that fight will end very differently as I have continued to grow as a fighter and I want to show that to the world. I will continue to finish whoever is put in front of me.”
Belal Muhammad outstruck Jordan Mein 116-49 en route to a unanimous decision victory (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
THEY SAID IT:
Belal Muhammad: “I felt very dominant throughout the fight and that’s thanks to training with the best team in the world. I was surprised by his durability. I wanted to get the finish but I was a bit hesitant at times. I feel like I am in a good place now and want to keep climbing up the division. I think Yancy [Medeiros] and I would be a great fight. Also, Colby Covington has been saying no one will fight him… Well, I will fight him anytime. I’ll be back in the gym on Monday. I’m always ready.”
Cody Stamann earned an impressive victory in his UFC debut after defeating Terrion Ware via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
THEY SAID IT:
Cody Stamann: “I feel great. I was talking to Sean Shelby between rounds and I told him to take notice of what I was doing even though I stepped in as a replacement seven days ago. I knew that I would dominate and leave with the win but that’s nothing compared to what I will do with a full camp. Ware is a durable guy and a solid fighter but I could feel him breaking as the fight went on. I would have loved to get the finish but felt like everything went according to plan. I want a bigger name for my next fight and I want to fight again before the end of the year.”
Trevin Giles dominated against James Bochnovic for the entirety of the fight before finishing by knockout at 2:54 of the second round. Giles improved to 10-0 after landing five takedowns which he used to land 54 total strikes in just under two rounds of action. Giles used a grueling attack to ground Bochnovic and drop big bombs until he couldn’t hang in any longer.
THEY SAID IT:
Trevin Giles: “ I had been trying to get into the UFC for a while now and it felt amazing to get the win. Every fight I have, I expect the finish so I felt like everything went according to plan tonight. Being able to finish my first fight was important but this was just the first step. I’m going back to the gym to get ready for whoever is next.”
