-The Facebook feed cut out with two minutes left in the Thoresen-Mitchell fight, as the FX prelim broadcast began. Jon Anik and Dominick Cruz opened the broadcast backstage in the United Center to break down the main event and the final FX bout in T.J. Grant vs. Matt Wiman.
-After the first break, Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan discuss the other fights coming up on the FX prelims and the night's main card.
FIGHT ONE: RAFAEL NATAL VS. SEAN SPENCER (MIDDLEWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Spencer came straight ahead with a few strikes. He pressed Natal back with a combination. Natal landed a punch. Spencer continued moving forward and took a hard poke to the eye with Natal reaching out with an open hand. Doctors checked his eye to make sure he was alright to continue and they allowed him to go. Spencer came back out swinging as Natal threw some kicks. Spencer landed a nice right. Spencer landed a couple more strikes and continued backing out nicely after his attacks. Natal landed a kick. Natal landed a right. Spencer popped him back with one. Natal landed a hard leg kick. Natal landed a left and an inside leg kick. Natal missed a spinning back kick but landed a leg kick. Spencer landed a couple strikes. Spencer got in with a kick to the body. He landed a left hook that caught Natal off balance. He landed another nice combination after Natal popped up. Natal got in with a hard right but Spencer took it. Spencer landed a jab. Natal got in a body kick. He landed a hard combination of his own. He tried to shoot in but got stuffed and turned around. Natal threw a knee and Spencer eventually separated. Natal landed a hard side kick. Spencer connected on a right. Natal landed a spinning back fist. He landed a hard right and scored a takedown right into mount against the cage. He landed some strikes, but Spencer avoided too much damage before the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Natal. Spencer was having some success with his striking, but as a natural welterweight the power difference is noticeable, and Natal took over late and got a great position at the end of the round with some ground and pound.
ROUND TWO: Natal threw a spinning kick early. Spencer landed a nice two-punch combo. Natal landed a good jab. He ate one back as he landed a kick. Spencer landed a right, then a left to the body. He got in with an overhand right but missed the follow up. Natal landed a side kick to the body. He shot in and scored a takedown to side control, but Spencer got his back to the cage. He nicely defended Natal's passing attempts and got to his feet. He took a knee and threw a couple punches as Natal clinched him on the cage. Natal pushed in with another takedown. Spencer tried to hold Natal in tight to get a standup, but Natal continued throwing short punches to stay busy. Spencer worked to the cage, but Natal tried to sneak in to take his back. He eventually got there and landed some strikes from the back. He flattened Spencer out and went for a choke but Spencer survived to the end of the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Natal. The size and strength advantage is too much for Spencer right now, who's showing some solid chops on the feet on short notice.
ROUND THREE: Natal went for an early single leg but Spencer held him off. Spencer engaged, but got taken right down after missing a strike. Natal got right into side control inside the first minute. He went for the crucifix and trapped Spencer's arm. He landed elbows as Spencer's arms were both trapped. Natal then went for an americana and used it to gain mount. He began looking for the arm triangle and forced the tap from the mount.
WINNER: Natal via submission (arm triangle choke) at 2:13 of the third round
STAR RATING: (**) Decent fight. Spencer put up a good fight, but he's a welterweight and jumped up on short notice for a chance to fight in the UFC. It's hard to compete against a stronger grappler a weight class above you in the UFC, and that's what he ran into. Very good performance from Natal, and he did exactly what he needed to do against a short notice, typically lighter opponent.
FIGHT TWO: MIKE RUSSOW VS. SHAWN JORDAN (HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Russow immediately closed the distance and tried to get Jordan to the cage. Jordan held it off and rpessed Russow off him. Russow then unleashed a big series of strikes on the cage. He had Jordan hurt and kept him on the cage. Jordan recovered and held off the takedown attempt as cuts under the right eye and over the left began bleeding. Russow backed off briefly, but reengaged with the clinch. Jordan pushed him off. Russow connceted with a nice right. He landed a big left on the cage and then tried to drag Jordan down. He briefly got him to a knee, but Jordan kept himself up against the cage. He got Jordan's back standing and tried to trip him, then let it go and separated. Russow popped in with the lead right again and avoided a rush from Jordan. He landed a left. He landed the right again, and again, then tripped Jordan up, but Jordan again got to his feet. Jordan got out and landed a couple of strikes before Russow clinched again. Jordan landed a few strikes with his back on the cage. Jordan landed a couple of strikes and backed Russow off as the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Russow. Very nice striking from Russow, but he may have run out of gas already.
ROUND TWO: Russow immediately landed the right. Jordan shot back with a short uppercut. He got in with it again but missed a couple more. Jordan had his hand outstretched and poked Russow in the eye. On replay, Jordan shoved his thumb in Russow's eye. That looked intentional on replay. As they restarted. Russow got in with a combo, and Jordan fired back with a combo of his own. He tried to stalk, but Russow fired back in. Jordan landed a body shot and stalked him down. Jordan then landed an easy takedown and got right into mount. Russow gave up his back after a couple of strikes. He got to his knees and Jordan stayed on him with strikes. Russow went for a foot lock, then swept and got to his feet. He briefly went for a front choke as Jordan kept his hand on the ground. He lifted it up and Russow landed a knee. Jordan turned him around in the clinch, then shot for another takedown, which he secured easily into half guard. He landed an elbow. He got in with another. He got to mount again. He landed a couple of big strikes and got Russow flattened out. He landed a couple of big strikes and Russow just covered up. Herb Dean stopped it and Russow's face was busted up as he got to his knees.
WINNER: Jordan via TKO at 3:48 of the second round
STAR RATING: (**) Good for Jordan on coming back and getting that win, but that doesn't happen against a more well conditioned fighter. Russow was lighting him up in the first round, and zapped his energy going for takedowns he couldn't complete. Jordan took control in the second because of that. Still, huge win for Jordan in his career to bounce back from that ugly fight against Cheick Kongo.
FIGHT THREE: RYAN BADER VS. VLADIMIR MATYUSHENKO (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Bader took the center and backed Matyushenko up. He landed an inside leg kick. He got in with a jab. He landed a big left hook that dropped Matyushenko. Bader grabbed for a choke. Matyushenko held it off initially, then he pulled half guard to tighten it and scored the submission. That's the performance he needed after the loss to Lyoto Machida. Well done.
WINNER: Bader via submission (guillotine choke) at :50 of the first round
STAR RATING: (**+) That was damned impressive. That Bader knocked him down wasn't surprising, but to not only pull off a submission the way he did, but to score the fastest sub in the history of the UFC's 205 lb. division as well, that was a statement win to bounce back from the Machida loss.
-A recap of Tuesday's TUF 17 debut airs as they reveal the encore presentation is coming tonight on Fox. Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen are then brought in cageside with Joe Rogan to discuss the season and their fight this April. The "bad blood" that was supposed to be there this season has entirely subsided, but Jones says it won't stop him from doing what he needs to do to him at UFC 159. Sonnen talked up the Ultimate Fighter tournament with his typical hyperbole, as Jones remained more subdued and humble, calling the show one of the most gratifying things he's ever down. Then they crowded Rogan for a square off.
FIGHT FOUR: MIKE STUMPF VS. PASCAL KRAUSS (WELTERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Krauss pawed out with his jab early. Stumpf landed a hard leg kick. Krauss connected with the jab. Stumpf landed two good strikes in combination. He landed a hard leg kick. Krauss got in a nice right. He landed a leg kick of his own. He landed a few jabs. Stumpf landed the inside leg kick and a right. Krauss fired back. He landed a body kick. Stumpf landed a hard kick. Krauss landed a short combo. Stumpf caught a kick and scored a takedown. Stumpf passed to half guard, but Krauss regained guard. He kicked him off and got back to his feet. Stumpf got in a good kick to the body. Krauss landed a nice uppercut. He grabbed a clinch and landed a couple knees to the body. Krauss landed a jab. He landed a few strikes in combination. Krauss went for a takedown but got stuffed. He pressed Stumpf to the cage. He landed a knee and Stumpf landed a couple of strikes. Stumpf landed a couple leg kicks and Krauss landed one back. He landed a combination. He landed a nice right and pressed Stumpf back. Krauss landed three more strikes in combination. He got in a couple of kicks. He landed a straight kick to the face and started opening up. Stumpf landed a kick but ate one in return. Krauss rocked Stumpf with an uppercut. Stumpf recovered with a takedown attempt, but he got stuffed on the cage. Krauss went for a standing guillotine, but Stumpf held off to the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Krauss. Really good, competitive first round. Krauss turned it on in the second half of the round and took back the round after the takedown.
ROUND TWO: Stumpf came forward early, but was on the receiving end of a bunch of strikes. Krauss landed the front kick again, then a nice combination. He landed the front kick again, then a couple of right hands. He landed the jab and a kick. He landed a hard right. He landed a few more strikes in combination. He landed the superman uppercut again. Stumpf was just getting lit up. Krauss landed a kick and a punch behind it. He shot in and scored a takedown, but Stumpf hit the switch and turned him around for a takedown. That was ill-advised for Krauss. Krauss got his back to the cage and tried to work up. Krauss got back up to his feet and turned him around on the cage. He landed a short elbow and a few nice punches in the clinch. Krauss landed another nice right. He worked his dirty boxing effectively. Stumpf fired back with a few strikes. He shot in and Krauss got a front headlock. He landed a couple knees in the clinch. Krauss landed a nice knee to the body. He landed a couple in a row to the face. Krauss continued to work effectively in the clinch with knees and punches. He landed a nice short forearm. They exchanged strikes as the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Krauss. Stumpf, despite getting the takedown, hasn't done much else, though he did connect on a few strikes in that frame. Krauss is lighting him up on the feet and in the clinch, though, and should be up two rounds to none here.
ROUND THREE: Krauss went back to work with a few early rights. Stumpf fired back, but Krauss started lighting him up against the cage. Stumpf lost his mouthpiece and it was briefly halted. Krauss went right back to work with jabs and combinations. He went back to the uppercut and kept putting punches together in combination. Stumpf came back at him, but Krauss avoided much in the way of counters. Krauss landed another combination, ending with a kick. Stumpf tried to shoot in but got stuffed easily. Krauss landed a couple of knees, then backed off. He got in with a few more strikes and backed off. He rushed Stumpf with a flurry, then backed away. He's stayed measured and patient to this point in the fight. He landed a hard body kick and a nice right behind it. Stumpf has a good chin and is a tough fighter, but he was just getting destroyed on the feet. Krauss sprawled nicely on a takedown attempt and got separation with a couple more strikes. Kruass with another big combination. Stumpf landed a couple strikes. He shot in again, but got stuffed. Stumpf pulled guard. Krauss kept close with a few short strikes. Krauss just stayed busy and avoided anything from Stumpf on the bottom. Krauss rode out the round smartly in the guard, avoiding a late attempt and raising his hands at the horn. Good performance from Krauss.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Krauss. He just continued lighting Stumpf up in the striking exchanges, and all Stumpf could do was pull guard to get to the ground, and that didn't do much for him either. He's got a great chin and fought through a ton of punishment, but that was all he could do tonight.
WINNER: Krauss via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (**+) That was a great striking display from Krauss, and if his takedown defense continues to improve working with Ben Askren at Roufusport, he's got a higher ceiling than his loss to John Hathaway might suggest.
FIGHT FIVE: CLAY GUIDA VS. HATSU HIOKI (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: The "Guida" chants began before the fight. Guida rushed straight out. Hioki landed a couple of strikes early. Guida landed a right. Hioki landed a body kick and they exchanged strikes. Guida landed a good left. Hioki landed a body shot. He landed another body shot and backed Guida up. He landed a kick to the body. Guida wildly circled on the outside and got clipped by a nice combination from Hioki. Hioki landed a nice combination to the body. Guida missed a strike and Hioki briefly clinched. Guida threw a kick. Hioki just missed an uppercut. Hioki landed a nice counter left. Guida shot but got stuffed. Hioki landed a nice left. Guida landed a kick to the leg. Hioki landed a combination. Guida landed a right into a clinch, but got shrugged off. Hioki landed a couple jabs. Guida landed a solid right. Hioli got in a kick low and high. Guida missed a few strikes. He finally shot in and scored a takedown. Hioki grabbed wrist control and went for a triangle. He used that to get to the cage and he worked to a knee. Hioki then transitioned to tty taking Guida's back. He worked to a sprawl and grabbed a headlock. He landed a couple knees and got separation. He landed a jab. He landed a couple strikes. Hioki landed a body shot before the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hioki. Guida's probably going to be given the round by these judges because of the takedown, but he did nothing there, and Hioki was more effective with his striking.
ROUND TWO: Hioki landed a few hard strikes early as Guida landed a kick. Guida landed a leg kick and rushed in. He picked Hioki up and slammed him, but Hioki went for the switch to get behind Guida. Guida tried to complete the takedown, but Hioki went for a kimura. He turned it to a triangle, then an armbar attempt. Guida got out of it with a brief slam. Hioki defended well from his back. Guida desperately tried to pass to half guard but couldn't get it. Hioki continued to stifle it and Guida didn't have any other offense from the top. Guida landed a right. They were finally stood up. Hioki landed a few strikes. He landed a body kick. Hioki landed a hard jab. Hioki landed a head kick, then missed a second one. He landed another jab to end the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hioki. Guida was on top, but it was Hioki that defended everything, stopped his passes, and attacked from the back, along with landing strikes on the feet. These judges probably won't give it to him, but they should.
ROUND THREE: Hioki landed a nice combination to the body. He landed a flurry against the cage. Hioki landed a straight kick. He avoided Guida's rushes. Guida shot in and scored another takedown. Hioki went for the triangle, but Guida got out. He landed some elbows as he had Guida's head locked up. Hioki landed more strikes from the bottom that opened Guida up. Guida finally passed to half guard. Hioki regained guard and got his back to the cage. Guida did nothing and Hioki got to a knee. Guida landed a knee to the body. Hioki tried to sweep. They were finally stood up with 30 seconds left. Hioki threw a head kick again. Hioki landed another combination. He stuffed one more takedown before the round ended and Guida raised his hands.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-10. Hioki didn't have enough offense to steal it from the takedown, but Guida again did absolutely nothing from the top. It's going to be frustrating when the decision is read in his favor.
WINNER: Guida via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (-) No stars for that garbage. Clay Guida did nothing offensive in that fight, Hioki was winning off his back, and he got screwed by inept judging that still rewards Guida for doing nothing. That decision just makes me angry. I never want to watch another Clay Guida fight, it's the same thing every time, and he absolutely did not deserve to win that fight. 30-27 Guida is the worst scorecard in a big pile of bad scorecards. Unbelievable.
FIGHT SIX: T.J. GRANT VS. MATT WIMAN (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Grant landed an early body shot and threw Wiman down. Wiman got up and threw a flurry. Grant landed a nice short combo. Wiman landed an inside leg kick. Grant clinched and landed a nice knee. Wiman landed a left and got hit by a counter from Grant. Grant landed a hard right hand to the jaw. Wiman threw a kick high and it was blocked. Grant landed a nice combination to the body and head, and he blocked a counter. They traded shots. Wiman got in a right. He landed an incside leg kick. Grant landed a jab to the body. Grant landed a couple of nice leg kicks. He landed a right, then got in a knee in a brief clinch. Grant landed another right and avoided the counter. Grant landed a few nice strikes in a row, then a couple of strikes in a brief clinch. Grant landed a few more strikes, and more knees in a clinch. Grant landed a solid short elbow. He hurt Wiman with another short elbow. He landed a nice two punch combo. Wiman shot in and grant stuffed it, then tried to transition to Wiman's back. He landed some big strikes and wound up on top. He passed to side control and landed an elbow to the side of the head. He trapped an arm and Wiman got back to guard. Grant made him stand up. Grant landed a nice jab. Grant got in a nice knee, then a few more and a couple of elbows in the clinch. He pressed Wiman to the cage and knocked Wiman down with a couple of big elbows and finished the fight on the ground with a few more strikes. That was just an incredible performance from T.J. Grant.
WINNER: Grant via KO at 4:51 of the first round
STAR RATING: (***) That was just an incredible performance from T.J. Grant against a legitimately good fighter in Matt Wiman. Grant is contender material at lightweight, without question, and I want to see him against a top guy next, because he belongs in the title picture on merit sooner than later.
-Time for Joe Rogan and Dana White to yell at everyone for ten minutes about next week's UFC 156 event and tonight's Fox main card.
=====Fox Main Card=====
-Curt Menefee opens up the Fox broadcast with a rundown of the top two fights on the card before a nice Ving Rhames-narrated opening video.
-And they are having technical difficulties at the outset, with Curt Menefee's comments cutting in and out. That's a solid start to the night, as they're forced to cut to commercial.
-We're back with Mike Goldberg bringing things back to the United Center, apologizing for the audio issues at the desk. The opening rundown looks like it might be scrapped, as we go cageside with Goldberg and Rogan.
FIGHT SEVEN: ERIK KOCH VS. RICARDO LAMAS (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Both fighters came straight out to the center, and Lamas threw the first leg kick. Lamas missed a spinning head kick as Koch just backed away. Joch went high with a kick that was partially blocked. Koch got in a kick to the body and a nice straight left that pressed Lamas back. He went to the head kick again and it was blocked. He landed an inside leg kick. Lamas shot in and Koch stuffed it on the cage. Lamas tried to attack a single leg and Koch landed some strikes. Lamas briefly got him down, but Koch popped right back up. Lamas continued working but Koch defended well on one leg. Lamas landed an elbow in the clinch. Lamas landed a knee to the body in the clinch. He briefly brought Koch down, but Koch again popped up. Lamas threw a spinning elbow and then ate a right as they separated. Koch landed a kick to the body, Lamas one to the leg. Koch landed a straight left. Koch connected on a couple of strikes. Lamas scored a couple of strikes and went back to the clinch. He went for the single leg again and ate a couple strikes. Lamas scored the takedown, but not for long as Koch again got right back up. The round ended in the clinch.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Koch. He outstruck Lamas and stuffed all but the last takedown, and he bounced up from that one.
ROUND TWO: Koch landed a couple of nice strikes early. Lamas got in a leg kick. He got another one and Koch fired back with an inside kick. Koch ducked under a strike and clinched. He separated cleanly. Koch landed a nice combination but got poked in the eye. Koch landed a couple of jabs. Lamas slipped, Koch tried to jump on him, but he wound up on his back. Lamas tried to posture up but dropped back in Koch's guard. Lamas landed a few punches to the body. He got in a solid elbow. He scored with a big left that cut Koch open. Lamas landed some big elbows and had Koch hurt bad. He continued landing and Herb Dean had to stop it. Koch's face was a mess. Huge, huge win for Ricardo Lamas.
WINNER: Lamas via TKO at 2:32 of the second round
STAR RATING: (**) It was a dull, slow first round, but Lamas brought it around with a violent and brutal finish that probably earned him a title shot against the winner of Jose Aldo-Frankie Edgar next week. Massively impressive.
FIGHT EIGHT: ANTHONY PETTIS VS. DONALD CERRONE (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Pettis landed an early overhand right as Cerrone missed. Pettis landed a leg kick. He landed a nice combination in an exchange. Pettis threw a capoeira kick that just missed. Pettis landed a nice right counter after checking a leg kick. He blocked a head kick. Cerrone landed the leg kick. Pettis landed a nice two-punch combo. Pettis connected on the right again. Pettis got in a short left after missing a right. Pettis landed a brutal kick to the body. He landed a knee to the head. Pettis backed Cerrone to the cage and landed a knee off the cage. Cerrone crumpled after a kick to the body, Pettis landed a couple shots and it was all over. Yeah, he should be fighting Ben Henderson in April.
WINNER: Pettis via TKO at 2:35 of the first round
STAR RATING: (***+) Are you freaking kidding me? Pettis just tore threw Cerrone in a way no one's done on the feet. He even managed to throw in some flashiness with the cartwheel kick, a knee off the cage, and just absolutely brutal kicks to the body. Pettis proved he's the real deal tonight.
-Pettis asked Dana White what he had to do for a title shot. He shouldn't have to do anything else. He said it's his birthday, and jokingly told White that a bonus would be nice for his birthday.
FIGHT NINE: QUINTON "RAMPAGE" JACKSON VS. GLOVER TEIXEIRA (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Teixeira landed an early right and pressed Jackson back. Teixeira landed a jab to the leg. He missed a left. Rampage threw a combo that was blocked. Teixeira landed a couple of jabs. Teixeira shot in and immediately got Rampage's back. He flattened him out, and Rampage turned to his side. Teixeira stayed patient. He let go of a hook and Jackson got to his feet and threw a short combo. Teixeira just missed an overhand right and almost ate a counter. Teixeira landed a right. He threw a head kick. Jackson connected on a two-punch combo. Teixeira landed a shot to the body. Jackson got in a jab. Teixeira backed Jackson up, but Rampage backed him up with a jab. Teixeira landed a couple nice body shots. Teixeira landed a nice left hook. Rampage missed one. Rampage shot in, got shrugged off and ate a big hook. Teixeira landed a nice knee to the body. Rampage landed a right before Teixeira backed off. Teixeira hurt Rampage with a left hook, but Rampage quickly recovered. Teixeira dropped Rampage with a combo, but Rampage got to his feet and covered up. Jackson landed a couple of strikes. He kept Teixeira back with a jab. Rampage landed a nice right. Teixeira grabbed a leg before the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Teixeira. With a takedown, some damaging strikes, and pressing the pace, easy first round for Teixeira.
ROUND TWO: Teixeira landed a jab. Rampage fired back. Teixeira shot in for a takedown. Jackson briefly held it off, but Teixeira drove through and finished it. He passed right to half guard. He passed again. Jackson worked up to his feet. He came forward and landed a right. Rampage landed a nice series of uppercuts. Teixeira landed a nice short combo into a clinch. He separated and came right back. Teixeira landed the left hook again. Jackson was cut under the left eye. He landed a decent body shot. He covered up as Teixeira threw a few punches. Teixeira landed a nice uppercut, but Rampage avoided the follow up. Teixeira landed a left. Rampage threw a combo but it was blocked. Teixeira landed a couple kicks. Rampage tried to goad Teixeira into a firefight. They traded punches. Rampage missed a big left hook. Teixeira landed a couple and Rampage shrugged. Teixeira landed two nice body shots. He got in with an uppercut. Jackson got in a short combo. Teixeira landed the left hook again and covered up as Rampage fired back. Teixeira smiled as Rampage connected before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Teixeira. Most of Rampage's strikes have been blocked, and he's tiring so what he does connect isn't hitting as hard. Teixeira is doing a good job of mixing things up with his striking attack.
ROUND THREE: They exchanged strikes early and Teixeira connected with a nice left hook. Teixeira landed a couple of strikes and Rampage actually landed a kick to the body. Jackson landed a short combo. Teixeira shot in and scored another takedown. The crowd booed. Oh, Chicago. Teixeira postured up in half guard and landed some nice strikes. He got in an elbow and Rampage tried to walk up the cage. He got to his feet and got hit by a couple of strikes. Jackson came forward with a flurry, but Teixeira covered up. Rampage shot for a single leg but gave it up. Teixeira came back forward. Rampage got in a couple. Teixeira threw a head kick. Jackson landed a few strikes. Teixeira grabbed a single leg and easily took a tired Rampage down. Teixeira landed a hook to the body. He got in a knee to the head in a clinch. Rampage was extremely tired, but fired back with another combo. He landed a couple jabs. Teixeira landed a hook to the body. Teixeira scored another takedown and mounted Rampage. He landed some strikes from the top and rode out the round with strikes from mount to drive it home. Rampage raised Teixeira's arm after Teixeira helped him up immediately after the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Teixeira. He tired a bit, and Rampage defends well, but Teixeira did what he needed to do in order to take this fight. Biggest career win by far, and he should get another good matchup in the top of the division next time out.
WINNER: Teixeira via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (**) Not a bad fight, not a great fight; not necessarily the "breakout performance" Teixeira was expected by many to have, but he was still clearly the better fighter tonight and he earned a rightful decision. He's not the world killer some believe him to be, and he has holes that better fighters can exploit, but this was a good win for him tonight.
-Curt Menefee, Chael Sonnen, and Brian Stann come down cageside with continued technical difficulties at the desk to discuss the main event.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT TEN: DEMETRIOUS "MIGHTY MOUSE" JOHNSON VS. JOHN DODSON (FLYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP)
ROUND ONE: Dodson ran out to meet Johnson. He landed a nice body kick early. Johnson tried to walk Dodson down and got hit with a right. Johnson landed an inside leg kick. Johnson missed an early straight right. Dodson avoided another strike. Dodson connected on a leg kick to the lead leg. He avoided another rush from Johnson. Dodson rocked Johnson with a straight left but Johnson popped back up. Dodson slammed Johnson after a head kick attempt. Johnson connected on a right and Dodson smiled. He came back with a right and Johnson countered. Dodson blocked a knee in the clinch. Johnson missed a left. Dodson landed a right. Johnson got in with a jab. Johnson landed a leg kick. Johnson landed a left and Dodson scored with a few strikes in counter. Dodson landed a good kick to the body. Johnson landed a right. Dodson landed a hard straight left. Johnson closed the distance and couldn't quite score the takedown. Then he picked Dodson up and slammed him. Dodson slowly worked to break free and got to his feet. Johnson landed a right. Dodson turned him around in the clinch and landed some knees. Dodson separated with a right. Johnson pressed in again and clinched. They ended the round in the clinch.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Johnson. Close round, but though Dodson had some more powerful strikes, Johnson's output was greater and he scored the takedown. Could be argued either way here.
ROUND TWO: Johnson closed the distance, but it was Dodson scoring with a couple of strikes early. He landed a nice knee with a straight left behind it. Johnson shot in and Dodson held him off in the clinch. Johnson scored the takedown on the cage after dropping levels, but Dodson got right back to his feet and separated. Johnson landed a right. He landed an inside leg kick. They exchanged strikes. Johnson got in a nice strike. Dodson dropped Johnson with a huge combination, but he let him back up as Johnson recovered quickly. Dodson landed a big punch. Johnson got dropped again as he came in and he popped up, but was hurting. Johnson recovered and threw a couple leg kicks. Dodson caught a kick and briefly tripped Johnson up. Dodson landed a kick. He caught one and landed another left. He just missed a big overhand left. He landed another nice left hook in an exchange. Johnson landed a straight kick. Dodson just missed the counter left after catching another kick. He stuffed a takedown attempt. Johnson landed a right. They traded kicks. Johnson landed a right. He landed a left as he pushed in. Dodson caught another kick and landed a left. He landed a hard knee as Johnson came in and the round ended with an exchange of knees in the clinch.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Dodson. Johnson again had a high output, but two knockdowns from Dodson gave him that round.
ROUND THREE: Dodson threw a jumping kick early that was blocked. Johnson landed a kick and Dodson threw another strike. Dodson landed the left hook again, and staggered Johnson briefly again with another one. Johnson landed a kick. Dodson landed a knee as Johnson shot in. Johnson stayed on the single leg but got stuffed, then Johnson landed a knee to the groin that brought a halt to the action. They touched gloves on the restart. Dodson landed a leg kick. He got in a hard kick to the body. Johnson missed as he rushed in and Dodson just missed a huge flying knee. He landed a couple of strikes to separate. He landed another left as he caught a kick. Johnson landed a body kick. Johnson landed a right. Johnson landed a two punch combo. Dodson swung wildly and just missed. Johnson landed a right and Dodson countered. Dodson landed a hard kick to the body. Johnson landed a double jab. Johnson scored a takedown as Dodson tripped up. Dodson landed an elbow and got to the cage. Johnson held him down and passed to half guard. Dodson worked to his feet and Johnson landed a couple strikes. He stayed on Dodson and landed a few knees in the clinch. Dodson got loose with a right. He landed a left and another before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Dodson. Really close round, and Johnson has an argument, but I think Dodson won three minutes of the round while Johnson won two.
ROUND FOUR: They traded punches early. Johnson landed a left. Johnson landed a kick low but John McCarthy missed it. Dodson landed a big knee as Johnson rushed in. Dodson had his hand down and Johnson hit him with a knee, bringing a halt to the action. They checked Dodson's eye to make sure he could continue. The crowd booed the delay. No point taken from Johnson. Johnson landed a kick. Dodson popped in with a two-punch combo. Dodson caught a kick and landed a left. Dodson landed a good counter left. He stuffed another takedown attempt and got brought to the cage. Dodson held it off and landed a couple punches to separate. He landed a left. Dodson landed a couple strikes and Johnson got in with a couple of his own. Dodson stuffed another takedown. He landed an elbow in close. They traded knees. Dodson briefly grabbed for a takedown. Johnson grabbed a head lock and landed knees to the leg. He landed some knees to the shoulders, then got a couple in to the head. He continued with knees to the thigh and head when Dodson brought his hand up. He continued with knees to the head and Dodson was cut open. Dodson landed a couple elbows to the body. Johnson continued with the knees and he finally got out. Johnson landed a couple nice strikes as they separated.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Johnson. Great, great final minute and a half from the Champion. He did a ton of damage with those knees, and though I have it even here into the final round, I think Dodson might have to finish to pull off the upset.
ROUND FIVE: They traded leg kicks early. Johnson walked Dodson down with a few punches, landed a couple knees, then timed a takedown well and got Johnson down. Dodson worked back to a knee, but Johnson tried to drag him right back down. Dodson got up but ate a couple strikes as he turned him around in the clinch. They traded knees. Johnson climbed up Dodson's body and landed some elbows. Dodson backed away and Johnson stayed on him. Dodson grabbed a clinch. He backed off again and Johnson was back in his face. Dodson landed a body shot. Dodson shot in, but Johnson stuffed him on the cage. Dodson stayed on it and scored the takedown, but Johnson got back to a knee and landed an elbow. Dodson finally backed off. Dodson landed a left, avoided the counter and shot for a leg. They clinched and Johnson got in a couple knees. Johnson landed a couple more knees and had Dodson hurt. He landed a nice series of strikes on the cage. He landed another knee. He went back to the knees and Dodson was hurt. Johnson connected on a few more. Johnson continued with the attack in the clinch. Johnson went back to the knees. Dodson fired back with a couple. Johnson landed a few more knees and strikes to the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-8 Johnson. Dodson scored the takedown (briefly), but the offensive output in the clinch was absolutely one-sided. This is going to be an interesting scorecard, though, because Dodson has a case for rounds 1-3, and the judges in Chicago may not score a 10-8 in round five.
WINNER: Johnson via unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 49-46)
STAR RATING: (**+) Good, close, competitive title fight. Johnson proved he's got one hell of a chin, and Dodson will go home realizing he may have missed some opportunities in that second round when he had Johnson hurt. But Johnson got stronger as the fight wore on, and the Muay Thai attack in the last seven minutes from Johnson was fantastic.
-That's another card in the books! Thanks for joining us tonight, we'll have plenty to parse through from this card in the next week, and we've got another event to look forward to just seven days from now in UFC 156!
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
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