UFC heavyweight title Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos
There's a good chance this will be the defining moment of each fighter's career. It highlights a burgeoning rivalry between entrenched Mexican and Mexican American fight fans and the rapidly growing Brazilian MMA fan contingent.
Round 1. Dos Santos connects with a heavy hook early and appears to stun Velasquez a little. Velasquez drops down and goes for a takedown. Dos Santos blocks it and hammers Velasquez with another big punch. Velasquez clinches again. Velasquez lands a knee to the body. Dos Santos separates and goes for a head kick. Velasquez clinches again so as to not allow Dos Santos to strike at distance. Velasquez gets the takedown halfway through the round. He is in half guard and drops a few elbows from the top. Dos Santos turns over and Velasquez looks to take his back. He can't and Dos Santos stands back up. They clinch by the cage and trade knees as the round ends. 10 9 Velasquez.
Round 2. Velasquez grabs a single leg and executes a takedown. However Dos Santos gets right back up in a hurry. Velasquez clinches but then backs off. He throws a long series of punches with Dos Santos mostly just bobbing his head to aoid as many as he can. Velasquez lands a couple straight punches and clinches again. He lands punches here and there and continues to smother Dos Santos against the cage. Dos Santos tries to throw Velasquez down. They both get up and Velasquez lands a few punches before clinching again. They break and Dos Santos lands a couple of punches before Velasquez returns to the clinch. They exchange punches as the round comes to an end. 10 9 Velasquez.
Round 3. Velasquez grabs Dos Santos and pushes him against the cage. He lands a couple of punches as Dos Santos looks to create a little distance. Dos Santos lands an elbow from close distance and they separate. Velasquez goes for a takedown but Dos Santos blocks it. Velasquez drops Dos Santos with a right punch right by the ear reminiscent of their first fight only the other way. Velasquez keeps landing punches on the ground and referee Herb Dean is extremely close to stopping it. Finally Dos Santos gets up and is able to continue. Velasquez looks for a choke but can't get it. Velasquez lands a couple hard straight punches. He continues to punish Dos Santos against the cage as the round mercifully ends. 10 8 Velasquez.
Round 4. Velasquez goes right back to work opening up with heavy punches up against the cage. Referee Herb Dean again appears to be considering a stop to the contest. Velasquez lands a number of punches on Dos Santos and avoids Dos Santos' counters. Velasquez continues to clinch and then will occasionally separate and land punches. Dos Santos is able to land a nice counter in one exchange but Velasquez is getting the better of it by a wide margin. 10 9 Velasquez.
Round 5. Velasquez lands a left hook early and takes Dos Santos down. Dos Santos gets up but Velasquez clinches again and lands punches up against the cage. Dos Santos drops down hits his head against the mat eats a couple punches and referee Herb Dean stops the bout. That was a savage beatdown.
Winner Cain Velasquez TKO round 5.
In preliminary action Kyoji Horiguchi withstood some early pressure and earned a win in his first UFC fight via second round TKO over Dustin Pague. Andre Fili showed himself to be a young fighter to watch overwhelming Jeremy Larsen with strikes in the second round after taking the fight on short notice. Tony Ferguson picked up an emotion win rocking Mike Rio with a punch and then submitting him with a D Arce choke in the first round. And Adlan Amagov scored a devastating first round knockout over the game T.J. Waldburger.
K.J. Noons vs. George Sotiropoulos
This is a do or die fight for a pair of fighters who have achieved some fame in the sport. Noons is a former EliteXC lightweight champion best known for his rivalry with Nick Diaz. Sotiropoulos was at one point a top UFC lightweight contender and coached on the UK vs. Australia season of the Ultimate Fighter. Each man is coming off three straight losses and the loser is unlikely to continue in the UFC. Noons' specialty is his boxing while Sotiropoulos' forte is his jiu jitsu.
Round 1. The bout begins with a slow feeling out process. Sotiropoulos circles around the outside of the cage while Noons takes the center and throws the occasional jab to the body. Sotiropoulos finally begins to open up with punches about halfway through the round while Noons continues to go after the body. Noons lands a nice uppercut and avoids a front kick. Noons opens up with punches at the end of the round and appears to have Sotiropoulos a little dazed. He moves in aggressively and attacks the head but time runs out on the round. 10 9 Noons.
Round 2. The action begins at a quicker pace. Sotiropoulos thus far perhaps surprisingly hasn't gone for any takedowns and has engaged in the standup with Noons. Noons is landing a little bit more but it isn't a wide margin. Noons is good at avoiding most of Sotiropoulos' punches. Two minutes in Sotiropoulos goes for a takedown but has it stuffed by Noons. Sotiropoulos goes for another takedown a minute later and this time he gets it. He has Noons up against the cage but Noons stands back up and circles out of trouble. Back on the feet Noons lands a nice hook. He goes for another two moments later after the success of the first. 10 9 Noons.
Round 3. Noons lands a couple punches and blocks a takedown attempt. Sotiropoulos answers with a clean straight punch. Sotiropoulos connects with a pair of hooks and a hard straight right punch right up the middle. Sotiropoulos recovers well but is bleeding from a couple points on the face. Sotiropoulos goes for another takedown and it is again defended successfully. Sotiropoulos lands a few leg kicks and Noons doesn't really check them. Noons has always been much more of a pure boxer than a kickboxer. He blocks another Sotiropoulos takedown. Sotiropoulos hits a head kick. He goes for another that misses and Noons lands a couple hooks in retaliation. Noons throws a spinning backfist that misses. 10 9 Noons 30 27 Noons.
Winner K.J. Noons unanimous decision (29 28 30 27 29 28).
Sarah Kaufman vs. Jessica Eye
Sarah Kaufman is one of the best 135 pound female fighters in the world. With a 16 2 record and excellent striking she presents problems for any fighter. Eye has built up a solid fan following on the smaller circuit and was 3 0 in Bellator prior to signing with the UFC. This is easily the biggest fight of her career.
Round 1. Eye comes out aggressively with jabs. She's a noticeably smaller fighter than Kaufman. Eye clinches and presses Kaufman against the cage. Kaufman throws a series of knees to the body and they break. Eye throws a few more nice jabs that connect when Kaufman comes in. They clinch against the cage again. Kaufman lands a few nice shots and separates. They clinch and Eye lands a nice elbow from short range before separating. Kaufman lands a solid power right punch up the middle. Very close round. 10 9 Eye.
Round 2. Kaufman continues to walk down Eye and in the early part of the round she is much more effective in getting through Eye's jab and landing hard punches on the inside. Kaufman lands her best shot of the fight a big overhand right to the chin. They clinch and Eye uses some foot stomps before separating. Kaufman's face is getting pretty bruised up. Kaufman has taken the lead in punches landed according to the UFC's stats. Eye continues to work her jab trying to prevent Kaufman from getting in range. Another close round. 10 9 Kaufman.
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