UFC 209 Woodley vs Thompson 2: Full Results
After Khabib Nurmagomedov’s botched weight cut and eventual hospitalisation, the UFC 209 card was left with just one of its two advertised title-fights. Nevertheless, on a night where the card seemed to be cursed, the UFC had several young stars save the day and a couple of Heavyweight K-1 legends throw heavy leather.
The co-main event was a cracker, which was followed by a controversial main event that once again failed to provide the Welterweight division with a clear ruler.
Main Card (Pay-Per-View)
Undisputed UFC Welterweight title bout: Tyron Woodley (c) vs. Stephen Thompson
I know many of you think this was a stinker, but just hear me out. Woodley and Thompson are two very different fighters with contrasting styles and it’s that clash of styles that either makes fights exciting or boring.
Thompson outpointed Woodley in Rounds 1 and 2 with T-Wood taking the third owing to the takedown. Thompson came back to control the fourth, and the fifth round was characterised by T-Wood catching Wonderboy off-balance and then scoring a flash knockdown.
Nevertheless, Thompson recovered almost immediately and the buzzer rang ending the bout. As many fans and pundits feel, Wonderboy was the rightful victor, however, the Vegas judges sided with the defending champ Tyron Woodley. This was an out-and-out ‘Chess match’.
Tyron Woodley def. Stephen Thompson via Majority Decision (48-47, 47-47, 48-47)
Lightweight bout: Lando Vannata vs. David Teymur
Vannata and Teymur put on the fight of the night and just like the Elkins-Bektic fight showcased two young, hungry lions doing battle across every inch of the Octagon.
Initially, Lando showed no respect, whatsoever, to his opponent, something that Teymur, the multiple-time World Muay Thai champion, made him pay for. Teymur outpointed ‘Groovy’ but regardless of what the scorecards say, the real winners of this fight were the fans.
David Teymur def. Lando Vannata via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Middleweight bout: Rashad Evans vs. Daniel Kelly
Shades of Lil’ Nog and Evans!
The former UFC Light Heavyweight champ made his long-awaited Middleweight debut against Aussie judoka Daniel Kelly. As a longtime MMA fan, it was sad to see Evans lose the standup battle to a fighter who is primarily a grappler.
‘Suga’ looked gun-shy against the Aussie and failed to mount any effective offense despite Kelly’s awkward, rudimentary striking. Bad loss for Evans to a lower-tier MW.
Daniel Kelly def. Rashad Evans via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Women’s Strawweight bout: Cynthia Calvillo vs. Amanda Cooper
Cynthia Calvillo absolutely trucked through Cooper, showing slick movement in the standup exchanges and total domination on the mat. Keep an eye on Calvillo, she’s a fighter with an eye for the kill.
Cynthia Calvillo def. Amanda Cooper via Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) (R1, 3:19)
Heavyweight bout: Alistair Overeem vs. Mark Hunt
Coming into this matchup, Hunt’s mental and emotional states were rightfully questioned, owing to his recent legal issues against the UFC, Dana White and Brock Lesnar. ‘Super Samoan’ seemed a bit off tonight and after suffering an apparent shin break, slowed down drastically towards the final round.
The Reem smartly avoided engaging Hunt in a boxing match and used his kicks at range and knees in the clinch to chop down the hulking Kiwi. Reem hit him with a pair of beautiful knees reminiscent of his Strikeforce and K-1 days that put Mark to sleep. Ubereem is back in the title picture!
Alistair Overeem def. Mark Hunt via KO (Knees) (R3, 1:44)