UFC Fight Night 94 – A diamond in the rough
UFC Fight Night 94 rolled out of the State Farm Arena in Hidalgo, Texas and featured a lightweight bout between Dustin Poirier and Michael Johnson in the main event. Poirier was coming off four victories since moving up to 155, while Johnson needed a win, considering he lost his previous two fights – most recently against Nate Diaz.
In the co-main event, Uriah Hall had the opportunity to erase his loss against Whittaker at UFC 193, as he went up against the dangerous Derek Brunson. Brunson had finished his previous three fights inside three minutes of the first round, while Hall needed to maintain his focus, and prove just why he is one of the most exciting fighters at 185.
Former WSOF Featherweight Champion Rick Glenn also made his Octagon debut, going up against Evan Dunham. Evan, who is a ranked fighter in the 155-pound division, posed a difficult challenge for Glenn. Dunham has great hands and is comfortable in the clinches and on the ground.
On the prelims card, Belal Muhammad returned to take on Augusto Montano. “Remember the name” is one of the top prospects in the 170-pound division, while the main event of the FS1 card saw Gabriel Benitez take on Sam Sicilia. Benitez is one of the most exciting fighters in the featherweight division, and he proved just that when he defended a takedown attempt by Sicilia, and synched in the high elbow guillotine to get the victory in the second round.
Below are the results from the prelims cards (Fight Pass and FS1):
Randy Brown defeated Erick Montano by submission (guillotine choke) - Round 3, 0:18
Albert Morales versus Alejandro Perez was declared majority draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28) - Round 3, 5:00
Gabriel Benitez defeated Sam Sicilia by submission (guillotine choke) - Round 2, 1:20
Belal Muhammad defeated Augusto Montano by TKO (punches) - Round 3, 4:19
Antonio Carlos Junior defeated Leonardo Augusto Leleco by submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 3, 4:46
Jose Quinonez defeated Joey Gomez by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Chas Skelly defeated Maximo Blanco by submission (d'arce choke) - Round 1, 0:19
On the main card, featherweights Skelly and Blanco started the proceedings, as the fight promised to be an exciting affair. The former Pancrase LW champion Blanco is known for his unorthodox high-risk offensive style, but Skelly caught him off guard with a jumping straight kick, which sent Blanco flying, as Skelly swarmed in and looked for a guillotine.
With Blanco trying to flip over, Skelly synched in the Anaconda choke to pick up the submission victory in just 19 seconds of the first round, the fastest in UFC history!
Islam Makhachev defeated Chris Wade by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Makhachev and Wade then collided in what turned out to be a technical masterclass, as both the fighters scrambled on the ground to gain the advantageous position. Makhachev, however, proved too strong for Wade, as he took the first and the third rounds, while Wade looked to have won the second round. In the end, while Makhachev wasn’t able to finish Wade, he picked up the unanimous decision victory, giving him his second victory inside the Octagon.
Roan Carneiro defeated Kenny Robertson by split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
In the third fight, Carneiro edged out Robertson on the cards, as both the 170 pounders never looked confident enough to finish their opponent. Carneiro managed to sneak in some excellent combinations, while Robertson had his moments during the fight. In the end, Carneiro did enough to get the split decision victory.
Evan Dunham defeated Rick Glenn by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Rick Glenn made his Octagon debut this past Sunday and was immediately thrown into the deep end, fighting a ranked opponent in Evan Dunham. Dunham was the bigger and stronger fighter among the two, and looked comfortable in clinches, tagging Glenn with vicious elbows and short jabs.
Dunham connected with some excellent jab/hook combinations, while Glenn had a tremendous chin, absorbing all that punishment. Dunham managed to pick up his fourth consecutive victory inside the Octagon, as he looks set to fight another top-ten opponent next.
Derek Brunson defeated Uriah Hall by knockout (punch) - Round 1, 1:41
When Uriah Hall steps inside the cage, he has all the talent in the world to finish his opponent. However, as seen against Whittaker and before that against Natal, the only fighter that could get in his way is Hall himself. Hall came out of the blocks and got himself tangled in a clinch against Brunson, playing right into Brunson’s strengths, and Brunson connected with a vicious counter left hook a la Chris Weidman when Hall fought Weidman in 2010.
Brunson swarmed in and finished Hall, although one could also argue that Herb Dean stopped the fight a little too soon.
Michael Johnson defeated Dustin Poirier by knockout (punches) - Round 1, 1:35
The main event fight saw 155’ers Poirier and Johnson squaring off, with a lot of bad blood between the two. Poirier revived his career at 155 after losing to Conor at FW, while Nate toyed around with Johnson in his last fight. However, Johnson caught Poirier with an excellent combination, sneaking under Poirier’s uppercut, and then following up with a left hook.
Johnson then rained punches on the ground before the referee stopped the fight, two minutes inside the first round.