Alright MMA-Freak fans, it’s that time again! Time to get you caught up on all or any MMA news you might have missed this past weekend. Grab your morning coffee or your after work beverage and let’s get you all caught up.
It was a decent weekend of fights, but the UFC main event made up for everything in my opinion. I’m sure Brian Stann would have liked the fight to end differently, but he wanted a fight with Wanderlei Silva and got one. I think you don’t get to fight guys like that very often and am still proud of Stann for fighting the way he did, especially in Japan.
Are the judges blind? There is no way Diego Sanchez beat Takanori Gomi. It was a split decision, but for Gomi.
Hunt looked bad, but still respectful: Hunt hasn’t fought in awhile so I knew he would look rusty, but I didn’t think Struve would look like a scared rookie. This fight has been on the mark for some time now, so Struve should have had a better game plan than standing in front of a K-1 kick-boxer.
Both fighters looked sloppy and winded in the last round and some believe Hunt just gave up, but he said he felt Struve’s jaw break and didn’t want to cause more damage. Hunt earned my respect with that.
Poor Struve: Struve told mmajunkie.com he missed his birthday-“My girl got me a really nice cake, and I had to put it in the freezer. It will be waiting for me when I come back from Japan.” Poor guy has a broken jaw and won’t be able to enjoy it for awhile.
My opinion of the week: Hector Lombard has lost his killer instinct and looks like with one more loss we will see him back in Bellator.
~ Fight Results ~
Bellator 91: M’Pumbu vs. Vegh:
MAIN (Spike TV, 10 p.m. ET)
- Attila Vegh def. Christian M’Pumbu via unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 50-45) – wins light-heavyweight title
- Saad Awad def. Will Brooks via KO (strikes) – Round 1, 0:43 – lightweight tournament semifinals
- David Rickels def. Jason Fischer via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27) – lightweight tournament semifinals
PRELIMINARY (Spike.com, 8 p.m. ET)
- Holly Holm def. Katie Merrill via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:02
- Blas Avena def. Lenny Lovato Jr. via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:41
- Andres Quintana def. Russell Wilson via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 0:32
- Ed West def. Josh Montoya via KO (head kick) – Round 2, 2:51
- Adrian Cruz def. Nick Gonzalez via submission (scarf hold armlock) – Round 2, 3:00
- Josh Appelt def. Josh Lanier via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 0:16
- Brennan Ward def. Yair Moguel via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 0:57
Legacy FC 18:
MAIN (AXS TV, 10 p.m. ET)
- Derrick Lewis def. Ricky Shivers via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 4:22 – defends heavyweight title
- Jorge Patino def. Derrick Krantz via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 3:07 – defends lightweight title
- Antonio Banuelos vs. Rafael de Freitas split draw (29-27 Banuelos, 29-28 de Freitas, 28-28) – Round 3
- Todd Moore def. Charlie Ontiveros via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:01
- Lauren Taylor def. Jennifer Scott via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 4:10
- Alex Morono def. Brandon Farran via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 1:16
PRELIMINARY (Untelevised, 7 p.m. ET)
- Larry Crowe def. Matt Rogers via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 0:00
- Dale Mitchell def. Chad Cook via TKO (injury) – Round 2, 6:00
- Gerzan Chaw def. David Armas via unanimous decision
- Chris Reed def. Jermaine Anugwon via KO (punches) – Round 1, 0:00
- Kaileb Cummins vs. Justin Murray draw – Round 3, 9:00
- Eric Valdez def. Edgar Juarez via unanimous decision
UFC on FUEL TV 8: Silva vs. Stann:
MAIN (FUEL TV, 10 p.m. ET)
- Wanderlei Silva def. Brian Stann via KO (punches) – Round 2, 4:08
- Mark Hunt def. Stefan Struve via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 1:44
- Diego Sanchez def. Takanori Gomi via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Yushin Okami def. Hector Lombard via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
- Rani Yahya def. Mizuto Hirota via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Dong Hyun Kim def. Siyar Bahadurzada via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
PRELIMINARY (Facebook, 7:40 p.m. ET)
- Brad Tavares def. Riki Fukuda via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27
- Takeya Mizugaki def. Bryan Caraway via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Kazuki Tokudome def. Cristiano Marcello via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Alex Caceres def. Kyung Ho Kang via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Hyun Gyu Lim def. Marcelo Guimaraes via KO (knee) – Round 2, 4:00
~ Headlines ~
The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale tickets on sale March 8th.
Bellator fighter Daniel Straus arrested in Florida on traffic and drug charges.
UFC on FUEL TV 8 draws a reported 14,682 attendance in Japan.
Jason ‘The Athlete’ MacDonald announces retirement from MMA.
Robbie Lawler signs new multi-fight UFC contract.
UFC on FUEL TV 8 bonuses: Wanderlei Silva, Brian Stann, Mark Hunt win $50K. Two KO bonuses-No submissions
Former UFC co-headliner Che Mills signs with Cage Warriors.
Stefan Struve breaks jaw in UFC on FUEL TV 8 loss .
~ Fight News ~
Gunnar Nelson meets Mike Pyle at May’s UFC 160 in Las Vegas.
UFC on FUEL TV 9’s Gustafsson vs. Mousasi headliner approved for five rounds.
Paulo Thiago vs. Lance Benoist added to UFC on FX 8 in Brazil.
‘TUF’ champs Robert Whittaker and Colton Smith join UFC 160 lineup.
Leonard Garcia vs. Cody McKenzie slotted for UFC 159 on April 27.
Olympic medalist Sara McMann vs. Sheila Gaff joins UFC 159 lineup.
Diego Sanchez called out Nate Diaz. Wants wins over both brothers.
~ Quotable’s ~
Brian Stann on being too aggressive: “I think the fact that I hurt him early multiple times, it made me get overaggressive, leaving me susceptible to what he’s best at, which is throwing a hard, overhand right.”-mmajunkie.com
~ Misc ~
Despite two-fight skid, Lavar Johnson avoids UFC pink slip.
Wanderlei Silva open to more fights in Japan. Not retiring yet.