5 Dimes MMA news – UFC 172 Recap and Results
In 5Dimes MMA News, Glover Texeira (22-3) turned out to be nothing more than another stepping stone for UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones (20-1) on Saturday night in Baltimore. The champion battered the challenger for five dazzling rounds, slicing open his forehead with elbows and keeping him at a distance with well-placed kicks from all angles.
Jones kept the fight standing for most of the 25 minutes of action, using pinpoint strikes and extreme head movement to maximize his effect against the shorter and stockier Texeira. The challenger just couldn’t find his target range and had to resort to one bombing punch at a time, all but abandoning his kicks and neglecting to throw any serious elbows or knees. Texeira’s best advance came in the second round and faded around the two minute mark. Texeira hit Jones with everything he had, but Jones didn’t seem at all rattled by the shots that landed. Jones landed his own bombing left hands and a number of elbows in the round. Texeira went back to his corner with a look of complete frustration on his face.
Texeira landed a couple chin-checking uppercuts in the third round, but it was too little and too late. Jones continued to wage war and dominate the striking exchanges. His tenderizing attack left Texeira’s face a bloody mess by the end of the third. The challenger just could not muster any semblance of an effective offense against the champion. Texeira’s corner repeatedly yelled at him before the final round, letting him know he needed a knockout to win. Jones would never let him get close enough to pull off that miracle, and the scores reflected what was really the easiest win he’s earned in a long time. He won all three score cards by a margin of 50-45.
The co-main event saw the return of Anthony “Rumble” Johnson (17-4) against an over-confident Phil Davis (12-2). Johnson looked monstrous at his new weight, dwarfing the muscled and toned Davis. The change of scenery for Johnson after failing to make weight for a few huge UFC bouts was obviously good for the contender. He followed Davis around the cage Saturday and fought a strategic war of attrition against Davis. The aggression was only partially stymied by a sense of caution from Johnson. There was too much riding on his success in that first fight back, and he wanted to make sure he didn’t make any stupid mistakes. Davis just never adjusted to Johnson’s strike-heavy style. Johnson earned the unanimous decision win and will obviously be a serious contender for the title. Davis needs to develop some kind of dynamic attack, as his efforts only left him with a smashed nose and bruised pride. His long distance kicks and steady 1-2 punch approach just did not fool Johnson.
The card’s earlier fights almost all ended before the final bell. Takanori Gomi (35-9) and Bethe Correia (8-0) earned the only undercard decisions. Gomi outclassed and outfoxed Isaac Vallie-Flagg (14-5-1), and Correia outslugged Jessamyn Duke (3-1) on the way to their unanimous decision wins.
Tim Boetsch (17-7) found himself wrapped up in a first-round pretzel against Luke Rockhold (12-2). Rockhold secured a reverse triangle first only to lock in a Kimura on top of that to force Boetsch to tap 2:08 into the fight.
Jim Miller (24-4) took a little more time to secure his own choke hold, but he still managed to get the job done inside the first round against Yancy Medeiros (9-2). Miller’s finishing move was a beautiful Guillotine choke that inspired the tap at the 3:18 mark. The two fights prior to Miller’s also ended with Guillotine chokes. Max Holloway (9-3) took out Andre Fili (13-2) in the third round of their back-and-forth battle at the 3:39 mark. Joseph Benavides (20-4) sunk his Guillotine with just :52 left in the first round against Tim Elliot (10-5-1).
There were also a pair of second round knockouts in the first two fights of the night. First, Chris Beal (9-0) launched perhaps the most picture perfect flying knee ever to connect with another fighter’s head in the Octagon. Beal’s kneecap smashed right into the temple of Patrick Williams (7-4), who was out cold before his head hit the mat. Next, Danny Castillo (17-6) uncorked a vicious right hand from the crouch and crashed it into the chin of Charlie Brenneman (19-7) in a moment much like Rocky Marciano knocking out Jersey Joe Walcott to win the World Heavyweight Championship decades ago in boxing.
Beal ended up with a $50,000 bonus for the knee heard around the MMA world, and Gomi and Vallie-Flagg also earned $50,000 for fight of the night. The Benavidez modified guillotine finish also won the flyweight phenom a $50k nod.
The next UFC card will be May 10th in Cincinatti, Ohio with Matt Brown (18-11) and Erick Silva (16-4) headlining.
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