Fight blog recap: Benson Henderson chokes out Rustam Khabilov in main event
Benson Henderson continuously says that he's not a trash talker and the only statement he needs to make come through his performances inside the Octagon. Well if Saturday night is any indicator, he just screamed at the entire lightweight division to please come and find him if you're itching for a fight.
Henderson out worked and out gunned Rustam Khabilov at every turn during their fight in Albuquerque, using superior conditioning, footwork and punching power to beat the Dagestani fighter at just about every moment after a close first round. Finally as the fourt round began, Henderson decided the judges could take the night off and he cracked Khabilov with a right uppercut and followed him to the mat where he sunk in a fight ending rear naked choke.
Following the fight, Henderson said if the title isn't being defended to send every top contender his way. With these kinds of performances it looks like anyone hoping to get a shot at the gold will have to see Henderson first.
In other action on the card, Ross Pearson was a victim of one of the worst judging decisions since Timothy Bradley got a win over Manny Pacquiao in boxing. Pearson fell by split decision to Diego Sanchez after three rounds that saw the Brit out box the former Ultimate Fighter winner while also dropping him during the fight in the biggest strike landed over the course of 15 minutes. Still the judges somehow saw it the other way and Sanchez inexplicably got the win.
See the full play-by-play and results for the event below
Round 1:
Khabilov looks for the throw, but Henderson counters out of it and stands back up. Khabilov fires off a good combo and gets Henderson to the ground. Khabilov goes for a suplex, but Henderson blocks and they separate. Henderson presses forward and Khabilov counters with a good punch. Henderson goes for a switch kick and immediately Khabilov takes him to the mat.
R1 10-9 Rustam Khabilov
Round 2:
Henderson presses forward and tags Khabilov with some quick punches and the Dagestani fighter clinches and gets out of there. Henderson misses with a left and Khabilov slips under for a takedown, but only for a moment and he hops right back up again. Henderson swoops in for a takedown and takes Khabilov's back with no trouble. Henderson opens up his legs and that gives Khabilov the time to escape. Henderson close the round with a nice leg kick
R2 10-9 Benson Henderson
Round 3:
The action slows in this round. Henderson moving forward, looks for the body lock and Khabilov pops him with a good punch on the escape. Henderson still the aggressor and he locks up a guillotine choke as he drops to his back, but Khabilov slips out. Khabilov slips under with a quick double leg takedown, but it's all for not because Henderson switches positions immediately and lands in half guard.
R3 10-9 Benson Henderson
Round 4:
Khabilov throwing one punch at a time and not putting any kind of combinations together and Henderson counters with a left-right that drops him to the mat! Henderson jumps on the back and sinks in the choke and Khabilov taps out. What a finish for the former champion!
Official result: Benson Henderson def. Rustam Khabilov by submission (rear naked choke) at 1:16, R4
Analysis: Benson Henderson looked fantastic tonight just beating Rustam Khabilov in every facet of the fight. Henderson countered Khabilov's wrestling at every turn, and his striking was aggressive and powerful. It also gives him his first finish in his last nine wins, which was exactly the kind of statement he needed to make as he storms back towards another title shot. Considering what he did to Khabilov tonight, a fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov in a five round main event would be a great challenge for Henderson in his next bout.
Round 1:
Sanchez a ball of energy like always, but he's not going crazy to open the fight as he times his strikes against Pearson. Pearson counters with a great right hand directly across Sanchez's chin. Pearson fires off another one that rattles Sanchez, followed by a good body kick. Pearson throws a head kick and hits Sanchez, but he catches it and lands his best punch of the fight on the counter.
R1 10-9 Ross Pearson
Round 2:
Pearson hits a head kick that tags Sanchez behind the ear. He eats it, but still seemed to land enough to do damage. Pearson jumps in and out with left and right hooks consistently backing Sanchez up. Sanchez is struggling to find any kind of rhythm and Pearson cracks him with an explosive straight right hand that drops him. Sanchez stands back up and urges Pearson to bring it on, but the Brit doesn't get goaded into a slugfest.
R2 10-9 Ross Pearson
Round 3:
Sanchez's corner urges him to go forward this round and he has to know he's down in the fight. Sanchez tries to flurry but Pearson is just out of the way and using incredible movement to avoid the strikes. Sanchez keeps throwing spinning kicks but none of them are landing. Pearson's counters are doing all the damage this fight along with a barrage of body shots digging to Sanchez's midsection.
R3 10-9 Ross Pearson
FOX Sports scores the fight 30-27 for Ross Pearson
Official result: Diego Sanchez def. Ross Pearson by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 27-30)
Analysis: Well there's no other way to say it -- the judges absolutely got this one wrong. Pearson landed more strikes (69 to 43) and he had a knockdown along the way. Somebody might want to check Pearson's pockets and bag before he leaves Albuquerque because he got robbed. None of this is Sanchez's fault of course, but how the judges got this wrong is unbelievably shocking. The one judge who scored the fight 30-27 for Sanchez should never be allowed near an MMA cage again.
Dodson moving quickly around the Octagon, pops Moraga with a good stiff left before circling away again. Moraga goes for a takedown and hits Dodson low, but he's okay and the fight continues. Dodson fires off another left that pops Moraga. Moraga tries for another takedown, but Dodson isn't having it. Dodson pushes forward and doubles up on the left hands and nails Moraga with a knee to the body
R1 10-9 John Dodson
Round 2:
Moraga catches Dodson with his best punch of the fight, but he's quickly countered with a takedown. Dodson works on the ground for a moment, but he lets Moraga back up. Neither fighter engaging much at all, but just as Moraga backs up Dodson flies forward with a big knee and he's rocked. Moraga's nose explodes with blood as Dodson continues to flurry, looking for the finish. The round comes to an end but Moraga was in trouble.
R2 10-9 John Dodson
In between rounds the doctors take a look at Moraga's nose and along with his corners, they decide to call off the fight and John Dodson gets the win.
Official result: John Dodson def. John Moraga by TKO (injury) at 5:00, R2
Analysis: All signs should point to a title shot for John Dodson after this latest win. He dispatched of both Darrell Montague and John Moraga in fairly easy fashion, and Dodson gave flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson his hardest fight yet. Dodson looked fast, powerful and he's so dangerous at any moment. Following next weekend's fight between Johnson and Ali Bagautinov, Dodson should and most likely will get the winner.
Round 1:
Dos Anjos has good accuracy with his strikes in the opening minute of the fight, but High counters with a nice double leg takedown. High just playing defense as Dos Anjos looks for a triangle choke and a kimura from the bottom. The second kimura attempt forces High to roll and it gets them back to the feet. Dos Anjos just unreal with his pressure and he's tagging High over and over again before shooting in and taking him down. Strong finish to the round for Dos Anjos
R1 10-9 Rafael Dos Anjos
Round 2:
High goes for a head kick and Dos Anjos counters before a thumb goes right in the eye. High takes a knee as the fight gets paused. On the restart, Dos Anjos digs in with a shot to the body and one to the head, but High counters and takes the fight to the ground. Unfortunately he can't keep him there and they are back up again. Dos Anjos counters and gets High down and he's looking for a guillotine choke. High gets out, but Dos Anjos fires off a left hand on the feet that drops him to the mat. Dos Anjos keeps on him until the referee stops the fight.
Official result: Rafael Dos Anjos def. Jason High by TKO (referee's stoppage) at 3:36, R2
Analysis: Good win for Dos Anjos, especially considering the struggles he had against a wrestler in his last fight. Dos Anjos punished High on the feet and he was very aggressive on the ground as well. The Brazilian has really revived his career in the last couple of years, and this win should put him back into a top 10 fight after dusting off High on Saturday night. Facing the winner of Josh Thomson and Michael Johnson would be a fun fight. After the fight it was shown that High pushed the referee in frustation with the stoppage and what appeared to be a couple of shots to the back of the head. Upset or not, can't put your hands on the referee.
Round 1:
Edwards firing off head kicks and moving side to side a lot avoiding Hallman's counters. Edwards catches an eye poke and the fight is paused. Hallman shoots for a single leg, but Edwards shrugs him off. Edwards' striking is on point and he looks to be the much faster fighter so far. Hallman gets the fight to the mat finally but Edwards gets a nice reversal to get back up as the round ends
R1 10-9 Yves Edwards
Round 2:
The round starts with another eye gouge from Hallman to Edwards. Second time it's happened, but referee Mario Yamasaki doesn't take a point away, just another warning. And now it goes the other way, Edwards accidentally pokes Hallman in the eye. On the restart, Hallman is aggressive looking for takedowns while stepping forward. Edwards counters with a nice combination and tries for a takedown, but slips off and Hallman lands on top. Hallman throwing elbows and he opens a nasty cut on Edwards' head over his left eye that starts gushing blood. Hallman overwhelming in this round
R2 10-9 Piotr Hallman
Round 3:
Hallman remains the aggressor and Edwards looks tired in the final round. Hallman gets the takedown and he's working to pass Edwards' guard and do damage. Hallman slips his arm under Edwards' neck and locks up the rear naked choke. Edwards quickly taps out. Impressive win for Hallman.
Official result: Piotr Hallman def. Yves Edwards by submission (rear naked choke) at 2:31, R3
Analysis: Piotr Hallman put on a great performance pressuring Edwards all fight long until he broke the veteran as his conditioning faded minute after minute. For such a big lightweight, Hallman's cardio was on point especially considering the altitude that's been sucking the oxygen out of everybody tonight. The loss moves Edwards to 1-4 (1 no contest) in his last six and that might be the end of his run in the UFC.
Round 1:
Perez jumping in and out with strikes as Caraway looks for the takedown. Perez looking for a takedown of his own but Caraway grabs a guillotine choke as they fall to the mat. Perez looks for a head kick but Caraway catches it and throws him to the mat. Caraway quickly transitions to the back and starts looking for a choke. Perez hits a nice reversal to switch positions and land on top. Perez gets up and he's opening up with his strikes and Caraway is looking for the takedown again. Good first round, very close
R1 10-9 Bryan Caraway
Round 2:
Perez gets a takedown to open the round, but Caraway counters and ends up taking his back. Caraway continues to work for the choke and he locks his forearm under Perez's chin, goes for the Gable grip and it's tight. Perez grimaces and has no choice but to tap out!
Official result: Bryan Caraway def. Erik Perez by submission (rear naked choke) at 1:53, R2
Analysis: Bryan Caraway may not be the most beloved fighter on the UFC roster, but it doesn't matter once he gets inside the Octagon. He overwhelmed Perez on the mat before finishing the choke in the second round. Caraway would do well to embrace his inner 'Josh Koscheck' and really play up the bad guy role because it could be a good move for his career honestly. It's time for him to earn a top 10 level fight. As for Perez, he started out on a tear in the UFC, but lately the talent of the division has caught up to him. Matching him up against another pure striker would probably be a good idea right now.
Round 1:
Not much happening through the biggest chunk of this first round. Pettis firing of quick kicks and punches while moving forward, but not putting any combinations together. Meza seems comfortable just backing away and countering every now and again. Disappointing round.
R1 10-9 Sergio Pettis
Round 2:
Pettis opens up more in this round as his offense starts to mount against Meza, who continues to just counter. Pettis nails Meza with a good head kick late in the round that hurts his opponent. If that lands clean, he might have a KO. He looks for a flurry but Meza recovers before the round ends.
R2 10-9 Sergio Pettis
Round 3:
Meza tentative looking for takedowns after Pettis finally got his striking moving in the second round. Meza finally presses forward and takes Pettis to the mat, but less than a minute to go in the fight now. Pettis looks for an omoplata from the bottom and the fight comes to an end. The Albuquerque crowd not happy with this one.
R3 10-9 Yaotzin Meza
FOX Sports scores the fight 29-28 for Sergio Pettis
Official result: Sergio Pettis def. Yaotzin Meza by unanimous decision (29-28 on all score cards)
Analysis: Another fight that wasn't exactly setting the world on fire, but Pettis gets the win. There's no denying Pettis is an undersized bantamweight so a drop back down to 125-pounds where he fought most of his career seems almost a necessity if he wants to make a serious run while competing in the UFC. He gave up a ton of size to Meza and that's going to keep happening if he stays at 135 pounds.
Round 1:
Voelker looking for strikes from the distance while Benoist goes for the clinch before they separate. Benoist looking for kicks to the body and head before countering a flurry from Voelker and taking the fight to the ground. Benoist with some short elbows but Voelker reverses and lands on top just before the horn. Not a ton of action this round
R1 10-9 Lance Benoist
Round 2:
Benoist beating Voelker to the punch on all the early exchanges. Benoist lands with a nice head kick that backs Voelker off before pressing for the clinch. Benoist gets the takedown but can't hold on. Voelker starting to work his punches better this round and then he counters a takedown attempt and lands on top of Benoist. Another lackluster round unfortunately, neither guy showing much fire.
R2 10-9 Bobby Voelker
Round 3:
Voelker hitting some hard shots with a good knee to the body of Benoist. He's had enough of that and Benoist is looking for a takedown. Both guys are absolutely exhausted. Voelker goes for a sloppy takedown, slips and Benoist lands on top. Voelker tries to get out and instead Benoist lands in mount. Benoist using short elbows to open a cut on Voelker's nose as the seconds tick away. Voelker is able to press his feet off the cage and switch positions on Benoist but time runs out
R3 10-9 Lance Benoist
FOX Sports scores the fight 29-28 Lance Benoist
Official result: Lance Benoist def. Bobby Voelker by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Analysis: Not much good to say about this fight. Both fighters looked gassed after the second round, and it became a sloppy exchange of one punch combinations and half hearted takedowns. Benoist gets the win and Voelker might be out of a job after his fourth loss in four tries in the UFC.
Round 1:
Martinez is out of the gate firing and going after Jorgensen, but the aggressiveness backfires as he gives up a takedown. Martinez is able to scramble and gets up again. Same thing happens as Martinez again looks for a big left and Jorgensen throws him back to the ground. Jorgensen measures up and throws a huge right that pops Martinez right in the mush. Martinez is able to get back up with a scramble but strong round for Jorgensen
R1 10-9 Scott Jorgensen
Round 2:
Martinez has more of the same for Jorgensen in round two except this time his punches are finding their home and he drops the former title contender with a big left! Jorgensen is wobbled as he gets back to his feet and Martinez just keeps firing away with left hands. Martinez is slowing down a bit now and Jorgensen is coming back with some offense of his own. Jorgensen snatches a takedown and he's looking to take the back. Jorgensen comes back huge, makes it a harder round to score
R2 10-9 Danny Martinez
Round 3:
Jorgensen wastes no time getting it to the mat and he's in side control on Martinez. Martinez scrambles and escapes and it's back to the feet. Martinez looks for a flying knee but Jorgensen shoots in again and gets the takedown. Martinez cracks Jorgensen with another big left and he looks rattled! Jorgensen backs up and then presses forward and bang another takedown. Huge save right there.
R3 10-9 Scott Jorgensen
FOX Sports scores the fight 29-28 for Scott Jorgensen
Official result: Scott Jorgensen def. Danny Martinez by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Analysis: Jorgensen has been on a rough run lately so a win was paramount if he wanted to stick around the UFC and while things got dicey for a few moments there, he looked good with his wrestling and pressure all night long. Martinez landed some huge bombs, but just couldn't follow up to do enough to get the finish. Hopefully he gets another shot as well after a really fun performance from both guys.
Round 1:
These two are throwing down -- Lindsey lands a nasty knee to the body but Tuck counters with a huge overhand right that nails the newcomer directly in the chin. Tuck tries to swarm, but Lindsey recovers as the fighters work back to the feet. Tuck gets the fight back to the ground and while he's still working to pass position, the referee stands them up. Awful stand up right there. The round ends with both fighters working from the clinch
R1 10-9 Jon Tuck
Round 2:
Tuck firing off strikes again to start the second but his mouth is gaped open, maybe he burned too much energy in the first. Tuck is sticking his jab right in Lindsey's face, although he's not following up with much. Still, Tuck getting the better of the exchanges and then he takes the fight back down to the mat again.
R2 10-9 Jon Tuck
Round 3:
Tuck blasts Lindsey with a right hand to start the round and then drags the fight to the ground again, which is the last place his opponent wanted to be. Tuck works to mount and starts to work for an armbar and then transitions to the back. While working for a choke, Tuck heel kicks Lindsey in the ribs and it's enough to make the newcomer tap. A replay shows how hard Tuck was digging into his midsection with those kicks and Lindsey had enough. Very cool way to finish an opponent and use all your weapons.
Official result: Jon Tuck def. Jack Lindsey by TKO (heel strikes) at 2:47, R3
Analysis: First of all the referee's standup in the first round was horrible -- hopefully that' snot a precursor to the rest of the night. That said, Tuck looked good tonight with his striking and ground work. He gets massive bonus points for using every one of his weapons when he had Lindsey on the ground to get the finish. If there was a criticism, Tuck's conditioning didn't seem great but it doesn't matter with the win and the stoppage.
The barista is back! Patrick Cummins makes his second appearance in the UFC after stepping in on extremely short notice to face Daniel Cormier in his debut. That didn't end well for him, but with a full camp this time hopefully he can improve.
Round 1:
Cummins looking for the takedown early but Narvaez able to shrug him off. Cummins gets back inside with a single leg and just tosses Narvaez to the ground while clubbing him in the face with a punch. Cummins lets him up but takes him right back down again. Cummins looking for some ground and pound, but he's back up again. Cummins lands a nice knee strike that opens a cut over Narvaez's right eye.
R1 10-9 for Patrick Cummins
Round 2:
Narvaez pops Cummins with a quick combo to open the round and that's enough for the wrestler -- he takes him down again, this time with a double leg. Cummins starts pounding away and Narvaez gets stuck turtled up against the cage. Cummins continues to lay on the pressure and the punches start to slip through and Narvaez isn't moving much and the referee swoops in for the stoppage.
Official result: Patrick Cummins def. Roger Narvaez by TKO (punches) at 2:28, R2
Analysis: Much better fight for Cummins after facing one of the best fighters in the UFC on eight days notice. Cummins isn't ready to bump back up to the main card just yet, but a quality win using his wrestling and power on the ground.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT: HENDERSON VS. KHABILOV
MAIN EVENT: Benson Henderson vs. Rustam Khabilov
Diego Sanchez vs. Ross Pearson
John Dodson vs. John Moraga
Rafael Dos Anjos vs. Jason High
Yves Edwards vs. Piotr Hallman
Erik Perez vs. Bryan Caraway
Yaotzin Meza vs. Sergio Pettis
Bobby Voelker vs. Lance Benoist
Scott Jorgensen vs. Danny Martinez
Jon Tuck vs. Jake Lindsey
Patrick Cummins vs. Roger Narvaez