Josh Barnett vs. Sergei Kharitonov (heavyweight grand prix)
Round 1: Both fighters come out swinging, but Kharitonov gets the better of the initial exchanges. They clinch up and Barnett plants Kharitonov on his back, immediately going to mount, dropping down blows. Kharitonov is trying to buck Barnett off and slip out, but Barnett holds his ground peppering Kharitonov with hammerfists and dropping down elbows. Barnett doing a good job locking in his heels, maintaining position and wearing Kharitonov down. Barnett lays across his face, smothering him, and then sits up to drop more punches and elbows on Kharitonov’s face. Kharitonov gives up his back; Barnett continues driving home punches and elbows, punishing Kharitonov, living up to his new War Master moniker. Kharitonov turns again and Barnett locks on the arm triangle, slipping off to the side to lock it up, causing Kharitonov to tap.
Josh Barnett def. Sergei Kharitonov by Submission (Arm Triangle) at 4:28, R1
Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva vs. Daniel Cormier (heavyweight grand prix)
Round 1: Silva rushes Cormier into the fence with punches, but Cormier avoids much punishment, then a few moments later he cracks Silva with a big right hand that drops Silva to the mat. Cormier follows him down briefly, but lets Silva back up. Cormier tags Silva with a few more punches, causing Silva to shoot for the takedown. Cormier sprawls the takedown and again allows Silva back to his feet. Cormier sweeps Silva and plants him on his back, but again allows Silva up. Silva pressures this time, landing a few punches, but eats several counters from Cormier, who keeps pressing and puts Silva down and out on his back. Huge victory for Daniel Cormier, big proving fight for him.
Daniel Cormier def. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva by KO (Punches) at 3:56, R1
Ronald “Jacare” Souza vs. Luke Rockhold (middleweight championship)
Round 1: Jacare goes for the takedown right away. Rockhold sprawls out, but gets put on the mat with Jacare controlling. Jacare surprisingly lands several hard right hands to Rockhold’s face. Rockhold tries to get up, but Jacare puts him right back on the mat, sitting up, back to the cage. Jacare peppers him with more punches. They work back to standing, but Jacare unloads a knee to Rockhold’s head, then keeps pressing him to the cage. Jacare lands another knee before they separate. Rockhold goes for a left body kick, but eats a counter right hand from Jacare. Rockhold lands a couple low kicks and then misses with a jump kick. He hurts Jacare with some punches, but Jacare shoots and ties Rockhold up until the bell.
Round 2: Rockhold opens with kicks, but gets tagged by a hard Jacare right hand that buckles his legs. He doesn’t go down, but Jacare follows up with several more punches. Jacare presses him to the cage, landing another jarring right hand before they separate. Rockhold regains his senses and starts returning fire in the form of kicks and punches, but he’s firing one-off shots, most not landing. Jacare clinches and presses Rockhold to the fence, but Rockhold reverses position, landing some knees to Jacare’s thighs. Jacare then reverses and lands the short right hand to the head. they split apart and move to th center of the cage. Jacare lands the right hand, but Rockhold fires right back.
Round 3: Rockhold trying to find a home for the high kick, but Jacare doing a good job evading and blocking. They exchange punches, Rockhold snapping Jacare’s head back with the jab. Rockhold lands a low kick square to Jacare’s groin, halting the action for a few minutes. Rockhold immediately more aggressive with his punches, but Jacare shoots, ties up, and then trips Rockhold to the mat. Rockhold, however, returns quickly to his feet. Rockhold firing off lots of punches and the front push kick, not much steam on them, but some are getting through. Rockhold continues pressing the action in this round, trying to find a solid opening for his punches, mixing in kicks, catches Jacare with a couple left hands. Jacare lands an inside leg kick, but keeps eating punches from Rockhold, although they’re not very damaging at the moment.
Round 4: Good right-left combo by Rockhold. Jacare finally starts firing back, landing several punch combinations and front kicks. Rockhold’s hands going down, down, down. Looks like he’s getting very tired, which would be expected coming off of more than a year and a half layoff. Rockhold shoots, but doesn’t get the takedown. Jacare unloads a flurry of punches. He shoots, but Rockhold sprawls it out and they’re right back to their feet. Rockhold lands hard left hand, but Jacare takes it. Jacare is slowing quite a bit now too. He eats one kick to the body, catches another, but can’t score the takedown. They clinch up and Rockhold quickly takes control of the clinch and lands a driving knee.
Round 5: They both come out swinging, neither landing right away. Rockhold starts using his reach, landing individual punches, and follows with a head kick. Jacare is having trouble getting anything going in this round. Rockhold isn’t doing much damage, but he’s landing his jab. Rockhold sweeps across landing a body shot, but Jacare presses him to the cage, landing a knee to Rockhold’s jaw. Jacare scores the takedown, trying to maintain control, but Rockhold works his way out and back to his feet. Rockhold starts throwing punch combinations, moving Jacare back. Jacare looks like he’s all but out of steam, while Rockhold doesn’t have much more, but keeps firing while Jacare backpedals. Jacare finds some steam in the last 10 seconds, but runs out of time.
Luke Rockhold def. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 48-47, 48-47), R5
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal vs. Roger Gracie (light heavyweight)
Round 1: Neither fighter willing to commit in the first half of the round. They then mix it up a bit, but Gracie’s striking attack is shunted by King Mo, who lands a right hook, though not with full steam on it. King Mo lands a body shot, but doesn’t connect on the follow-up. The crowd is restless, wanting to see more action. King Mo unloads two big, arching right hands that put Gracie down and out. Not much action in this one, but a lively finish.
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Roger Gracie by KO (Punch) at 4:33, R1
Maximo Blanco vs. Pat Healy (lightweight)
Round 1: Blanco starts quickly, firing off a superman punch and sweeps Healy to the mat. He immediately starts work from half guard. Healy gets out and they’re back on their feet. Blanco fires off a couple more punches right away, landing in combination. Blanco nixes Healy’s reach advantage by firing off an assortment of strikes, including a head kick that landed flush. He rushes Healy to the mat and starts ground and pounding from his full guard, mixing up punches and elbows. Healy shifts position looking for an armbar and then a leglock, but Blanco starts kicking Healy to the face while he was going for the leglock. Both fighters were clearly still down on the mat. They call a halt to the action to check Healy’s condition and assess a one-point deduction to Blanco for the illegal technique. Healy checks out okay and wants to continue. Blanco opens up on fire after that unloading kicks, punches, and backfists on Healy. Healy snags Blanco by the waist and slams him to the mat, Blanco on all fours, Healy glued to his back. Healy finishes with some punches and hammerfists before the bell..
Round 2: Blanco lands a weak backfist, but hits Healy with a hard right hook on follow-up. Blanco is throwing punches from all angles, leaving Healy looking out of sorts. Blanco using good head movement to avoid most of Healy’s punches, but Healy catches up to him and slams Blanco to the mat. Healy takes Blanco’s back and locks on a rear naked choke. Blanco slips out and gets back to his feet where he starts to light up Healy with punches again. Healy is finally getting through with some lunging punches and then takes Blanco down again, getting his back, pressing Blanco to the fence while he’s on all-fours. Healy doing a good job controlling and peppering Blanco with punches. Blanco escapes briefly, but Healy takes him back down and in a scramble takes Blanco’s back and locks on a rear naked choke, causing Blanco to tap out.
Pat Healy def. Maximo Blanco by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 4:24, R2
Mike Kyle vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima (light heavyweight)
Round 1: Kyle comes out, trying to establish his jab, but de Lima fires back with a heavy shot. Kyle keeps stalking, however, searching for an opening. Kyle looks much quicker than de Lima, but de Lina is using angles well early on, avoiding Kyle’s punches and countering with kicks to the legs and body. Kyle gets his pnches working well about midway through the round, lands a jab and follows with a straight right that rocks de Lima, who looks hurt. Kyle keeps pressing with punches, de Lima keeps backing away, wobbly. Kyle is remaining patient, however, possibly wary of a game of possum from de Lima. Kyle is connecting frequently though as the round winds down..
Round 2: Kyle starts pressing early, but eats some leg kicks from de Lima. Kyle settles in and gets his jab going again, and he starts circling more. But again de Lima is connecting with a strong low kick. The pace slows a bit mid-round. Listening to his corner, Kyle shoots and takes de Lima down. They’re quickly back to their feet, but Kyle tosses him back to the mat. Kyle is standing and kicking de Lima’s legs as the round closes.
Round 3: Kyle starts up with the jab again, this time with a little more zip on it, while de Lima continues to counter with the leg kicks, but Kyle appears comfortably in the lead. He continues to fire off the jab, occasionally following with a straight right, but not really looking like he’s trying hard for the finish. Kyle scores another takedown, this time landing in half guard, methodically grounding and pounding de Lima, grinding it out until the final bell..
Mike Kyle def. Marcos Rogerio de Lima by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27), R3
Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante vs. Yoel Romero (light heavyweight)
Round 1: Not much action in the opening couple minutes of the fight, the crowd booing. Feijao finally lands a strong kick, but Romero immediately dances away from him, avoiding a superman punch. Romero is circling away, bouncing around, but avoiding any engagement with Feijao, who maintains the center of the cage. Feijao darts out and lands another strong leg kick, but misses with the body shot. Referee Dan Miragliotta stops the fight briefly to warn Romero for something, not sure what. The round closes without much else of note.
Round 2: Feijao lands a kick about 30 seconds into the round. Romero is taunting Feijao, but still not doing much to engage, until he catches Feijao with a low kick to the groin, which briefly halts the fight. Romero shoots on Feijao, pressing him to the cage and finally opens up with knees and punches, rocking Feijao. They separate and Romero shoots and takes Feijao down, but they’re immediately back to their feet, Romero pressing Feijao into the cage. They separate and go back to Feijao stalking Romero, but little by way of exchanges for about a minute. They clinch up on the fence and Feijao scores a hard takedown of Romero. He lets him right back to his feet, however. They clinch and Romero unleashes a few elbows before they separate and move to the center of the cage again. Feijao drops Romero with a spinning backfist, Romero gets back up, but Feijao unleashes a knee that puts him down and out on his back.
Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante def. Yoel Romero by KO (Knee) at 4:51, R2
Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos vs. Jordan Mein (welterweight)
Round 1: Cyborg opens with a few leg kicks, but is taking his time, measuring Mein, who appears to have the reach advantage over Cyborg. Mein is locked and loaded, looking for an opportunity to unleash the right hand, but Cyborg is keeping him at bay with low kicks. Cyborg kicks out Mein’s right leg, sending him briefly to one knee, but Mein is quickly back up evading Cyborg’s follow-up punches. Cyborg lands a couple good punches just before the end of the round.
Round 2: Mein comes out kicking, but so does Cyborg, headhunting this time, but just-missing. Cyborg goes right back to chopping away Mein’s legs, who is switching stances trying to minimize the damage to any one leg. Mein finally gets some of his punches going, using his reach. Solid leg kick from Mein, but misses the head kick. Mein uses some good movement to avoid Cyborg’s kicks and unloads with a flurry of punches. Mein appears to be finding his range. Good cut kick from Mein. Cyborg is starting to use more head movement to avoid some of Mein’s punches, forcing him to adjust.
Round 3: Mein comes out firing punches, being much more aggressive than he’s been to this point. Mein starts landing the punches, rocking Cyborg, who covers up. Mein lands a hard shot to the body then opens up with a brutal onslaught of elbows that busts Cyborg open, putting him down and out. Brutal last 30 seconds of the fight, a clinic of Muay Thai elbows from Mein to finish the fight.
Jordan Mein def. Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos by TKO (Strikes) at 3:18, R3
Amanda Nunes vs. Alexis Davis (bantamweight)
Round 1: Nunes opens a ball of fire, unleashing a furious flurry of punches. Davis retaliates with a few shots, but Nunes is really being the aggressor, pressing Davis, and a single-leg takedown and landing in half guard. They separate and return to their feet, immediately exchanging punches. Both women look like they’re tiring, their punches getting wild. Davis presses Nunes to the cage, but Nunes quickly turns her to reverse position. Davis takes position back and drives a couple knees to Nunes’ midsection..
Round 2: Davis doesn’t wait for Nunes to swarm this round, instead immediately pressing her to the fence. She kind of climbs up and slides over Nunes’ back onto the mat, but they quickly return to their feet in a clinch on the fence, Davis with her back to the cage. Davis reverses and starts driving knees into the legs of Nunes. They stall and get restarted at the center of the cage. Nunes immediately starts firing and cracks Davis, but Davis clinches and presses her to the cage, picking up with the knees and dirty boxing. They move away from the fence and Nunes executes a good hip toss, but Davis reverses and starts ground and pounding Nunes. Davis moves into mount. Nunes turns, giving Davis her back. She continues with a flurry of punches until the referee stops the fight.
Alexis Davis def. Amanda Nunes by TKO (Strikes) at 4:53, R2
Dominique Steele vs. Chris Mierzwiak (middleweight)
Round 1: Steele comes out swinging, landing a couple hard shots early. Mierzwiak tries to take him down, but Steele lands on top. Mierzwiak goes for a quick submission, but can’t secure it. They return to the feet, clinch up, and Steele executes a throw, but Mierzwiak brings the fight right back to the feet. Steele lands a jumping knee in the Thai clinch, Mierzwiak tries for a takedown, but gets caught briefly in a guillotine choke. They remain standing in the clinch. Mierzwiak lands an uppercut and drives home a knee to the chin, takes Steele to the mat, and immediately takes Steele’s back. Mierzwiak can’t sink the choke and Steele finally gets out and back to the feet. He unloads a flurry of punches on Mierzwiak, but the speed in his hands is gone.
Round 2: Steele opens with a couple solid punches, but misses with the jumping knee. He gets Mierzwiak down on all fours and starts ground and pounding him. Mierzwiak puts Steele in his guard, if briefly, but Steele is relentless in pursuing his ground and pound and knees to the body. Mierzwiak attempts a triangle choke, but Steele slams his way out and continues pummeling Mierzwiak. They return to their feet and Steele fires off a flying knee that grazes Mierzwiak’s head, but Mierzwiak fires back with punches. Steele fights through it and presses Mierzwiak to the cage. Mierzwiak attempts a knee to the body, but Steele drops him with a straight right. Steele drops down in side control and pins Mierzwiak’s arms, but appears tired, unable to unleash the fury of ground and pound he did earlier in the fight.
Round 3: They clinch up, Mierzwiak trying to get Steele to the mat, but both fighters look fairly gassed. Steele pushes Mierzwiak to the mat, landing in his full guard. They scramble and return to their feet with Steele at Mierzwiak’s back. Steele then scores the double-leg takedown with two minutes left in the fight, although he doesn’t appear able to do much with top position in Mierzwiak’s guard. Steele passes to side control, but Mierzwiak slips out the back door and takes Steel’s back, locking on the figure-four body triangle. Steele quickly reverses position, facing Mierzwiak in his full guard to finish the round.
Dominique Steele def. Chris Mierzwiak by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-27, 29-27), R3