Join us today (Saturday, July 28th) on Bloody Elbow for live results, discussion, round scoring and play-by-play as UFC on FOX 30 takes place at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
The headliner is a great one, as former Bellator and UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez rematches Dustin Poirier, this time in a five-round scrap. They fought to a no-contest at UFC 211 last year, so this year they hope to settle the score, with the winner being dubbed “violenceweight champion.”
Also on the card is an intriguing featherweight co-main event between legendary former WEC and UFC champion Jose Aldo and rising heavy-handed contender Jeremy Stephens. Ex-strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk returns to action against top-10 ranked Tecia Torres, while lightweight prospects Alexander Hernandez and Olivier Aubin-Mercier begin the main broadcast.
Today’s event is a FOX card, so that means earlier start times. Fight Pass gets the action going with five bouts, starting at 4 PM ET/1 PM PT. The fights continues the rest of the afternoon-evening on FOX, with four prelims at 6 PM ET/3 PM PT, and the four main card fights at 8 PM ET/5 PM PT.
Check out this week’s MMA Vivisection for predictions, analysis and betting odds on the each matchup.
The full lineup and schedule follows:
Main Card (8 PM ET, FOX)
Eddie Alvarez vs. Dustin Poirier
Round 1 – Early left hook from Alvarez. Poirier with the leg kick. Body shot by Alvarez. They exchanged short leg kicks. Straight left comes in from Poirier. Hard body kick lands across Poirier’s stomach. Buckling leg kick by Poirier puts Alvarez off balance. Alvarez rips the body and then misses upstairs. Body kick and straight right by Alvarez. Half-hearted takedown attempt by Eddie, easily stuffed by Poirier. Right to the liver by Alvarez. There’s another leg kick from Poirier. Poirier catches Alvarez with a jab. Alvarez with another low calf kick. Poirier stops a takedown and fires off two kicks. Poirier gets clipped with a left hook. Alvarez goes to the body again. Poirier lands a right hook behind the ear. Good combination by Poirier punctuated by a leg kick. Alvarez slips and rips and they’re throwing heavy leather in the closing seconds. 10-9 Poirier.
Round 2 – Alvarez coming out aggressively and pressuring. Poirier gets caught by a spinning backfist. Right hook glance off of Alvarez’s head. Eddie goes for the neck and Poirier is free. Now Poirier jumps on a guillotine choke, Marc Goddard forces Alvarez not to grab the fence. Poirier on the ground going for the finish but to no avail. Alvarez is free and back to his feet. Dustin goes for it again and it fails again. Poirier in danger of giving up his back in the ensuing scramble. Alvarez going for a neck crank! Poirier looks to be fine, but Alvarez adjusts. He can’t get the choke but he advances to full mount. Marc Goddard stands them up after Alvarez lands a very obvious 12-to-6 elbow. They’re back to standing again and Poirier hurts Alvarez with a knee and punches! What a combination! Poirier throwing big shots against the fence and Alvarez is firing back. Huge knees by Poirier! Another knee! Alvarez still standing but he’s badly hurt. Poirier with a knee to the body. Alvarez still not finished yet! This is insane! Poirier pouring on the pressure and it’s an avalanche of strikes! Alvarez is out on his feet and this time he’s down and it’s over! Dustin Poirier with the TKO!!! No doubt about this outcome!
Official result: Dustin Poirier def. Eddie Alvarez by TKO (strikes) at 4:05 of round 2
Jose Aldo vs. Jeremy Stephens
Round 1 – Aldo misses up high with a kick. Stephens’ kick is blocked. Aldo takes a leg kick from Stephens. Aldo with the jab. Knee to the body by Lil’ Heathen. Leg kick and a hard right hand by Aldo. Another leg kick by Aldo. He evades a Stephens left hook. Aldo lands an uppercut and both men start swinging for a few seconds. Right hand by Stephens! He is teeing off on Aldo with uppercuts, but Aldo is defending some of them, now Aldo answers back! Stephens is cut. Jab by Stephens. Right over the top by Aldo. Good straight right by Aldo. He’s getting back into the fight. Stephens gets dropped by a vicious left hook to the body! He collapses in a heap and Aldo is looking for the finish. Aldo pouncing with ground-and-pound. Hammerfists by Aldo and the referee steps in! JOSE ALDO WITH THE STOPPAGE!
Official result: Jose Aldo def. Jeremy Stephens via TKO (punches) at 4:19 of round 1
Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Tecia Torres
Round 1 – Joanna pumps out the jab early. Torres with the clinch, and she momentarily drops to her knees for a takedown, then bails on it. Knee to the body by Jedrzejczyk. Joanna puts Torres against the cage. Joanna gets turned down this time. Good takedown defense by Jedrzejczyk. The clinch battle ensues. Another knee to the body by the former champion. They trade body knees with under 80 seconds to go in the opening frame. Torres in on a single leg but cannot get it, even while lifting the leg high. 10-9 Jedrzejczyk.
Round 2 – Jedrzejczyk begins with a 1-2 and then an outside leg kick. Scores with another one inside. Short right hand by Torres. Jedrzejczyk with a jab and a right hand over the top. Body jab comes through for Jedrzejczyk. Joanna is picking Torres apart from range with the jab. Tores presses forward but gets hit with a body kick. Torres shoots in for a takedown. Can’t get the double leg and again takes some more knees in the clinch. Joanna sprawls and then fires off one more body knee and an elbow. Torres finally separates with under 1:30 remaining in the round. Solid body shot by Jedrzejczyk. Leg kick, followed by another leg kick from Joanna. Flurry ensues and Torres catches Joanna clean with a couple of punches before the horn sounds. 20-18 Jedrzejczyk.
Round 3 – Torres gets tagged by a left hook and two jabs. Push kick to the body by Jedrzejczyk. Torres just misses on a head kick. Counter left hook by Jedrzejczyk. Both women land leg kicks, then Joanna comes back with a straight right. Torres connects on a right hand, but Jedrzejczyk returns fire with a pair of heavy, clean right hands. Jedrzejczyk with a knee straight up the middle. Torres needs a finish and shes getting outstruck. Body kick by Joanna before Torres initiates another clinch. Knees by Jedrzejczyk in the clinch. Joanna readjusts her uniform as the final minute is upon us. Torres gets a sweet trip on Jedrzejczyk but can’t hold her down. It’s back to the clinch with 20 seconds to go and Joanna rips Torres to the body with three more knees. The horn sounds and it should be a clear-cut win for Joanna. 30-27 Jedrzejczyk
Official result: Joanna Jedrzejczyk def. Tecia Torres by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Alexander Hernandez vs. Olivier Aubin-Mercier
Round 1 – Leg kick by OAM. Six straight punches by Hernandez but maybe two landed at most. Spinning back kick off-target for Hernandez. OAM eats a knee to the body. Good southpaw jab from OAM as he drives into a clinch and lands a knee. Hernandez coming back with a combination and some clinch uppercuts before switching to a single leg. They separate, but then they trade knees in the clinch again. Left hand by OAM and then more knees exchanged. Hernandez is pressuring but OAM responds with a knee to the head and then an uppercut. Left hook connects for Hernandez and then it looks like they clashed heads. Hernandez searching for the takedown. It’s a grueling battle against the fence. Right hand from Hernandez, then a knee in the clinch once more. Late takedown puts OAM on the seat of his pants, but OAM is back to his feet. 10-9 Hernandez.
Round 2 – Hernandez wastes no time forcing Aubin-Mercier to back up and then take him down. He gets back up but takes another knee to the stomach laong the way. OAM now on the front foot. Scramble puts him on top. Hernandez trying to get back up but Aubin-Mercier kimura sweeps and turns that into a straight armbar. He can’t get the tap, but he does wind up in Hernandez’s guard. Hernandez threatening with an armbar, and at a minimum it might turn into a sweep… no it doesn’t! OAM keeps himself on top, but another scramble puts Hernandez in Aubin-Mercier’s guard. The referee stands them up and that’s a puzzling decision. Another clinch battle ensues. They separate and Hernandez gets in a nice combination of strikes. Hernandez now closes out the round by putting OAM on a knee and throwing punches. 19-19.
Round 3 – Hernandez pressures OAM right into the fence. Marc Goddard intervenes for something. Might be a low blow, and it is. Action resumes and Hernandez goes back to work and cracks Hernandez to the body. OAM with a good shot that put Hernandez off balance. Might have been a flash knockdown. Hernandez with the takedown once again. Alexander with some sustained top control time in OAM’s closed guard. Goddard again with the stand-up, and now it’s Aubin-Mercier trying for the takedown, but Hernandez turns the tables on him and reverses position. OAM sweeps his way to standing again, and he’s still pursuing his own takedown. He gets one with over a minute remaining. Hernandez scrambles and takes OAM’s back with 30 seconds to go. That’s out the fight finishes. 29-28 Hernandez.
Official result: Alex Hernandez def. Olivier Aubin-Mercier by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Preliminary Card (6 PM ET, FOX)
Jordan Mein vs. Alex Morono
Round 1 – Morono just bullrushes Mein and throws some sloppy punches at Mein. Hard right hand by Mein hurts Morono. Now it’s Morono firing back. Wild right hand tags Mein, as does another one. Morono isn’t even looking at what he’s throwing. Great trip by Mein to put Morono on his back. Moron gets an underhook but Mein keeps him pinned. Looks like Morono is threatening to sweep, only for Mein to shut that avenue off. Body shots on the ground by Mein. Curious decision to stand the fighters up by Keith Peterson. Didn’t take long for Mein to get Morono down again, though. Mein in side control with a minute to go. Briefly looked like Mein wanted to lock up an arm but let it go. Jordan maintaining control on the mat, although he’s not doing much damage there. 10-9 Mein.
Round 2 – Strong leg kick by Mein. Morono pressing forward with a right hand. Kick is caught but Mein doesn’t do anything with it. Then Mein times Morono very well and takes his opponent down easily. Mein going for an arm-triangle choke from guard, and he cannot get it. He remains on top and Morono is unable to do anything of note off of his back. Four straight elbows by Mein. He continues to dominate Morono. 20-18 Mein.
Round 3 – Hard right hand by Mein stumbles Morono. Winging right by Morono which is way off. Spinning backfist by Morono, which Mein dodges. Morono crashes his way towards Mein but can’t land anything significant. Big right by Morono as soon as I say that. Now Morono is on top after Mein failed on a takedown. Mein controlling Morono’s left arm. Morono with the right hand, and he’s going after Mein’s neck. Mounted guillotine hoke by Morono, but Mein rolls him over. Mein appears to be out of danger. Morono lets go of the neck and Mein is on top. Now it’s Mein working on a choke with 30 seconds to go. It goes the distance. 29-28 Mein.
Official result: Jordan Mein def. Alex Morono by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Austin Arnett vs. Hakeem Dawodu
Round 1 – Arnett checks a Dawodu leg kick. Dawodu counters a missed head kick by Arnett with a landed low kick. Leg kick buckles Arnett briefly. Now he goes after the other leg. Back again on the inside, then the outside. Dawodu stuffs a takedown. Arnett is clearly bothered by these kicks and has been switching stances. One more leg kick by Dawodu. He’s barely thrown any punches. He catches Arnett with a counter right after a telegraphed level change. Head kick by Dawodu! Another brutal leg kick, punishing the left calf. 10-9 Dawodu.
Round 2 – Left hook to the body by Dawodu. Arnett with a jab, then Dawodu comes back with a body shot. Nice right hand by Arnett, who is being more aggressive. Dawodu with a right hand of his own. Leg kick and left hand by Dawodu. Jarring uppercut by Dawodu. Now Dawodu throws a three-punch combination. Arnett connects cleanly on a jab. Leg kick and body shot in rapid succession for the Canadian. Arnett with another good right hand. Dawodu going body-head with a couple of punches. Right hand pushes Arnett back. Atnett checks a leg kick. Dawodu tries a spinning back kick with a minute left. Sharp uppercut from Dawodu. Another leg kick to close out the round. 20-18 Dawodu.
Round 3 – Arnett goes high with a kick, misses, and leaves himself prone for a thudding leg kick. Takedown by Arnett, no dice. Dawodu sprawls and gets back up without much effort. Body lock now against the fence. Hakeem with some right hands to the head of Arnett. Looks like Arnett is throwing some knees, and now they’re at the center of the cage again, at which point Dawodu instantly threw a spinning back kick. Left hook to the liver, then another body punch by Dawodu. Chopping leg kick again from Dawodu. Arnett lands a head kick but it doesn’t faze Dawodu at all. uppercut and a leg kick by Dawodu. He scores with some more power shots on Arnett. Nifty combination work by Dawodu. Going to the head, body, and legs. The seconds tick away as Dawodu is about to get the W. A knee to Arnett’s dome punctuates a great performance by the featherweight. 30-27 Dawodu.
Official result: Hakeem Dawodu def. Austin Arnett by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Kajan Johnson vs. Islam Makhachev
Round 1 – Bit of a staring contest with some feints mixed in over this first minute. Makhachev throws a left hand from southpaw stance. Good body kick by Makhachev. Johnson misses on a left hand. Very slow-paced start and not a sign of a takedown attempt by Makhachev. They clinch up, Johnson puts Makchachev against the fence, but Makchachev gets in some body shots before they break. Johnson lands a body kick. They both miss on haymaker shots. Makhachev gets the takedown with just over 90 seconds left. He lands a sharp elbow before passing to full mount. Three straight lefts by Makhachev, and now he transitions to the armbar and gets it. Dominant performance on the ground by Makhachev.
Official result: Islam Makhachev def. Kajan Johnson by submission (armbar) at 4:43 of round 1
Gadzhimurad Antigulov vs. Ion Cutelaba
Round 1 – Antigulov instantly takes Cutelaba down with practically no resistance. Cutelaba finds the fences and finds his way back up, but the danger isn’t over yet. Antigulov clasps the hands and puts Cutelaba on his back again. Couple of ground strikes get through for Antigulov. Cutelaba again back to his feet, but Antigulov has the back, laces the legs and this time Cutelaba stays upright. Cutelaba with clinch strikes and then he eats a hard right hand before fending off another takedown. Cutelaba with a knee to the body and another one. Short right hands by Cutelaba in the clinch, as Antigulov is in on a single leg. Antigulov lands a short uppercut. Cutelaba with more knees. Cutelaba is relentless with those knees, but Antigulov still takes him down. A sweep by Cutelaba and he stands up, then stops the high crotch takedown. Cutelaba teeing off on Antigulov. Series of uppercuts have Antigulov hurt. Huge shot by Antigulov! Wow! But back comes Cutelaba with the knees. This is vicious clinch striking and Antigulov is exhausted and out on his feet. The referee steps in and stops the fight after some brutal elbows. Good call.
Official result: Ion Cutelaba def. Gadzhimurad Antigulov by TKO (strikes) at 4:25 of round 1
Preliminary Card (4 PM ET, Fight Pass)
John Makdessi vs. Ross Pearson
Round 1 – Aggressive start from the two lightweight veterans. Makdessi sticks out the jab after taking a leg kick. They trade kicks before Makdessi fires off a left hand that just goes by Pearson’s face. Left hook by Pearson. Makdessi with a solid inside leg kick. Sweet jab by Pearson. Head kick by Pearson is blocked, then Makdessi answers with a body kick and left hand. Pearson with a jab and then whiffs on a left hook. Body kick and right hand by Makdessi. Jab by Pearson, then Makdessi counters with a left. Strong right hand stuns Pearson momentarily. Good right underneath Makdessi’s guard lands for Pearson. Makdessi continues to have success with the leg kicks. Close round, but I shade it 10-9 Makdessi.
Round 2 – Leg kick and a left hook by Makdessi. Spinning kick by Makdessi. Jab by Pearson. Left hook to the body by Pearson. Right hand by Pearson connects. He’s turning up the volume. Makdessi dodges and then lands a straight right. The Canadian doubles upon the jab but then absorbs a good body kick thrown by the Brit. Pearson digs the body and then pops Makdessi with a right. A right hand by Makdessi tags Pearson. Makdessi spins and misses on the backfist, but cracks Pearson with a left hook. Jab is there again for Pearson. Nice left hook by Pearson sweeps across Makdessi’s face. Right hand answer by Makdessi. Counter left by Makdessi is picture perfect. Right hand over the top by Makdessi. Short right by Makdessi as he moves around effectively. Left hook by Makdessi. This was looking like a Pearson round, but Makdessi came back strongly. 20-18 Makdessi.
Round 3 – Makdessi with a left hook. Pearson tries a shovel hook and misses. Beautiful right hand jars Makdessi. John sticks the jab and lands on Pearson, then lands a groin shot. Pearson takes a minute or so to recover and they resume fighting, and exchange some good shots in the pocket, then Pearson shoots for a takedown. Makdessi defends but they’re now against the fence. They separate and start striking again. Left hook by Pearson and Makdessi is backing up. Nice shot by Makdessi, but Pearson is charging back. Makdessi clips Pearson with a counter right. Gorgeous 1-2 by Makdessi. Double jab by Makdessi and Pearson just eats them. Hard leg kick by Pearson. Left hook by Makdessi as Pearson is bloodied up. Three-punch combo by Makdessi, then some brutal short shots on the inside. Hard right by Makdessi! Big shots by Makdessi! Pearson is hurt and wobbly after eating several unanswered shots! Makdessi just avoids a right hand, tries to spin and misses. Pearson slips after throwing a body kick. Pearson getting hit cleanly. Makdessi seems to think the fight should be stopped. Pearson hits a trip on Makdessi! He gets back up and then drills Pearson’s face with some more punches. Jab by Makdessi, whose face is a crimson mask. Final seconds tick away. Makdessi looks for the spectacular finish but it doesn’t materialize. Still, great fight! 30-27 Makdessi.
Official result: John Makdessi def. Ross Pearson by unanimous decision (30-26, 29-27, 29-28)
Katlyn Chookagian vs. Alexis Davis
Round 1 – Chookagian with some early jabbing. Davis with an inside leg kick. Good right to the body by Davis. Left hand by Chookagian and a short left hook on the inside by Davis. Body kick by the Canadian. Jab by Chookagian answered by a Davis leg kick. Good exchange on the inside by both ladies. Straight right hand lands for Davis. Chookagian short on a front kick. One more outside leg kick by Davis. While Davis is the one bleeding, it looks like she’s landed the better strikes in this round. 10-9 Davis.
Round 2 – Pushing left hook by Davis as Chookagian also connected on a right hand to the head. Chookagian now bleeding on her left shin. Davis digs the body. Sneaky right hand lands flush for Davis. Chookagian with the left hook. Davis answers back with a combination. Hook kick by Chookagian. Buckling leg kick again by Davis, as Chookagian is just checking none of them. Chookagian catches a kick but misses on the right hand. Strong body kick by Chookagian. Straight right and then a looping right are on-target for Davis. Jab snaps Davis’ head back. Davis keeping up the forward pressure as Chookagian looks to counter. 20-18 Davis.
Round 3 – Left hand by Davis. Straight right by Chookagian. Two good countershots by Chookagian have got Davis on stiffened legs. Flush kick to the face of Davis! Chookagian eats a left hook. Right hand clips Davis. She moves forward and throws a three-punch combination. Takedown attempt by Davis is thwarted by Chookagian. Davis misses on a slow spinning backfist. Caught kick by Chookagian and this time she responds with a glancing right hand. Pace has slowed down, and Davis is not throwing as many kicks. Long right hand on the jaw of Davis. Final minute to go and they’re trading but missing many punches. Davis with some knees in the clinch but they don’t really do any damage. Takedown by Davis, as Chookagian attacks the arm just before time expires. 29-28 Davis.
Official result: Katlyn Chookagian def. Alexis Davis by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Matheus Nicolau vs. Dustin Ortiz
Round 1 – Nicolau drops Ortiz with a leg kick, but he springs back up. Three-punch combination stuns Ortiz. Jab by Nicolau is countered by an outside leg kick by Ortiz. Body kick by Nicolau, about chest-high. Ortiz lands a jab, then Nicolau jabs to the midsection. Head kick drops Nicolau! Ortiz finishes the fight with punches on the ground.
Official result: Dustin Ortiz def. Matheus Nicolau by KO (head kick and punches) at 3:49 of round 1
Nina Ansaroff vs. Randa Markos
Round 1 – Hard leg kick to start things off for Ansaroff. Markos looking for the single leg takedown. Ansaroff defends up against the fence, Markos tries to run the pipe but can’t get her down. Randa finishes the takedown with a trip this time. Markos with some left hands to the face as she transitions to the back. Ansaroff is preventing Markos from getting that second hook in. Markos now in Ansaroff’s guard and getting off some nice ground-and-pound. Ansaroff appeared to threaten with a triangle choke but now it’s just a closed guard. Good right hand by Markos and then a left, as she continues to beat up Ansaroff on the ground. Ansaroff tries to push Markos off with the legs and does just that, and they’re back to their feet. Two more leg kicks by Ansaroff as round 1 approaches its end. 10-9 Markos.
Round 2 – Markos continues to have problems defending Ansaroff’s leg kicks. Ansaraoff easily shuts down Markos’ takedown attempt. More leg kicks by Ansaroff going unchecked. Markos off-target on a right hand, then she takes a body kick. Ansaroff mixes up her strikes well and forces Markos to lift her lead leg after landing another kick. It’s purely a striking matchup in this round and Ansaroff lands another body kick, then Markos fires off three straight counter right hands to back Ansaroff off. They trade jabs with a minute left in the round. Markos closes the distance, puts Ansaroff against the fence, but can do hardly anything about it. Good 1-2 by Markos, but this round is clearly Ansaroff’s. 19-19.
Round 3 – Leg kick connects but then the head kick by Ansaroff is blocked. Markos pushing forward, getting Ansaroff to the fence but can’t get the head-and-arm throw. She does land a head shot on the exit. Leg kick by Ansaroff for the umpteenth time. Short right hand and a hard jab by Ansaroff. Back to the fence they go and Markos is looking for the takedown, but Ansaroff has an underhook. Good jab by Markos, as Ansaroff is bleeding out of her nose. Markos searching for the takedown again. She switches to a double leg and lifts, but doesn’t have the hands locked. Ansaroff defending with less than two minutes to go. Markos tries for the single and Ansaroff fends it off, forcing Markos to strike again. Outside leg kick connects for Ansaroff. Markos trying the head-and-arm throw and it backfires, as Ansaroff is on top and she lands a strong elbow. Ansaroff spends the rest of the fight throwing ground-and-pound. 29-28 Ansaroff.
Official result: Nina Ansaroff def. Randa Markos by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Devin Powell vs. Alvaro Herrera
Round 1 – Body kick by Powell but Herrera cracks him with a left. Herrera stuffs a weak shot from Powell. Nasty left hook to the body by Herrera. Powell closes the distance but Herrera has the Thai clinch. Powell grabs a single and tries to get the fight to the ground, but Herrera wants none of that. Two body shots and then another body shot drops Powell. Great start by Herrera as he lets him back up. Herrera ripping the body again. Powell hurts Herrera with a body kick! Another body kick puts Herrera down! What a comeback and Powell wins! That was crazy!
Official result: Devin Powell def. Alvaro Herrera by TKO (body kicks) at 1:52 of round 1
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