UFC Fight Night 19 (9/16/09) Re-Cap

UFC Fight Night 19
Tulsa, OK (Cox Convention Center)
9/16/09

No Joe Rogan tonight so Kenny Florian will be replacing him on Color Commentary. Gray Maynard will take a big step tonight towards a Lightweight Title Fight if he can beat Roger Huerta. This is a risky fight for the UFC as Huerta plans on going Hollywood after the fight. Former WEC Champion Carlos Condit tries to get his first UFC win after a razor think loss to Martin Kampmann in his debut. TUF fighters fight it out tonight as Nate Diaz/Melvin Guillard and Nate Quarry/Tim Credeur collide. Hopefully Steve Cantwell/Brian Stann will make the main show and/or we can see Brock Larson/Mike Pierce. Phillipe Nover was pulled from his undercard fight with Sam Stout tonight when he suffered a seizure.

Middleweight Fight- Nate Quarry (17-3) vs. Tim Credeur (13-4)

Credeur is coming off a second round guillotine submission of Nick Catone at Fight Night 18. Credeur is 3-0 in the UFC and has really improved since his TUF days. Credeur has a 3” height and 2.5” reach advantage. Quarry has to be the favorite coming into this fight. Quarry’s only losses in the UFC have come to Rich Franklin and Demain Maia.

R1- Credeur is out striking Quarry early but doesn’t seem to be hurting him. Credeur caught Quarry with a solid left hand at the 1:20 mark and Quarry went down. Credeur jumped on top and grabbed a Rear Naked Choke with over a minute left in the round but Quarry rolled over and survived. Really great action. Credeur closed the round with some strikes and has bloodied Quarry’s nose. Impressive first round for Credeur as he’s up 10-9.

R2- Credeur opens up the round with strikes and has Quarry on the run early but he got popped by Quarry. Both guys go toe to toe swinging for the fences and Credeur went down. Credeur definitely doesn’t want to get into a shot for shot against Quarry. Quarry lands on top of Credeur and takes his guard. Quarry has done a good job of weathering the storm so far and turned the tide quickly in this round to tie it up 19-19 going into the third and final round.

R3- Credeur opens up this round landing some good strikes but Quarry unloaded on Credeur with a huge right hand. The punch looked so violent that Herb Dean rushed in and almost stopped the fight but Credeur was able to survive the strike. Quarry took Credeur’s guard. They get back to their feet but Credeur looks like he’s still really feeling the effects of that one punch. Credeur is taking some big shots and finally goes down with Quarry following him and taking his guard. Quarry takes this round and will take the fight 29-28. Good fight, Credeur showed a lot of heart but Quarry was just too big and too strong for him. Quarry finished the fight with a big mouse under his right eye.

Judges score cards say: 29-28, 29-27 and 29-28 in favor of Quarry

Winner: Nate Quarry by Decision (Unanimous)

Welterweight Fight- Carlos Condit (23-5) vs. Jake Ellenberger (21-4)

This is Jake Ellenberger’s debut in the UFC as he is filling in for the injured Chris Lytle. Condit is a former WEC Welterweight Champion who lost in his debut to Martin Kampmann in a very close split decision. Condit has a 2” height and 3” reach advantage.

R1- Ellenberger grabbed a Condit kick early and punched him and took him down. Condit does a really good job in his guard and got back to his feet without taking any damage. Ellenberger again counters a kick with a punch and just drills Condit up against the cage and Condit goes down. Ellenberger jumps on top and Condit is in deep trouble. Ellenberger went for a choke but Condit was able to escape and get back to his feet. Condit hit Ellenberger with a big knee to the chin. Ellenberger absorbed two more knees and then fired a Hail Mary punch and looked like he grazed Condit right in the temple and Condit just crumpled. I thought for sure that was the end of the fight as Ellenberger jumped on top and reigned punches to the back of Condit’s head but Condit took Ellenberger down and took half guard. There is still two minutes left in this fight and so far it has been CRAZY. Condit was able to move to mount but Ellenberger kicked him off. Ellenberger grabbed a guillotine but Condit rolled out and ended up with Ellenberger in his guard. Condit has a very active guard and is hitting some elbows. Condit went for a triangle but Ellenberger slipped out quickly before it was even close and they stood back up. Ellenberger landed a head kick but it looked like it was just a glancing blow. Holy Crap, what a first round. Ellenberger is no joke and I can’t believe that Condit survived that first round. Condit clearly has to get this fight on the ground if he wants to win. You have to give that first round to Ellenberger 10-9.

R2- Ellenberger is swinging for the fences early but missed two big haymakers. Ellenberger got a double leg take down. Condit landed some elbows. Ellenberger is getting very little offense in despite being in an advantageous position. Condit got a kimura but could not submit Ellenberger because Ellenberger was holding onto the fence. Condit did however roll over Ellenberger and took mount. Condit was able to get in some shots but was moved to half guard. Condit re-mounts and tries to take Ellenberger’s back but he slips and Ellenberger takes his guard. Condit once again is active from his guard and Ellenberger is not really trying to improve his position. Back to their feet with 15 seconds left. Condit landed a couple of strikes before the land ended. Ellenberger got a take down and laid on top of Condit for a while but really didn’t get in any offense in this round. Condit had a near submission and was able to mount and score points from his guard. I think that’s enough as Condit controlled the striking and landed many more shots in this round than did Ellenberger. It will be interesting to see how judges score this round and I think many will give it to Ellenberger just for kind of laying on Condit and getting the take down. I’ve got it Condit 10-9 and that evens up the fight 19-19 on my score card.

R3- Condit threw a leg kick early but it was mostly deflected. Ellenberger got an early take down. Condit again worked strikes from the guard position. Ellenberger landed a big elbow but shortly thereafter Condit was able to slide out of his grasp and they stood back up with three and a half minutes remaining in the fight. Ellenberger threw a kick but it landed on Condit’s arm. Condit got a take down and Ellenberger grabbed a guillotine but Condit easily slipped out and moved to half guard. Condit controlled from the top and landed some good strikes. Condit went to take Ellenberger’s back and landed some more good strikes. Ellenberger spins out as Condit went for a submission and took Condit’s guard. Condit kicked him off and they stood back up. Ellenberger went for a single leg but Condit. The ref keeps warning Condit for striking to the back of Ellenberger’s head but I haven’t seen it as Carlos is not hitting him directly to the back of his head. Condit stuffed the take down and took Ellenberger’s back and flattened him out and continued to land strikes. I’ve got Condit taking this round 10-9 which gives him the fight 29-28 in a really good fight. I don’t know how Condit survived the first round but he really weathered that storm and wore out Ellenberger. It will be interesting to see how judges score this fight.

Judges score cards say: 29-28 Condit, 29-28 Ellenberger and 29-28 Condit

So that’s 2 split decisions in his first two fights for Condit in the UFC. Ellenberger looked very game in the first round.

Winner: Carlos Condit by Decision (Split)

Mike Goldberg interviews Rich Franklin via Satellite.

Gray Maynard (8-0) vs. Roger Huerta (22-2-1)

Huerta is coming off of a lackluster loss to Kenny Florian by decision (30-27) back at UFC 87. Gray Maynard is coming off an impressive win over Jim Miller at UFC 96. Maynard is undefeated and is quickly moving up the Lightweight ladder. With another impressive win or two he could find himself as the #1 Contender to B.J. Penn. Huerta could be taking off to Hollywood after this fight so it will be interesting to see how prepared he is for this fight.

R1- Maynard came in at early and landed some good strikes. Huerta came in and Maynard landed a good counter punch that knocked Huerta off center. Maynard looks really quick so far early in this fight. Huerta got Maynard up against the fence and was able to land several strikes. Maynard was able to retreat and when Huerta came in again Maynard was able to pop him with a jab. Maynard went for a single leg but Huerta was able to sprawl out of the take down. Good first round that was pretty even. Huerta had the one flurry but overall Maynard landed more strikes and controlled more of the round. Maynard 10-9 after one round. Florian gave this round to Huerta.

R2- Maynard countered a Huerta kick with a good right hand and Huerta ducked and moved and slid in the Octagon to gain his balance and avoid Maynard. Maynard hit a good right that knocked Huerta off-balance and then Maynard landed another left but it appeared to just be a glancing blow. Huerta charged at Maynard and threw like 7 or 8 shots but Maynard ducked all of them and then Maynard landed a jab that took Huerta briefly off his feet as he lost his balance. Maynard is far from dominating this fight but he’s doing enough to win the rounds. I’ve got Maynard up 20-18 on my score card.

R3- Maynard landed a couple of strikes early. Maynard rushed in and took Huerta down. Huerta got back to his feet briefly but Maynard pulled him back down. Maynard’s nose is bleeding from a shot earlier in the fight. Maynard has a funky looking kimura locked in on Huerta and Maynard eventually let it go as Huerta was not going to tap and was able to twist out of the move. Huerta was briefly on top but then Maynard was able to grind him back down. Maynard takes this round and I’ve got him winning 30-27 on my score card. It was a close fight but I had Maynard winning all of the rounds. The only one that really seemed debatable was the first round. Maynard needs another quality win and then he could be a contender for the Lightweight Title.

Judges score cards say: 29-28 Huerta, 30-27 Maynard and 30-27 Maynard.

29-28 Huerta? What was Chris Lee smoking?

Winner: Gray Maynard by Decision (Split)

Lightweight Fight- Nate Diaz (10-4) vs. Melvin Guillard (41-8-3)

In his last fight Melvin won a Split Decision over Gleison Tibau at the Ultimate Fight 9 Finale. I actually had the fight scored in favor of Tibau 29-28. On the same show Nate lost a close fight to Joe Stevenson by 29-28 decision on all score cards. Diaz has a 5” reach and 3” height advantage.

R1- Diaz threw a loopy right hand and Guillard stuck him with a quick right that knocked him down but Guillard let him back up. Diaz locked him up and got a take down but Guillard got back to his feet and hit Diaz with a judo throw and then let Diaz back to his feet. Diaz again got Guillard down but Guillard again quickly got to his feet without taking any damage. Diaz has some blood coming from near his eye. Fairly close round but Diaz really didn’t do anything to hurt Guillard and Guillard opened up a cut on Diaz and knocked him down early in the round. I’ve got Guillard taking a close round 10 to 9.

R2- Guillard went for another judo throw and was able to get Diaz down on the mat but he let Diaz back to his feet. Diaz is starting to land some strikes. Guillard fakes being hurt but then gets caught by Diaz as Diaz pulled guard and locked in a choke and Guillard submitted. What a huge mistake by Guillard and Diaz capitalized beautifully.

Winner: Nate Diaz by Guillotine Choke R2 2:13

Really good night of fights.

UFC Fight Night 18 4/1/09 Preliminary Fights Re-Cap

UFC Fight Night 18 Prelims
April 1, 2009
Nashville, Tn

Middleweight Fight- Ricardo Almeida (9-3) vs. Matt Horwich (24-10-1)

R1- Kind of a blah first round until the end when Almeida took Horwich down with a guillotine and then Horwich came up with a heel hook. Pretty close first round.

R2- Almeida really dominates the first part of this round by taking Horwich’s guard and then getting in some good Ground and Pound. Almeida really dominated this entire round.

R3- Almeida gets two take downs in the first part of this round and continued to dominate Horwich in this round. Almedia wins this fight via unanimous decision.

All 3 judges scored the fight 30-27.

Winner: Ricardo Almeida by Decision (Unanimous)

Middleweight Fight- Tim Credeur (12-4) vs. Nick Catone (7-0)

Credeur has a 2.5” reach and 3” height advantage in this fight. Tim looked really good in his dismantling of undefeated Nate Loughran at the Fight for the Troops back in December. Let’s see if he can beat his second undefeated fighter in a row.

R1- Catone got a take down early but Credeur grabbed an arm bar from the bottom but couldn’t fully lock it in and Catone returned to Credeur’s guard. Credeur grabs a heel hook but couldn’t hold on to that one either. Credeur also got a near kimura. Catone has had octagon control in this round but Credeur has almost finished the fight several times so far and landed another near arm bar towards the end of the round. Credeur 10-9.

R2- Catone got a take down and Credeur again looked for submissions and ended with a guillotine victory. Credeur looked really good for the second straight fight.

Winner: Tim Credeur by Submission (Guillotine Choke) R2 3:45

Middleweight Fight- Rob Kimmons (21-4) vs. Joe Vedepo (9-2)

R1- Lots of action early and Kimmons connected with a couple of punches. Both guys have been opened up. Kimmons catches Vedepo in a guillotine choke and Vedepo passes out in the submission.

Winner: Rob Kimmons by Submission (Guillotine Choke) R1 1:54

Welterweight Fight- Brock Larson (25-2) vs. Jesse Sanders (21-4)

Sanders has a 4” reach advantage. Brock Larson most recently fought for WEC and just destroyed Carlo Prater in their fight back in August of 2008.

R1- Larson got a take down within the first minute of the fight and then took Sanders back. Larson hit some good shots to the side of the head of Sanders. Larson is just destroying Sanders and locks in the Rear Naked Choke and submits him.

Larson looked awesome in this fight. It was his first UFC appearance since 2006 and I’m looking forward to seeing more of him in UFC. He has really looked good in his last two fights.

Winner: Brock Larson by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) R1 2:01

Middleweight Fight- Tim McKenzie (12-5) vs. Aaron Simpson (4-0)

Simpson is another guy that is coming over from WEC. In Simpson’s last fight in WEC in November of 2008 he decimated David Avellan in 18 seconds with a right handed knockout reel punch. McKenzie has a green Mohawk. Simpson trains at Arizona Combat Sports.

R1- Lots of action early in this one as Simpson grabbed a clinch and hit a couple of shot and then took McKenzie down. Simpson got in a couple of shots before McKenzie got up. Simpson hit McKenzie with a good shot and he went down and then Simpson landed some Ground and Pound. Mario Yamazaki stepped in and stopped the fight earlier then he should have but Simpson looked great.

Winner: Aaron Simpson by TKO (punches) R1 1:40

Middleweight Fight- Jorge Rivera (15-7) vs. Nissen Osterneck (5-1)

It looks like it’s WEC night tonight as Osterneck is another WEC fighter debuting on this show. He last fought on WEC 36 and lost to Jake Rosholt by second round TKO but put on a good fight. This is Rivera’s first fight since the loss of his daughter.

R1- Osterneck got a take down to start the fight but Jorge swept him over and they stood back up. Rivera got a take down and almost fell victim to a triangle but maintained the dominant position and landed some punches but Nissen got back to his feet. Pretty even first round.

R2- Lots of clinching and pretty even fight until Rivera nailed a big right hand near the one minute mark and fell into Nissen’s guard. Rivera takes this round.

R3- Both guys are really tired in this round. Not a real exciting round

Judges score cards are: 29-28, 29-28 and 29-28- split decision for Rivera.

Winner: Jorge Rivera by Decision (Split)

Catchweight Fight- Gleison Tibau (28-5) vs. Jeremy Stephens (16-4)

This should have been a lightweight fight but both guys missed weight with Tibau weighing in at 156.5 and Stephens at 158. Hermes Franca is in Stephens’ corner.

R1- Tibau fought for a take down the entire first round and finally got one with a minute and a half left. Tibau then went for an arm triangle but couldn’t clamp it on. Tibau 10-9 after one round.

R2- Tibau got a take down about a minute and a half into this round. With about a minute left Tibau went for the arm triangle again but couldn’t get it. He ended up getting it clinched it but not tight enough to tap Stephens as he held on until the bell sounded. Tibau 20-18 after two rounds.

R3- Tibau got a take down about half way through the round after avoiding some bombs from Stephens. Stephens grabbed a clinch in the last minute and tried some jumping knees but got take down again. Tibau will win this fight 30-27.

Judges score cards say: 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28

Winner: Gleison Tibau by Decision (Unanimous)

UFC: Fight For The Troops 12/10/08 Re-Cap

UFC Fight for the Troops 12/10/08

On paper this looked like a show that could be easily skipped. But when it played out it was one of the most exciting nights of UFC fights this year. A fantastic knockout from Josh Koscheck, a dominate performance from Ben Saunders, a nasty submission from Steve Cantwell and another great performance from Mike Swick. A big night for TUF alums as not only Saunders, Swick and Koscheck got big wins but Tim Credeur looked really good.

Lightweight Fight- Jim Miller (12-1) vs. Matt Wiman (10-3)

Wiman came in on a 4 fight win streak and Miller came in on a 7 fight win streak. Miller took the fight on one week notice. Wiman had a 2 inch height advantage but Miller had a 4 inch reach advantage.

R1- Good first round with Miller winning it 10-9. Miller got an early guillotine and almost got the submission victory early.

R2- Miller took this round as well and is now up 20-18. He is really controlling the fight through two rounds.

R3- Wiman started out this round strong but Miller got a quick take down and ultimately won the fight 30-27 in my book.

The judges scored the fight: 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26 in favor of Miller

Winner: Jim Miller by Decision (Unanimous)

They show celebrity testimonials when they come back from commercial to solicit donations to the troops. Some of the celebs included Charlie Sheen, Jack Black, Chris O'Donnell, Samuel L Jackson, Mick Foley, 50 Cent, Laura Prepon and James Gandolfini.

Middleweight Fight- Tim Credeur (11-4) vs. Nate Loughran (9-0)

Nate is a jiu jitsu fighter who trains with David Terrell. Rich Clementi is in Tim's corner. Tim has been training a lot at Xtreme Couture since TUF.

R1- Credeur's striking is superior in Round One and he takes the first round 10-9.

R2- Nate gets his eye busted open early in the second round. Tim controls on the ground early and in the stand up game late. This round was all Tim.

The fight was stopped after two rounds. Tim dominated Nate in this fight and looked one thousand times better than he did during any of his TUF fights.

Winner: Tim Credeur by TKO (verbal submission between rounds) R2

Light Heavyweight- Steve Cantwell (6-1) vs. Razak Al-Hassan (7-0)

Razak comes into the fight undefeated and has a huge five and a half inch reach advantage. Cantwell was last seen on WEC as their Light Heavyweight Champion but they disbanded the division so now he is in UFC.

R1- This was a good fight with pretty even stand up to start. Cantwell got an arm bar and Razak would not tap and Cantwell just destroyed Razak's arm and the ref stopped the fight. What a sick move and a great debut for Cantwell. Cantwell took much joy in his snapping his opponent's arm during the post-match interview.

Winner: Steve Cantwell by TKO (ref stoppage) R1 4:04

Welterweight Fight- Mike Swick (12-2) vs. Jonathan Goulet (22-4)

Swick has a three and a half inch reach advantage in this fight.

R1- Swick got a quick take down and just pounded Goulet on his knees until the ref stopped the fight. Wow! Swick looked awesome here.

Winner: Mike Swick by TKO (Strikes) R1 0:33

Welterweight Fight- Ben Saunders vs. Brandon Wolfe

This was from the pre-show. Thanks to Mike Swick for his quick finish, so we get another fight.

R1- Saunders hits big knees in the Muy Thai clinch. Saunders just with a barrage of knees and kicks and this one is over fairly quickly. Another awesome performance by a TUF alum.

Winner: Ben Saunders by TKO (Strikes) R1 1:49


Welterweight: Josh Koscheck (13-3) vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida (10-2)

Yoshida has a 3 fight win streak and is a judo black belt. Koscheck has a three inch reach advantage. Koscheck just fought 45 days ago in a loss to Thiago Alves. I really disliked Koscheck when he was on TUF. Not only did he come off as an arrogant prick but he was also a very boring fighter. Koscheck has really changed my mind this year with his performances against Dustin Hazlett and Chris Lytle and stepping up to fight Thiago Alves on short notice and continuing to stay booked for this fight. It's hard not to like him based on what he has done this year.

R1- About two minutes into the fight Koscheck hit Yoshi with a punch that hurt him. Yoshi was stunned and could not defend and Koscheck just leveled him with a huge KO to win the fight. Great KO for Koscheck.

Winner: Josh Koscheck by KO R1 2:15

Welterweight Fight- Steve Bruno vs. Johnny Rees

This pre-show fight is brought to you by Josh Koscheck's quick KO in the Main Event.

R1- Very even first round that got some boos from the crowd.

R2- Bruno took Rees back several times and finally clamped in a Rear Naked and got the submission victory.

Winner: Steve Bruno by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) R2 3:44

UFN 7/19/08 Unaired Fights Re-Cap

Ultimate Fight Night 7/19/08 Unaired Fights

[b]Lightweight Fight- Shannon Gugerty (10-2) vs Dale Hartt (5-0)[/b]

R1- Hartt took Gugerty down with a guillotine early but Gugerty fought out of it without much damage. Gugerty controls the fight by staying on top once he escaped the guillotine and then Hartt gave up his back. Gugerty got a choke in and Hartt taped out. Good fight by Gugerty as he got on top and then waited for Hartt to make a mistake and capitalized.

This was Gugerty's debut in UFC.

Winner: Shannon Gugerty by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) R1 3:33

[b]Welterweight Fight- Brad Blackburn (12-9-1) vs. James Giboo (11-2)[/b]

Blackburn has fought in the IFL. Giboo has won 6 straight fights. This is both guys debut in the UFC.

R1- Blackburn got a good shot in about a minute into the fight and then took Giboo's guard. They stood up and Blackburn got another nice shot in on Giboo and took his guard again. Blackburn is just dominating the stand up game. Blackburn nailed him with a left hand with about a minute left in the round and then jumped on top of Giboo but couldn't finish. Blackburn dominated this round. Possibly a 10-8 round as Giboo really didn't get anything in during the first round.

R2- Blackburn starts this round by hitting three straight punches and Giboo went down but Blackburn couldn't finish. Blackburn is just dominating Giboo but once the fight goes to the ground Giboo is surviving. Blackburn is eating him alive on their feet though. The ref calls this one and Blackburn gets the dominate victory. Blackburn looked really good on his feet but needs a lot of work on his ground game as he would probably get controlled by a good jiu jitsu guy.

Winner: Brad Blackburn by TKO (strikes) R2 2:29

[b]Middleweight Fight- Nate Loughran (8-0) vs. Johnny Rees (10-0)[/b]

Somebody is getting their first loss tonight.

R1- Loughran pulls guard early and looks for a triangle but Rees denies him. Rees gets in a couple of shots but Loughran is doing a good job controlling him. Loughran is bleeding from a Rees strike. Loughran goes for another triangle and looks to have locked it in but Rees postures out of it. Loughran once again grabs a triangle/arm bar submission and is hitting some elbows on Rees. Rees finally taps. This was a pretty even back and forth fight that mostly took place on the ground. Good job by Loughran in sticking to his game plan and finally getting the finish.

Winner: Nate Loughran by Submission (Triangle Choke) R1 4:21

[b]Middleweight Fight- Tim Credeur (10-4) vs. Cale Yarbrough (0-0)[/b]

Both of these guys were on the last season of TUF. This is Cale's first official MMA fight. Both guys lost to CB Dollaway during the season.

R1- They start out with both guys throwing punches. Credeur seems to be hitting more shots early. Creduer comes on strong about 2 minutes into the fight by hitting strikes and Cale goes down and the ref stops the fight.

Winner: Tim Credeur by TKO (strikes) R1 1:54