Yoel "The Soldier of God" Romero smashed his way to victory in Hollywood, Florida on Saturday night at the expense of Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida. The latter was able to elude the power of Romero for the first round, but in the second, the soldier of God secured the takedown and launched an assault of elbows that knocked Machida out cold.
Todd Grisham of ESPN validated Romero's performance:
Machida showed great respect for Romero's power early on. It was clear he didn't want to get into a firefight with the powerful Cuban. Machida also did his best to avoid the takedown attempts from the former Olympic freestyle wrestler.
Because of the physical disadvantages, Machida was forced to try and employ a game plan that had him looking to land a hard counter, or hoping that Romero tired in the championship rounds.
Neither scenario played out. The 37-year-old Brazilian legend has now lost two fights in a row and both have come by brutal stoppage. Many fans of Machida, such as MMA History Today see the Dragon's fall as a sad occurrence:
To be clear, this was not an example of a young fighter taking advantage of an old one. Romero is actually older than Machida at 38. However, because of his late arrival to the sport, Romero clearly has a lot more left in the tank than Machida.
Hopefully the Dragon will acknowledge that his career has likely come to an end and walk away without taking any more beatings. Romero on the other hand is ready for the next challenge. Perhaps a meeting with Jacare Souza is next.
Here's a look at all of the results from Saturday's card.
Full Results
Top Prelim Bout
Sims Wins Wild One
Tony Sims nor Steve Montgomery will likely ever become contenders in the welterweight division, but they put on a thrilling one-round scrap during the prelims. Bleacher Report's Jeremy Botter wasn't excited about this one before it got started:
After being dazed by a knee from Montgomery, Sims quickly rebounded with a destructive right hand that forced his opponent to face plant.
When this one was over, Botter had clearly changed his tune.
There's nothing like some fisticuffs at the old watering hole.
Main Card
Dias Wins a Really Bad Fight
Hacran Dias won a close split decision over Levan Makashvili, but the real losers was any fan forced to sit through this bout. Fox Sports UFC and The MMA Report's Jason Floyd tells us we shouldn't have expected anything different.
The fight stats show Dias proved he was the superior grappler with three takedowns. Makashvili appeared to be the better striker, but he couldn't keep the fight standing long enough to get a rhythm or to keep us entertained.
This one turned out to be the watering hole scrap.
You Are Not the Bosse of Me
It sounded like a bat hitting a stack of wet blankets, but the sound that ended the Thiago Santos vs. Steve Bosse was a left high kick that sent the latter to the mat like a deck of cards.
Santos' kick was one of the most devastating and violent you'll ever see in the history of the sport. If you didn't see it, trust me, I'm not a prisoner of the moment. This kick was rated-R. Take a look at the kick in this tweet from Darth Vader:
Ben Fowlkes of USA Today had a graphic but accurate analogy:
Santos has strung together three consecutive fights by first-round stoppage. This KO will undoubtedly get Santos some notoriety in the MMA community.
Gordon Forced to Acquiesce
The Ultimate Fighter Season 19 winner Eddie "Truck" Gordon has now lost three straight fights. On Saturday night, Gordon was beaten up in every facet by TUF Brazil winner, Antonio Carlos Junior.
ACJ finished the bout with a rear-naked choke in the final moments of the third and final round. Even before the finish, ACJ racked up a 40-12 advantage in significant strikes and also secured four takedowns to none against Gordon.
It was especially disappointing performance by Gordon who came to the fight in great shape. Sean Sheehan of Severe MMA delivers the cold, hard truths about Gordon's UFC career thus far:
ACJ looked massive in the Octagon and he simply overpowered Gordon en route to the win.
New Life for Larkin
Lorenz Larkin has found a new home at 170 pounds. It's hard to remember a fighter looking as good after dropping weight as Larkin has since becoming a welterweight. He scored his second consecutive impressive stoppage win on Saturday against Santiago Ponzinibbio.
With a huge advantage in significant strikes, Larkin was building a solid lead on the judges' scorecards. ultimately, he wouldn't need the points. In the second round, Larkin landed a hard combination that sent Ponzinibbio to the mat.
Larkin pounced and landed enough punches to encourage referee Herb Dean to call an end to the fight. UFC Canada applauded Larkin's performance:
Larkin might have powered his way into the top 15 with the win.
Fight stat images per Jason Floyd of The MMA Report and Sportz Visionz.
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