Neil Magny stepped up on short notice and won one of the biggest fights of his career Saturday night at UFC Fight Night 78 in Monterrey, Mexico. He earned a split-decision win over Kelvin Gastelum in the main event. Fox Sports UFC shared the official scorecards:
Magny's wrestling and length were major issues for Gastelum in the first three rounds, but the latter would drastically shift gears in the fourth. After Magny had been picking him apart with combinations and well-timed takedowns in the first three frames, Gastelum grabbed the momentum with a hard right hand that floored his opponent.
Magny looked to be on the verge of being finished, but his survival instincts and ground-and-pound defense helped him weather the storm. In the fifth and final round, Gastelum maintained the momentum as he again got the best of Magny in the stand-up and even looked fresher on the ground.
However, because no judge appeared to award him a 10-8 advantage for his Round 4 performance, Gastelum won one fewer round than Magny. MMA Mania thought Gastelum had earned the two-point round in the fourth, but it wasn't to be:
Others, such as Fox Sports' Damon Martin and Sherdog.com, knew the close and entertaining fight could be scored either way:
The stats indicate that the fight was close. Both men landed 54 significant strikes. Magny had the 6-2 edge in takedowns, but Gastelum spent seven minutes, one second in top control, compared to 6:24 for Magny, per UFC.com.
It was a shame that either fighter had to lose, as both performed well and had their moments. Gastelum came up short, but this was the best he's looked at 170 pounds. He seemed fit and had energy in reserve for the fifth round.
His strong performance likely adds to the frustration after a tough loss. Nonetheless, he'll be back.
As for Magny, this has been a banner year for him. The 28-year-old Dolton, Illinois, native has fought five times in 2015, winning four of those bouts. He has solidified himself as one of the premier 170-pound fighters in the UFC.
He can't be more than two or three wins away from a title shot. Let's look at the rest of the card, starting with the co-main event.
The Bully Beats Up Diego
As most should have expected, Ricardo "The Bully" Lamas was too well-rounded for the brawling Diego Sanchez. He battered the former The Ultimate Fighter winner on every level.
In the stand-up, Lamas smashed Sanchez with punches and knees that left the rugged veteran bloodied and battered. In the third round, Lamas landed heavy leg kicks to Sanchez's right leg.
The shots left him limping and trying to survive on nothing but his massive heart. That wasn't enough as Lamas took the unanimous decision 30-27 on all three cards. He probably could have finished Sanchez, but he appeared to let up once he saw the leg injury.
Lamas landed 57 significant strikes and secured three takedowns as well.
Even in defeat, the ever-macho Sanchez entertained the crowd. Check out this tweet from the UFC as the pain from the leg injury became a major factor:
Sanchez didn't steal the show in defeat. When the bout was over, we heard from the winner:
Lamas has had his chances against most of the top featherweights, but he failed to win those fights. He now has the first win he needs to try to climb back up the 145-pound ladder. We'll find out how high he can ascend in his next few fights.
Here's a look at all of the results:
All fight stats per UFC.com's Live Stats Counter.
Questionable Decision
The opening bout didn't conclude without controversy. Despite being outlanded 41-20 and securing only one takedown, Michel Prazeres won the split decision over fellow Brazilian Valmir Lazaro in the first UFC Fight Pass prelim.
Prazeres was more active, but he was also sloppy. Lazaro didn't set the world on fire with his performance, but based on more efficient striking and good takedown defense, he seemed to win two of the three rounds.
Unfortunately for him, only one of the judges saw it that way. Combat Press' Rob Tatum saw the decision as a bad omen for the event:
Reyes Gives Judges the Fight Off
Perhaps Polo Reyes saw the first prelim and thought to himself, "I'm going to take matters into my hands." Specifically, his left hand brought an end to the fight. The UFC tweeted the quick and destructive image with an ode to a popular childhood game:
OK, here's one more from MMAFighting.com for the road:
All kidding aside, Reyes is a dangerous striker whom UFC fans will want to keep an eye on moving forward. This was his UFC debut, but all but one of his professional wins have come by knockout, per Sherdog.com.
More Judge-Less Results
There used to be a member of the Wu-Tang Clan named the 60-Second Assassin. You could say Alvaro Herrera is twice as good as him. He needed only 30 seconds to smoke Vernon Ramos.
A big right hand sent Ramos to the mat, and referee Big John McCarthy wasted no time stopping the bout. Did he stop it too soon? MMAFighting.com thought so at first but maybe not:
There is no power outage in Mexico.
And the KOs Keep Coming
Andre "Touchy" Fili has been working to add layers to his game. Known primarily as a grappler for most of his career, he showed off some slick and dangerous striking en route to a first-round TKO win over Gabriel Benitez.
When it was over, Fili showed love to his new training team and credited it for his newfound weapons:
The carnage began with a head kick that dazed Benitez. Initially, he was able to absorb the shot and continue, but Fili wouldn't let up. He landed another brutal kick to Benitez's head, followed by a flurry of punches that finished his man.
Stop the Fight, Gary
A referee's job is to protect a fighter from taking unnecessary damage. Gary Copeland let Scott Jorgensen down. He had an obvious injury to his left leg after eating a kick from Alejandro Perez in the first round.
At the close of the initial frame, Jorgensen could barely walk to his corner. Copeland and Jorgensen's corner allowed the fighter to come out for the second round despite not being able to put any weight on his left leg.
Jorgensen showed heart in trying to find a way to win, but he was flopping around in the Octagon as his leg kept giving out. Still, neither Copeland nor Jorgensen's corner would rescue the fighter.
Perez targeted the other leg and swept Jorgensen off his feet to take advantage of his injured opponent. In a last-ditch effort to go for broke, Jorgensen attempted a high kick, but he aborted the move as his leg collapsed. And he was forced to tap in agony.
That shouldn't happen.
Fox Sports' Damon Martin seemed to agree as he took Copeland to task:
MMAFighting.com joined in but didn't spare Jorgensen's corner any of its wrath:
Jorgensen desperately needed this win, having lost five of six fights coming in, but he probably needs his left leg a little more.
Fabinski Gives Urbina a Grappling Lesson
Every round of the Bartosz Fabinski vs. Hector Urbina fight looked like a carbon copy of the previous one. The dominant Polish grappler continually took Urbina down, planted him on his back and controlled him for almost the entire round.
Despite Fabinski's dominance, one judge saw a different fight than everyone else and scored a round for Urbina.
Tatum is back, and he's unhappy again with the judges:
It's hard to argue with Tatum. Fabinski landed 25 significant strikes, compared to just 10 for Urbina. The Pole had six takedowns; Urbina had none. Finally—and perhaps most telling—Fabinski spent 13:28 in top control. Urbina? Just 36 seconds.
Perez Delights Hometown Crowd
The first round was shaky for Monterrey native Erik Perez, but he righted the ship and earned a unanimous-decision win over Taylor Lapilus. The latter seemed to confuse Perez in the first round with his movement.
In the second round, Perez succeeded in taking the fight to the ground, and that's where he had the advantage. He never did a great deal of damage to Lapilus, but Perez spent 6:25 in top control, compared to just 42 seconds for his opponent.
That was good enough for the victory.
After it was over, Perez showed a ton of emotion and relief. He donned his signature luchador mask and soaked up the love from his hometown fans. Fox Sports' Ariel Helwani was glad to see Perez have his moment:
Well, That Was Boring
Devoid of the emotion from the crowd and the energy provided by the fighters in the preceding bout, the fight between Leandro Silva and Efrain Escudero just dragged on.
Silva won a close decision based on more effective striking (35-24), but there was little in this bout to highlight. I'm sorry if you were forced to watch it.
Barzola Wins Fight No One Cared About
If Enrique Barzola wins The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America and no one pays attention, does it matter? It seemed appropriate to offer a riddle at a time like this, because it didn't appear as though anyone in the MMA community cared about this fight.
Check out MMA Mania's tweets:
Barzola used a punishing takedown game and some vicious ground-and-pound to mark up Horacio Gutierrez's face en route to the victory. This one could have gone to a fourth round, had it been needed, but Barzola's dominance through three was enough.
It was a great performance by Barzola, but the bout probably should have taken place earlier in the card.
The Main Card Needs To Be Saved
After Barzola won a sleepy fight to earn the TUF: Latin America 2 lightweight top prize, Erick Montano captured the welterweight distinction in a fight against Enrique Marin that was even worse.
Montano, a Mexico City native, gave a decent effort, but he was sloppy. Marin's striking was smoother, and even his ground game seemed to be sharper. However, Montano hit some well-timed takedowns, and that was enough on two of the three judges' scorecards.
Cejudo Looks To Be Ready To Challenge Mighty Mouse
Former Olympic wrestler Henry Cejudo relied on his heavy hands and boxing acumen to carry him to an impressive split-decision win over renowned Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist Jussier Formiga. Again, one of the judges saw a different fight than the rest of the world.
Cejudo's strength advantage was apparent in the clinch and every time he connected with a straight punch. He landed 43 significant strikes, compared to just 25 for Formiga. Just for good measure, Cejudo secured two takedowns to punctuate his victory.
If he's not next up for flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, it's hard to imagine who deserves a shot. Cejudo agrees, although he didn't sound too confident, per MMA Mania:
What's Next
UFC Fight Night Korea will take place Saturday, November 28. Former lightweight champion Benson Henderson will make another appearance in the welterweight division. He'll face the underrated Jorge Masvidal in the main event.
Henderson was slated to meet Thiago Alves, but the latter had to pull out because of an injury. The Henderson-Masvidal battle might turn out to be better, as both are well-rounded with a ton of experience.
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