The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to the Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Georgia tonight for UFC Fight Night 35: “Rockhold vs Philippou.” The event was headlined by a middleweight showdown between former Strikeforce champion Luke Rockhold and fast-rising contender Costas Philippou.
Also on the card, Brad Tavares battled Lorenz “The Monsoon” Larkin in another featured fight at 185 pounds. T.J. Dillashaw faced Mike “The Hulk” Easton in bantamweight action and Yoel “Soldier of God” Romero Palacio took on Derek Brunson. MMARising.com has play-by-play for the main card.
Luke Rockhold vs Costas Philippou
Round 1:
Rockhold pressed forward early on, but Philippou kept his distance and picked his shots with leg kicks. Rockhold stunned him with a lead right hook, but Philippou regained his footing and countered nicely with a left hand. Rockhold threw a head kick and the fighters traded power punches. Two body kicks backed Philippou up and Rockhold dropped him with a third kick to the body that forced referee Herb Dean to stop the brief fight.
Winner: Luke Rockhold by KO (Kick To The Body) at 2:31 of round one. He improves to 11-2-0.
Brad Tavares vs Lorenz “The Monsoon” Larkin
Round 1:
The fight began with an exchange of cautious leg kicks and Larkin attempted a lunging one-two. A hard leg kick scored for Tavares and he missed with a looping two-punch combo. Tavares landed more leg and body kicks, and Larkin landed a hard leg kicks of his own. A big right hand scored for Larkin, but Tavares countered a leg kick with a right cross. Larkin missed with a wild right hook and Tavares took his back. He dragged Larkin down to the mat in the final 15 seconds. 10-9 Tavares.
Round 2:
Tavares opened round two with a powerful left hook and he ate a counter uppercut from Larkin. The fighters traded combinations and body kicks. Tavares flurried to the body and head and followed with body kicks. He countered an uppercut with a lead left hook. Tavares kicked to the body and shot in for a takedown, but Larkin stuffed it against the cage. Tavares dragged him down and took his back on the ground. He tried for a rear-naked choke until Larkin eventually circled into his guard. Tavares postured for a triangle choke in the dying seconds. 10-9 Tavares.
Round 3:
Tavares threw a head kick early in round three and targeted Larkin’s lead leg with more kicks. Both men connected with punching combinations and leg kicks. Larkin flurried and avoided a Superman punch from Tavares. Larkin sprawled out of a takedown attempt and tried for a guillotine choke. Tavares flopped to his back and Larkin allowed him to stand. Larkin defended against another takedown and landed elbows to the side of Tavares’s head. Larkin continued to throw elbows and he landed an uppercut as Tavares stood up. 10-9 Larkin.
Winner: Brad Tavares by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 12-1-0.
T.J. Dillashaw vs Mike “The Hulk” Easton
Round 1:
The fight began with an exchange of quick punches and Dillashaw landed a short right hand. Easton knocked him down with a body kick, but Dillashaw stood and scored a takedown against the fence. From the top, Dillashaw landed punches and elbows until Easton stood up. Dillashaw just missed with a knee as the fighters separated. Easton threw side kicks to the body and Dillashaw fired back with a nice combination. He followed with kicks to the upper and lower body and kept Easton on the defensive with punches until the bell. 10-9 Dillashaw.
Round 2:
Round two began with both fighters landing big punches and leg kicks in the opening seconds. Easton ducked under a head kick and tried for a takedown, but Dillashaw took his back. A bloodied Easton rolled to his back and Dillashaw struck from the top in half-guard. He threw knees to the body and a series of left hands. Easton stood and ate a huge knee for his efforts.
Easton attempted a spinning back kick, but Dillashaw took him back down and worked for a rear-naked choke as Easton kneeled against the cage. Easton fell to his back and Dillashaw struck from top position once again. Easton stood with Dillashaw on his back and Dillashaw threw knees to the thighs. He continued to score with knees, then took Easton down before the bell. 10-9 Dillashaw.
Round 3:
Dillashaw tagged Easton with three right hooks early in the final round and he slipped under Easton’s counterpunches. Dillashaw landed quick one-two combinations and he remained a step ahead of Easton in the exchanges. A Superman punch landed for Dillashaw and he followed with an uppercut. More right hands and jabs landed for Dillashaw and he stepped free of an Easton takedown attempt. Dillashaw flurried again in the final minute and mixed in body kicks. Easton answered with leg kicks, but Dillashaw landed punches and a knee before time expired. 10-9 Dillashaw.
Winner: T.J. Dillashaw by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 9-2-0.
Yoel “Soldier of God” Romero Palacio vs Derek Brunson
Round 1:
Romero attempted a flying knee early in the fight, but Brunson took him down. Romero stood and Brunson landed a lead right hand followed by a left. A huge head kick landed for Brunson and Romero walked right through it. The fighters traded leg kicks and Romero landed a grazing uppercut. He attempted a jumping switch knee and took Brunson down, but Brunson stood and dropped Romero with a counter one-two. Brunson took Romero’s back on the feet and fought off a kimura by slamming Romero to the ground. 10-9 Brunson.
Round 2:
Brunson scored with an early one-two in the second round and time was called after Romero punched Brunson in the groin. Action resumed and Romero became more aggressive with his punches. Brunson responded with a standing elbow and he followed with a glancing head kick. Romero flurried to the body and jumped in with a knee. Brunson took Romero down and transitioned from half-guard to mount. He landed punches from the top until Romero scrambled back to his feet. Romero failed with a takedown attempt, but he landed an uppercut in the final 30 seconds. 10-9 Brunson.
Round 3:
Brunson backed Romero up with a left cross in round three, but Romero easily stuffed a takedown attempt. Brunson kicked to the lead leg and body until Romero dropped him to a knee with a left hook. Brunson recovered and fired back with a knee and a combination. Romero hurt him again with power punches and Brunson eventually fell to his back. Romero punched away as Brunson bled all over the canvas. A brutal series of elbows to the body forced referee Blake Grice to finally intervene to stop the fight.
Winner: Yoel Romero Palacio by TKO (Punches & Elbows) at 3:23 of round three. He improves to 7-1-0.
John Moraga vs Dustin Ortiz
Round 1:
Ortiz landed a hard right hook right away and stuffed a takedown attempt. Ortiz worked for a takedown of his own, but he too was thwarted. The fighters traded knees in the clinch until Ortiz finally got Moraga down. Ortiz landed short strikes from the top and he prevented Moraga from getting back to his feet. Ortiz alternated between half-guard and guard and continued to pepper Moraga with punches and elbows until the bell. 10-9 Ortiz.
Round 2:
The second round began with an exchange of punches and Moraga landed a quick one-two. He followed with leg kicks and both men landed left hooks. A leg kick, left hook combo rocked Ortiz and Moraga held him against the cage. Moraga targeted the body with punches and knees. Ortiz slipped and Moraga hopped on his back.
Moraga landed elbows to the side of Ortiz’s head and locked on a rear-naked choke. Ortiz managed to spin and escape into side control. Moraga scrambled up and fought free of a front choke. He landed a hard one-two on the feet, but Ortiz took his back late in the round. 10-9 Moraga.
Round 3:
Moraga landed a right hand and a front kick early in the final round. He sprawled out of a takedown attempt and narrowly missed with a head kick. Moraga stayed active with quick kicks and jabs. Ortiz replied with a combination. Both men landed short punches in close and Ortiz flurried with left and right hands. He took Moraga down and landed short punches and elbows from half-guard. Moraga eventually stood and Ortiz took his back. He held Moraga against the cage and landed knees, then took Moraga down just before the end of the fight. 10-9 Ortiz.
Winner: John Moraga by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 14-2-0.
Cole “Magrinho” Miller vs Sam Sicilia
Round 1:
Miller opened the action with leg and body kicks in the first round and Sicilia replied with counter left hooks. Miller scored with a head kick and a nice right hand. Sicilia answered with a looping right hook that grazed behind the ear. A left hook landed for Miller, but Sicilia backed him up with another right hand. In the final minute, Miller stayed outside of Sicilia’s range and landed occasional leg kicks and right hooks. 10-9 Miller.
Round 2:
Miller jabbed in round two and he hurt Sicilia with a one-two. Sicilia tried unsuccessfully for a takedown and Miller just missed with a knee. Sicilia began to throw leg kicks, but Miller dropped him with a right cross. Miller followed with more punches and locked on a guillotine choke on a kneeling Sicilia. Miller transitioned to Sicilia’s back and secured a rear-naked choke that forced Sicilia to submit.
Winner: Cole Miller by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:54 of round two. He improves to 21-8-0.
Undercard Fights:
– Ramsey Nijem defeated Justin “Fast Eddy” Edwards by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 8-4-0 with the win.
– Elias “Xuxu” Silverio defeated Isaac Vallie-Flagg by Unanimous Decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27) after three rounds. He improves to 10-0-0 with the win.
– Trevor “Hot Sauce” Smith defeated Brian “B-Hue” Houston by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 11-4-0 with the win.
– Louis “Da Last Samurai” Smolka defeated Alptekin “The Turkish Delight” Ozkilic by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 7-0-0 with the win.
– Vinc “From Hell” Pachel defeated Garett Whiteley by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 8-1-0 with the win.
– Beniel Dariush defeated Charlie “The Spaniard” Brenneman by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:45 of round one. He improves to 7-0-0 with the win.