The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight for UFC 181: “Hendricks vs Lawler 2.” The event was headlined by a UFC Welterweight Championship rematch between Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks and “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler.

In tonight’s co-main event, UFC Lightweight Champion Anthony “Showtime” Pettis defended his title against top contender Gilbert “El Niño” Melendez. Travis “Hapa” Browne squared off against Brendan “Big Brown” Schaub in heavyweight action. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.

UFC Welterweight Championship

“Ruthless” Robbie Lawler vs Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks

Round 1:
Lawler pressed forward with hard left hands and knees to the body early on. Hendricks answered with left hooks of his own and Lawler continued to score with knees. Hendricks held him against the cage and looked for a takedown, but Lawler defended well. He threw more knees and punches, and the fighters separated after a knee from Hendricks. He kicked at Lawler’s lead leg and connected with a three-punch combination. Hendricks got Lawler down and landed short elbows from the top. Close first round. 10-9 Hendricks due to the late rally.

Round 2:
Lawler landed a head kick early in round two and Hendricks replied with leg kicks and a left hook. More chopping leg kicks scored for Hendricks and he pressed the action with a flurry of punches. Hendricks punched his way into a clinch and he tried for a takedown against the cage. He got Lawler down and Lawler countered with elbows. He eventually scrambled up and landed a front kick to Hendricks’s face. Hendricks mixed things up with more punch-kick combos. Lawler slipped while throwing a kick and Hendricks rolled for a guillotine choke at the bell. 10-9 Hendricks.

Round 3:
Hendricks fired off a combination of punches and a leg kick in round three and he followed with another one soon after. Hendricks backed Lawler up with two left hooks and he kept him at bay with jabs. A big combination and more leg kicks scored for Hendricks and he shot in for a takedown. Lawler escaped to his feet, but Hendricks took him back down against the cage and kept him down until the end of the round. 10-9 Hendricks.

Round 4:
Hendricks pinned Lawler against the cage again in round four, but he was unable to secure a takedown and the fighters were separated. Lawler landed two right hooks and a grazing head kick. Hendricks answered with a nice combination. Lawler threw another head kick that partially landed and Hendricks took him down. Lawler stood up and he picked up the pace with his punches. Hendricks clinched again and tried for a takedown, but Lawler defended and landed punches and elbows until the bell. 10-9 Lawler.

Round 5:
Both fighters came out throwing hard left hooks in the final round and Lawler stuffed a takedown against the cage. Referee Herb Dean called for a break and Lawler landed a body kick. An exchange of looping punches followed and Lawler defended against another takedown attempt. The fighters were separated again and Hendricks landed a left hook. He tried unsuccessfully for a takedown and Lawler defended with punches. He teed off with hammerfists and Hendricks was forced to adjust his position. Lawler elbowed to the body and swarmed on Hendricks with punches and knees on the feet. 10-9 Lawler.

Winner: Robbie Lawler by Split Decision (49-46, 48-47, 47-48) after five rounds. He improves to 25-10-0, 1 NC and becomes the new UFC Welterweight Champion.

UFC Lightweight Championship

Anthony “Showtime” Pettis vs Gilbert “El Niño” Melendez

Round 1:
Pettis stuffed an early takedown and landed a head kick, but Melendez got him down on his second try and landed knees to Pettis’s thigh after he stood back up. The fighters separated and Melendez punched his way into another clinch. He took Pettis down against the fence and landed some hard shots from the top. Pettis stood and threw another head kick, but Melendez pressured him with punches. Pettis backed him up with a counter left hook and stuffed a takedown. He attempted a flying knee and the fighters traded looping hooks and body kicks. 10-9 Melendez.

Round 2:
Melendez landed a pair of lead left hooks in the second round, but Pettis clipped him with a counter combination. Both men landed hard punches in close and Pettis stunned Melendez with a four-punch combo. He pulled guard with a guillotine choke and rolled into mount. Melendez had nowhere to go and tapped out.

Winner: Anthony Pettis by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 1:53 of round two. He improves to 18-2-0 and remains the UFC Lightweight Champion.

Travis “Hapa” Browne vs Brendan “Big Brown” Schaub

Round 1:
Browne caught an early kick and dumped Schaub to the mat, but Schaub quickly returned to his feet. He landed a five-punch combination and shot in for a takedown. Schaub got Browne down, but Browne returned to his feet against the cage. The fighters separated and Browne dropped Schaub with an uppercut. Schaub recovered on the ground, but Browne mounted him and dropped two big right hands. He took Schaub’s back and flattened him out, then landed unanswered punches until the fight was finally stopped.

Winner: Travis Browne by TKO (Punches) at 4:50 of round one. He improves to 17-2-1.

Todd Duffee vs Anthony “Freight Train” Hamilton

Round 1:
Heavy punches were exchanged right away and Duffee floored Hamilton with a massive right hook. Hamilton fell face-first on the mat and Duffee landed two more punches to seal the quick knockout win.

Winner: Todd Duffee by KO (Punches) at 0:33 of round one. He improves to 9-2-0.

Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson vs Abel “Killa” Trujillo

Round 1:
Trujillo backed Ferguson up with punches right away and Ferguson countered with a body kick. Trujillo dropped him with a right hook and swarmed on him with more punches as Ferguson got back to his feet. Looping hooks scored for Trujillo and he briefly took Ferguson down. Ferguson stood and Trujillo wobbled him with a right hand. He scored another takedown and Ferguson trapped him in rubber guard. Trujilo punched free and the fight returned to the feet. Ferguson landed a nice right hand and a jab. Trujillo cut him with punches in the final minute. 10-9 Trujillo.

Round 2:
Ferguson began round two with a stiff jab and a body kick and he punched his way free of a clinch. Ferguson stuffed a takedown and took Trujillo’s back. He attempted a kimura in a scramble, but Trujillo escaped and wound up on top. Ferguson got back to his feet and dragged a fatigued Trujillo down. Back on the feet, Trujillo ducked into a front headlock and Ferguson pulled him down again. He took Trujillo’s back and secured a rear-naked choke that forced Trujillo to submit.

Winner: Tony Ferguson by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 4:19 of round two. He improves to 17-3-0.

(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)