The Ultimate Fighting Championship remained at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight for UFC on ESPN 17: “Santos vs Teixeira.” The event was headlined by a five-round light heavyweight contender’s bout between former UFC title challengers Thiago “Marreta” Santos and Glover Teixeira.
In the heavyweight co-main event, Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski faced rising star Tanner “The Bulldozer” Boser. Elsewhere on tonight’s main card, Raoni Barcelos squared off against Khalid “The Warrior” Taha at bantamweight. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the UFC on ESPN 17 card.
Glover Teixeira vs Thiago “Marreta” Santos
Round 1:
After an early exchange of jabs, Santos switched to a southpaw stance and he stunned Teixeira with a lead right hook. Teixeira shot in for a takedown and Santos countered with elbows to the side of his head. Teixeira suplexed him down to the mat and landed on top in mount. Santos got back to half-guard and Teixeira landed short elbow strikes. He mounted Santos again and then took his back, but Santos scrambled back to half-guard once again. Teixeira landed punches and elbows while preventing Santos from getting back up. Santos regained full guard with just over one minute remaining in the round, but Teixeira remained active from the top and he continued to strike with punches and forearms. Santos passed to half-guard once more before the bell. 10-9 Teixeira.
Round 2:
Santos opened round two with kicks to Teixeira’s lead leg and upper body. Teixeira responded with an overhand right and a takedown into Santos’s half-guard. Punches and forearm strikes scored for Teixeira as he dominated the action from the top. With 90 seconds to go, Teixeira passed to side control and he continued to attack with punches and elbows as Santos could do little more than cover up. Teixeira nearly got to mount, but Santos scrambled back to half-guard. With mere seconds to go, Teixeira passed quickly from side control to mount and he locked on a tight rear-naked choke after Santos gave up his back. Santos was in all sorts of trouble, but the bell sounded to end the round. 10-8 Teixeira.
Round 3:
Santos dropped Teixeira with a left hook early in round three and he dove in with more punches and elbows on the ground. Teixeira recovered, but Santos continued to land elbows and punches from Teixeira’s half-guard. Within seconds, Teixeira scrambled up from the bottom and he took Santos’s back on the feet. He dragged Santos down and locked on a rear-naked choke, forcing Santos to submit. Impressive rally in round three for Teixeira.
Winner: Glover Teixeira by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:49 of round three. He improves to 32-7-0.
Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski vs Tanner “The Bulldozer” Boser
Round 1:
Boser kicked at Arlovski’s lead leg during a tepid opening two minutes. He countered an Arlovski leg kick with a one-two and followed with another combination. Arlovski missed with a spinning back kick and he pressed forward with more kicks in the following minute. Boser landed leg kicks and both men connected with hard right hands at the bell. Uneventful round. 10-9 Boser.
Round 2:
The second round began with both men landing leg kicks and Arlovski narrowly missed Boser’s face with a side kick. Right hands landed for both fighters and Arlovski followed with a one-two. Boser threw kicks to Arlovski’s leg and body and Arlovski continued to counter with right hands. Boser closed in with two looping right hooks and Arlovski countered with a short uppercut. He backed Boser up with a body kick and Boser fired back with a flurry to the body and head. Close round. 10-9 Arlovski by a slim margin.
Round 3:
Arlovski opened the final round with a lunging flurry of punches and Boser responded with a counter combination and chopping kicks to Arlovski’s left leg. Boser grazed with a spinning backfist and he followed with more leg kicks. Arlovski backed Boser up with an overhand right, but Boser regained his footing and the fighters continued to trade leg kicks. Another right hand backed Boser up and he circled away before attacking Arlovski’s leg with two more kicks. The fighters exchanged right hands and clinched, with Arlovski landing a combination on the break. 10-9 Arlovski. Decision could go either way.
Winner: Andrei Arlovski by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 30-19-0, 2 NC.
Raoni Barcelos vs Khalid “The Warrior” Taha
Round 1:
Barcelos opened the action with a front kick to the body and he followed with a second one soon after. Taha pressed forward with a combination and Barcelos dropped him with a leg kick. Taha stood and Barcelos closed in with uppercuts and a head kick. He secured a Thai clinch and attacked with knees until Taha punched his way free. Barcelos slammed Taha down to the mat and mounted him, then took Taha’s back in search of a rear-naked choke. Taha defended and he eventually spun into Barcelos’s guard. Barcelos went belly-down with an armbar attempt from the bottom and Taha escaped. The fighters stood and Taha threw knees to Barcelos’s thigh. Barcelos reversed a clinch and tried to slam Taha down, but this time Taha maintained his balance. Both fighters landed hard punches in a late-round exchange. 10-9 Barcelos.
Round 2:
The pace remained high in the second round and Barcelos used front kicks to try to combat Taha’s aggressive punching combinations. Time was called after Taha was kicked in the groin. Action resumed and Barcelos continued to land kicks to Taha’s lead leg and body. He backed Taha up with a left-right combo and followed with another body kick. Taha fired back with hook-uppercut combos, but Barcelos scored with a right hand and a leg kick that led to a brief clinch. Taha circled away and Barcelos attacked his lead leg with more kicks. Taha ducked into a knee from Barcelos, who swarmed on him with big power punches in the final 15 seconds and Taha narrowly made it to the bell. 10-9 Barcelos.
Round 3:
Taha started strong in the final round, but Barcelos quickly put him on the defensive with a leg kick, a knee and a barrage of punches. He dragged Taha down and took his back in search of a rear-naked choke. Taha rolled to his back and Barcelos worked from the top in half-guard. Barcelos landed two hard punches and Taha spun into a kneebar attempt. Barcelos stood up to escape and that allowed Taha to get back to his feet. Both men landed combinations and Taha followed with an overhand right. Barcelos flurried with punches and mixed in leg kicks. More punches and leg kicks scored for Barcelos, but Taha continued to fight back with right hands and he shot in for a takedown late in the round. Barcelos stuffed it and the fight ended with both men landing big punches. 10-9 Barcelos.
Winner: Raoni Barcelos by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 16-1-0.
Giga “Ninja” Chikadze vs James “The Afro Samurai” Krause-Simmons
Round 1:
Chikadze just missed with an early head kick attempt and Simmons clinched. Chikadze fought him off and broke free, then landed a body kick and a straight left hand from a southpaw stance. As Chikadze landed another left hand, Simmons clinched and backed him up against the cage. Chikadze once again defended against Simmons’s takedown attempts and he escaped from the clinch once more. Soon after, Chikadze landed a hard kick to Simmons’s liver. He dropped him with a head kick and followed with punches on the ground until the fight was stopped.
Winner: Giga Chikadze by TKO (Head Kick & Punches) at 3:51 of round one. He improves to 12-2-0.
Xiaonan “Fury” Yan vs Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha
Round 1:
Both fighters were aggressive with punching combinations in the opening 45 seconds and Yan landed a hard counter flurry as Gadelha closed the distance. Gadelha scored a takedown and worked from the top until Yan got back to her feet against the cage. Knees were exchanged in the clinch and Gadelha tried to elevate Yan for another takedown. Yan defended well and she landed short right hands in the clinch. The fighters were separated with one minute remaining in the round and Gadelha took Yan down after catching a kick. Yan struck from the bottom with punches and an elbow as Gadelha punched from the top. Gadelha landed a nice elbow of her own just before the bell sounded. Close round. 10-9 Gadelha.
Round 2:
Yan jabbed and countered Gadelha’s punches with lead left hooks in the second round. She avoided a Gadelha clinch attempt and continued to score with jabs. Gadelha’s face began to swell up and Yan landed more jabs and overhand rights. Gadelha countered a leg kick with a nice right hand, but Yan was unfazed and she landed two right hooks in an exchange. Yan sidestepped a Gadelha clinch attempt and landed a left-right combo. Late in the round, she scored with a spinning backfist and Gadelha clinched. 10-9 Yan.
Round 3:
Gadelha clinched right away in the final round and Yan countered with knees to the body as she worked to free herself. Yan eventually broke free and she resumed jabbing at Gadelha’s nose. Gadelha shot in again for another takedown attempt and Yan easily stuffed it. She connected with an elbow and a three-punch combo. Gadelha clinched against the cage and Yan threw more knees while maintaining her balance. She reversed the clinch and landed short knees and elbows. Gadelha maintained her grip and she held Yan against the fence once more. The fighters traded knees until they were separated with 50 seconds remaining. Yan jabbed and landed a body kick that set off an exchange of power punches before the bell. 10-9 Yan.
Winner: Xiaonan Yan by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 13-1-0, 1 NC.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)