The Ultimate Fighting Championsip concluded its latest series of events at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight with UFC Fight Night 183: “Thompson vs Neal.” The card was headlined by a welterweight showdown between Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson and Geoff “Handz of Steel” Neal.
In the bantamweight co-main event, former UFC Featherweight Champion José “Scarface” Aldo battled Marlon “Chito” Vera. Also on the main card tonight, Michel “Demolidor” Pereira took on Kalinn “Khaos The Ox Fighter” Williams. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for UFC Fight Night 183.
Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson vs Geoff “Handz of Steel” Neal
Round 1:
Thompson kept his distance and threw kicks to Neal’s leg and body in the opening 90 seconds as Neal struggled to find his range. Quick punches were exchanged in close and Thompson continued to circle to the sides. Thompson landed a spinning back kick to the body and followed with a quick combination. Neal connected with an overhand left and he blocked a head kick. Time was called after an accidental clash of heads cut both fighters above their right eyes. Action continued and Thompson landed one leg kick before the bell. 10-9 Thompson.
Round 2:
Neal punched his way into an early clinch in round two and Thompson broke free with a combination. He threw side kicks to the body and just missed with a spinning wheel kick. More kicks landed for Thompson and he followed with a right cross. Neal was unable to land much of anything as Thompson picked his shots with body kicks and quick combinations. After an exchange of body kicks, Thompson lunged forward with a straight right hand that further opened the cut near Neal’s eye. Neal finally landed a combination late in the round and Thompson answered with a body kick. 10-9 Thompson.
Round 3:
Thompson remained a step ahead of Neal in the striking exchanges in the third round. He landed more kicks until Neal closed in with a flurry of punches. This led to a clinch against the cage, but Thompson broke free and he began to jab while circling around Neal. Two right hooks scored for Neal, but Thompson resumed circling and jabbing. He caught a kick from Nel, who held Thompson against the cage. Thompson circled out and partially landed with a head kick. Thompson put together a nice combination of punches and Neal responded with an overhand left. 10-9 Thompson.
Round 4:
Thompson darted in with two-punch combos and side kicks to the body in the fourth round until Neal initiated a brief clinch. Thompson circled away and he stunned Neal with a short right hand. Another right cross and a step-in elbow scored for Thompson, who followed with a knee to the body. Thompson slipped after throwing a spinning wheel kick, but Neal allowed him to stand and Thompson landed a combination. Punches were exchanged in the final minute and the round ended in a clinch. 10-9 Thompson.
Round 5:
Thompson’s right knee was clearly bothering him as the fight entered the final round, likely as a result of stepping awkwardly against the base of the cage, but action continued and both men landed big punches. Neal scored with two hard left hands and Thompson peppered him with a lightning-fast flurry in return. Thompson landed more punches to Neal’s head and body, but Neal cracked him with a heavy combo in return. Thompson maintained a boxing-centred strategy and he attacked Neal’s body and head. In the final minute, Thompson threw a spinning back kick and a quick combination of uppercuts in close. Neal responded with a hard left cross, but he was unable to follow up and Thompson landed a combination late in the fight. 10-9 Thompson.
Winner: Stephen Thompson by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) after five rounds. He improves to 16-4-1.
José “Scarface” Aldo vs Marlon “Chito” Vera
Round 1:
Leg kicks were exchanged throughout the opening minute and Vera backed Aldo up against the cage. Vera landed knees to Aldo’s thighs and Aldo threw short punches with his free hand. Aldo broke free and Vera landed quick leg kicks. Aldo countered with a hard left hook to the liver and he followed with chopping kicks to Vera’s left leg. Vera tried to clinch and Aldo shrugged him off. Aldo blocked a head kick late in the round and he flurried with punches to Vera’s head and body. Close opening round. 10-9 Aldo.
Round 2:
The second round began with Aldo landing two hooks to the body and another hard leg kick. He countered Vera’s strikes with lead left hooks and prevented Vera from closing the distance. Another left hook from Aldo knocked Vera off-balance, but he regained his footing and landed two kicks to Aldo’s left leg. Aldo fired back with an uppercut and a right hook to the body. Vera clinched and tried for a takedown, but Aldo defended well and both men landed knees to the body. Aldo secured a Thai clinch and he landed two knees before backing away. More knees to the body were exchanged and Vera held Aldo against the fence. He landed a standing elbow before the bell. Another close round. 10-9 Aldo.
Round 3:
Vera pressed forward right away in the final round and Aldo countered by taking his back. He pulled Vera down to the ground and hopped on his back in search of a rear-naked choke. Vera tried to shake him off, but he was unsuccessful and Aldo trapped him in a body triangle on the ground. Vera tried to spin into Aldo’s guard, but he could not do so and Aldo hunted for another rear-naked choke. Vera stood up with Aldo on his back and he dove forward in an effort to get Aldo off. Aldo maintained the body triangle and he tried for one more rear-naked choke. Vera broke his grip, but he could not shake Aldo off and Aldo landed punches to Vera’s face until the end of the fight. 10-9 Aldo.
Winner: José Aldo by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 29-7-0.
Michel “Demolidor” Pereira vs Kalinn “Khaos The Ox Fighter” Williams
Round 1:
Pereira kept his distance and darted in and out with single strikes throughout the first half of round one. Williams was patient as he waited to set up a big counter strike. With two minutes remaining in the round, Williams landed a hard right hand and Pereira resumed circling to the side. Williams caught a body kick and cracked Pereira with two power hooks. Williams landed a sweeping leg kick just as Pereira jumped into the air with a Superman Punch attempt late in the close round. 10-9 Williams.
Round 2:
A solid right hook connected for Pereira in the second round and Williams responded by rushing forward with a barrage of punches that led to a clinch. Pereira broke free and Williams landed two leg kicks. He snapped Pereira’s head back with a quick one-two, but Pereira regained his footing and landed a front kick and two jabs. Another body kick scored for Pereira, but Williams charged at him again and he landed three power punches before clinching with Pereira against the cage. Pereira reversed the clinch and he landed knees to the body. Williams broke free and landed two looping hooks, but Pereira countered with a three-punch combo and he leapt into a standing rear-naked choke. Pereira dragged Williams down while tightening the choke, but the bell sounded to end the round. 10-9 Pereira due to the late rally.
Round 3:
The fighters exchanged lead left hooks in round three and Pereira began to dance from side to side. Both men landed powerful combinations of punches and Pereira kicked to the body. He followed with a knee and Williams responded with punches over the top. In the final two minutes, Pereira took Williams down into side control and he moved to knee-on-belly position. Williams powered out and stood up. More punches were exchanged and Pereira landed a body kick and a head kick. He took Williams down again and closed out the fight with punches and elbows from Williams’s guard. 10-9 Pereira.
Winner: Michel Pereira by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 25-11-0, 2 NC.
Rob Font vs “Magic” Marlon Moraes
Round 1:
Moraes took Font down very early in the fight and he threatened with a guillotine choke after a scramble on the ground. Font stood up momentarily and Moraes took him back down into half-guard. Moares struck from the top until Font worked back to his feet. Font landed a three-punch combo and Moraes threw a spinning wheel kick in return. Font dropped Moraes face-first with an uppercut and he followed with numerous punches on the ground until the fight was finally stopped. Impressive finish for Font.
Winner: Rob Font by TKO (Punches) at 3:47 of round one. He improves to 18-4-0.
Marcin “Tybur” Tybura vs Greg “Prince of War” Hardy
Round 1:
Hardy landed two body kicks in the opening seconds and he prevented Tybura from clinching with him against the cage. Tybura landed an overhand left and a body kick which set off an exchange of power punches. Both men landed lead hooks and Tybura followed with a front kick to the body. He landed another body kick and Hardy responded with a right hook. Two lead left hands landed for Hardy and he backed Tybura up with a combination. A lead left hook and a straight right also scored for Hardy, who stuffed a takedown and landed a series of hard right hands. 10-9 Hardy.
Round 2:
Tybura landed an overhand left in the second round and Hardy targeted the body with right hooks. He stuffed a takedown but ate a jab from Tybura. A hard left hook landed for Tybura, who ducked under a counter combination from Hardy and continued to pressure him with forward movement. Tybura shot in for a takedown and he dumped Hardy to the mat. Hardy tried to scramble up and Tybura kept him down in half-guard. Tybura postured up with punches and landed almost two dozen of them before referee Dan Miragliotta finally intervened and stopped the fight.
Winner: Marcin Tybura by TKO (Punches) at 4:31 of round two. He improves to 21-6-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)