Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone vs Paul “Tellys” Kelly
Round 1:
Kelly opened the fight with a right hook as Cerrone looked to touch gloves, and Cerrone took him down. Kelly secured a weak guillotine choke from the bottom, but Cerrone escaped and moved to side-control and then mount. Kelly escaped and got back to his feet, then landed a hard one-two and a knee. Cerrone answered with leg kicks and Kelly fired right back with a head kick and a right hook. More quick punches landed to the head and body for Kelly.
Cerrone threw a body kick and Kelly responded with two looping right hooks. An uppercut also landed for Kelly and he countered a leg kick with another right hook. Cerrone, with his right eye swelling badly, threw a trio of kicks and took Kelly down. Kelly held on and landed an elbow from the bottom. Cerrone cut Kelly by the right eye with one elbow of his own and Kelly began to bleed badly. Close round. 10-9 Kelly, despite the late rally from Cerrone.
Round 2:
Short punches landed for both fighters in the early stages of round two and Cerrone fired off a pair of hard leg kicks. Kelly responded with two right hands and just missed with a left. Cerrone continued to land leg kicks as Kelly countered with left hooks. Cerrone took Kelly down and fought off a guillotine choke attempt.
Cerrone moved to mount and landed punches, then took Kelly’s back and secured a body triangle. Kelly defended as Cerrone landed punches and worked for a rear-naked choke. Cerrone rolled Kelly over and secured the choke, forcing Kelly to submit. Good win for Cerrone.
Winner: Donald Cerrone by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:48 of round two. He improves to 14-3-0, 1 NC.
Chad “Money” Mendes vs Michihiro Omigawa
Round 1:
Quick strikes were exchanged early on and Mendes landed a one-two. Omigawa countered with a leg kick and a left hook. He shrugged off a takedown and connected with two more punches. Mendes responded with a leg kick, but was unable to take Omigawa down. A hard right hand scored for Mendes, but he missed with a follow-up left. Mendes landed leg kicks and just missed with a looping right.
Both fighters scored with leg kicks and a punching exchange followed. Mendes landed a glancing overhand right and finally managed to take Omigawa down. Omigawa remained active off of his back and attempted inverted and reverse armbars. Mendes escaped and stood. Omigawa followed and Mendes landed a hard leg kick. Mendes just missed with a lunging one-two before the bell. Close round. 10-9 Mendes.
Round 2:
Mendes floored Omigawa with a big right hand in round two and followed with more strikes on the ground. Omigawa recovered and attempted an omoplata, then a heel hook. He used the latter hold to scramble back to his feet and Mendes landed two more right hooks. Mendes scored with a left hook to the body and a right to the jaw. Omigawa answered with a short right uppercut and began to walk Mendes down. Mendes continued to connect with right hooks and crosses.
Omigawa displayed extremely impressive takedown defence in staying on his feet. A clinch against the cage followed and Mendes landed a standing elbow over the top. He backed away and landed two right hooks, then a pair of leg kicks. Omigawa flurried with punches as Mendes appeared to slow down. He sprawled out of a takedown and landed elbows to Mendes’s ribs. The fighters stood and Omigawa landed two punches. Mendes took him down and landed an elbow that cut Omigawa. 10-9 Mendes.
Round 3:
Mendes landed right hooks in the early stages of the final round, but Omigawa was game and continued to push forward. Omigawa sprawled out of a takedown and attempted a guillotine choke, but Mendes scrambled out and took top position. Mendes landed short punches and elbows from Omigawa’s guard, but Omigawa defended well and prevented Mendes from landing anything damaging.
Omigawa retained full guard and threw hammerfists from the bottom as Mendes landed two elbows. Omigawa worked back to his feet and both fighters landed right hands. Mendes landed a counter right and a leg kick. Omigawa pressed forward, but ate a looping right to the temple. A trio of punches scored for Omigawa, but Mendes took him down. Mendes landed four hard punches just before the final bell. 10-9 Mendes.
Winner: Chad Mendes by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 10-0-0.
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson vs Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto
Round 1:
The fighters circled early on and Yamamoto used a left and a right hook to counter body kicks from Johnson. Two leg kicks followed for Johnson and Yamamoto answered with a one-two. Johnson clinched briefly and both fighters landed knees to the body. Yamamoto landed a pair of lunging right hooks and just missed with a left. Johnson scored a takedown, but Yamamoto quickly worked back to his feet.
A short left hook landed for Yamamoto and he followed with a left cross. Johnson ducked under a punch and took Yamamoto down again. Yamamoto stood, but Johnson drilled him with a combination and narrowly missed with a head kick. Johnson landed a knee and scored another impressive takedown. He landed short elbows until the bell. 10-9 Johnson.
Round 2:
Both fighters pawed out with jabs in the second round and Johnson landed leg kicks. Yamamoto looked to counter with left crosses, but Johnson kept his distance. Yamamoto attempted a kick, but Johnson stuffed it. He fell while throwing a head kick, but got right back to his feet. Time was called after Yamamoto was kicked in the groin. Action resumed and Yamamoto landed punches in close. Johnson countered with a leg kick, but failed in a takedown attempt.
Johnson scored with punches and stayed out of range of a counter kick from Yamamoto. A nice uppercut landed for Yamamoto, but Johnson was unfazed and scored a takedown. Yamamoto stood and ducked under a flurry from Johnson, but Johnson took him back down again. Yamamoto got back to his feet and both fighters scored brief takedowns. Yamamoto landed an inadvertent illegal knee as Johnson stood. He backed away and allowed Johnson to recover. The round ended seconds later. 10-9 Johnson.
Round 3:
An exchange of punches opened the final round and Yamamoto landed a big knee. Johnson was not hurt and quickly took Yamamoto down. Yamamoto stood and landed a short one-two, then followed with a knee and a right hook. Johnson fired back with a right hook and a knee of his own. Right hands landed for both as Yamamoto remained aggressive and pushed forward.
Johnson scored a quick takedown and looked briefly for a guillotine choke from the top. He let it go and the fighters returned to their feet. A hard one-two stunned Yamamoto and Johnson followed with a left hook and a body kick. He took Yamamoto down, but Yamamoto recovered and stood up. He landed a knee and Johnson backed away. Johnson took Yamamoto down and landed short elbows from the top until the final bell. 10-9 Johnson.
Winner: Demetrious Johnson by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 8-1-0.
“Relentless” Paul Taylor vs Gabe “Godzilla” Ruediger
Round 1:
Taylor scored with a solid right hand early on and Ruediger clinched. Taylor broke free and landed a one-two and a leg kick. He scored with another combination seconds later. A second clinch followed against the cage and Ruediger attempted to reverse position for a takedown, but Taylor had none of it.
Ruediger tried unsuccessfully for another takedown and Taylor again defended well. He backed Ruediger up to the cage and the fighters exchanged short strikes in close until referee Kim Winslow separated them. Taylor stuffed a takedown and landed a three-punch combo and a left hook before the bell. 10-9 Taylor.
Round 2:
Taylor opened the second round with punches that prompted Ruediger to fall to his back, but Taylor stayed on his feet and backed away. The fighters clinched on the feet and battled for position against the fence. Taylor unleashed a flurry of strikes that was punctuated by a left hook, a right cross and a head kick that dropped Ruediger face-first to the mat. The fight was stopped, giving Taylor a much-needed victory.
Winner: Paul Taylor by KO (Head Kick & Punches) at 1:42 of round two. He improves to 11-6-1, 1 NC.
Kyle “Kingsbu” Kingsbury vs Ricardo Romero
Round 1:
Kingsbury clinched right away and landed a big knee. He landed more knees to the body and followed with a left hook that dropped Romero and forced referee Steve Mazzagatti to intervene to save Romero from further damage. Very impressive stoppage for Kingsbury.
Winner: Kyle Kingsbury by TKO (Knees To The Body & Punches) at 0:21 of round one. He improves to 10-2-0, 1 NC.
Mike Pierce vs Kenny Robertson
Round 1:
Both fighters landed jabs early on and Pierce clinched. He took Robertson down, but Robertson managed to work back to his feet. Pierce kept Robertson pinned against the cage and threw occasional strikes, but referee Herb Dean soon separated the fighters due to inactivity. Robertson landed a right hook, but Pierce clinched again and backed him up to the fence. Pierce landed a punch to the body and took Robertson down late in the close round. 10-9 Pierce.
Round 2:
An exchange of punches opened the second round and Pierce connected with two punches that floored Robertson. Pierce dove in with more strikes on the ground and the fight was waved off. Good win for Pierce.
Winner: Mike Pierce by TKO (Punches) at 0:29 of round two. He improves to 12-3-0.