The Ultimate Fighter 13 concluded tonight at The Pearl at the Palms in Las Vegas, Nevada. The TUF 13 Finale was headlined by the welterweight final between Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson and Ramsey Nijem. The winner of the bout earned a six-figure contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Also on the card tonight, lightweight standouts Clay “The Carpenter” Guida and Anthony “Showtime” Pettis squared off in a contender’s bout, while Ed “Short Fuse” Herman returned after nearly two years away to face “Crazy” Tim Credeur. MMARising.com has play-by-play and results for the card.
TUF 13 Welterweight Final
Tony “El Cucuy” Ferguson vs Ramsey Nijem
Round 1:
Nijem opened the fight aggressively with punches, but Ferguson took him down and moved to half-guard. A scramble ensued and Ferguson landed punches as Nijem stood up. Nijem answered with a nice flurry of his own and shrugged off a takedown attempt. Nijem landed a one-two and both fighters connected with body kicks.
The fighters exchanged lead left hooks and jabs and Ferguson scored with a right cross. Nijem answered back with a rushing flurry and tried for a takedown, but Ferguson sprawled out. A left hook landed for Ferguson ans Nijem answered back with a combination. Ferguson floored Nijem with a right-left combo and knocked him out with two follow-up punches on the ground.
Winner: Tony Ferguson by KO (Punches) at 3:54 of round one. He improves to 11-2-0 and becomes the TUF 13 Welterweight Winner.
Clay “The Carpenter” Guida vs Anthony “Showtime” Pettis
Round 1:
Pettis landed a one-two early in the fight as Guida bounced around on the outside. A head kick partially landed for Pettis, but Guida caught a body kick and took him down. Pettis tried for a triangle choke and an armbar. Guida punched free, but Pettis continued to hunt for submissions. He exploded to his feet and just missed with a head kick.
Guida took Pettis back down against the cage and landed short shoulder thrusts. Pettis postured for a triangle choke from the bottom and threw hammerfists as well. Guida tried to pass Pettis’s guard, but Pettis countered with a brief Kimura attempt. Guida made it to half-guard and threw more shoulder strikes. 10-9 Pettis, despite Guida having top position.
Round 2:
Pettis landed counter hooks in round two and looked to keep his distance. Guida answered with a leg kick and took Pettis down. He pressed Pettis up against the cage and resumed throwing shoulder strikes. Pettis stood and Guida tried to take him back down. He nearly did so, but Pettis stayed up and the crowd grew restless.
Guida grabbed onto Pettis’s leg, but Pettis fought out with punches and landed a head kick. Pettis attempted a spinning back kick off of the cage, but just missed. A combination scored for Pettis, but Guida answered with a leg kick. Guida took Pettis down and landed short elbows. Pettis attempted a triangle choke and an armbar from the bottom. 10-9 Pettis.
Round 3:
After a brief exchange of strikes, Guida landed a hard right hand and took Pettis down in the final round. Pettis tried for an armbar and Guida used short punches and elbows to escape. More short strikes landed for Guida and he looked to briefly set up an arm-triangle choke as Pettis tried to get to his feet against the cage.
Guida kept Pettis down momentarily, but Pettis stood and used a hip toss to throw Guida to the mat. He took Guida’s back and landed punches, but Guida escaped out the back and took top position. He moved to side control and then to Pettis’s back. Guida tried to set up a rear-naked choke before time expired. Close round. 10-9 Guida, barely.
Winner: Clay Guida by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 29-11-0.
Ed “Short Fuse” Herman vs “Crazy” Tim Credeur
Round 1:
Herman landed an early one-two and a left hook as Credeur jabbed. A two-punch combo to the body and head also scored for Herman and he dropped Credeur with an uppercut. Credeur fell to his back and Herman followed with four punches that bounced Credeur’s head off of the canvas and forced referee Herb Dean to stop the fight.
Winner: Ed Herman by TKO (Punches) at 0:48 of round one. He improves to 18-8-0.
Kyle “Kingsbu” Kingsbury vs Fabio Maldonado
Round 1:
Kingsbury landed leg kicks and a barrage of knees early in the fight and followed with stiff jabs. Maldonado looked to set up a big right hand, but ate another jab. Two big knees scored for Kingsbury and he took Maldonado down, but had to fight out of a guillotine choke. Maldonado rolled over to mount, but Kingsbury escaped and stood up. Punches to the body were exchanged and Maldonado landed a combination.
Kingsbury answered back with a combo of his own, but Maldonado cracked him with a left hook. Kingsbury threw a three-punch flurry and a knee. Maldonado punched to the body and Kingsbury took him down. Maldonado scrambled to his feet and flurried to the body as Kingsbury landed knees. More big knees scored for Kingsbury late in the round, but he fell to the mat at the bell. Very close round. 10-9 Kingsbury.
Round 2:
Kingsbury opened round two with a pair of kicks to the body and a takedown. He landed on top in half-guard and tried to move to mount, but Maldonado reversed. On the feet, Kingsbury landed knees and Maldonado backed away. A head kick partially landed for Kingsbury and he continued to mix in knees. Three more hard knees landed for Kingsbury, but Maldonado was unfazed.
Maldonado punched to the body and shrugged off a takedown attempt. Kingsbury tripped him with a leg kick, but Maldonado stood and landed a right hand. Kingsbury took him down and escaped a guillotine choke. The fighters stood and Kingsbury landed a knee. A two-punch combo and a body kick scored for Kingsbury late in the round and the fighters traded punches. 10-9 Kingsbury.
Round 3:
Maldonado landed a nice left hook in the final round, but Kingsbury countered well with a body kick and a combination. Maldonado began to bleed from below the right eye, but he connected with a hard right hand and more punches. Kingsbury held strong and landed a knee, then took Maldonado down. Maldonado stood and Kingsbury landed more knees. Kingsbury’s left eye began to completely swell shut from Maldonado flurry.
Kingsbury slowed down and seemed to be bothered by his damaged eye. Maldonado began to pick him apart with jabs, but Kingsbury clinched and tried for a takedown. Maldonado reversed and the fighters separated. Kingsbury’s left eye completely closed up and he failed in a takedown attempt. Maldonado punched to the body from the top and the fighters were stood up. Kingsbury stuffed a takedown and landed knees. Maldonado got a takedown at the bell. Close round. 10-9 Maldonado.
Winner: Kyle Kingsbury by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 11-2-0, 1 NC.
Chris “C-Murder” Cope vs Chuck “Cold Steel” O’Neil
Round 1:
Cope jabbed early on and O’Neil answered with leg kicks. Cope targeted the body, but O’Neil closed the distance and clinched against the cage. He landed knees to the body and backed away. Leg kicks scored for both and Cope put together a quick combination. A nice left hook landed for Cope and he followed with another one.
Cope closed in with punches and O’Neil clinched. The fighters separated and O’Neil landed two hooks of his own. Cope landed a combination and a spinning back kick. O’Neil answered with leg kicks, but Cope landed one to the head. A hard kick to the body scored for O’Neil late in the round and the fighters traded kicks. 10-9 Cope.
Round 2:
More leg kicks were exchanged in round two and Cope followed with jabs. He pushed forward with a combination, but O’Neil clinched and countered with knees. Cope shrugged O’Neil off and landed a leg kick. He just missed with a spinning back kick and the fighters traded left hooks. Spinning back kicks missed for both fighters and Cope resumed jabbing.
O’Neil tried to set up a combination of his own and landed a leg kick, but ate a left hand in return. Cope flurried with punches, but O’Neil blocked them. Cope switched to leg kicks and found more success, then followed with a three-punch flurry. Cope managed to land more looping punches and a leg kick late in the round. 10-9 Cope.
Round 3:
As in the first two rounds, the final stanza opened with both fighters throwing leg kicks. Cope landed a short hook and clinched, then backed O’Neil up to the cage. He scored with an elbow over the top and shrugged off O’Neil’s takedown attempt. Cope landed a leg kick and a hard left hook that backed O’Neil up briefly. He began to mix up his strikes with a variety of kicks, including one to the head.
Cope stayed active with kicks and added knees in a clinch. O’Neil looked for a takedown, but Cope defended and backed away. He resumed kicking and O’Neil was forced to stay on the outside. A spinning backfist and a flurry scored for Cope and O’Neil covered up. Cope landed a combination and a looping overhand right. He remained active with punches and a spinning kick before the bell. 10-9 Cope.
Winner: Chris Cope by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 5-1-0.
Undercard Fights:
Jeremy “Lil’ Heathen” Stephens defeated Daniel “Danny Boy” Downes by Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 20-6-0 with the win.
George Roop defeated Josh “The Fluke” Grispi by KO (Punch To The Body) at 3:14 of round three. He improves to 12-7-1 with the win.
Shamar Bailey defeated Ryan “The Kid” McGillivray by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 12-3-0 with the win.
Clay “Heavy Metal” Harvison defeated Justin “Fast Eddy” Edwards by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 9-2-0 with the win.
Scott “Young Guns” Jorgensen defeated Ken Stone by KO (Punches) at 4:01 of round one. He improves to 12-4-0 with the win.
Reuben Duran defeated Francisco “Cisco” Rivera by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:57 of round three. He improves to 8-3-1 with the win.