The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to Brazil for the first time in 13 years tonight at UFC 134: Rio. The event took place at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro and featured a bout between Anderson “The Spider” Silva and Yushin “Thunder” Okami for the UFC Middleweight Championship.
Also on the card, former UFC Light Heavyweight Champions collided when Mauricio “Shogun” Rua faced Forrest Griffin for the second time, and PRIDE legend Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira battled Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub at heavyweight. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the card.
UFC Middleweight Championship
Anderson “The Spider” Silva vs Yushin “Thunder” Okami
Round 1:
Silva landed an early leg kick and Okami came up short with a lunging one-two. Okami landed a left hook and followed with short uppercuts in close, but Silva backed away and scored with a one-two. The fighters traded jabs and Silva circled around the cage. Okami clinched and threw more uppercuts, but Silva countered well with knees to the body.
Both fighters threw knees and uppercuts in the clinch as Okami kept Silva pressed up against the fence. Silva landed two good knees and broke free of the clinch before landing a front kick to the body. Both fighters landed jabs and Silva countered a left cross with a body kick. Punches and a head kick scored for Silva just before the bell. 10-9 Silva.
Round 2:
Okami pushed forward with a one-two in the second round, but that seemed to fire Silva up and he answered back with punches and kicks. Okami jabbed and Silva dropped him with a straight right hand that was little more than a jab. Silva, with his hands down at his waist, landed another nice right hand after Okami stood. Okami connected with a left cross, but Silva floored him with a counter right hook. Okami turtled as Silva punished him with punches, knees to the body and elbows. Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight after a final salvo of punches.
Winner: Anderson Silva by TKO (Punches) at 2:04 of round two. He improves to 31-4-0 and remains the UFC Middleweight Champion.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs Forrest Griffin
Round 1:
The fighters circled early on and Rua countered a body kick with a one-two that came up short. Griffin landed leg kicks, but Rua drilled him with an uppercut and a knee. He followed with a one-two and a right hook to the body. Griffin stayed active with a variety of kicks, but Rua dropped him with punches. Griffin rolled to his side and Rua unloaded with brutal hammerfists until Griffin was rendered unconscious. Big win for Rua, who avenges a loss in the process.
Winner: Mauricio Rua by KO (Punches) at 1:53 of round one. He improves to 20-5-0.
Edson Mendes Barboza Jr. vs Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson
Round 1:
Barboza landed leg kicks early on and Pearson countered with swarming punches near the cage. He landed a combination that backed Barboza up and forced him to circle away. Pearson landed another one-two of hooks and Barboza answered with a knee to the body. Right hands landed for both fighters and Barboza threw a front kick. A one-two and a jumping knee, followed by a three-punch flurry, all landed for Pearson.
Barboza scored with a vicious spinning back kick to the liver, but Pearson was unfazed. He landed a leg kick and Barboza replied with one of his own. Pearson connected with left hooks and a body kick and blocked a head kick from Barboza. Pearson remained aggressive with jabs and quick punches, but Barboza landed a nice leg kick. Pearson scored with a knee and a left hook to the body. He followed with a high kick and clinched for a takedown. 10-9 Pearson.
Round 2:
Barboza landed kicks and dropped Pearson with a right hook in round two, but Pearson quickly got back to his feet. Barboza landed more kicks and a left hook to the body as Pearson recovered from the knockdown. Pearson threw a leg kick and backed Barboza up with a lead left hook. A right hook landed for Barboza, but Pearson countered well with a combination and mixed in kicks of his own. Barboza backed up and circled away.
The fighters traded punches and Barboza sprawled out of a takedown attempt. Barboza threw a front kick to the face, but Pearson answered with a nice right hand. A big right hook scored for Barboza, but Pearson walked through it. Barboza landed a spinning back kick and another kick to the body and Pearson threw a Superman Punch. A lead left hook landed for Pearson, but Barboza scored with more kicks. Pearson clinched and ate a knee. Barboza missed with a spinning hook kick. 10-9 Barboza.
Round 3:
Pearson landed punches in round three and Barboza continued to score with kicks to the legs and body. He followed with a flying knee, but Pearson caught it. Barboza backed away and just missed with a head kick. Both fighters jabbed and Barboza threw kicks to the body. A combination from Pearson backed Barboza up to the cage and Pearson tried for a takedown. Barboza shrugged him off and escaped the clinch.
Pearson landed leg kicks and avoided a head kick. He landed a knee and a leg kick, and Barboza answered with kicks in return. Pearson tried for a takedown, but Barboza stuffed it. A leg kick and a right hook landed for Pearson and he remained the aggressor. Pearson backed Barboza up with punches, but Barboza opened a cut beside his eye. A spinning back kick landed for Barboza and Pearson countered with a jumping knee. Close round. 10-9 Pearson.
Winner: Edson Barboza by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 9-0-0.
Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira vs Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub
Round 1:
The fighters traded jabs and Nogueira clinched early on, but Schaub backed him up to the cage. Schaub broke away and landed right and left hooks. Nogueira clinched again, but Schaub used punches to the body to circle out. Jabs and right hands landed for both fighters and Schaub continued to stay clear of the clinch. Schaub began to mix in front kicks to the leg and landed more jabs.
A nice combination scored for Nogueira, but Schaub landed a series of jabs and right hands that forced him to bob and weave. Seconds later, however, Nogueira landed a huge one-two that rocked Schaub and he continued to throw more punches until Schaub fell face-first to the mat. Good win for Nogueira in his first-ever fight in Brazil.
Winner: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by KO (Punches) at 3:09 of round one. He improves to 33-6-1, 1 NC.
Stanislav Nedkov vs Luiz “Banha” Cane
Round 1:
Cane landed a nice leg kick early on and followed with a pair of uppercuts. Nedkov fired back with right hands and tried to clinch, but Cane shrugged him off. Another leg kick and two left hands landed for Cane, but Nedkov continued to find a home for his right cross. Two looping overhand rights landed for Nedkov and he countered a head kick by knocking Cane down.
Cane stood and backpedalled as Nedkov rushed in. He scored with a punching combination and Nedkov appeared to briefly stumble. Nedkov, bleeding from the side of the nose, was tripped by a leg kick but stood up. Nedkov threw a right hook, then hurt Cane with two punches to the temple. Cane turned his back and stumbled towards the cage as Nedkov unloaded with more punches. Cane crumpled to the mat and the fight was eventually stopped.
Winner: Stanislav Nedkov by TKO (Punches) at 4:13 of round one. He improves to 12-0-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)