The Ultimate Fighting Championship made its way to Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento, California tonight for UFC on FOX 9: “Johnson vs Benavidez 2.” The event was headlined by a UFC Flyweight Championship rematch between Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and Joseph Benavidez.
Also on the card, former WEC champ “The California Kid” Urijah Faber took on Michael “Mayday” McDonald in a bantamweight bout. Chad “Money” Mendes faced Nik “The Carny” Lentz at 145 and Joe “J-Lau” Lauzon battled Mac Danzig at 155. MMARising.com has play-by-play for the main card.
UFC Flyweight Championship
Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson vs Joseph Benavidez
Round 1:
After an early exchange of kicks, Benavidez flurried with punches and Johnson shot in for a takedown. Benavidez stuffed it and remained aggressive with a head kick attempt and another combination. A one-two landed for Benavidez, but Johnson floored him with a massive right hook. He landed follow-up punches on the ground until the fight was stopped. Vicious knockout win.
Winner: Demetrious Johnson by KO (Punches) at 2:08 of round one. He improves to 19-2-1 and remains the UFC Flyweight Champion.
“The California Kid” Urijah Faber vs Michael “Mayday” McDonald
Round 1:
Faber took McDonald down right away and he landed short strikes from the top for close to three minutes until the fighters were stood up. McDonald landed two right hooks, but Faber caught a kick and countered with a right hand of his own. McDonald connected with a quick combination and ducked under a counter hook. A nice right hand scored for Faber in the final seconds. 10-9 Faber.
Round 2:
Faber pressed the action with punches and body kicks in round two. McDonald countered with a right hand over the top and time was called after he was kicked in the groin. After the restart, Faber rocked McDonald with a right hook. McDonald stumbled backwards, but he recovered and the fighters traded punches and leg kicks. McDonald landed a grazing head kick, but Faber rocked and dropped him with a flurry of punches. He locked on a top-side guillotine from mount and McDonald was forced to submit.
Winner: Urijah Faber by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 3:22 of round two. He improves to 30-6-0.
Chad “Money” Mendes vs Nik “The Carny” Lentz
Round 1:
Mendes rocked Lentz with punches early in the fight, but Lentz recovered and landed a body kick that backed Mendes up. Mendes took Lentz down, but he could do little with the position and the fighters stood up. Mendes scored with a one-two and he took Lentz back down. Lentz fought back to his feet and ate a hard combination. Mendes secured another takedown in the final 30 seconds. 10-9 Mendes.
Round 2:
The second round began with an exchange of jabs and leg kicks. Lentz pressed forward with a combination, but Mendes took him down. Lentz stood and landed two right hooks. Mendes scored another takedown, but Lentz was the more active fighter from his back. He kicked Mendes off and stood up. Two left hooks landed for Mendes and he took Lentz down again. Close round. 10-10.
Round 3:
Mendes landed kicks early in the final round, but Lentz quickly answered with a body kick. Both men landed right hooks and Lentz stuffed a takedown. Time was called after Lentz was poked in the eye and action resumed with Lentz landing more punches and kicks. Mendes took him down twice, but Lentz kicked him off. Mendes scored with a flying knee and attempted a guillotine choke in a scramble. Lentz escaped and stood up, but ate a one-two before the bell. Another close round. 10-9 Mendes, barely, due to the late rally.
Winner: Chad Mendes by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 16-1-0.
Joe “J-Lau” Lauzon vs Mac Danzig
Round 1:
Lauzon took Danzig down in the opening round and moved to mount. He dropped elbows and attempted a top-side triangle choke, then switched to an armbar. Danzig escaped and wound up on top, but Lauzon continued to work for submissions. He secured an omoplata and the fighters returned to their feet. Danzig flurried to the body and landed a knee. Both fighters landed short strikes in the clinch and Lauzon took Danzig back down. He closed out the round on top. 10-9 Lauzon.
Round 2:
The second round began with an exchange of leg kicks and Danzig landed an elbow over the top. He scored with a left hook to the liver and a quick combination. Knees were exchanged in close and Danzig attempted a trip takedown, but he wound up on the bottom. Lauzon cut him badly on the bridge of the nose with an elbow and passed to half-guard. He landed more elbows and mounted Danzig late in the round, then spun into an armbar. 10-9 Lauzon.
Round 3:
Danzig opened round three with a flurry of punches and a head kick. He mixed up his strikes well until time was called due to an accidental clash of heads. Action resumed and Danzig targeted the body. He followed with an uppercut, but Lauzon tripped him to the mat. Lauzon moved to a top-side crucifix and rained down elbows. He dropped more elbows from mount until Danzig scrambled up to his knees. Lauzon muscled him back down and finished the round with elbows from side control. 10-9 Lauzon.
Winner: Joe Lauzon by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 23-9-0.
Undercard Fights:
– Ryan LaFlare defeated Court “The Crusher” McGee by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 10-0-0 with the win.
– Edson Barboza defeated Danny “Last Call” Castillo by Majority Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28) after three rounds. He improves to 13-1-0 with the win.
– Bobby “King” Green defeated Pat “Bam Bam” Healy by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 22-5-0 with the win.
– Zach “Fun Size” Makovsky defeated Scott “Young Guns” Jorgensen by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 17-4-0 with the win.
– Sam “Hands of Stone” Stout defeated Cody “AK Kid” McKenzie by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 20-9-1 with the win.
– Abel “Killa” Trujillo defeated “Relentless” Roger Bowling by TKO (Punches) at 1:35 of round two. He improves to 11-5-0, 1 NC with the win.
– Alp “The Turkish Delight” Ozkilic defeated Darren “BC” Uyenoyama by Split Decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 9-1-0 with the win.