The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to American Airlines Arena in Dallas, Texas tonight for UFC 171: “Hendricks vs Lawler.” The event was headlined by a five-round UFC Welterweight Championship bout between top contenders Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks and “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler.
In tonight’s co-main event, “The Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit faced off against Tyron “The Chosen One” Woodley in a welterweight title eliminator. Diego “The Dream” Sanchez battled Myles “The Fury” Jury in a lightweight showdown. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for tonight’s card.
UFC Welterweight Championship
Johny “Bigg Rigg” Hendricks vs “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler
Round 1:
Lawler caught a kick and landed a series of left hands in the opening seconds. He followed with a knee and backed away. Lawler landed an uppercut as Hendricks closed in and clinched. Hendricks landed two left hands and broke free. He rushed forward again and ate another uppercut. Lawler pawed out with jabs and left hands, but Hendricks replied with an overhand left of his own. He landed another one and Lawler snapped his head back with a jab. Hendricks pressed forward with punches and a body kick. He clinched against the cage until time expired. Close round. 10-9 Lawler, just barely.
Round 2:
Lawler landed a nice left hook in the second round and both fighters scored with punches in an exchange. Hendricks followed with a chopping leg kick and a series of short jabs. Quick punches, knees and another leg kick all landed for Hendricks. He continued to mix up his strikes with punching combinations and knees when Lawler ducked his head. Lawler landed a hard right-left combo and stuffed a takedown, but Hendricks snuck in a left hook. Jabs and uppercuts landed for Hendricks and he got the better of the exchanges as the round progressed. He landed a knee and a combination, but ate a left hook at the bell. 10-9 Hendricks.
Round 3:
Lawler began round three with a leg kick and the fighters kicked at each other’s legs for the next ten seconds. Hendricks pressed the action with punches, knees and more leg kicks. He grazed Lawler’s chin with an uppercut and both men landed hard left hooks. Lawler hurt Hendricks with a left hand and wobbled him again with more punches.
Hendricks stayed on his feet, but Lawler continued to tee off. Lawler stuffed a takedown and kept Hendricks on the defensive with jabs and left hands. Hendricks began to recover and he just missed with a knee. Hendricks landed a powerful left hook and he established his jab once again. Hendricks landed more jabs in the final 20 seconds. 10-9 Lawler.
Round 4:
Lawler hurt Hendricks again with hooks and a knee in the fourth round, but Hendricks regained his footing and landed a leg kick. Lawler landed a kick-punch combo and Hendricks fired right back with a flurry. He tried for a takedown and Lawler stuffed it. Hendricks began to bleed heavily from below the right eye. Both men landed jabs and crosses in close and Lawler backed Hendricks up with an overhand left.
Hendricks landed a punch-kick combo and ate a vicious uppercut in return. He took a step backwards, but recovered and landed an uppercut of his own. Lawler targeted Hendricks’s damaged right eye with left hooks, but Hendricks chopped away at his lead leg with kicks. He took Lawler down against the cage and secured a front headlock as time expired. 10-9 Lawler.
Round 5:
Lawler landed an overhand left and a series of jabs in the opening minute of round five. Hendricks shot in for a takedown, but Lawler posted and stayed on his feet. Hendricks kneed Lawler’s thigh and continued to try to get Lawler down. The fighters were separated and Hendricks landed a hard leg kick. Lawler put together quick combinations and stuffed a takedown.
Both men landed jabs and Lawler connected with one-twos and hooks. Hendricks backed him up with a counter left hand and kept the pressure on with more punches. Lawler appeared to be hurt, but he stayed on his feet as Hendricks unloaded with hooks and uppercuts. Hendricks took Lawler down and tried to move to mount. The fighters traded punches on the ground until the final bell. 10-9 Hendricks.
Winner: Johny Hendricks by Unanimous Decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) after five rounds. He improves to 16-2-0 and becomes the new UFC Welterweight Champion.
Tyron “The Chosen One” Woodley vs “The Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit
Round 1:
Woodley landed a big right hand that backed Condit up right away and he followed with another one seconds later. Woodley continued to score with punches and he countered a spinning back kick with a right hook. The fighters clinched and Condit landed knees to the body. Woodley broke away and slowed down. Condit landed two quick combinations and Woodley took him down. Condit went for a triangle choke and Woodley slammed free. Woodley landed a right hook and a spinning back elbow before the bell. 10-9 Woodley.
Round 2:
Condit landed a head kick in the second round, but Woodley answered back with a right hand and a takedown. Condit winced in pain on the way down and appeared to have injured his right knee, but he remained active from the bottom by landing punches to the sides of Woodley’s head. The fighters were stood up and Woodley landed a vicious kick to Condit’s left knee. Condit stepped awkwardly on his right leg and collapsed to the mat, and the fight was stopped.
Winner: Tyron Woodley by TKO (Knee Injury) at 2:00 of round two. He improves to 13-2-0.
Myles “The Fury” Jury vs Diego “The Dream” Sanchez
Round 1:
Jury cracked Sanchez with a right hook early in the fight and he followed with a pair of head kicks. Sanchez rushed in with a right hook and Jury landed a counter one-two. The fighters clinched briefly and separated. Jury caught a kick and knocked Sanchez off-balance with a right hand. Sanchez pressed forward and ate another one-two. A hard right hook landed for Jury and he scored with another head kick. He took Sanchez down and fought off a heel hook attempt by landing a right hand. 10-9 Jury.
Round 2:
Both men landed looping hooks in round two and Jury stunned Sanchez with a standing elbow to the cheek. Sanchez began to bleed, but he landed a combination against the cage. Jury landed two more punches and a body kick, then ducked under a right hand from Sanchez. Jury avoided punches from a bloodied Sanchez and countered effectively with lead left hooks. He took Sanchez down and Sanchez locked on a guillotine choke. Jury escaped and landed an elbow. He landed two more hard punches after Sanchez stood up. 10-9 Jury.
Round 3:
Sanchez landed a barrage of punches in round three, but Jury was unfazed and he threw a kick to the body. Sanchez landed a liver kick and blocked a head kick. Jury jabbed and Sanchez continued to throw power strikes. He kicked at Jury’s lead leg and Jury tried for a takedown. Sanchez stuffed it and Jury threw a flying knee. He took Sanchez down and tried to move to side control. Sanchez attempted an armbar and Jury punched free. He took Sanchez’s back, but Sanchez turned into the clinch and pulled guard with a guillotine choke as the bell sounded. 10-9 Jury.
Winner: Myles Jury by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 14-0-0.
Hector “Lightning” Lombard vs Jake Shields
Round 1:
Lombard slammed Shields to the mat in the opening seconds and he threw Shields down a second time after Shields attempted a body kick. Shields stood and Lombard landed a hard combination. The fighters clinched and Lombard rocked Shields with more punches that cut Shields near the left eye. Lombard stuffed two takedowns and he landed punches and a knee. Shields fell to the ground and Lombard struck from the top until the bell. 10-8 Lombard.
Round 2:
Lombard landed two looping hooks and slammed Shields down to the mat in round two. Shields held Lombard in full guard until the fighters were stood up. Lombard slowed down, but he still easily sprawled out of a Shields takedown attempt. Shields jabbed and attempted head kicks, but Lombard blocked them. Lombard whipped him to the mat with a judo throw and finished the round on top. 10-9 Lombard.
Round 3:
Time was called early in the third round after Shields was struck in the groin twice. Action resumed and Lombard fought off a takedown. He tripped Shields and punched from his guard until the fight was stood up. Lombard stuffed another takedown and Shields pulled guard. Lombard landed short strikes and the fighters were stood up again. Lombard shot in late in the round and Shields locked on a tight guillotine choke with 15 seconds remaining. Lombard held on until the bell. 10-9 Lombard.
Winner: Hector Lombard by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 34-4-1, 1 NC.
Ovince St. Preux vs Nikita “Al Capone” Krylov
Round 1:
St. Preux caught an early kick and took Krylov down into side control. He escaped a Krylov guillotine choke attempt by locking on a shoulder choke from the top. Within seconds, Krylov was rendered unconscious and the fight was stopped.
Winner: Ovince St. Preux by Technical Submission (Shoulder Choke) at 1:29 of round one. He improves to 15-5-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)