The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut tonight for UFC Fight Night 50: “Jacaré vs Mousasi 2.” The event was headlined by a middleweight rematch between Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza and Gegard “The Dreamcatcher” Mousasi.
In the heavyweight co-feature, “Big” Ben Rothwell battled former Strikeforce and DREAM champion Alistair Overeem. Also in the heavyweight division, Matt Mitrione faced fellow knockout artist Derrick “The Black Beast” Lewis. MMARising.com has play-by-play and results for the UFC main card.
Ronaldo “Jacaré” Souza vs Gegard “The Dreamcatcher” Mousasi
Round 1:
Souza clinched and methodically worked for a takedown until he was finally able to get Mousasi down midway through the round. He worked from the top in Mousasi’s half-guard until Mousasi scrambled and attempted a triangle choke. Souza stood and Mousasi looked to replicate his previous win over Souza by landing upkicks from the bottom. Souza dropped down into side control and attempted a kimura, but time expired. 10-9 Souza.
Round 2:
Souza landed some nice left and right hooks early in the second round and he followed with a head kick. The fighters clinched and Souza tripped Mousasi to the mat. He worked from the top in Mousasi’s half-guard and looked to set up a kimura. Mousasi attempted to scramble back to his feet and Souza blasted him with a hammerfist. Mousasi upkicked from his back and Souza passed to side control. He nearly got a kimura before the bell, but Mousasi defended well until the end of the round. 10-9 Souza.
Round 3:
Both fighters landed stiff jabs in round three and Souza followed with a combination. He scored with knees in the clinch and another hard flurry. Souza took Mousasi down and worked from the top until Mousasi battled back to his feet against the cage. Souza shot in and took Mousasi down again. He punched from the top and nearly passed to mount. In a scramble, Souza locked on a guillotine choke and pulled guard. Mousasi had nowhere to go and tapped out.
Winner: Ronaldo Souza by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 4:30 of round three. He improves to 21-3-0, 1 NC.
“Big” Ben Rothwell vs Alistair Overeem
Round 1:
Overeem immediately connected with an overhand right and a front kick to Rothwell’s knee. He followed with knees and uppercuts and backed Rothwell up with a right hook. Overeem kicked at Rothwell’s lead leg and Rothwell rocked him with an uppercut. Overeem clinched in order to buy time to recover. Overeem targeted the body with a knee and a body kick, but Rothwell dropped him with a hook to the temple. He followed with more punches on the ground and referee Keith Peterson stopped the fight.
Winner: Ben Rothwell by TKO (Punches) at 2:19 of round one. He improves to 34-9-0.
Matt Mitrione vs Derrick “The Black Beast” Lewis
Round 1:
Mitrione landed a lunging right forearm early in the fight that badly rocked and dropped Lewis against the cage. Lewis struggled to remain conscious as Mitrione unloaded with punches on the ground. Mitrione continued to strike until Lewis was out cold and the fight was waved off.
Winner: Matt Mitrione by KO (Punches) at 0:41 of round one. He improves to 8-3-0.
Joe “J-Lau” Lauzon vs “Maverick” Michael Chiesa
Round 1:
Lauzon caught an early kick and tripped Chiesa to the mat, then took his back on the way up. Lauzon landed body shots and Chiesa countered with knees in the clinch. The fighters exchanged punches and Lauzon clinched again. Chiesa scored with more knees and he took Lauzon down into back control. Lauzon initiated a scramble and he wound up on top in mount. Chiesa gave up his back and Lauzon punished him with punches. He remained on Chiesa’s back and landed more punches. The fighters stood and exchanged wild strikes late in the round. Chiesa landed a jumping knee and a head kick. 10-9 Lauzon.
Round 2:
Chiesa landed a knee and Lauzon answered with one-twos in the second round. Lauzon countered a knee with a takedown and he tried for a rolling kimura as Chiesa stood up. Lauzon scored with a hook to the body and a series of knees. One opened a bad cut above Chiesa’s right eye, but he pressed forward with a combination. Time was called to check on Chiesa’s massive cut above his eye and the fight was stopped on the advice of the cageside doctor.
Winner: Joe Lauzon by TKO (Doctor Stoppage) at 2:14 of round two. He improves to 24-9-0.
Undercard Fights:
– John Moraga defeated Justin “Tank” Scoggins by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 0:47 of round two. He improves to 15-3-0 with the win.
– “Raging” Al Iaquinta defeated Rodrigo Damm by TKO (Punches & Elbows) at 2:41 of round three. He improves to 9-3-1 with the win.
– Rafael “Sapo” Natal defeated Chris Camozzi by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 18-6-1 with the win.
– Chris “The Real Deal” Beal defeated Tateki “Tech” Matsuda by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 10-0-0 with the win.
– Chas “The Scrapper” Skelly defeated Sean Soriano by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 13-1-0 with the win.