The Ultimate Fighting Championship came to the Consol Energy Center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania tonight for UFC Fight Night 83: “Cerrone vs Oliveira.” The event was headlined by a five-round welterweight showdown between contenders Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone and Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira.
Also on the card tonight, Derek Brunson took on Roan “Jucao” Carneiro in the middleweight co-feature. Cody “No Love” Garbrandt met Augusto “Tanquinho” Mendes, and Dennis “The Menace” Bermudez battled Tatsuya “Crusher” Kawajiri. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the main card.
Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone vs Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira
Round 1:
The fight began with an exchange of powerful knees to the body and Oliveira backed Cerrone up against the cage. Cerrone broke free and Oliveira landed a spinning back kick. He followed with a one-two and a right hook, but Cerrone took him down. He moved to mount and locked on a mounted triangle choke. As Cerrone rolled to his back with the choke, Oliveira was already tapping out.
Winner: Donald Cerrone by Submission (Triangle Choke) at 2:33 of round one. He improves to 29-7-0, 1 NC.
Derek Brunson vs Roan “Jucao” Carneiro
Round 1:
Brunson landed a lunging combination of punches in the opening minute and he fought off a takedown attempt. Carneiro slipped and Brunson absolutely unloaded with punches from the top. The fight appeared to be on the brink of being stopped, but Carneiro weathered the initial storm. Brunson unleashed another barrage of punches and Carneiro was briefly rendered unconscious.
Winner: Derek Brunson by KO (Punches) at 2:38 of round one. He improves to 15-3-0.
Cody “No Love” Garbrandt vs Augusto “Tanquinho” Mendes
Round 1:
Both men landed lead left hooks early on and Garbrandt countered a leg kick with a right cross. Mendes tried to pull guard with a triangle choke and he switched to an omoplata briefly. Back on the feet, Garbrandt landed a leg kick and followed with a quick flurry. Mendes backed him up with a short uppercut, but Garbrandt regained his footing and floored him with a lunging two-punch combo that left Mendes struggling to remain conscious on the mat.
Winner: Cody Garbrandt by KO (Punches) at 4:18 of round one. He improves to 8-0-0.
Dennis “The Menace” Bermudez vs Tatsuya “Crusher” Kawajiri
Round 1:
Kawajiri landed a spinning backfist in the opening minute and both fighters threw front kicks to the body. Bermudez clinched and threw Kawajiri to the mat, then hopped on his back. Kawajiri shook him off and transitioned to side control. Bermudez battled back to his feet, but Kawajiri took him back down two more times in the final minute. 10-9 Kawajiri.
Round 2:
Bermudez closed the distance and clinched in round two, and he locked on a standing guillotine choke. Kawajiri freed himself and Bermudez landed right hands while dragging him to the canvas. The fighters stood and Bermudez fought off two takedown attempts. He landed hard left hands to the side of Kawajiri’s face and followed with elbows. Bermudez looked to finish the fight with a rear-naked choke shortly before the bell. 10-9 Bermudez.
Round 3:
Bermudez rushed in and took Kawajiri down early in the final round. He tried for a kimura and a front choke as Kawajiri worked back up to his feet. Bermudez easily stuffed a takedown and he pinned Kawajiri against the fence. Kawajiri tried to pull guard with a guillotine choke, but Bermudez escaped and stood up. He landed a head kick and followed with a right hook. Bermudez jumped on Kawajiri’s back and landed knees as Kawajiri stood up. He took Kawajiri down once more and finished the round with ground and pound. 10-9 Bermudez.
Winner: Dennis Bermudez by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 15-5-0.
Chris Camozzi vs Joe “Diesel” Riggs
Round 1:
Camozzi stunned Riggs with a jab right away and he rushed in with a barrage of knees as Riggs covered up. Three big knees floored Riggs and the brief fight was waved off.
Winner: Chris Camozzi by TKO (Knees) at 0:26 of round one. He improves to 23-10-0.
“The” James Krause vs Shane “Shaolin” Campbell
Round 1:
The fight began with an exchange of strikes on the feet and Krause mixed things up well with body kicks and uppercuts in the opening two minutes. Campbell countered with kicks of his own including one to Krause’s liver. The fighters traded big punches and Krause backed Campbell up. Campbell stunned Krause with an overhand right and a kick to the upper body, but Krause recovered and scored a takedown into back control. Campbell dove forward in an effort to throw him off, but Krause locked on a rear-naked choke and Campbell was narrowly saved by the bell. 10-9 Krause.
Round 2:
Campbell scored a trip takedown in the second round, but Krause countered with an armbar attempt and he took Campbell’s back after the fight returned to the feet. Campbell turned into a clinch and Krause dragged him down to the mat. He took Campbell’s back again and worked for another rear-naked choke. Campbell scrambled free and landed a hard knee to the chest. The fighters stood and both scored takedowns in the final minute. Krause closed out the round on top. 10-9 Krause.
Round 3:
After an exchange of punches and body kicks, the fighters battled for position in a clinch against the cage in round three. Campbell pinned Krause against the fence, but Krause circled away each time and landed body kicks. Campbell tripped Krause to the mat and took his back seconds later. He worked for both a rear-naked choke and an arm-triangle choke, but Krause defended well. Campbell closed out the round with punches from back control. 10-9 Campbell.
Winner: James Krause by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 23-7-0.
Undercard Fights:
– Sean “Tarzan” Strickland defeated Alex “The Dominican Nightmare” Garcia by TKO (Punches) at 4:25 of round three. He improves to 17-1-0 with the win.
– Oluwale “The Holy War Angel” Bamgbose defeated Daniel Sarafian by KO (Head Kick & Punches) at 1:00 of round one. He improves to 6-1-0 with the win.
– Anthony “Lionheart” Smith defeated Leonardo “Leleco” Guimarães by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 25-11-0 with the win.
– Nathan “Soulforce” Coy defeated Jonavin “Spyder” Webb by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 15-6-0 with the win.
– Ashlee Evans-Smith defeated Marion “The Belizean Bruiser” Reneau by Split Decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. She improves to 4-1-0 with the win.
– Lauren Murphy defeated Kelly Faszholz by TKO (Elbows & Punches) at 4:55 of round three. She improves to 9-2-0 with the win.
– Shamil “Abrek” Abdurakhimov defeated Anthony “Freight Train” Hamilton by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 16-3-0 with the win.