The Ultimate Fighting Championship remained at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight for UFC on ESPN 22: “Whittaker vs Gastelum.” The event was headlined by a middleweight contender’s bout between former champ Robert “The Reaper” Whittaker and the resurgent Kelvin Gastelum.
In the heavyweight co-main event, Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski took on Chase “The Vanilla Gorilla” Sherman. Due to a last-minute lineup change, Tracy Cortez faced off against Justine Kish in flyweight action on tonight’s main card. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for UFC on ESPN 22.
Robert “The Reaper” Whittaker vs Kelvin Gastelum
Round 1:
Whittaker jabbed and landed lead left hooks while circling to his left. Gastelum walked him down and landed a hard one-two, but Whittaker finished another combination with a head kick that wobbled Gastelum and backed him up. Whittaker moved in with more punches including a stinging right hook and he took Gastelum down into half-guard. Whittaker kept Gastelum pinned down and landed short punches and forearm strikes to his face. Gastelum finally got back to his feet with 20 seconds remaining and landed one left hand before the bell. 10-9 Whittaker. Close to a 10-8.
Round 2:
Gastelum walked Whittaker down in the second round and Whittaker kept him at bay with snappy jabs. He mixed in kicks to Gastelum’s lead leg and used a body-lock takedown to get Gastelum down into side control. Gastelum rolled over and stood up, but not before Whittaker landed three punches to his jaw. An overhand right landed for Whittaker and Gastelum began to bleed from a cut below his right eye. Whittaker landed a head kick, followed by a one-two and a leg kick. Gastelum lunged forward with overhand lefts, with mixed success, and Whittaker used his jab to set up straight rights and leg kicks. He landed a kick to Gastelum’s body late in the round. 10-9 Whittaker.
Round 3:
After an early exchange of punches, time was called in round three when Whittaker was kicked in the groin. Action continued and Gastelum landed his best combination of the fight in the form of four power hooks while moving forward. Whittaker went back to his jab and he used it to set up a body kick and a lead left hook as Gastelum closed the distance. Whittaker’s jab continued to give Gastelum problems and he hurt Gastelum with a kick to the inside of his lead leg. Close round. Still 10-9 Whittaker.
Round 4:
Whittaker kept Gastelum guessing in the fourth round by mixing up his strikes with jabs and kicks to Gastelum’s lead leg and upper body. Whittaker partially landed with another head kick that opened a cut on Gastelum’s left ear. Each time Gastelum moved forward, Whittaker countered with two or three jabs and a follow-up right cross. Whittaker darted in and out with straight right hands until Gastelum finally took him down. Whittaker stood up immediately and he landed two leg kicks and an uppercut before the bell sounded. 10-9 Whittaker.
Round 5:
Gastelum landed jabs and overhand lefts and he looked for a finish early in round five. A brief clinch followed and Whittaker landed a leg kick and a right hand as Gastelum slowed down. Gastelum landed an overhand left and Whittaker snapped his head back with a front kick. He took Gastelum down into half-guard and used a shoulder choke attempt to set up a pass to mount. Gastelum scrambled free and stood up with Whittaker on his back. Whittaker rolled forward and maintained back control on the ground. He turned into Gastelum’s guard shortly before the bell and struck from the top with elbows. 10-9 Whittaker.
Winner: Robert Whittaker by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) after five rounds. He improves to 23-5-0.
Jeremy “Lil’ Heathen” Stephens vs Drakkar Klose
*Fight cancelled just prior to event due to a Klose injury.
Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski vs Chase “The Vanilla Gorilla” Sherman
Round 1:
Sherman struck first with a one-two and Arlovski answered with a quick combination. More punches were exchanged and Arlovski landed a solid right hand. He threw a head kick and a right hand that was answered by a lead left hook from Sherman. Arlovski circled to his left as Sherman pursued with jab-cross combos and leg kicks. Both men landed one-twos and Sherman backed Arlovski up to the cage with a series of left and right hooks. Arlovski recovered and the fight ended with an exchange of two-punch combos. 10-9 Sherman.
Round 2:
Cautious jabs were exchanged in the second round until Sherman landed a combination and Arlovski fired back with punches over the top. He continued to score with jabs and Sherman’s right eye swelled up. As Sherman moved forward with a combination, Arlovski ducked under and landed two hooks to the body before clinching. He tied Sherman up against the cage and landed another combination to the body as the fighters separated. Sherman began to limp after a leg kick from Arlovski, who landed a right hand before the bell. 10-9 Arlovski.
Round 3:
Arlovski targeted both of Sherman’s legs with kicks in the final round and time was called when he was kicked in the groin. The fight continued after a minute and Arlovski landed a leg kick, right hook combo. Sherman responded with a hard leg kick of his own. After trading combinations, Arlovski scored with more leg kicks and he landed overhand rights that got past Sherman’s guard. Arlovski continued to mix up his attacks with leg kicks and right hands in the final minute. He circled to his left and landed jabs and leg kicks as a frustrated Sherman struggled to land anything late in the round. 10-9 Arlovski.
Winner: Andrei Arlovski by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 31-20-0, 2 NC.
Jacob “Mamba” Malkoun vs Abdul Razak “Judo Thunder” Alhassan
Round 1:
Malkoun took Alhassan down right away and he worked for a guillotine choke as Alhassan sat up against the cage. Alhassan escaped and stood up, and he landed a right hand and a knee in close. Malkoun ducked under a lunging hook and tripped Alhassan twice. Alhassan quickly returned to his feet both times, but Malkoun got him down once more and landed left hands to the side of his face. Alhassan got back up with just over a minute remaining in the round. Malkoun took him down again and punched from the top. In the final 30 seconds, Alhassan returned to his feet and he landed a body kick before the bell. 10-9 Malkoun.
Round 2:
The second round began with an early takedown from Malkoun and he moved from half-guard to side control. Alhassan tried to escape to his feet and Malkoun secured a mounted guillotine choke. Alhassan refused to tap and he escaped, but Malkoun moved back to side control and then trapped Alhassan in an Anaconda Choke. He switched to a second guillotine choke and Alhassan used the opportunity to get back to his feet. Malkoun held him against the cage until Alhassan pushed Malkoun away and landed a body kick. Malkoun closed the distance with punches and worked for a takedown until the end of the round. 10-9 Malkoun.
Round 3:
Both men landed combinations of punches to begin round three and Malkoun tripped Alhassan to the mat. Little transpired on the ground and Alhassan eventually worked back to his feet. Malkoun kept the pressure on with lead left hooks that led to another clinch. He tripped Alhassan with 90 seconds to go and took his back as Alhassan rose to his feet. The round ended with Malkoun falling backward and Alhassan missed with a diving right hand. 10-9 Malkoun.
Winner: Jacob Malkoun by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 5-1-0.
Tracy Cortez vs Justine Kish
Round 1:
Kish was very aggressive with punches right away and that led to a clinch against the fence. Both women attempted takedowns and Cortez ultimately reversed one into Kish’s guard. She attacked with hammerfists and an elbow to Kish’s face while avoiding Kish’s armbar attempts. Cortez eventually passed to half-guard and then to a top-side crufix. She transitioned to Kish’s back and trapped her in a body triangle until the end of the round. 10-9 Cortez.
Round 2:
The second stanza began with an exchange of right hands and Cortez clinched. She took Kish’s back and pulled her down to the mat. Cortez once again trapped Kish in a body triangle, but this time Kish scrambled free when Cortez uncrossed her legs. Back on the feet, Kish landed a combination and Cortez answered with a nice right hand. Single strikes were exchanged during the next minute and Kish followed up on a right hook with two leg kicks. Kish attacked with more leg kicks in the final seconds and appeared to narrowly take the round. 10-9 Kish.
Round 3:
Kish remained the aggressor in round three and she landed a combination early on. Cortez countered with a lead left hook, but Kish answered back with lead right hands and that led to a clinch. Cortez took Kish down and she landed hard right hands while transitioning to Kish’s back. Kish escaped to her feet and Cortez locked on a tight guillotine choke on the way. Kish stayed calm and pulled her head out, and the fighters traded leg kicks. Just as Cortez landed a body kick, Kish cracked her with a right hook. Cortez lost her balance and Kish briefly took her back as Cortez stood up. The fighters separated and Cortez landed another body kick. She clinched and landed a knee, but Kish responded with a pair of overhand right. Very close round. 10-9 Cortez.
Winner: Tracy Cortez by Split Decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. She improves to 9-1-0.
Luis “Violent Bob Ross” Pena vs Alex Munoz
Round 1:
Pena used long jabs to set up left hands early in the fight and Munoz responded with a takedown. Pena stood back up and broke free after Munoz landed a knee to his thigh. Munoz scored with an overhand left and two leg kicks. Pena fired back with a one-two and a flying knee. Munoz clinched briefly, but Pena pushed him away and landed a high knee. Munoz caught a kick and pushed Pena to the ground, then landed a combination as Pena rose to his feet. Late in the round, Munoz connected with two lunging hooks that appeared to stagger Pena momentarily. 10-9 Munoz.
Round 2:
Pena opened round two with lead right hooks to Munoz’s head and body. Munoz ducked under a head kick and landed a counter left hook. He narrowly avoided a step-in knee from Pena, then rocked him with a combination before slamming Pena down to the ground. Pena stood back up and he punched his way free of the clinch. A lead right uppercut snapped Munoz’s head back and both men landed jabs. Pena finished a combination with a kick to Munoz’s upper body. Munoz landed a leg kick and counter left hooks, and the round ended with an exchange of one-two combos. Back-and-forth round. 10-9 Munoz, barely.
Round 3:
Both fighters had success with jabs and leg kicks in the opening minutes of the final round. Munoz landed a nice overhand left and he took Pena down soon after. Pena immediately returned to his feet and he landed a knee t Munoz’s chest. Munoz clinched, but Pena broke free and he flurried with his best combination of the fight. Munoz lunged forward with looping hooks and he landed one to Pena’s jaw just before the bell. 10-9 Pena.
Winner: Luis Pena by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 9-3-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)