The Ultimate Fighting Championship remained at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada today for UFC Fight Night 190: “Gane vs Volkov.” The event was headlined by a heavyweight contender’s bout between the undefeated Ciryl “Bon Gamin” Gane and knockout artist Alexander “Drago” Volkov.
In the heavyweight co-feature, Tanner “The Bulldozer” Boser stepped in on short notice to face Ovince “OSP” St. Preux. Elsewhere on the main card, Raoni Barcelos battled “Lucky” Timur Valiev in a featured bantamweight matchup. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for today’s UFC card.
Ciryl “Bon Gamin” Gane vs Alexander “Drago” Volkov
Round 1:
Leg kicks were exchanged throughout the opening two minutes and Gane mixed in attacks to Volkov’s body including a front kick. He shot in for a takedown with two minutes remaining and Volkov stuffed it. He stuck to counterstriking and allowed Gane to throw first, but Gane still landed the more effective kicks in the back-and-forth round. 10-9 Gane.
Round 2:
The fighters continued to trade kicks as the fight entered round two Gane threw side kicks to the body and kicks to the outside of Volkov’s lead leg. Volkov landed occasional right hands in return and time was called when he was poked in the eye. Action resumed and Gane landed two more leg kicks. Volkov connected with his best combination of the fight, but Gane used his jabs and leg kicks to set up a flurry of his own. 10-9 Gane.
Round 3:
Gane was very effective with his jab in the third round, which he used to set up straight lefts and a variety of kicks. Volkov landed occasional right hands and a front kick, but Gane’s jab kept Volkov on the defensive. Gane countered a leg kick with a four-punch flurry and Volkov began to bleed from his nose. Gane threw quick side kicks to the body throughout the final minute and Volkov was unable to land much of anything. 10-9 Gane.
Round 4:
It was more of the same in round four, as Gane’s jab prevented Volkov from closing the distance. Volkov did land two right hands and he prevented Gane from scoring a takedown. Gane resumed jabbing and he finished combinations with body kicks. Volkov threw almost exclusively from his right side with single punches and kicks, and Gane landed another combination that was punctuated by a kick. 10-9 Gane due to taking over in the second half.
Round 5:
Gane continued to land first in the striking exchanges in the final round. Volkov countered with single leg kicks and right hands once again, but Gane moved side to side and scored with a hard kick to Volkov’s right forearm. Volkov landed two body kicks and Gane answered with a one-two. Gane’s jabs and leg kicks backed Volkov up to the cage and time was called when Volkov was poked in the eye. The fight eventually continued and the fighters exchanged quick leg kicks during the final 30 seconds. 10-9 Gane.
Winner: Ciryl Gane by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 49-46) after five rounds. He improves to 9-0-0.
Tanner “The Bulldozer” Boser vs Ovince “OSP” St. Preux
Round 1:
Boser started quickly with leg and body kicks, and he connected with a big overhand right. Another body kick and a looping right hook scored for Boser, who continued to move forward with overhand punches. St. Preux landed a body kick and ate two more leg kicks in return. St. Preux ducked into a head kick and Boser landed three more right hooks. Boser kept the pressure on with two body kicks and a combination, and St. Preux struggled to mount any offence in return. 10-9 Boser.
Round 2:
St. Preux countered an early combination from Boser with a liver kick in round two, but Boser chopped away at St. Preux’s leg and that prompted St. Preux to look for a takedown. He got Boser down into side control and tried to pass to mount, but Boser got to full guard in the process. He appeared to grab the cage in order to get back to his feet, but the infraction went unnoticed and the fighters stood. Boser landed a big knee and a right hook to St. Preux’s temple that dropped St. Preux to the ground and ended the fight. Replays showed that Boser did not grab the fence and he maintained a closed fist when pushing off from it.
Winner: Tanner Boser by KO (Knee & Punch) at 2:31 of round two. He improves to 20-8-1.
“Lucky” Timur Valiev vs Raoni Barcelos
Round 1:
Hard kicks to the body were exchanged during the opening 90 seconds and Valiev darted in with a quick one-two. Barcelos responded with a stiff jab and he clinched with Valiev against the cage. Valiev broke free and both men landed body kicks. Valiev attacked Barcelos’s lead leg as well and he circled from side to side. Barcelos connected with an overhand right, but Valiev continued to land leg kicks and he shot in for a takedown late in the round. Barcelos stuffed it and the round ended seconds later. 10-9 Valiev.
Round 2:
The second round began with both men landing leg kicks again and Barcelos looked to land one-two combos as Valiev constantly moved back and forth. A jab and a hard right hand landed for Valiev, who followed with an uppercut when Barcelos ducked his head. Barcelos closed in with a right hand, but Valiev cracked him with a three-punch combo and a knee. He followed that with two more uppercuts and Barcelos landed one of his own. The fighters exchanged left hooks and Valiev landed a right hand. He scored with a body kick, then caught one from Barcelos and tripped him. Barcelos scrambled up and dropped Valiev with a right hook. He swarmed with punches on the ground and a dazed Valiev returned to his feet. Barcelos floored him again with an uppercut and tried to finish him, but Valiev somehow made it to the bell. 10-9 Barcelos, if not a 10-8.
Round 3:
Valiev recovered between rounds and both men landed right hands early in the final round. Barcelos shrugged off a takedown attempt and landed a short uppercut. He knocked Valiev off-balance with a leg kick, but Valiev fired back with a left-right combo. He jabbed and mixed in kicks to Barcelos’s lead leg. Barcelos prevented Valiev from taking him down, but Valiev landed two hooks. Both men landed combinations and Valiev continued to attack with leg kicks. He went high with a head kick that was partially blocked and Barcelos connected with a nice right cross soon after. 10-9 Valiev.
Winner: Timur Valiev by Majority Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28) after three rounds. He improves to 18-2-0, 1 NC.
Andre “Touchy” Fili vs Daniel “The Pit” Pineda
Round 1:
Pineda connected with two right hooks to begin the fight and Fili spun him around with a lead left hook. Pineda clinched and Fili pushed him away. He rocked Pineda with a right hand and followed with four more punches as a dazed Pineda dropped levels for a takedown. Fili easily shrugged him off, but Pineda clinched again and held Fili against the fence. When the fighters separated, Pineda landed a hard leg kick and Fili switched stances. He landed a head kick, a right hand and another head kick that cut Pineda and hurt him. Pineda tried in vain for a takedown and was forced to get back to his feet. He hurt Fili with a second leg kick and Fili switched stances again. He dropped Pineda with a liver kick and followed with punches on the ground, but Pineda held him in half-guard and made it to the bell. 10-9 Fili. Could be a 10-8 despite the damage from Pineda’s leg kicks.
Round 2:
Fili continued to find success with head and body kicks from a southpaw stance in the second round. Time was called when Pineda was poked in his left eye. The doctor determined that Pineda was unable to continue, as he could not see, and the fight was stopped.
Result: No Contest (Accidental Eye Poke) at 0:46 of round two. Fili moves to 21-8-0, 1 NC, while Pineda is now 27-14-0, 3 NC.
Tim “The Dirty Bird” Means vs Nicolas “Danish Dynamite” Dalby
Round 1:
Means opened up with a head kick and that led to an exchange of power punches as both men landed hooks. Means took Dalby down and passed to side control. He landed a knee to the body and Dalby tried to work back to his feet against the cage. Means kept him down on his knees and then landed a knee to the body as Dalby finally got back to his feet. The fighters clinched and both landed knees to the body. Means opened a cut above Dalby’s right eye with a left hand and he dropped him with a one-two. Dalby got back to his feet and tried unsuccessfully for a takedown. 10-9 Means.
Round 2:
Dalby landed a nice combination early in round two and Means responded with a left hook to the body. A brief clinch followed and both men landed leg kicks after separating. Means scored with two left hands and a head kick, then followed with elbows to the side of Dalby’s head in another brief clinch against the cage. The fighters exchanged jabs and Dalby moved forward with a hard flurry of punches. Means countered with a left hook and a front kick to the body. He backed Dalby up with a kick to the upper body and an elbow, then took Dalby down into side control. He kept him down until the end of the round. 10-9 Means.
Round 3:
Dalby hurt Means with a series of punches early in the final round and Means began to bleed heavily from his nose. He clinched with Dalby and held him against the cage while throwing short knees to the body and left hands to Dalby’s face. As the fighters separated, Means landed a left hand and Dalby responded with a head kick that was blocked. Means shot in for a takedown against the cage and Dalby stayed on his feet. He created enough space to land a quick combination, but Means closed in again. Dalby stunned Means with another flurry late in the round. 10-9 Dalby due to damage.
Winner: Tim Means by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 32-12-1, 1 NC.
Renato “Moicano” Carneiro vs Jai “The Black Country Banger” Herbert
Round 1:
Carneiro took Herbert down into half-guard early in the fight and secured a second takedown after Herbert briefly got back to his feet. Carneiro passed to mount, but Herbert squirmed back to butterfly guard and momentarily elevated Carneiro off of him. Carneiro took mount a second time and he was once again elevated off by Herbert, who stood up and cracked Carneiro with a right hook. Herbert followed with a lead left hook and a leg kick, but Carneiro took him down and mounted him, then dropped punches from the top. 10-9 Carneiro.
Round 2:
The second round began with another takedown from Carneiro, who struck from the top and quickly passed to mount. He landed short right hands and prevented Herbert from posting up with his left arm. Herbert briefly got back to half-guard and Carneiro took his back as he stood up. Carneiro hunted for a rear-naked choke after getting Herbert back down and then returned to mount. He landed elbows and punches that hurt Herbert, then took his back and secured a rear-naked choke for the tapout win.
Winner: Renato Carneiro by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 4:34 of round two. He improves to 15-4-1.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)