The Ultimate Fighting Championship made its return to Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates today for UFC 267: “Blachowicz vs Teixeira.” The event was headlined by a UFC Light Heavyweight Championship bout between champ Jan Blachowicz and long-time contender Glover Teixeira.
In the co-main event, Petr “No Mercy” Yan took on Cory “The Sandman” Sandhagen for the UFC Interim Bantamweight Championship. Also on the main card today, Islam Makhachev faced off against Dan “The Hangman” Hooker at lightweight. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for UFC 267.
UFC Light Heavyweight Championship
Glover Teixeira vs Jan Blachowicz
Round 1:
Blachowicz opened up right away with two leg kicks and a jab, but Teixeira closed the distance and took him down. He worked from Blachowicz’s guard and landed elbows and short left hands to his face. He continued to alternate between punches to the body and elbows to Blachowicz’s face. Blachowicz tried to keep Teixeira tied up from the bottom, but Teixeira did a good job of mixing up his strikes with both arms in order to keep Blachowicz guessing as to where the next strike would come from. In the final 15 seconds, he wrenched on Blachowicz’s neck with a can opener. 10-9 Teixeira.
Round 2:
Teixeira struck first with a three-punch combo in the second round, but Blachowicz landed a flurry in response and he fought off a takedown attempt. Another combination landed for Blachowicz and Teixeira clinched. Blachowicz pushed him away and he jabbed from a distance. Teixeira rocked Blachowicz with a looping left hook, but Blachowicz recovered quickly. Teixeira took him down and passed to mount. Blachowicz gave up his back and Teixeira locked on a rear-naked choke with his forearm under Blachowicz’s chin. Blachowicz tapped out immediately.
Winner: Glover Teixeira by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:02 of round two. He improves to 33-7-0 and becomes the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.
UFC Interim Bantamweight Championship
Petr “No Mercy” Yan vs Cory “The Sandman” Sandhagen
Round 1:
The fight began with an exchange of leg kicks and Sandhagen followed with a right cross. He continued to throw kicks to Yan’s lead leg and body while Yan switched stances and tried to find his range. Both men landed body kicks and Sandhagen followed with a quick flurry. He stepped forward with two left hooks and then took Yan’s back in a clinch. Yan broke free quickly and he landed an overhand left. Sandhagen remained the aggressor and he mixed up his strikes effectively with body kicks and punching combinations. Yan landed a body kick, but Sandhagen immediately responded with punch-kick combos. One more body kick landed for Yan before the end of the round. 10-9 Sandhagen.
Round 2:
Sandhagen continued to use his jab to set up combinations in the second round. Yan landed a body kick and Sandhagen tagged him with an overhand right. Yan backed Sandhagen up a step with a short left hook. The fighters exchanged left hands and Yan fared better than he had in the first round. A spinning backfist and a straight left scored for Yan, which led to both men landing leg kicks. Yan stuffed a takedown attempt, but he ate a jumping knee seconds later. Sandhagen landed two leg kicks in the final seconds. Close round. 10-9 Yan.
Round 3:
Yan landed a spinning back kick to the liver in round three, but Sandhagen was completely unfazed and he immediately responded with a one-two. Yan continued to attack the body and he countered a leg kick with an overhand left. Sandhagen flurried with punches that backed Yan up momentarily. Sandhagen jabbed and circled from side to side until Yan connected with a three-punch combo. He followed with a body kick and then dropped Sandhagen with a spinning backfist. He dove in with punches on the ground and then tried to take Sandhagen’s back. Sandhagen got back to his feet shortly before the bell. 10-9 Yan due to the knockdown.
Round 4:
Sandhagen landed two right hooks early in the fourth round and Yan countered a jumping knee attempt with a lead left hand. He backed Sandhagen up with a right-left combo and then closed in with more punches and a body kick. Sandhagen scored a takedown and both men attempted heel hooks. The fighters stood and Yan countered standing elbows from Sandhagen with a flurry of power punches. Yan landed another combination, but he missed with a spinning backfist. Sandhagen was briefly wobbled by a left hook from Yan and he dove at Yan’s ankles in an attempt to take him down. Yan threw punches to the side of Sandhagen’s face and landed two more left hands after Sandhagen stood back up. 10-9 Yan.
Round 5:
Yan closed the distance in the final round and he landed two left crosses followed by a leg kick. Sandhagen circled on the outside and Yan landed occasional left hands when he was able to close the distance. Sandhagen partially blocked a head kick and he continued to circle from side to side. A shovel uppercut landed for Yan and he grazed with a lead right hook. In the final 30 seconds, Sandhagen blocked a spinning backfist and countered with a knee to the body. Another knee landed for Sandhagen, but Yan knocked him backward with a spinning wheel kick to the face. 10-9 Yan.
Winner: Petr Yan by Unanimous Decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46) after five rounds. He improves to 16-2-0 and becomes the UFC Interim Bantamweight Champion.
Islam Makhachev vs Dan “The Hangman” Hooker
Round 1:
Makhachev countered a leg kick with an early takedown and he worked from the top in Hooker’s half-guard. He worked from the top until he was able to isolate Hooker’s right arm. Makhachev locked on a kimura and wrenched Hooker’s arm behind his back. Referee Daniel Movahedi waved off the fight and it was unclear from replays whether Hooker had verbally submitted or not.
Winner: Islam Makhachev by Submission (Kimura) at 2:25 of round one. He improves to 21-1-0.
Alexander “Drago” Volkov vs Marcin “Tybur” Tybura
Round 1:
Volkov landed a hard right hand to Tybura’s face early in the fight and Tybura fired back with an overhand left. A Volkov combination was answered by one from Tybura, and the fighters continued to go back and forth with bursts of strikes. Volkov fought off a clinch from Tybura and he landed another quick flurry. When Tybura shot in for a takedown, Volkov stuffed it and he pushed Tybura down to the mat. Volkov landed short elbows to Tybura’s forehead while Tybura held on from the bottom. 10-9 Volkov.
Round 2:
After an exchange of overhand punches in the second round, Volkov prevented Tybura from clinching by landing a knee to the body. A right cross landed for Volkov and he followed with another knee. Tybura clinched repeatedly, but he could not get Volkov down. Volkov landed elbows to the side of Tybura’s head and Tybura backed away again. He scored with a body kick and a combination as Volkov’s output began to slow down. Tybura clinched and he landed a knee to the body while working for a takedown. Close round. 10-9 Tybura by a slim margin.
Round 3:
Volkov landed two flurries of punches in between fending off Tybura takedown attempts in the final round. Tybura continued to press the action, but Volkov countered with a short right hook and he took Tybura’s back in a clinch against the cage. Tybura broke free, but Volkov tagged him with four strong punches and Tybura retreated. He landed an overhand left and clinched once more. Volkov punched his way free and he landed a hard right cross in the final 25 seconds. 10-9 Volkov.
Winner: Alexander Volkov by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 34-9-0.
Khamzat “Borz” Chimaev vs Jingliang “The Leech” Li
Round 1:
Chimaev took Li’s back right away and suplexed him down to the mat while talking to UFC President Dana White through the cage. He prevented Li from standing up and landed hammerfists to the sides of his face. Chimaev flattened Li out and he landed a series of punches to both sides of his head. Chimaev then locked on a rear-naked choke and Li initially defended. Chimaev adjusted his grip and tightened the choke, and Li was rendered unconscious within seconds.
Winner: Khamzat Chimaev by Technical Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 3:16 of round one. He improves to 10-0-0.
Magomed Ankalaev vs Volkan “No Time” Oezdemir
Round 1:
Oezdemir struck first with a right hook and he followed with a left uppercut. Ankalaev clinched and he held Oezdemir against the cage. Both men landed knees to the body and Ankalaev landed a left hook on the break. Seconds later, Ankalaev dropped Oezdemir with a straight left. Oezdemir returned to his feet, but Ankalaev landed three more punches before Oezdemir could circle away. A jab-cross combo scored for Ankalaev and Oezdemir fired back with a right hook over the top. Ankalaev stung Oezdemir with four quick punches late in the round. 10-9 Ankalaev.
Round 2:
Ankalaev countered Oezdemir’s forward movement with a lead right hook and a left cross in the second round. Oezdemir switched stances and the fighters traded punching combinations. Oezdemir walked into a right cross that opened a cut above his left eye. Blood poured down his face and Ankalaev landed a jab-cross combo. A hard jab scored for Ankalaev, but Oezdemir hurt him with a leg kick and Ankalaev immediately looked for a takedown. He took Oezdemir’s back in a clinch and threw knees to his thighs. The fighters separated and Ankalaev landed two hooks before the bell. 10-9 Ankalaev.
Round 3:
The final round opened with both men landing body kicks. Ankalaev went high with a head kick attempt and he landed a counter right hook as Oezdemir took a step forward. Ankalaev easily avoided an Oezdemir takedown attempt and he countered with a right hook to the temple. The pace slowed way down and Ankalaev landed one jab while Oezdemir offered no offence in return. Ankalaev landed a straight left hand and followed with a quick combination. Lead right hands continued to score for Ankalaev and he attacked with a liver kick. The fight ended in a clinch against the cage. 10-9 Ankalaev.
Winner: Magomed Ankalaev by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 15-1-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)