The Ultimate Fighting Championship headed back to the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada tonight for UFC on ESPN 51: “Luque vs dos Anjos.” The event was headlined by a welterweight clash between the returning Vicente “The Silent Assassin” Luque and ex-lightweight champ Rafael dos Anjos.

In the featherweight co-main event, “Killer” Cub Swanson took on “Mean” Hakeem Dawodu. Elsewhere on the main card tonight, Khalil “The War Horse” Rountree battled Chris Daukaus in a featured light heavyweight showdown. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for UFC on ESPN 51.

 

Vicente “The Silent Assassin” Luque vs Rafael dos Anjos

Round 1:
Dos Anjos took Luque’s back and pressed him up against the cage. Luque turned into the clinch and he reversed position as a battle ensued until dos Anjos landed an elbow over the top and backed away. Dos Anjos landed a body kick and Luque answered with one of his own. A step-in elbow scored for dos Anjos, who tied Luque up in a clinch. Luque responded by taking dos Anjos down and dos Anjos trapped him in a guillotine choke. Luque escaped and he punched the side of dos Anjos’s face as dos Anjos stood against the cage. Back-and-forth round. 10-9 dos Anjos by a narrow margin.

Round 2:
After an exchange of body kicks, dos Anjos landed a left cross and tried for a takedown. Luque reversed the clinch and the fighters broke apart. Luque landed a right hook and dos Anjos briefly took him down. Luque stood and he tripped dos Anjos to one knee. Dos Anjos got to his feet and escaped from a standing arm-triangle choke. Luque threw head and body kicks before the end of the round. 10-9 Luque.

Round 3:
The fighters battled back and forth in a clinch against the cage in round three. Luque tripped dos Anjos to one knee again and took his back as dos Anjos stood up. Dos Anjos turned into the clinch and then circled away. He landed a left cross and a lead right hook, then followed up with a quick combination. Luque landed a body kick and he tried to counter a takedown with a guillotine choke. Dos Anjos spun free and the fight returned to the feet. Luque held dos Anjos against the fence and dumped him to the mat in the final seconds. Close round. 10-9 dos Anjos, just barely.

Round 4:
Luque landed a lead right hook and a body kick, then tried to take dos Anjos down against the fence. He eventually did so and dos Anjos worked back to his feet. Luque landed an elbow on the break, but the fighters quickly clinched again and traded knees to the body. The prolonged clinch battle continued and Luque tripped dos Anjos into back control. 10-9 Luque.

Round 5:
Luque fought off a dos Anjos takedown attempt and held him against the cage. Dos Anjos fought his way free and he landed a head kick. Luque clinched again and then briefly took dos Anjos down. Back on the feet, Luque held dos Anjos in place and then tripped him to a knee. Dos Anjos stood up and he and Luque battled back and forth. Dos Anjos broke free and landed a nice combination. Luque resorted to pulling guard and dos Anjos postured up with punches and elbows. Another close round. 10-9 dos Anjos due to damage. Decision could go either way.

Winner: Vicente Luque by Unanimous Decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) after five rounds. He improves to 22-9-1.

 

“Killer” Cub Swanson vs “Mean” Hakeem Dawodu

Round 1:
Both men landed leg kicks early in the fight and Swanson connected with a jab-hook combination. Dawodu landed a lead left hook and then jumped forward with a switch kick to the body. He kicked at Swanson’s lead leg and then landed two more left hooks. Dawodu blocked a head kick, but Swanson did land a lunging right hook shortly before the bell. 10-9 Dawodu.

Round 2:
Dawodu jabbed at Swanson’s nose in round two and Swanson landed a counter right hook. Dawodu clinched and Swanson landed two knees to his face. The fighters separated and Dawodu landed a strong leg kick. He grazed with a head kick and then landed a switch kick to Swanson’s body. Dawodu clinched once more and he kneed Sawnson in the body. He backed away after landing an elbow, but Swanson scored with a head kick and a lead left hook in the final seconds. Close round. 10-9 Dawodu.

Round 3:
Swanson scored with a leg kick and two left hooks in the final round. A hard jab landed for Dawodu and he reversed a headlock throw from Swanson. The fighters stood back up and time was briefly called when a knee struck Swanson in the groin. Action resumed and Swanson sustained another low blow. Dawodu was warned for the fouls and the fight continued. Swanson blocked a head kick and he landed a right hook and a follow-up left. Power punches were exchanged and Swanson landed a hard right hook before taking Dawodu down. He moved to half-guard and then took Dawodu’s back. Dawodu turned over and the fight ended with him in Swanson’s guard. 10-9 Swanson.

Winner: Cub Swanson by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 29-13-0.

 

Khalil “The War Horse” Rountree vs Chris Daukaus

Round 1:
Rountree landed a strong left hook in the opening minute and then knocked Daukaus off-balance with a right hand. Daukaus clinched and Rountree reversed position against the cage. The fighters separated and both men landed right hooks. Rountree sent Daukaus crashing to the mat with a vicious left cross. The fight was not immediately stopped, so he landed two hammerfists and a looping left hand on the ground.

Winner: Khalil Rountree by TKO (Punches) at 2:40 of round one. He improves to 12-5-0, 1 NC.

 

Iasmin Lucindo vs Polyana “Dama de Ferro” Viana

Round 1:
Viana threw two early kicks and ate a hard left hook counter from Lucindo. Viana landed a right hook and a body kick, then secured a body lock and took Lucindo down. Lucindo tied up Viana’s right arm and prevented her from landing anything, so the fight was stood up with two minutes to go. Viana caught a kick, but Lucindo freed her leg and scored a body-lock takedown of her own. She was also unable to land anything significant until one hammerfist just before time expired. Close, back-and-forth round. 10-9 Lucindo, just barely.

Round 2:
Lucindo wobbled Viana with a right hook early in round two, but she did not follow up and Viana recovered. Another right hand landed for Lucindo and she took Viana down. Very little happened on the ground other than Lucindo landing a few short hammerfists. She finally passed to three-quarter mount and then locked on an arm-triangle choke. The choke was tight and Viana tapped out right away.

Winner: Iasmin Lucindo by Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) at 3:42 of round two. She improves to 15-5-0.

 

A.J. Dobson vs Tafon “Da Don” Nchukwi

Round 1:
Both fighters landed leg kicks early on and Dobson followed with a body kick. Nchukwi threw a lead left hook and a chopping leg kick. He continued to attack Dobson’s lead leg, but Dobson landed quick body kicks in response. Nchukwi blocked a head kick and tried to sweep out Dobson’s leg. In the final minute, Nchukwi threw more leg kicks and Dobson replied with two of his own before securing a late takedown. He punched from the top until the bell. Close round. 10-9 Dobson by a slim margin.

Round 2:
In round two, Nchukwi landed early leg kicks and Dobson answered with a right cross. He countered another Nchukwi leg kick with a one-two combo. Nchukwi landed a three-punch flurry and a calf kick. Dobson returned fire with a jab-cross combo and he caught a body kick. The round ended in a clinch against the fence. Another close round. 10-9 Nchukwi.

Round 3:
Dobson caught a kick and took Nchukwi down in the final round. He hunted for an arm-triangle choke from the top and prevented Nchukwi from getting up against the cage. Nchukwi eventually got back to full guard and Dobson stayed on top. He took Nchukwi’s back shortly before the end of the lacklustre fight. 10-9 Dobson.

Winner: A.J. Dobson by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 7-2-0, 1 NC.

 

Josh Fremd vs Jamie “The Nightwolf” Pickett

Round 1:
Fremd landed a body kick during the opening minute and Pickett responded with a right-left combo. Fremd clinched and held Pickett against the cage. This continued all the way until the final 50 seconds when Pickett reversed the clinch. Fremd landed a knee to the body and Pickett backed away. Fremd threw a head kick and landed a jumping switch knee before the bell. 10-9 Fremd.

Round 2:
The second round began with Fremd landing a body kick and a lead left hook before clinching with Pickett against the fence. Pickett circled away and Fremd landed another kick to the body. He clinched and landed a knee and an elbow over the top. Fremd pulled guard with a guillotine choke, but Pickett managed to free his neck and he took Fremd’s back when Fremd got to his knees. Fremd stood and turned into the clinch. He trapped Pickett in a high-elbow guillotine choke and pushed him down to the mat. Fremd landed on top in Pickett’s half-guard and he postured up with a few right hands before time expired. 10-9 Fremd.

Round 3:
Pickett managed to take Fremd down in round three and he moved to back control. Fremd shook him off and wound up on top in Pickett’s half-guard. Pickett used the cage to get to his knees and then stood up. Little transpired and the fighters were eventually separated. Fremd clinched once more and he landed two knees and a right hand. 10-9 Fremd.

Winner: Josh Fremd by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 11-4-0.

 

(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)