UFC Fight Night 16 Results
by Robert Sargent
In a night honouring the military of the United States, violence was the key topic on many people's minds, as Yoshiyuki Yoshida and Jonathan Goulet both suffered vicious knockouts, while Corey Hill badly broke his leg in a preliminary fight.
Injuries and brutal knockouts aside, UFC Fight Night 16: "Fight For The Troops" was a solid event, and saw Jim Miller dominate Matt Wiman in the night's first main card bout.
Josh Koscheck vs Yoshiyuki "Zenko" Yoshida
Widely regarded as one of the few real tests for UFC welterweight kingpins Georges "Rush" St. Pierre, Thiago "Pitbull" Alves and "The Prodigy" BJ Penn, Yoshida was instead brutally knocked out by a pair of massive rights from Koscheck, who once again moved himself back into future title contention.Neither fighter wanted to overly commit in the early stages, as Yoshida looked to strike from the outside with leg kicks. Koscheck partially landed a right hook, but Yoshida fired back with leg and body kicks. The fighters clinched and both landed short punches. Koscheck landed another looping hook, then another as Yoshida came in for a kick. Seconds later, Koscheck rocked Yoshida with a right straight. Yoshida, who was out on his feet, could not defend a follow-up right hook from Koscheck that knocked Yoshida out cold. An impressive win for Koscheck, but a scary sight as Yoshida did not get up for many minutes.
Though the UFC displayed questionable class by never once mentioning Yoshida's condition after the fight, he was eventually carried from the ring and taken to a local medical facility, and released later in the night.
Winner: Josh Koscheck by KO (Punch) at 2:14 of round one. He improves to 12-3-0.
Mike "Quick" Swick vs Jonathan "The Road Warrior" Goulet
Culminating in a result that anyone could have predicted, Goulet's glass jaw once again proved to be the deciding factor in this fight, as he was quickly knocked out by a series of lightning-fast punches from a rejuvenated Swick.Swick came out very aggressively and clipped Goulet with a quick combination. Seconds later, Swick landed a quick trio of punches that dropped Goulet. Instinctively, Goulet dove for Swick's right leg and tried for a trip takedown, but Swick teed off with over a dozen punches and hammerfists. The final three punches knocked Goulet out, giving Swick a "quick" victory and a return to former glory.
The fight also underscored that Goulet could easily be a contender in the division, but his chin fails him in every fight against competent strikers, and it's likely going to lead to his departure from the UFC in the near future.
Winner: Mike Swick by KO (Punches) at 0:33 of round one. He improves to 13-2-0.
Steve "The Robot" Cantwell vs "Razor" Razak Al-Hassan
Cantwell, the final WEC Light Heavyweight Champion before the promotion's upper weight classes merged with the UFC, put on a very impressive display against the debuting Al-Hassan; eventually forcing a stoppage after trapping Al-Hassan in a rather gruesome armbar.Al-Hassan came forward very aggressively early on, but his chin was straight up in the air and Cantwell's technical striking allowed him to land quality counterpunches. Al-Hassan landed a series of kicks, while Cantwell stuck to punches. Cantwell scored with an uppercut and two hooks, and Al-Hassan replied with an uppercut himself. Both fighters scored with big punches in an exchange. Cantwell landed leg kicks, then caught Al-Hassan with a head kick. Cantwell then scored a takedown and worked from Al-Hassan's guard. He worked from side-control and took mount, then locked on an armbar. Al-Hassan initially rolled to escape the hold, but Cantwell turned it into a modified Figure Four Armbar and bent Al-Hassan's elbow back at a grotesque angle around his knee. Al-Hassan, likely in shock, did not submit, but the referee rightfully stopped the fight.
Winner: Steve Cantwell by Technical Submission (Armbar) at 4:03 of round one. He improves to 7-1-0.
"Crazy" Tim Credeur vs Nate Loughran
Dominating the fight from start to finish, Credeur handed Loughran his first loss with relentless offence that forced Loughran to withdraw after two rounds due to a rib injury.Credeur landed a solid right hook early on, then two hard counterpunches as Loughran came forward. Loughran went for a head kick and a takedown, but was not successful with either. Credeur scored with a head kick and two knees in a clinch. Big punches landed for Credeur, but Loughran held strong. Two overhand rights found their mark for Credeur, and Loughran immediately replied with two stiff jabs. A huge haymaker right landed for Credeur, but Loughran stood tall. Credeur continued to mix up his strikes with punches and kicks in the final minute of the round, while Loughran could do little but try to counter. Credeur scored with three big punches and a takedown shortly before the bell. 10-9 Credeur.
Loughran landed a trio of kicks to begin round two, then pulled guard and looked for submissions. Credeur landed punches from the top that opened up a cut beside Loughran's left eye. Loughran tried to use rubber guard, but Credeur's wealth of experience allowed him to easily evade the submission attempts. The fight was brought back to the feet and Loughran scored with two kicks. The fighters traded kicks and Credeur landed an overhand right. Two more big punches landed for Credeur, as Loughran began to wither and seemed to be injured. Loughran perservered until the bell, but had evidently suffered a rib injury and could not continue into the third round.
Winner: Tim Credeur by TKO (Rib Injury) at 5:00 of round two. He improves to 11-2-0.
Jim Miller vs "Handsome" Matt Wiman
In a fight befitting of the word lopsided, Miller completely and totally dominated Wiman from bell to bell en route to a clear cut Unanimous Decision victory.Miller scored repeatedly with counter right hooks early in round one, and followed up with left crosses. Wiman scored a takedown, but fell right into a very tight guillotine choke. Wiman held onto Miller's shorts and seemed to use that to squirm free, which he eventually did. Miller, who had taken the fight on less than one week's notice, made Wiman pay with punches and elbows from the top. Miller's elbow strikes opened up a cut on Wiman's nose. Miller briefly took Wiman's back, but Wiman managed to reverse into Miller's guard. Miller landed upkicks and got back to his feet, but Wiman scored with a pair of rights. A kick and punch to the liver hurt Wiman, and Miller used the opportunity to score a brief takedown. Miller landed more punches and kicks until the bell to easily take round one. 10-9 Miller.
Both fighters landed big punches early in round two, and Miller scored a very brief takedown. Miller staggered Wiman with a series of punches, then clinched against the cage. He fired away with dozens of punches as Wiman could do nothing but try to survive. Miller scored a takedown and landed numerous punches and elbows from Wiman's guard. Wiman tried to push Miller off, but Miller was relentless with strikes. Miller stood up to avoid a heel hook attempt and drilled Wiman with a huge punch. For the duration of the round, Miller teed off with punches while standing over Wiman. Very dominant round. 10-8 Miller.
Wiman came forward with a vengeance in round three, landing numerous punches that backed Miller up to the cage. Miller countered with a takedown, but Wiman got back to his feet. A big left hook and a knee landed for Miller, and he once again took Wiman to the mat. Miller eventually moved to side-control and looked to pass to mount. Wiman managed to regain guard, but ate more punches for his efforts. Wiman scrambled back to his feet and landed a knee, only to be taken down again. Wiman got up and scored a partial takedown, but Miller immediately took Wiman's back and looked for a rear naked choke. Miller nearly transitioned to mount, but settled for punches from the top. He tried for a guillotine choke just before the bell, but Wiman survived. 10-9 Miller.
Winner: Jim Miller by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26) after three rounds. He improves to 13-1-0.
Ben "Killa B" Saunders vs Brandon Wolff
Putting on what was perhaps the most impressive display of Muay Thai in UFC history - surpassing even Anderson Silva's destruction of Rich Franklin - Saunders completely destroyed Wolff with countless knees that finally finished off the battered fighter less than two minutes into round one.After a brief stoppage due to an accidental low blow to Wolff, Saunders began his onslaught of violence with a series of knees in a Thai clinch that opened up a cut on Wolff's forehead. Saunders dove in with a flying knee, then landed exactly a dozen knees and a head kick. More knees scored for Saunders, who was systematically dismantling Wolff. Wolff finally managed to break free, only to be hit with two devastating kicks to the body and even more knees in a Thai clinch. Saunders landed over a dozen more knees that caused a gigantic lump to form on Wolff's forehead. After another barrage of knees, Wolff finally fell to the mat and the referee mercifully stopped the beating.
Winner: Ben Saunders by TKO (Knees) at 1:45 of round one. He improves to 7-0-2.
Undercard Fights:
"Hollywood" Steve Bruno defeated Johnny "The Hater Hurter" Rees by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 3:43 of round two. Rees, whose nickname rivals Ryan "Are You Ready?" Roberts and Ryan "The Tank Engine" Thomas for worst nicknames in UFC history, battled strong through the first round, but Bruno's relentless pressure eventually led to the choke submission. Bruno improves to 12-4-0 with the win.Dale Hartt defeated "The Real Deal" Corey Hill by TKO (Broken Leg) at 0:20 of round two. Hartt checked a leg kick from Hill, whose leg broke at the shin while throwing the kick in a scene very similar to Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons's leg fracture when he kicked Brian "Mandingo" Gassaway at TKO 32 in February. Hartt improves to 6-1-0 with the win.
Justin "The Insane 1" McCully defeated Eddie "The Manic Hispanic" Sanchez by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 9-4-2 with the win.
Luigi Fioravanti defeated Brodie Farber by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 14-4-0 with the win.
Though the night was somewhat marred by the level of violence and brutality, UFC's Fight For The Troops did feature a number of exciting fights and standout performances from some of the future contenders in each division.
