Patrick Cote (left) won his 170 pound debut. | Jonathan Ferrey/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images
Backed by his powerful hands and stout chin, Cote captured a unanimous verdict over Voelker at UFC 158 “St. Pierre vs. Diaz” on Saturday at the Bell Centre in Montreal. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 29-28 for Cote (19-8, 6-8 UFC), who won for the sixth time in seven appearances.
Cote let his fists fly early and often, attacking with ringing uppercuts and body-to-head combinations throughout the first 10 minutes. Voelker (24-9, 0-1 UFC) answered with a strong third round, as he staggered “The Predator” with a left hook, struck for three takedowns and racked up points with effective ground-and-pound.
Carvalho (15-6, 2-2 UFC) countered effectively with left hooks, shut down Elkins in the clinch and denied his takedown attempts. Elkins turned to his hands, as he wobbled the Canadian with a straight right hand on the jaw and leveled him with another. A still-dazed Carvalho rose to his feet, but referee Yves Lavigne called for the stoppage.
Mein (27-8, 1-0 UFC) survived a takedown and armbar attempt roughly one minute into the bout and returned to the comfort of his feet. There, he floored Miller with a right hand and later pinned the AMA Fight Club representative on the cage, unleashing the barrage that brought the match to a decisive end.
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Makdessi outgunned Cruickshank.
Cruickshank (12-3, 2-1 UFC) never got in gear, and the longer the fight went, the more Makdessi’s confidence grew. He blasted “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 15 alum with jabs, counter punches and combinations, mixing in a vast array of standup techniques. Makdessi, a 27-year-old Tristar Gym export, has won his last two bouts.
Mulhern (18-3, 0-1 UFC) was on the defensive from the word go. Story walked through his punches and showed little regard for his abilities. The 28-year-old unleashed a wicked left hook that forced Mulhern to retreat, but he found no sanctuary in the cage. Story pursued him with punches, forced the grappler to the ground and finished the fight there.
Dillashaw (7-1, 3-1 UFC) fed the 29-year-old Japanese import a steady diet of takedowns, low kicks and strikes from the clinch over the first five minutes. In the second round, he faked low and went high with a head kick, clobbering the ducking Tamura with a knee. The fallen bantamweight went to his back in a dazed state, and Dillashaw finished it with a series of right hands.
Roop utilized the clinch to great effect throughout the 15-minute scrap, as he softened the Californian with knees and short punches. In close quarters, his 6-foot-1 frame was a significant factor. The Apex MMA representative had Duran (8-5-1, 1-3 UFC) in trouble in the second round, where he transitioned to the back and fished for a rear-naked choke.
Duran became less and less of a factor as the bout deepened. Roop answered a third-round takedown with one of his own and racked up the points with short right hands to the body and head.
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