UFC 166 results, photos: Gilbert Melendez tops Diego Sanchez in bloody classic

HOUSTON – There really is no other way to describe it: Gilbert Melendez and Diego Sanchez put on what may go down as the craziest, greatest show in UFC history.

In a fight that had all kinds of blood, kicks and punches, technical fighting went out the window in the name of absolute entertainment. In the end, Melendez took a unanimous decision – and left a massive gash over Sanchez’s left eyebrow, a cut that had to be checked multiple times throughout the fight by the cageside doctor.

The lightweight bout was part of the main card of today’s UFC 166 event at Toyota Center in Houston. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and Facebook.

Melendez kicked early, and a head kick attempt right after that didn’t work well for him. Sanchez caught the kick and took Melendez down, then took his back and went after a rear-naked choke. But Melendez calmly walked over to the cage and shook Sanchez off before landing a few punches. Sanchez tried to shoot, but Melendez stuffed it and worked another shot to the body. With two minutes left in the round, Melendez landed a pair of right hands and a big elbow and bloodied Sanchez up. Sanchez landed a solid body kick, then with 30 seconds left in the round came forward perhaps sensing he had Melendez hurt. The round ended with a wild exchange that Melendez got the best of – sending Sanchez to a knee. The cut over Sanchez’s left eye began bleeding badly at the end of the first, and the cut was thick.

Melendez targeted Sanchez’s cut early in the second as the two traded punches and kicks. At the 3:23 mark of the round, the fight was stopped to check on Sanchez’s cut. It was deep, but Sanchez said he was good, and the fight continued. The two again traded wildly, but just briefly. After a solid Melendez combination, Sanchez finally scored a takedown. But Melendez was back up quickly, and swinging.

The two had another frenetic exchange in the third – then another, and another. Sanchez pumped his hands and told Melendez to come forward. They both ate some big ones, and Sanchez’s cut was flowing, leaving him a bloody mess.

With 2:46 left in the fight, the referee again asked the cut to be looked at as the fans booed. And again, the doctor told the ref to let things go. On the restart, Sanchez again kicked to the body as the crowd chanted his name. Seconds later, they kept trading as Sanchez again pumped his fists and wanted Melendez to hit him.

Then out of nowhere, Sanchez rocked Melendez and dropped him to the canvas. He pounced and went for Melendez’s back to look for a choke. But Melendez survived, pushed his way out and landed a knee and an elbow. With 50 seconds left, Melendez took Sanchez down and tried to hold on, but Sanchez switched and got back to his feet. With time running down, the two again swung wildly right to the horn.

Melendez, the former Strikeforce lightweight champ, picked up a 30-27 score and two 29-28s from the judges. UFC commentator Joe Rogan said the fight was the best he had seen in all his years calling fights for the promotion.

“You don’t feel nothing when you’re in here,” Melendez said of being dropped by Sanchez in the third. “I was out for a second. But that’s the best compliment I could be paid, that it’s the best fight you’ve ever seen. I just try to put on a show. That’s what Mexicans do – we hold our ground and we fight.”

As the crowd cheered wildly for Sanchez as he was about to be interviewed, the former title challenger said the audience in Houston told the story of who won the fight.

“Listen to that – they know who their winner is! That’s the decision! I want five rounds! I want a rematch!” Sanchez said. “We were just so dang slippery that it was hard to do any type of ground fighting. We were wet as two slimy lizards, I swear. I was just going for it (in the third). That’s all I can say, is I was just going for it.”

Melendez (22-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) is back in the win column after a lightweight title fight loss to Benson Henderson in April. Sanchez (24-6 MMA, 13-6 UFC) heads back to the loss column after a March win over Takanori Gomi.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 166 results include:

• Gilbert Melendez def. Diego Sanchez via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
• Gabriel Gonzaga def. Shawn Jordan via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:33
• John Dodson def Darrell Montague via KO (punch) – Round 1, 4:13
• Tim Boetsch def. C.B. Dollaway via split decision (30-26, 27-29, 30-26)
• Hector Lombard def. Nate Marquardt via KO (punches) – Round 1, 1:48
• Jessica Eye def. Sarah Kaufman via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• K.J. Noons def. George Sotiropoulos via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Adlan Amagov def. T.J. Waldburger via KO (punches) – Round 1, 3:45
• Tony Ferguson def. Mike Rio via submission (D’Arce choke) – Round 1, 1:52
• Andre Fili def. Jeremy Larsen via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 0:53
• Kyoji Horiguchi def. Dustin Pague via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 3:51

For complete coverage of UFC 166, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

John Morgan contributed to this report on-site in Houston.