UFC 172 results and photos: Takanori Gomi batters Isaac Vallie-Flagg for decision win

BALTIMORE – Takanori Gomi took a few minutes to get into the swing of things after a 13-month layoff, but once he got going he found himself in a classic brawl.

It was a brawl he got the better of in the second and third rounds on his way to a unanimous decision win over Isaac Vallie-Flagg, taking a trio of 29-28 scores.

The lightweight preliminary-card bout took place at today’s UFC 172 event at Maryland’s Baltimore Arena. It aired on FOX Sports 1 prior to the pay-per-view main card.

The two traded jabs and low kicks early, but it was Vallie-Flagg who was getting the best of things in both departments. He did well to take advantage of his reach advantage. But after a slip, Gomi found himself on top in guard. Vallie-Flagg masterfully crawled his way to the cage to wall walk, but gave his back in the process and had to fend off choke attempts before getting back to his feet with 45 seconds left in the round.

Vallie-Flagg opened with kicks in the second, then landed a big right hand. He looked to pour it on quickly, perhaps sensing Gomi already starting to fade. A right hand 90 seconds in was flush, and he avoided Gomi’s counter.

“The Fireball Kid” continued to throw, though, as he’s known for. And a left hook to the liver got through and seemed to slow Vallie-Flagg down as Gomi tried to do more damage. When his punches landed, though, Vallie-Flagg seemed to walk right through them. But that came at a cost, as Vallie-Flagg’s right eye was severely damaged by a Gomi left and started to swell.

The slugfest continued in the third, with Gomi clearly going after Vallie-Flagg’s right eye. A minute in, Vallie-Flagg landed a shot that put Gomi on the canvas, and then put him in trouble with short punches to the head. But Gomi got back to his feet and tied Vallie-Flagg up on the fence. Midway through, the two swung wildly before again tying up. Gomi traded stances back and forth and bloodied Vallie-Flagg up in a major way, but both continued to press forward. Vallie-Flagg landed well on the ground late in the ground, but it was clear immediately who had done the most damage.

“I think I did great,” Gomi said. “I want to get on the card that’s coming to Japan and would like to fight a champ – but please, no more up-and-coming fighters.”

Gomi (35-9 MMA, 4-4 UFC) got back in the win column in his first fight since a March 2013 loss to Diego Sanchez. Vallie-Flagg (14-5-1 MMA, 1-2 UFC) lost for the second straight time for the first time in his career.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 172 results include:

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(Steven Marrocco and John Morgan contributed to this report on-site in Baltimore.)