UFC 174 results, photos: Rory MacDonald dominates Tyron Woodley for decision

VANCOUVER – Rory MacDonald (17-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) charged across the cage to start his fight with Tyron Woodley (13-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC), forcing his opponent to retreat with his back to the fence and his offense stuck in reaction mode.

For the better part of the next three rounds, that’s exactly where things stayed. In the end, it made for a dominant decision victory for MacDonald (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

The welterweight bout was the co-main event of today’s UFC 174 event at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on FX and UFC Fight Pass.

From the opening seconds of the fight, MacDonald neutralized Woodley’s offense with cage control and constant pressure, keeping Woodley on the defensive and at his mercy. In this way MacDonald easily took the first two rounds, with Woodley unable to get his back off the fence and his attack out of first gear.

Woodley showed signs of desperation to start the third, lunging in with heavy hooks that appeared to give MacDonald some trouble. But the Canadian recovered quickly and put Woodley on his back before moving to side control, trapping one of Woodley’s arms, and battering him with left hands to the forehead as time ticked away and Woodley seemed to accept the inevitability of the defeat.

In his post-fight remarks, MacDonald told color commentator Joe Rogan that he’d respect whatever decision the UFC made with regards to the next welterweight title contender.

“But they should know that I’m ready, and one day very soon the belt will be mine,” MacDonald added.

MacDonald has now won two straight in the UFC. Woodley loses for the first time since a split-decision loss to Jake Shields in June of 2013.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 174 results include:

• Rory MacDonald def. Tyron Woodley via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Ryan Bader def. Rafael Cavalcante via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Andrei Arlovski def. Brendan Schaub via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Ovince Saint Preux def. Ryan Jimmo via verbal submission (kimura) – Round 2, 2:10
• Kiichi Kunimoto def. Daniel Sarafian via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:52
• Valerie Letourneau def. Elizabeth Phillips via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
• Yves Jabouin def. Mike Easton via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Tae Hyun Bang def. Kajan Johnson via knockout (punch) – Round 3, 2:01
• Michinori Tanaka def. Roland Delorme via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jason Saggo def. Josh Shockley via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:57

For complete coverage of UFC 174, stay stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

(John Morgan and Mike Bohn contributed to this report on-site in Vancouver.)