The stage is set for an epic women's bantamweight clash between the only champion the division has ever known, "Rowdy" Ronda Rousey and the woman who might represent her stiffest challenge to date, Cat Zingano.
It all goes down at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on Saturday night at UFC 184. The preliminary bouts are in the books, and the main card is underway. Take a look at the bouts that have completed thus far in the table below. This will be updated as the event goes on.
Just below the table is a summary of each fight.
| UFC Fight Pass Prelims | ||
| Matchup | Weight Class | Result |
| Masio Fullen vs. Alex Torres | Featherweight | Fullen by decision (29-28x2, 28-29) |
| James Krause vs. Valmir Lazaro | Lightweight | Lazaro by decision (29-28x2, 28-29) |
| Fox Sports 1 Prelims | ||
| Matchup | Weight Class | Result |
| Derrick Lewis vs. Ruan Potts | Heavyweight | Lewis by second-round TKO |
| Dhiego Lima vs. Tim Means | Welterweight | Means by first-round TKO |
| Roman Salazar vs. Norifumi Yamamoto | Bantamweight | No Contest (Accidental Eye Poke) |
| Mark Munoz vs. Roan Carneiro | Middleweight | Carneiro by submission in first round (rear-naked choke) |
| PPV Main Card | ||
| Matchup | Weight Class | Result |
| Tony Ferguson vs. Gleison Tibau | Lightweight | Ferguson by first-round submission (rear-naked choke) |
| Alan Jouban vs. Richard Walsh | Welterweight | Jouban by first-round KO |
| Jake Ellenberger vs. Josh Koscheck | Welterweight | Ellenberger by second-round submission (ninja choke) |
| Raquel Pennington vs. Holly Holm | Women's Bantamweight | Holm by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) |
| (c) Ronda Rousey vs. Cat Zingano | Women's Bantamweight |
Fight Pass, Fox Sports 1 and PPV Broadcast
Fullen Squeaks by Torres
Masio Fullen out-landed Alex Torres 61-40 in significant strikes to eek out a split-decision victory in the first preliminary bout of the night. Torres had his moments in the first round, and Fullen looked to be hurt at one point, but he rebounded in the second and third frames to control the action.
Mike Dyce of FanSided lauds Fullen's comeback skills:
Masio Fullen looked done in the first round, but he has really bounced back #UFC184 pic.twitter.com/DI7Fh2Tjx0
— Mike Dyce (@mikedyce) March 1, 2015
This was a spirited bout, but Fullen owned the most decisive moments after the first round. Neither man can be considered a rising star in the featherweight division, but together they kicked off the evening nicely.
Lazaro Wins Tough Bout over Krause
Another close Fight Pass prelim bout gave hardcore fans a second exciting fight to whet their appetites for the bigger bouts. Valmir Lazaro won the split decision, but James Krause might have a legitimate beef with the judges.
There were no takedowns in the fight, and Krause landed more significant strikes in all but one round. Granted, the numbers in that category were deadlocked at 87, but Krause had the edge in overall strikes 98-87.
Perhaps a draw would have been in order here.
Lewis Pounds Potts
Derrick Lewis made a nice recovery from his first UFC loss back in Sept. 2014 against the resurgent Matt Mitrione. Lewis laid waste to an overmatched Ruan Potts with destructive power shots and methodical ground-and-pound.
Potts attempted to clamp on a leg lock on Lewis in the first round, but he couldn't finish the deal.
By the second round, Potts was both exhausted and hurt from the shots he absorbed. Lewis gained full mount, and the fight was mercifully ended by the referee.
Shaheen Al-Shatti of MMA Fighting took Potts' corner to task for letting its fighter continue when he had already conceded defeat on the stool:
Derek Lewis finally puts Ruan Potts out of his misery. Yeesh. When a fighter tells his corner 'I'm done', why send him back out there?
— Shaheen Al-Shatti (@shaunalshatti) March 1, 2015
Means is Too Much for Lima
Dhiego Lima may have a nice future in the sport, but he was clearly not ready for Tim Means on Saturday night. The man known as "The Dirty Bird" displayed a varied and dangerous array of strikes that put Lima in peril minutes into the fight.
The end began with some short elbows in the clinch. A well-placed knee put Lima on his knees. He struggled to his feet, but he never seemed to gain his wherewithal.
Bleacher Report MMA was complimentary of Means' performance, per Al-Shatti:
That’s the best I’ve seen Tim Means.
— Bleacher Report MMA (@BR_MMA) March 1, 2015
After the bout, Means sent a message to the welterweight division:
Tim Means: "Hey UFC, I need some money. I just got a new car. So what's up... 50 grand, baby?"
— Shaheen Al-Shatti (@shaunalshatti) March 1, 2015
Accidental Eye Poke Ends Salazar vs. Yamamoto
Well, that ended abruptly. In a fight that featured three eye pokes, the last one injured Roman Salazar's eye and led to the fight being ruled a no-contest.
Salazar caught Norifumi Yamamoto in the eye earlier in the fight, but the Japanese legend was able to continue. Yamamoto poked Salazar in the eye shortly after the initial foul. Salazar shook that one off, but he couldn't recover from the second instance.
Carneiro Chokes Out Munoz
In a quick and dominating return performance to the UFC, Roan Carneiro finished Mark Munoz via rear-naked choke just 3:20 into the fight.
Carneiro almost immediately looked for a submission via guillotine. Munoz slipped out of the first attempt, but he gave up his back in the process. Carneiro wasted no time locking in the rear-naked choke that put Munoz to sleep.
In case you don't know who Carneiro is, Marc Raimondi of MMA Fighting gives some background:
Roan Carneiro is the dude who won the Battlegrounds one-night tournament last year. Munoz is going to be a tough matchup for him.
— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) March 1, 2015
While Carneiro's performance was impressive, I personally would be interesting in hearing referee Jerin Valel's explanation for his late stoppage in this one. Several people in the MMA community felt the same way. Fox Sports and former UFC fighter Kenny Florian and FanSided MMA give their thoughts:
That ref couldn't be more clueless in recognizing when a fighter is out. That stuff bothers the hell out of me. #UFC184
— Kenny Florian (@kennyflorian) March 1, 2015
Thankfully Roan Carneiro eased up and got on the ref to call it #UFC184 pic.twitter.com/WEqLTi8ztv
— FanSided MMA (@FanSidedMMA) March 1, 2015
You could clearly see Carneiro telling Valel that Munoz was out. Heck, everyone in the arena and at home saw Munoz's eyes roll to the back of his head. Valel was two feet away from the action, what was he looking at?
Referee brain farts can be dangerous in MMA.
Ferguson Dispatches Tibau in Impressive Fashion
When you consider the level of competition, Tony Ferguson's first-round submission victory over Gleison Tibau was the most impressive of the night up to that point in the evening. Tibau is one of the winningest fighters in the history of the UFC and Ferguson made the win look easy.
It started with excellent striking as El Cucuy used his excellent length to daze Tibau with a shot behind the ear. Ferguson snapped Tibau down to the mat and quickly took his back.
From there he locked the hooks in and clamped down with the rear-naked choke. Tibau tapped quickly and congratulated the up-and-coming Ferguson before rising out of the compromising position.
Josh Gross of Sherdog and Luke Thomas of MMA Fighting were impressed with Ferguson's performance:
Every time Ferguson moves away from attempts at reckless finishes, the better he looks.
— Luke Thomas (@SBNLukeThomas) March 1, 2015
Extremely impressed with Tony Ferguson. Great, great win against Gleison Tibau.
— Josh Gross (@yay_yee) March 1, 2015
The win was his fifth straight and should move Ferguson into the Top 10 in the welterweight division.
Jouban Obliterates Walsh
The fight was competitive for the first minute, but Alan Jouban landed a nasty elbow to Richard Walsh's temple. Walsh's legs immediately went from under him. Instinctively, Walsh jumped to his feet, but he was out of it.
Jouban landed a few shots before referee John McCarthy stepped in to call a halt to the bout.
MMA Fighting and Fox Sports' Ariel Helwani had kind words for Jouban:
Jouban with that standing TKO. Dare I say, beautiful.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) March 1, 2015
Fox Sports' Karyn Bryant had high praise for Jouban; she talked to him before his impressive win on Saturday night:
Yep. @AlanJouban is looking like the future of the #UFC. KO via elbow 1st rnd 2:19. We talked about that in our intv: http://t.co/dHjq9nIpsP
— Karyn Bryant (@KarynBryant) March 1, 2015
Ellenberger Wins First UFC Fight by Submission
Jake Ellenberger usually wins his fights with his big right hand, but on Saturday he used a ninja choke to take down Josh Koscheck in the second round.
The fight was pretty boring through a little over a round as Koscheck seemed a little hesitant to engage in stand-up exchanges. Instead, Koscheck sought to go back to his roots as a world-class wrestler.
Ellenberger impressively stuffed all but one of the attempts. The last attempt led to Koscheck's demise. With a powerful guillotine to start off the sequence, Ellenberger transitioned to the finishing maneuver to gain the win.
Koscheck tried to escape—even foaming at the mouth in the process (graphic image per In My MMA Opinion)—but he had to tap out. Bleacher Report's Jonathan Snowden chimed in on the gruesome finish:
Thanks to UFC for the grossest replay ever. Josh Koscheck literally foaming at the mouth. #UFC184
— Jonathan Snowden (@mmaencyclopedia) March 1, 2015
That was pretty disgusting.
All stats per UFC.com.
Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter. I dig boxing and MMA
