UFC Fight Night 36 results, photos: Lyoto Machida tops Gegard Mousasi in chess match

JARAGUA DO SUL, Brazil – A title shot may no longer elude ex-champ Lyoto Machida.

Machida (21-4 MMA, 13-4 UFC) outwitted and out-struck Gegard Mousasi (34-4-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) in a five-round chess match before earning a unanimous-decision win in the middleweight headliner of UFC Fight Night 36.

The bout’s final scores were 49-46 and 50-45 twice in favor of the former light-heavyweight champion, who earned his second straight win since dropping to 185 pounds, albeit less impressively than the head-kick knockout that marked his division debut.

TUFC Fight Night 36 took place Saturday at Arena Jaragua in Jaragua do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil. It aired on FOX Sports 1 following prelims on UFC Fight Pass.

Machida, who is ranked No. 6 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA Power Rankings, was said to be queued for the winner of May’s UFC 173 title bout between champ Chris Weidman and Vitor Belfort. UFC President Dana White said with a victory over Mousasi, “The Dragon” would get a title shot that eluded him at 205 pounds, were he earned a No. 1 contender spot before falling from the UFC’s graces and losing a bout to Phil Davis.

Machida irked White by turning down a title shot against champ Jon Jones at UFC 152 in 2012, but he turned things around at middleweight with a knockout of Mark Munoz at UFC Fight Night 30 in late 2013.

Mousasi, a former Strikeforce champion who returned to the cage after a 10-month injury layoff, initially shut Machida down in striking exchanges, but “The Dragon” found his rhythm as the fight progressed and executed his signature moves: leaping knees, lightning-fast trips and all manner of stinging kicks.

The striking specialists initially were hesitant to engage each other, with Mousasi’s lead arm swinging as he casually advanced. Mousasi managed to avoid Machida’s sneaky attacks, he was tagged with a straight left late in the first. Mousasi missed with a straight right as he looked for a way in.

Machida turned up the tempo in the second round, firing off quick combos as Mousasi advanced. As in his previous fight with Munoz, Machida’s leg speed was apparent as he slapped Mousasi with a hard inside kick and then went upstairs with a head kick. Exchanges picked up in frequently, and Mousasi grew impatient as Machida kept out of range. A two-punch combo found its mark for Mousasi late in the frame, but Machida appeared to be in control.

Perhaps weary of chasing his foe, Mousasi looked for a takedown and clinched in the third. But Machida escaped and landed another stiff left hand, followed by a hard spinning back kick. More head kicks followed for Machida, who began to throw fast and loose combinations. A three-punch combo landed solidly for Mousasi, but it did little to halt his momentum.

A quick takedown for Mousasi opened the fourth round and forced Machida to scramble and escape. Once on his feet, Machida eagerly bounced until he exploded into a trip of Mousasi, bowling the Dutch-Armenian fighter to the mat and opening a cut. Mousasi reversed and held dominant position until a scramble led him to an errant upkick. A pause in action brought a referee check, but significantly, not a point deduction.

Machida continued to dance and dart around Mousasi until a takedown attempt allowed him to win top position, where he transitioned to Mousasi’s back and nearly landed a leaping, concussive blow as the two separated in the bout’s final moments.

Machida will find out what his next step is with back-to-back wins at 185 pounds while Mousasi, who made his long-awaited octagon debut with a decision over short-notice replacement Ilir Latifi in April 2013, faces an uncertain future.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 36 results include:

• Lyoto Machida def. Gegard Mousasi via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 49-46)
• Ronaldo Souza def. Francis Carmont via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Erick Silva def. Takenori Sato via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:52
• Nicholas Musoke def. Viscardi Andrade via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Charles Oliveira def. Andy Ogle via submission (triangle choke) – Round 3, 2:40
• Joe Proctor def. Cristiano Marcello via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
• Rodrigo Damm def. Ivan Jorge via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Francisco Trinaldo def. Jesse Ronson via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
• Yuri Alcantara def. Wilson Reis via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27)
• Felipe Arantes def. Maximo Blanco via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
• Ildemar Alcantara def. Albert Tumenov via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
• Zubaira Tukhugov def. Douglas de Andrade via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 36, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

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