UFC on FOX 11 results, photos: Layoff no problem for Thiago Alves vs. Seth Baczynski

ORLANDO – Thiago Alves sure didn’t look like a fighter who’d lost two years of his career to injury.

Alves was every bit the crusher he’s previously been in a return fight against Seth Baczynski, who gave the onetime UFC title challenger a run for his money.

The welterweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC on FOX 11 event at Amway Center in Orlando, Fla. It aired on FOX Sports 1 following additional prelims on UFC Fight Pass and ahead of a main card on FOX.

The final scores were unanimously 30-27 in favor of Alves, who battered Baczynski with a flurry of leg kicks and got his first win since a first-round submission of Papy Abedi in November 2011.

Alves played bull to Baczynski’s matador in early rounds, firing off big punches and ending them with leg attacks. By late in the first frame, Baczynski struggled to stay mobile under the constant barrage.

And yet in the second frame, “The Polish Pistola” showed he would not be an easy target for Alves, gamely trading combinations despite his reddened legs. Takedown attempts proved fruitless, but by the end of the round, both fighters were bleeding.

Baczynski attempted to steal the final frame by taking Alves down, but the two instead slugged it out until the final bell. A knee and flurry of punches ended things with a bang for Alves.

“It’s been a long time and this feels great,” Alves said. “Coming back from such a long layoff, I knew that I had to do everything to the best of my ability tonight. I’ve been pushing myself for such a long time to get ready for my next fight, for this night. Fighting here in Florida in front of my fans and familiar faces was the perfect way to come back. This is the best I’ve felt in 25 months.”

Alves (20-9 MMA, 12-6 UFC) now restarts his UFC career on a good foot following a submission loss to Martin Kampmann in his previous outing. Baczynski (19-11 MMA, 5-4 UFC) drops to 1-3 following a decision over Neil Magny in his previous fight.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on FOX 11 results include:

• Thiago Alves def. Seth Baczynski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jorge Masvidal def. Pat Healy via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Alex White def. Estevan Payan via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:28
• Caio Magalhaes def. Luke Zachrich via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 0:44
• Jordan Mein def. Hernani Perpetuo via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Dustin Ortiz def. Ray Borg via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Mirsad Bektic def. Chas Skelly via majority decision (29-27, 29-27, 28-28)
• Derrick Lewis def. Jack May via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:23

For complete coverage of UFC on FOX 11, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

John Morgan and Matt Erickson contributed to this report on-site in Orlando.