UFC on Fox 22 turned out to be a bad night for high-profile prospects looking to prove themselves.
Sage Northcutt and Paige VanZant were the co-main and main event respectively, but neither was able to capitalize on the opportunity.
VanZant's bout with former Invicta Atomweight Champion Michelle Waterson served as the headliner.
The bout turned out to be quite the showcase for Waterson. The Karate Hottie didn't necessarily live up to her moniker by putting away the young contender with her strong ground game. After some brief striking exchanges, she finally took over the fight when she found herself in the clinch with VanZant pressed against the cage.
The UFC passed along the textbook toss from Waterson that led to her eventually locking in the choke:
We see you @KarateHottieMMA! Sweet throw! #UFCSacramento pic.twitter.com/liAWfPuCSp
— UFC (@ufc) December 18, 2016
The performance was a real eye-opener for those who may not be familiar with her work. Taking on a bigger opponent in VanZant, her grappling ability was something that drew the praise of fellow UFC fighter and submission wizard Aljamain Sterling:
That's how you try to defend a RNC. PVZ never quits in tough positions. Congrats to Watterson! NASTY headlock & backtake ???? #UFCSacramento
— Aljamain Sterling (@FunkMaster_UFC) December 18, 2016
Fellow UFC fighter Brendan Schaub gave credit to Waterson's experience but also reminded people that the 22-year-old still needs time for seasoning.
Paige just needs more time. Anyone who thought she was gonna hang with a true Vet/world champion like Waterson is ignorant to the sport
— Brendan Schaub (@BrendanSchaub) December 18, 2016
For now, though, this was a fight that was about the serious skills of Waterson than just how much VanZant needs to grow to become a contender.
The women's strawweight bout wasn't the only one on tap in Sacramento, though. The night featured a lot of prospects in prove-it fights with a mixed bag of results. Here's a full rundown of who came out as winners throughout the evening and a closer look at each of the main card bouts.
UFC on Fox 22 Quick Results
- Michelle Waterson def. Paige VanZant by technical submission (rear-naked choke), 3:21, Rd. 1
- Sage Northcutt def. Mickey Gall by submission (armbar), 1:40, Rd. 2
- Urijah Faber def. Brad Pickett by unanimous decision
- Alan Jouban def. Mike Perry by unanimous decision
- Paul Craig def. Luis Henrique da Silva by submission (armbar), 1:59, Rd. 2
- Mizuto Hirota def. Cole Miller by unanimous decision
- Colby Covington def. Bryan Barberena by unanimous decision
- Alex Morono def. James Moontasri by unanimous decision
- Josh Emmett def. Scott Holtzman by unanimous decision
- Leslie Smith def. Irene Aldana by unanimous decision
- Eddie Wineland def. Takeya Mizugaki by TKO, 3:04, Rd. 1
- Hector Sandoval def. Fredy Serrano by unanimous decision
- Sultan Aliev def. Bojan Velickovic by split decision
Alan Jouban vs. Mike Perry
In a night where a lot of prospects were trying to prove their worth, Mike Perry saw his perfect 9-0 record come to a screeching halt at the hands of the precise striking of 35-year-old Alan Jouban.
Perry—who has made some waves with his pre-fight antics—has been able to mow over opponents in his first two UFC fights, but Jouban showed that an old dog can learn new tricks. The UFC veteran came through with a performance that saw him utilize crisp striking from range to build a lead on the scorecards.
He even flashed some power of his own with a straight left that showed Perry the canvas:
.@AlanJouban drops Perry with the straight left! #UFCSacramento pic.twitter.com/b55kbiRXId
— #UFCSacramento (@ufc) December 18, 2016
Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting noted the strong performance:
That should be a nice win for Jouban. Nice technique and adjusted throughout. No brawling. Good stuff for the Versace model.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) December 18, 2016
It was encouraging to see Jouban show some signs of improvement, but the biggest takeaway might be that Perry has some work to do if he wants to take the next step as a fighter. He was clearly outclassed on the feet and will need to learn how to harness his power against more technical, rangy strikers.
Urijah Faber vs. Brad Pickett
One of the biggest stories of the night was the farewell fight for the ultra-popular Urijah Faber in front of a hometown crowd in Sacramento, California. It turned out to be a successful swan song as Faber battered Brad Pickett to a unanimous-decision victory.
Brad Pickett is the one with the "One Punch" moniker, but it was Faber who changed the complexion of the fight with just one punch in the first round. The UFC tweeted the highlight of a colossal left hook that put Pickett on the ground and had Faber looking for a first-round finish:
OMG!!!! @UrijahFaber #UFCSacramento pic.twitter.com/YPUAfGhhdq
— #UFCSacramento (@ufc) December 18, 2016
He wasn't able to lock up the first round, but it just meant that fans would be treated to a little more time in The California Kid's career. Faber went right to work in the second round, working takedowns and proving to be too much for Pickett in every aspect of the fight.
Damon Martin of Fox Sports noted how good the Team Alpha Male fighter looked in the final fight of his career, turning back the clock one more time:
Urijah Faber up big through 2 rounds. Just needs to keep up with more of the same. Looks outstanding tonight#UFCSacramento
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) December 18, 2016
Ultimately he wasn't able to get the finish despite dominating the fight on the ground and in the stand-up, which might be an indication that Faber is making the right decision to hang it up. He would ultimately walk away from fighting with an impressive unanimous-decision victory to close out an incredible career.
Faber shared some of his thoughts on his decision to retire, per MMA Fighting:
Faber: This life experience has been amazing. I feel like I’ve got my PhD in real life. I’m ready to move forward and do big things.
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) December 18, 2016
Sage Northcutt vs. Mickey Gall
While one career came to an end in the Faber-Pickett fight, the bout between Mickey Gall and Sage Northcutt was a prospect fight between two fighters we might be seeing a lot of over the years.
But for now, we learned that it's Mickey Gall who is more ready to do things in the sport.
In submitting Northcutt in the second round, Gall showed that he's got skills in both the stand-up department and on the mat. The 24-year-old scored a takedown early and out-grappled Northcutt in the opening frame before Super Sage worked back to his feet and exploited some weaknesses in Gall's striking defense.
However, it wasn't enough for Northcutt to get the win. His grappling defense was once again an issue as Gall had his way on the ground. Patrick Wyman of Bleacher Report talked about the need for Northcutt to migrate to a legitimate camp to fix what has ailed him:
If Northcutt doesn't get to a real camp, this is going to keep happening over and over and over. #UFCSacramento
— Patrick Wyman (@Patrick_Wyman) December 18, 2016
Ultimately, the fight came down to Gall's ability to take advantage of Northcutt's defensive lapse. The UFC tweeted the highlight of a looping right hand that cracked Northcutt and ultimately led to a dazed Northcutt with Gall on the ground:
He drops him! @MickeyGall connects! #UFCSacramento pic.twitter.com/eVAnbfdGYM
— #UFCSacramento (@ufc) December 18, 2016
That was clearly not a winning recipe as Gall made a quick job of locking in the rear-naked choke.
Gall then took the opportunity to call out Dan Hardy, of all people.
Gall says he wants to fight at 155 next and calls out ... Dan Hardy next.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) December 18, 2016
At this point its pretty clear that Gall has mastered the art of calling out people who will be considered big bouts while not testing himself against actual UFC competition.
