UFC 167 results, photos, gifs: Ali Bagautinov punches past tireless Tim Elliott

LAS VEGAS – Tim Elliott did nothing but come forward and push the pace on Ali Bagautinov, but it was the Russian who walked away with his hand raised.

Bagautinov took a unanimous decision from Elliott thanks to landing bigger strikes, and more often.

The flyweight bout opened up the main card of today’s UFC 167 event at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and MMAjunkie.

Elliott came out in his typically unorthodox style and kept Bagautinov backing up. But the Russian threw big when he did throw, hoping to land something to put a quick stop to things. He circled away from Elliott’s left hand, then landed a good right hand with Elliott along the fence. A Bagautinov right hand was followed by a knee to the chin. But Elliott still kept coming forward. In a scramble, Elliott briefly was on the ground, but he bounced back up quickly to eat a knee. Bagautinov had a strong finish to the frame with some solid punches and a kick.

Bagautinov landed some good kicks in the second, but when he picked up Elliott for a slam, he fell right into a guillotine choke. He managed to slam his way out of it, and then Elliott found himself on top landing ground-and-pound. Bagautinov just missed a front kick as he got back to his feet midway through the round, and he backed Elliott up with a right, then a combination.

Elliott landed a good right hand early in the third and wanted a flying knee. He continued to press forward, even though it was Bagautinov who was landing more. Elliott fired back with two minutes left, but Bagautinov backed his way out of danger. Elliott landed a good kick, then a knee and a punch to end the fight, but it was too late.

Bagautinov (12-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) won for the 10th straight time. Elliott (10-4-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC) had a two-fight winning streak snapped.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 167 results include:

• Ali Bagautinov def. Tim Elliott via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Donald Cerrone def. Evan Dunham via submission (triangle choke) – Round 2, 3:49
• Thales Leites def. Ed Herman via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Rick Story def. Brian Ebersole via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Erik Perez def. Edwin Figueroa via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Jason High def. Anthony Lapsley via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Sergio Pettis def. Will Campuzano via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Gian Villante def. Cody Donovan via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 1:22

For complete coverage of UFC 167, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

John Morgan contributed to this report on-site in Las Vegas.