UFC 211 results: Chase Sherman finally stops Rashad Coulter in crazy heavyweight slugfest

DALLAS – Chase Sherman kicked Rashad Coulter’s leg until he could barely stand – and that’s when the fight really began.

In an epic heavyweight slugfest, Sherman (10-3 MMA, 1-2 UFC) and Coulter (8-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) traded head trauma and clung to consciousness as their gas tanks rapidly diminished. Finally, Sherman landed a decisive short elbow that crumpled Coulter up against the fence, bringing a sudden end to the bout at the 3:36 mark of Round 2.

The heavyweight fight was part of today’s UFC 211 preliminary card at American Airlines Center in Dallas. It aired on FX prior to the pay-per-view main card and following the early prelims on UFC Fight Pass.

The first round offered glimpses of the craziness to come, with both men wading into the action behind power punches, but it was in the second when the action really heated up.

Sherman seemed to gain an insurmountable advantage with his leg kicks, battering Coulter’s left thigh until simply standing in one place seemed to be too much for him. After Coulter went down, Sherman pounced and seemed close to ending the fight, moving to full mount and then taking Coulter’s back as he rained down punches.

Somehow, Coulter staggered back to his feet and began responding with some heavy leather of his own, backing Sherman up with the power of his right hand. At times Sherman seemed to have spent all his energy trying to finish the fight, and several times he glanced up at the clock in between Coulter’s powerful salvos, as if willing the round to end.

But after backing a visibly wounded Coulter up against the fence, Sherman found the patience necessary to retake control of the fight, picking his spots as he hammered Coulter with punches and elbows. Finally, a short right elbow in close collapsed Coulter, with his knee bending awkwardly underneath him, and that was enough to convince referee Jacob Montalvo to call it off.

The win ends a two-fight losing streak for Sherman, giving him his first victory in the UFC. Coulter’s loss snaps a five-fight winning streak outside the organization.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 211 results include:

• Chase Sherman def. Rashad Coulter via TKO (elbow) – Round 2, 3:36
• James Vick def. Marco Polo Reyes via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:39
• Cortney Casey def. Jessica Aguilar via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Enrique Barzola def. Gabriel Benitez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Gadzhimurad Antigulov def. Joachim Christensen via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:21

For more on UFC 211, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan contributed to this report on site in Dallas.)