UFC 214 results: Jarred Brooks edges Eric Shelton for split decision in UFC debut

Jarred Brooks and Eric Shelton played for points over three rounds, rarely committing to a sustained scrap in a lackluster affair.

Brooks (13-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), who made his debut after his scheduled octagon debut in February was canceled, squeaked out more points over Shelton (10-4 MMA, 0-2 UFC) to pick up a split-call.

The flyweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC 214 event at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FXX and a main card on pay-per-view.

The final scores were 29-28 twice for Brooks with one judge giving the same score to Shelton, who suffers his second straight split-decision loss since his turn on “The Ultimate Fighter 24.”

The perpetually amped Brooks, meanwhile, keeps his unbeaten record intact after a UFC 208 fight with Ian McCall was scrapped when McCall fell ill.

For as much noise as Brooks made in the leadup to that ill-fated fight and tonight’s debut, his approach was muted. He spent most of the first round stuffing Shelton against the cage, trying to wrap the head for a choke. A last-minute attempt wasn’t good enough to take home the submission.

Brooks avoided Shelton for the bulk of the middle frame, bouncing around yet doing little to advance his agenda. When his uppercut glanced off Shelton’s temple and appeared to do damage, he missed the cue and kept his hit-and-run strategy.

By the final frame, Shelton had finally mastered Brooks’ rhythm and made his mark with a right hand that made Brooks take a knee. But the impact of that punch – and a flying knee into a guillotine in the final seconds – wasn’t enough to convince the judges.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 214 results include:

• Jarred Brooks def. Eric Shelton via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Drew Dober def. Josh Burkman via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 3:04

For complete coverage of UFC 214, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s Dann Stupp, John Morgan, Ben Fowlkes, Mike Bohn and Ken Hathaway contributed to this report on site in Anaheim.)