UFC 222 results: Andrei Arlovski's takedown game – yes, takedown game – too much for Stefan Struve

Raise your hand if you said Andrei Arlovski would become a takedown machine 40-something fights into his career to get an upset win. No one? No one?

Arlovski (27-15 MMA, 16-9 UFC) landed five takedowns against Stefan Struve (28-10 MMA, 12-8 UFC) and took a unanimous decision win. Arlovski had but three takedowns in all his previous UFC fights combined. Arlovski got a 30-27 score and a pair of 29-28s for the win.

The heavyweight bout was part of the main card of today’s UFC 222 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Struve kicked high 30 seconds in. He continued to use his height to his advantage, but Arlovski stayed in the pocket and a couple minutes in landed a nice takedown. After a bit, Arlovski let the 7-footer back to his feet. With two minutes left, Struve put together a good combination with Arlovski against the fence, then tried to tie him up. But Arlovski reversed things to land another takedown. He went back to his feet and looked for an opening and kicked the legs lightly before Herb Dean let Struve back to his feet. Struve threw a jumping knee with 45 seconds left, but Arlovski defended it and they tied up. A third takedown was good for Arlovski just before the horn.

The big men tied up a minute into the second, but it was Arlovski who again landed a takedown. Struve tried to sweep and looked for a potential submission with Arlovski’s right leg. Struve started to dominate with punches on the ground, and when Arlovski got back to his feet, he tried to take Arlovski down. Arlovski defended by grabbing the top of the fence and got a warning. With 75 seconds left, Arlovski turned things around, but Dean split them up with 50 seconds to go in the frame. Almost immediately, Arlovski complained about a poke to the eye and got time to sort things out. They traded kicks to the legs on the restart.

In the third, the two slowed down a little, though the fight probably was hanging in the balance. A couple minutes in, Arlovski pushed forward and tried to land a combination, but came up short. He nearly landed an uppercut, but missed. And halfway through, they found themselves tied up again. Arlovski tried a takedown, but when he couldn’t get it done, Arlovski apparently caught Struve with an accidental poke. Struve told Dean he was seeing white in parts, and the doctor was brought in. But the doc said he was good, and Struve said he was good, and with 2:10 left they got back to work with kicks.

With 1:40 left, Arlovski landed a big right hand over the top and got Struve’s attention. Struve landed a hard leg kick, then was tied up by Arlovski, who ultimately was able to land his fifth takedown of the fight with a minute left.

“I still have fire in my eyes,” Arlovski said. “You can teach an old dog new tricks. I want to be champion again – one step at a time. Today I beat a tough opponent, and I’m ready to go.”

Arlovski won for the second straight time after snapping a five-fight losing skid in November. Struve lost for the second straight time for the second time in his career.

Up-to-the-minute UFC 222 results include:

• Andrei Arlovski def. Stefan Struve via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Ketlen Vieira def. Cat Zingano via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Mackenzie Dern def. Ashley Yoder via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Alexander Hernandez def. Beneil Dariush via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 0:42
• John Dodson def. Pedro Munhoz via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
• C.B. Dollaway def. Hector Lombard via disqualification (late punches) – Round 1, 5:00
• Zak Ottow def. Mike Pyle via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:34
• Cody Stamann def. Bryan Caraway via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Jordan Johnson def. Adam Milstead via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)

For complete coverage of UFC 222, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan and Ken Hathaway contributed to this report on site in Las Vegas.)