UFC on Fox 17 from Orlando, Florida left a final impression for the UFC in 2015, with Lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos successfully defending his crown against Donald Cerrone.
In the hotly anticipated main event, RDA once again settled the score with Cerrone, finishing the wild ‘Cowboy’ after just 1:06 of the first round. The Brazilian landed several strikes to force Cerrone on the back foot, with a knee to the ribs one of the key moves of the fight.
Post-fight dos Anjos beckoned UFC Featherweight champion Conor McGregor to 155: “Hey Mr. McGregor if you want to come to lightweight division, this is my division man.
“I’ll fight you in Brazil, I’ll go to Ireland to fight you there, wherever you want, man. I’m here to stay.”
A move up to 155lb for McGregor seemed plausible if Cerrone entered 2016 as champion after their ‘red panty night’ banter at the Go Big press conference. Instead, McGregor would be greeted by a much tougher fight against dos Anjos; which is potentially high risk and low reward, with RDA’s no nonsense approach to promotion a strong antithesis to how McGregor conducts business.
RDA wasn’t the only fighter with McGregor on his lips, the returning Nate Diaz called the Irishman a ‘motherf****r’ after scoring a unanimous decision over Michael Johnson.
Featherweight Charles Oliveira also called out ‘The Notorious’ after a first round guillotine choke of Myles Jury. However, the Brazilian’s words may have had more substance had Oliveira not missed weight by 5.5lbs.
Elsewhere, on the UFC on FOX 17 prelims, the debuting Valentina Shevchenko made a strong first impression, dominating veteran Sarah Kaufman to a split decision win. Shevchenko looked superb in the first two rounds, throwing effortless strikes, mixed in with flawless grappling. There is no doubt ‘The Bullet’ is one to watch at 135 in 2016.
UFC on Fox 17 Main Card Reuslts
UFC Lightweight Title: Rafael dos Anjos (c) def. Donald Cerrone TKO (punches) Round 1 – 1:06
Heavyweight: Alistair Overeem def. Junior dos Santos TKO (punches) Round 2 – 4:43
Lightweight: Nate Diaz def. Michael Johnson Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Women’s Strawweight: Karolina Kowalkiewicz def. Randa Markos Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
UFC on Fox 17 Preliminary Card Results
Catchweight (150.5 lbs): Charles Oliveira def. Myles Jury Submission (guillotine choke) Round 1 – 3:05
Middleweight: Nate Marquardt def. C.B. Dollaway KO (punch) Round 2 – 0:28
Women’s Bantamweight: Valentina Shevchenko def. Sarah Kaufman Decision (split) (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Middleweight: Tamdan McCrory def. Josh Samman Submission (triangle choke) Round 3 – 4:10
Lightweight: Nik Lentz def. Danny Castillo Decision (split) (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Featherweight: Cole Miller vs. Jim Alers No Contest (accidental eye poke) Round 2 – 1:44
UFC on Fox 17 Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Welterweight: Kamaru Usman def. Leon Edwards Decision (unanimous) (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Welterweight: Vicente Luque def. Hayder Hassan Technical Submission (anaconda choke) Round 1 – 2:13
Heavyweight: Francis Ngannou def. Luis Henrique KO (punch) Round 2 – 2:53
