Quebec City, Canada was treated to a great night of UFC MMA bouts. The complete promotion held 13 bouts with Fox Sports 1 televising six contests. It was an exciting night and her is how it went down:
The televised portion of the card opened with a three round featherweight contest between Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier (15-3-0) and Akira Corassani (14-4-1). Poirier was going for his eighth UFC featherweight victory, making him the most successful fighter in that weight class. The contest got off to an exciting start as both combatants came out swinging. The crowd was electrified with both fighters landing solid shots, rocking each other throughout the opening five minutes. Poirier was able to end things quickly in the second stanza after he followed a left cross with a damaging right uppercut that caught the tip of Corassani’s nose. Akira recently had his nose operated on and this blow seemed to have caused a break. The fight was stopped. With the victory, Poirier became the most victorious featherweight in the promotional outfit’s history.
Undefeated Canadian welterweights kept things going as Chad “The Disciple” Laprise, hailing from Ontario, faced Olivier Abuin-Mercier (5-0-0), from Quebec, in a three round contest. Both rookies opened with striking on their minds. It did not take long for the blood to start flowing as the leather was flying early and often. Laprise kept Mercier guessing as “The Disciple” utilized lateral movement and often flashed his left jab. The round was not an easy one to score. The second was similar to the opening salvo except that Mercier was able to get Laprise to the ground but the Ontario native as able to avoid a guillotine and escaped with minimal damage. “The Disciple” was, again, able to control the distance and landed key strikes to the head and body. As the bout headed into the last round, Laprise appeared to be in control and fought with the confidence of a winner. Mercier was game and, again, attempted to take things to the mat but Laprise was able to escape and kept the fight upright. Despite the fact that “The Disciple” seemed to be ahead on the cards; Laprise closed the final minute of the fight strong with hard combinations to the head of Mercier. Laprise took a split decision victory by scores of 29-28 and 30-27 with the long dissenting vote scoring it for Mercier with a score of 29-28. With the victory, “The Disciple” won the “Ultimate Fighter” contest, officially gaining a contract with the UFC.
The next bout featured another “Ultimate Fighter” middleweight contest finale as Canadians Sheldon Westcott (9-1-1) and Elias “The Spartan” Theodorou (8-0) met in the cage in a three round clash. Nervous energy told the initial minute of round one as Westcott and Thedorou came out shaking and juking with very little landing. Westcott went for the takedown but ended up as “The Spartan’s” camel hump as Theodorou walked around with Sheldon on his back. Westcott was attempting to gain holds for submissions but “The Spartan” was able to get loose and ground-and-pound for a few seconds. Westcott defended well and continued his takedown attempts. Theodorou took control at the end of the round with hard leg strikes and punches that rocked Westcott. Sheldon tried pressure in the second but found himself being constantly countered by the superior striker in "The Spartan." Theodorou then turned the tables as he successfully took Westcott to the floor. Midway through the round, Theodorou took complete control as he struck Westcott with power shots at will and then took him to the mat. Westcott was game but seemed exhausted and outmatched. The referee finally called it a fight and ended the brutal beating of Westcott with less than 25 seconds in the round. With the victory, “The Spartan” wins an official contract with the UFC.
Welterweights K.J. Noons and Sam Stout locked horns in a three round prizefight. The bout was a quick one as Noons, a former professional boxer, landed a perfectly placed overhand right that sent Stout crashing to the canvas. Noons followed up with a ground-and-pound that prompted the referee to halt the massacre. Stout was so out of it that he attempted to headlock the referee after the fight had been stopped.
The co-main event hosted a pair of MMA veterans as Patrick “The Predator” Cote (20-8) and Kyle Noke (20-6-1) met in the octagon. The bout was in the welterweight division and scheduled for three rounds. Noke, a native Australian, was also facing the crowd as Cote is a full-blooded Canadian. Things heated up quick as Cote and Noke were active early. The first few minutes of the fight seemed to belong to Noke as the Australian was landing leg strikes at will. Towards the end of the round, Cota was able to gain a full mount and successfully ground-and-pounded Noke. Cote was looking good in the opening minute of the second but was caught coming in by a Noke knee which clearly stunned the Canadian. Noke was able to follow-up with combination that found the mark. The Australian went back to hard leg strikes. “The Predator” gained his bearings and worked Noke back to the mat where he, again, had success with hard punches. With the fight up in the air, Cote came out hard in the final round looking to take control. Noke had his moments but Cote repeated the rhythm of the first 2 stanzas: He took Noke down late and was able to land hard shots that left an impression. In the end, the Canadian won a hard-fought three round decision by scores of 29-28 (twice) and 30-27.
The final bout was a grudge match in the middleweight category as Englishman Michael "The Count" Bisping (25-5-0) took on Texan Tim Kennedy (17-4-0). Kennedy immediately tried to take control with his ground game. The Texan was looking for a full mount and kept a lot of pressure on the Manchester native. Bisping defended well but could not get free from the American’s brute grip. Kennedy landed knee strikes and punches every chance he got. The Texas achieved a mount late in the round and went to work striking hard while he looked for submission opportunities. The second saw Bisping keep the fight vertical and land solid shots. Kennedy tried to hold his own but it was clear that “The Count” had the advantage. Kennedy took momentum back in the third as he was able to take the game back to the mat. Bisping did his best to get up but was not able to get the Texan off of him. Kennedy achieved another mount and controlled the round. The fourth saw the Englishman, again, keep the fight off of the mat. This time, Kennedy was able to land his own artillery and even managed to hurt “The Count” was a right to the forehead. The American started the fifth by landing another hard right that stunned Bisping. “The Count” did some of his own business on his feet but the Texan was able to take the contest to the ground. Kennedy was able to mount Bisping and took control. The fight came upright in the final two minutes of the round. Bisping and Kennedy traded shots but the Englishman seemed to get the better of the exchanges. The judges rewarded Kennedy with a unanimous decision by scores of 49-46 (twice) and 50-45. It was a great victory for Kennedy especially after Bisping spent so much time and energy flinging insults at the American.
Sergio L. Martinez
www.convictedartist.com
