The renowned UFC Octagon thrilled MMA fans in Orlando, Florida’s Amway Center with an evening of inordinate action with a throng of combats. The event was televised on the Fox Television network.
The main televised portion of the promotion opened with middleweight contender Hawaiian native Brad Tavarez (12-2-0) locking horns with Yoel "Soldier of God" Romero (7-1-0) in a three round engagement. Romero, a Cuban Olympic Silver Medalist, is on a three fight winning streak while Tavarez has won his last five. Things were slow for the first 90 seconds until the Cuban exploded with kicks, punches and then completed a takedown. Tavarez defended the assault well and got to his feet, but Romero, showing his impressive wresting skills, tossed Tavarez back onto the mat. The "Soldier of God" continued to smother Tavarez, and would not allow the Hawaiian to be erect for long. Romero continued with groundwork early in the second and then opened a gash to Tavarez’s head via a right elbow. The Hawaiian was able to keep the fight standing but was not having as much success as expected. The feat picked up in the final minute as both warriors battled against the cage fence. The third saw both men tired and, after some sloppy work early, Tavarez was able to find a home for his leg strikes and a few punches. The Cuban was able to momentarily take his adversary to the ground but Tavarez quickly came to his feet. The "Solider of God" ended the fight the way he started it: taking Tavarez to the floor. The judges’ score cards tallied a unanimous decision for Romero by identical marks of 30-27.
Lightweights Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone (22-6-0), a Muay Thai Kickboxing specialist, and Edson “Junior” Barboza (13-1-0), a Brazilian striker, kept things going in a three round contest. Barboza swung for the fences in the opening seconds and managed to hurt Cerrone. "Cowboy" composed himself and took the Brazilian to the mat in order to buy himself some precious time. The fight then settled to what it was expected to be: a match between two skilled and devastating strikers. Barboza landed bombs with his fists while Cerrone found success with his legs. "Cowboy" laid Barboza down to the mat with a hard left jab and followed up by jumping on his back; he submitted the Brazilian with a rear naked choke. It was a dramatic end and a great win for Donald Cerrone.
The co-main event showcased a three round bout between bantamweights Miesha “Cupcake” Tate (13-5-0) and the “Girl-Rilla” Liz Carmouche (8-4-0). Tate is the former Women’s Strikeforce Champion. Both battlers came out boxing but "Cupcake" seemed the calmer of the two. Carmouche bullied Tate to the cage wall and took her to the ground. "Cupcake" held her back against the octagon fence and was able to get back to her feet. Tate also landed elbow strikes where available. "Girl-Rilla" kept her arms wrapped around her prey and continued to take Tate to the cage floor. Tate commenced the second by landing punches to the head and knees to the gut of Carmouche. "Girl-Rilla" was able to avoid takedown attempts but had trouble keeping up with the standup game of her opponent. The round took a consistent rhythm: Carmouche would take Tate to the mat but "Cupcake" would land strikes and attempt submission whenever possible. With less than two minutes left, Tate took control with a rear naked choke and almost submitted Carmouche on multiple occasions. "Girl-Rilla" was able to somehow survive to hear the final bell, but all three judges scored the bout 29-28 for Miesha Tate.
The main prizefight of the night was the highly anticipated heavyweight tilt between Brazilian Fabricio Werdum (17-5-1) v. Hawaiian Travis Browne (16-1-1) with the winner getting a shot at the champion, Cain Velasquez. The big boys got to business early as both Werdum and Browne struck early and often. The Hawaiian landed a thunderous blow that sent the Brazilian to the mat but the follow-up ground-and-pound ended up backfiring: Werdum, a word-class ground fighter, gained a brief advantage and worked on submission moves. Browne was able to escape and both men traded shots. The Brazilian showed good upright skills as he landed hard punches and hard leg kicks. The Hawaiian’s attitude was one of no respect for Werdum’s strikes but this cost him as the Brazilian hurt Browne in the closing seconds of the round with hard right and left hand shots to the face. In the second, Werdum continued to prove that he can hold his own in a vertical match. The Brazilian landed punishing blows that hurt Browne. Werdum then took the Hawaiian to the ground and was in control from a half guard position. Browne was able to rise with about 90 seconds left but the big man seemed to be exhausted.
Werdum continued to defy conventional wisdom in the third as he aggressively attacked Browne and dominated the striking game. The pace significantly slowed towards the end of the third as both men were gassed. Still, Werdum was able to land kicks and knees and was clearly in control of the match. The third was more of a boxing match with the occasional kick. An unintentional strike to the cup of Werdum gave a brief respite for the Hawaiian. The Brazilian opted to continue and was more measured and cautions; it appeared that Werdum felt he had the fight won via points. Browne stalked his fleeing opponent. It looked like Werdum gave the fourth round away (which is never a good idea). The Brazilian started the final heat with a takedown but Browne quickly came to his feet. The Hawaiian was flinging wide shots but was not leading anything with authority. Werdum used a solid left jab that kept him at a good distance and out of harm’s way. The Brazilian continued his striking dominance and was in complete control as the fight came to an end. Werdum earned a title shot against Velasquez via a unanimous decision victory.
Sergio L. Martinez
www.convictedartist.com