UFC on FOX 18 from New Jersey is in the books and it wasn’t without major statements being made in dominating fashion.
Anthony Johnson, who last came short against Daniel Cormier, validated another shot at the Light Heavyweight title by putting a stop to fellow contender Ryan Bader with an impressive first round knockout finish. A failed takedown by Bader proved to be costly as Rumble capitalised, took mount and finished Bader with some monstrous punches.
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In the Heavyweight bout of the night, Ben Rothwell submitted Josh Barnett in the second round and in turn, pushed himself into the championship spotlight.
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The hyped sensation Sage Northcutt’s ground game flaws came to the fore, as Bryan Barberena forced the 19-year-old to tap out with an arm triangle choke. Sage controlled majority of the fight, but gave away the fight from half-guard to taste his first professional defeat.
All in all, the event set things up perfectly for the Heavyweight and Lightweight divisions and below are the complete results from the card:
Main CardAnthony Johnson (#2) def. Ryan Bader (#4) via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:26
Ben Rothwell (#7) def. Josh Barnett (#8) via submission (gogo choke) – Round 2, 3:48
Jimmie Rivera def. Iuri Alcantara (#14) via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Bryan Barberena def. Sage Northcutt via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 3:06
Prelim CardTarec Saffiedine (#11) def. Jake Ellenberger via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Diego Ferreira def. Olivier Aubin-Mercier via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Rafael Natal def. Kevin Casey via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 3:37
Wilson Reis (#12) def. Dustin Ortiz (#9) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Alexander Yakovlev def. George Sullivan via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 3:59
Alex Caceres def. Masio Fullen via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Randy Brown def. Matt Dwyer via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Damon Jackson vs. Levan Makashvili majority draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
Tony Martin def. Filipe Olivieri via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 3:02
