UFC 168 took place on Saturday night from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas as Chris Weidman retained the UFC middleweight title after Anderson Silva breaks his leg in the second round.
Weidman was in control of the fight in the first round as he scored a takedown early in the fight. Silva would be able to get back to his feet, but Weidman landed a right hand that dropped Silva. Weidman would keep the fight on the ground for the remainder of the round and land several significant short strikes.
The fight would stay on the feet in the second round and Silva threw a low leg kick. After the kick landed, Silva fell to the mat and was in serious pain. Referee Herb Dean came in to call the fight and the replay showed that Silva broke his leg. He would be carried out of the cage in a stretcher and this could be the final memory that fans have of Silva in the UFC.
Weidman (11-0) is now on a seven fight win streak in the UFC, which is the longest in the middleweight division. His last three wins have come by TKO/KO and his next title defense will come at some point in 2014 against Vitor Belfort.
Rousey retains title with third round arm bar submission
Ronda Rousey remained undefeated on Saturday night at UFC 168 as she once again won by arm bar submission with a third round victory against Miesha Tate.
The opening five minutes was a crazy round that Rousey and Tate exchanged punches. The fight would go to the ground and Rousey attempted to get several submissions. Tate would be able to escape and survive. Rousey would take control of the fight in the second round and Tate was able to survive and make it to the third round.
The fight would come to an end at the 58 second mark of the third round as Rousey got the fight to the ground and locked in an arm bar submission. Tate would tap out to the submission and Rousey retains the title. After Tate tapped out, she attempted to shake the hand of Rousey, but the champion walked away and this caused Rousey to be booed by the crowd in Las Vegas.
Rousey (8-0) has won all of her fights by armbar submission and this fight marked the first time that she made it out of the first round. Tate (13-5) has dropped back to back fights and three of her last four.
Browne wins third straight by knockout in the first round
Travis Browne scored the biggest victory of his career as he defeated Josh Barnett by knockout in the first round.
The fight would only last sixty seconds and as Barnett was looking for a takedown, Browne landed a knee that hurt Barnett. Browne would land several elbows and the referee came in to stop the fight.
Browne (16-1-1) has won three in a row and all of the victories have come by knockout in the first round. With this victory, he will likely meet Fabricio Werdum in 2014 in a number one contenders fight.
Miller submits Camoes for his 12th UFC lightweight victory
Jim Miller returned to the UFC for the first time in eight months and submitted Fabricio Camoes in the first round with an armbar.
The fighters exchanged strikes for the first ninety seconds with Camoes being able to find a home for his left hook. Miller would end up taking the fight to the ground, but Camoes was able to get back to his feet and he scored a takedown. Miller would begin to work for a submission off his back and would end up locking in an armbar. Camoes would tap out at the 3:42 mark of the opening round.
Miller (23-4, 1NC) now has twelve wins coming by submission and has the second most UFC lightweight wins at twelve. He is 2-0, 1NC in his last three fights and will likely face a top ten lightweight in his next fight.
Poirier stops Brandao with six seconds left in first round
The opening bout of the UFC 168 pay-per-view was a catchweight bout as Dustin Poirier stopped Diego Brando with six seconds left in the opening round.
A majority of the fight was on the feet and the fighters exchanged strikes. Brandao was able to clip Poirier, but could not capitalize on the strike. Brandao would end up getting the fight to the ground, but Poirier was able to get back to his feet immediately. Poirier began to land strikes against the cage, which included several body shots. He would end up dropping Brandao and would finish the fight with strikes on the mat.
Poirier (15-3) has now won back to back fights and this is his first victory to come by knockout since his win over Zach Micklewright at WEC 52.
The complete UFC 168 results are below:
Main Card: (PPV)
Chris Weidman def. Anderson Silva via TKO (injury) – Round 2, 1:16
Ronda Rousey def. Miesha Tate via submission (armbar) – Round 3, :58
Travis Browne def. Josh Barnett via KO (elbows) – Round 1, 1:00
Jim Miller def. Fabricio Camoes via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 3:42
Dustin Poirier def. Diego Brando via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 4:54
Preliminary Card: (Fox Sports 1)
Uriah Hall def. Chris Leben via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 5:00
Michael Johnson def. Gleison Tibau via KO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:32
Dennis Siver def. Manny Gamburyan via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
John Howard def. Siyar Bahadurzada via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Preliminary Card: (UFC.com)
William Macario def. Bobby Voelker via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Robbie Peralta def. Estevan Payan via KO – Round 3, 0:12