UFC 174 took place in Vancouver, British Columbia, and in the night’s main event, Demetrious Johnson retained his UFC Flyweight Championship by easily outpointing his challenger, Ali Bagautinov, in their five round tilt.
All three judges scored every single round for the champion. Johnson looked close to flawless with an imposing striking game. As the fight wore on, Johnson shucked off Bagautinov’s takedown attempts and dissected with his speedy striking.
Demetrious Johnson’s (20-2-1) undefeated record in the flyweight division improved to 7-0-1. Ali Bagautinov’s (13-3) eleven fight winning streak was snapped with the loss.
MacDonald stakes claim for title shot
Rory MacDonald’s climb back up the welterweight ranks continued in the night’s co-main event when he won a dominant unanimous decision over Tyron Woodley.
An aggressive MacDonald leaned up on his boxing early on to frustrate Woodley and would later on bring the fight to the canvas. MacDonald was impressive in each area of his game and looks to be a fight away from title contention.
Rory MacDonald (17-2) has now won seven of his last eight.
Bader outpoints Cavalcante
A well-rounded effort by Ryan Bader led to him getting his hand raised after three rounds of action against Rafael Cavalcante.
Bader was able to piece together more combinations throughout the fight, score with takedowns and control the bout’s pace. Although Cavalcante had a nice flurry in the final frame, Bader was able to recover and win the unanimous decision.
With the victory, Ryan Bader (17-4) has now won seven of his contests via decision. It was the first time that Rafael Cavalcante (12-5, 1 NC) had ever fought in a contest that lasted all three periods.
The complete UFC 174 results are below.
Main Card: (PPV)
Demetrious Johnson def. Ali Bagautinov via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45)
Rory MacDonald def. Tyron Woodley via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Ryan Bader def. Rafael Cavalcante via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Andrei Arlovski def. Brendan Schaub via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Ovince St. Preux def. Ryan Jimmo via verbal submission (broken arm) – Round 2, 2:10
Preliminary Card: (FX)
Kiichi Kunimoto def. Daniel Sarafian via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:52
Valerie Letourneau def. Elizabeth Phillips via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Yves Jabouin def. Mike Easton via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Tae Hyun Bang def. Kajan Johnson via KO (punch) – Round 3, 2:01
Preliminary Card: (Fight Pass)
Michinori Tanaka def. Roland Delorme via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Jason Saggo def. Josh Shockley via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:57