The opening bout on the UFC 163 pay-per-view was a flyweight bout has John Lineker won his third stright fight as he defeated Jose Maria by TKO in the second round.
As the opening bell sounded, Lineker took control of the cage and landed the first strike of the fight was a right hand. Maria attempted to create offense with leg kicks but Lineker landed strikes as he threw his kick.
Maria would end landing a spinning back fist that hurt Lineker and ended up landing several more punches but Lineker would survive the flurry. Maria would take the fight to the ground after catching a leg kick but Lineker got back to his feet.
Lineker would clinch with Maria against the cage and the fight would be paused after Maria landed an apparently groin shot. Upon the restart, they continued to have a striking battle and Lineker landed a flurry of punches as the round came to an end.
As the second round opened, Maria landed a kick as Lineker looked for his explosive strikes. After grappling for a moment, Lineker landed a combination that dropped Maria and he finished the fight on the ground. Lineker (22-6) has won three straight since losing his UFC debut and his last two wins have come by TKO in second round.
UFC 163 Results:
John Lineker def. Jose Maria via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:03
Anthony Perosh def. Vinny Magalhaes via KO (strikes) – Round 1, :14
Amanda Nunes def. Sheila Gaff via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 2:08
Sergio Moraes def. Neil Magny via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 3:13
Ian McCall def. Illiarde Santos via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Rani Yahya def. Josh Clopton via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Francimar Barroso def. Ednaldo Oliveira via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Viscardi Andrade def. Bristol Marunde via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:36