The UFC is in Las Vegas at the T-mobile Arena for UFC 222. Cris Cyborg is defending her UFC featherweight title against Yana Kunitskaya in the main event and Brian Ortega takes on Frankie Edgar.
Here are the results and breakdown from all of the fights on Saturday.
Matchup Weight Class Results Bonus FIGHT SCORE Jordan Johnson vs. Adam Milstead Light Heavyweight Johnson by SD (29-28x2, 27-30) Bryan Caraway vs. Cody Stamann Men's Bantamweight Stamann by SD (29-28x2, 28-29) Zak Ottow vs. Mike Pyle Welterweight Ottow by TKO - R1 CB Dollaway vs. Hector Lombard Middleweight Dollaway by DQ - R1 John Dodson vs. Pedro Munhoz Men's Bantamweight Dodson by SD (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) Beneil Dariush vs. Alexander Hernandez Lightweight Hernandez R1 KO Mackenzie Dern vs. Ashley Yoder Strawweight Dern SD (29-28x2, 28-29) Ketlen Vieira vs. Cat Zingano Women's Bantamweight Andrei Arlovski vs. Stefan Struve Heavyweight Sean O'Malley vs. Andre Soukhamthah Men's Bantamweight Frankie Edgar vs. Brian Ortega Men's Featherweight Cris Cyborg vs. Yana Kunitskaya Women's Featherweight
Jordan Johnson Out Scraps Adam Milstead
Credit: UFC.com
In the opening fight of the night, Johnson ate more of the hard shots in stand-up, but he did utilize his wrestling effective enough to control Milstead and to secure two takedowns. One of the judges saw all three rounds for Milstead, that's a little tough to validate, but ultimately the right fighter probably earned a very tough fight.
Stamann Outlasts Carraway
Credit: UFC.com
After a tough first round that saw him taken down and controlled in the final minute, Cody Stamann rebounded with strong performances in the second and third frames to eek out the victory. Carraway might have stolen the final round, but two of the judges gave the nod to Stamann.
Oddly enough, Adelaide Byrd, the judge who submitted the questionable scorecard in the Canelo Alvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin bout from September 2017 was one of the individuals scoring the bout. She scored the fight for Stamann.
Stamann gave one of the most honest post-fight interviews you'll ever see and hear. He knew he'd lost the first, won the second and admitted he might have given away the third because of Carraway's late push.
Nonetheless, he got the nod.
Ottow Sends Pyle Into Retirement With a TKO Loss
Credit: UFC.com
Mike Pyle made it known this would be his last fight. Zak Ottow made sure it would be a quick night. A little more than three minutes into the fight, Ottow landed a hard right hand and finished him on the canvas with ground and pound.
OHHH that is it!!@TheBarbarianMMA predicts a first round finish AND GETS the first round finish! Wow! #UFC222 pic.twitter.com/ANNLgUfP2W — UFC (@ufc) March 4, 2018
Pyle is 42 years old and the retirement may have come about five years too late. On the bright side, Pyle did get an opportunity to finish his career in his adopted hometown.
Dollaway Wins By DQ
Credit: UFC.com
At the end of the first round, Hector Lombard hit CB Dollaway with a nasty two-punch combination that left the latter dazed and on his butt. Unfortunately for Lombard, both shots landed after the horn.
Just a tad after the bell by Hector Lombard... #UFC222 pic.twitter.com/xfJT0FlgTo — FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) March 4, 2018
Dollaway looked badly hurt and he couldn't continue. Lombard was disqualified and Dollaway took home a painful win.
Dodson Dances Around Munhoz
Credit: UFC.com
Speed was the operative quality John Dodson used en route to a unanimous-decision win over Pedro Munhoz. The lightning-quick Dodson stuck and moved through three rounds and never allowed Munhoz to initiate his dominant submission game.
Hernandez Smokes Dariush in 42 Seconds
Credit: UFC.com
He was a late replacement for the injured Bobby Green, but Alexander Hernandez made his own mark. In just 42 seconds, Hernandez starched Beneil Dariush in the frist round with an illmatic left hand. Dariush was out before he hit the canvas.
WELCOME TO THE BIG SHOW ALEXANDER HERNANDEZ! #UFC222 pic.twitter.com/8apdiA3VAp — FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) March 4, 2018
In a calm and seemingly coordinated post-fight interview, Hernandez let it be known, he has his eyes set on big things.
Dern Wins A Rough Fight Against A Tough Yoder
Credit: UFC.com
Ashley Yoder was much tougher than most expected. She was hitting Mackenzie Dern with a counter left-hand for much of the fight, but Dern's pressure leg kicks and a late takedown in the third round sealed the split-decision win. The former Olympian was making her UFC debut amongst much fanfare.
She definitely has some room for improvement, but she came up with the clutch takedown when she needed it.
UFC 222 is Saturday at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Cris Cyborg will defend her UFC featherweight title in what looks like a lopsided matchup against Yana Kunitskaya.
Cyborg is a huge favorite and it'll be a shock if Kunitskaya can manage to keep the fight competitive. She hails from Jackson-Wink where former Cyborg-foe Holly Holm also trains. Holm obviously didn't beat the Brazilian wrecking machine, but she did have some early success.
Kunitskaya's trainers are hoping they can apply some of those tactics to facilitate what would be one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Here are the 10 things you should about the card.
TV Info
UFC Fight Pass - 6 pm ET
Fox Sports 1 - 8 pm ET
Main Card - 10 pm ET
Weigh-In Info
(c) Cris Cyborg (144.75) vs. Yana Kunitskaya (144) – for women’s featherweight title
Frankie Edgar (146) vs. Brian Ortega (145.5)
Sean O’Malley (136) vs. Andre Soukhamthath (135.25)
Andrei Arlovski (247.5) vs. Stefan Struve (266)
Ketlen Vieira (136) vs. Cat Zingano (135.5)
Mackenzie Dern (116) vs. Ashley Yoder (115.5)
Beneil Dariush (156) vs. Alexander Hernandez (155)
John Dodson (134.5) vs. Pedro Munhoz (135)
C.B. Dollaway (185.5) vs. Hector Lombard (185.5)
Zak Ottow (171) vs. Mike Pyle (170)
Bryan Caraway (135.5) vs. Cody Stamann (135.75)
Jordan Johnson (206) vs. Adam Milstead (205)
UFC in Vegas and T-Mobile Arena
Believe it or not, this is 117th event the UFC will have held in Las Vegas. It is the ninth UFC event held at the T-Mobile Arena. The last time the UFC was in the venue Cyborg headlined the event in the aforementioned battle with Holm at UFC 219 on Dec. 30, 2017.
MMA Fighting has UFC 222 results for the Cyborg vs. Kunitskaya event March 3 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, plus live blogs of the main card, and live UFC 222 Twitter updates.
In the main event, UFC featherweight champion Cris Cyborg will put her belt on the line against Yana Kunitskaya.
Former UFC champion Frankie Edgar will square off against Brian Ortega in a key featherweight contest in the co-main event.
Check out UFC 222 results below.
Main card (PPV at 10 p.m. ET)
Cris Cyborg vs. Yana Kunitskaya
Frankie Edgar vs. Brian Ortega
Sean O’Malley vs. Andre Soukhamthath
Stefan Struve vs. Andrei Arlovski
Cat Zingano vs. Ketlen Vieira
Undercard
Mackenzie Dern def. Ashley Yoder via split decision (live blog)
Alexander Hernandez def. Beneil Dariush via first-round KO (0:42) (Video)
John Dodson def. Pedro Munhoz via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
CB Dolloway def. Hector Lombard via disqualification (late hits) (R1, 5:00)
Zak Ottow def. Mike Pyle via first-round TKO (2:34)
Cody Stamann def. Bryan Caraway via split decision (28-29, 29-28 x2)
Jordan Johnson def. Adam Milstead via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)
UFC 222 is here. It’s not a great pay-per-view event, but if you look closely, it has several gems here and there.
This event is being headlined by a women’s featherweight title fight between champ Cris Cyborg and challenger Yana Kunitskaya. The main event might not be too exciting, given the fact that Kunitskaya is fairly unknown, but there are several other interesting match-ups.
UFC 222 features an unofficial title eliminator bout between top featherweights Frankie Edgar and Brian Ortega, the UFC debut of jiu-jitsu star Mackenzie Dern, the return of former women’s bantamweight title challenger Cat Zingano – who takes on undefeated contender Ketlen Vieira – and the interesting booking involving fan-favorite bantamweight Sean O’Malley and Andre Soukhamthath.
What: UFC 222
Where: T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas
When: Saturday, March 3. The three-fight UFC fight Pass preliminary card begins at 6:30 p.m. ET, the four-fight FOX Sports 1 preliminary card begins at 8:00 p.m. ET, and the five-fight main card begins 10:00 p.m. ET on pay-per-view.
Cris Cyborg vs. Yana Kunitskaya
Well, here’s another fight where Cris Cyborg is taking on an opponent who is a few levels below her.
Cyborg is likely the best female fighter of all time. The Brazilian has a dangerous, powerful and technical striking game. Cyborg also has great movement and a solid chin. She’s not really known for her jiu-jitsu, but Cyborg has pretty good grappling. She’s also an explosive athlete, which aids both her striking and grappling.
Yana Kunitskaya is not a bad fighter by any means. She’s very knowledgeable on the ground and has dangerous submissions from both top and bottom positions. Kunitskaya is not much of a threat on the feet, but she can stick to a game plan and remain composed when striking. The former Invicta FC champ has a low output standing, but she manages range well. Kunitskaya is also pretty athletic and strong compared to many of the other female bantamweights.
It’s hard to pick against Cyborg. I don’t see Kunitskaya bringing anything that can pose a significant threat to the champ. Holm at least had better movement than Cyborg, and a respected striking background that posed interesting questions and obstacles for Cyborg. I see Cyborg dominating in every area of the fight.
Pick: Cyborg
This is an interesting one.
Frankie Edgar is a skilled wrestler with excellent boxing and movement. Edgar also has solid top control and good ground-and-pound. The New Jersey fighter is one of the most experienced fighters at 145 pounds.
Brian Ortega is a young prospect who has finished all of his UFC opponents. Ortega is a serious contender and he’s likely still a long ways from his prime. Ortega has good boxing, but he can be hittable. Even with that, he’s proven to have a great chin. Ortega is most dangerous with his grappling. The jiu-jitsu black belt has an insane ability to lock up submission in small windows.
Worth noting, Edgar has never been submitted. But I find Ortega to be the most dangerous grappler Edgar has ever faced, so there’s that. I think Ortega is definitely capable of submitting Edgar, but I think Edgar will be too quick, experienced and smart to get in a grappling exchange with Ortega. I see Edgar using plenty of movement and out-striking Ortega from the outside.
Pick: Edgar
Fun fight between two very promising bantamweights.
Sean O’Malley is an unorthodox striker with reach and good movement. O’Malley has some grappling, but he shines best on the feet. Andre Soukhamthath is somewhat similar to O’Malley. Soukhamthath is a well-rounded fighter, but he’s most dangerous striking. Soukhamthath has respectable power behind his striking and size for the division.
Close fight. I find Soukhamthath to be more technical and powerful than O’Malley, but that’s what I thought about O’Malley’s last opponent Terrion Ware. Tough call, but I think O’Malley is a little busier on the feet and that should help him win a decision.
Pick: O’Malley
I find this heavyweight match up to be intriguing in an odd way. Neither Stefan Struve nor Andrei Arlovski are anywhere close to title contention, but stylistically this booking draws my attention.
Struve is a versatile striker with a great deal of reach. Struve is very technical on the feet. He’s also a skilled grappler with solid ability to lock up submissions. Meanwhile, Arlovski is not nearly as well-rounded as Struve, but he’s definitely far more experienced than Struve. Arlovski has good boxing and good power. His chin might not be great at this point of his career, but he still remains dangerous. Arlovski has plenty of experience and he’s not afraid to trade leather.
It’s hard to pick Arlovski due to his questionable chin. Sometimes it hold up, but more often than not it doesn’t. At the same time, Struve can also be unreliable, as he’s sometimes able to get in his groove and sometimes he’s not. Who knows how this one will play out, but I see Struve having the better chance of leaving victorious.
Pick: Struve
Big fight for the UFC’s women’s bantamweight division. Cat Zingano vs. Ketlen Vieira might be a title eliminator. Zingano has wins over the champ Amanda Nunes and the No. 1 contender Raquel Pennington. Vieira is undefeated and 3-0 in the UFC.
Zingano is a powerhouse at 135 pounds. The former title challenger is an explosive athlete with a strong grappling game. Zingano has good takedowns and solid ground-and-pound. She’s also very durable and tenacious.
Vieira is a pretty solid fighter. The Brazilian has very underrated takedowns and dangerous submissions. Vieira is a versatile grappler as she’s competent in both top and bottom positions. Vieira is also a decent striker who remains composed under pressure.
This is a very tough fight for Zingano. She hasn’t fought since UFC 200 and she’s facing an opponent carrying plenty of momentum. I don’t think fighting Vieira is the best way to get back in the game. Also worth noting, Vieira is very consistent with her performances and Zingano is not. I see Zingano looking good for the early potion of the bout, but I believe Vieira will eventually find her rhythm and best Zingano in a decision.
Pick: Vieira
Undercard:
Mackenzie Dern def. Ashley Yoder
Beneil Dariush def. Alexander Hernandez
John Dodson def. Pedro Munhoz
C. B. Dollaway def. Hector Lombard
Zak Ottow def. Mike Pyle
Cody Stamann def. Bryan Caraway
Jordan Johnson def. Adam Milstead
