Ronda Rousey fights Liz Carmouche during their UFC Bantamweight Title bout at Honda Center on February 23, 2013 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, Calif. — Ronda Rousey successfully defended her UFC women’s bantamweight title, submitting Liz Carmouche by armbar in the first round of the UFC 157 main event in Southern California’s Honda Center on Saturday night.
Rousey locked on her favorite submission and finished Carmouche at 4:49 of the opening stanza to retain the belt.
“There’s no amount of press that can save these girls from me,” said a victorious Rousey, making a statement to the rest of the women in her division.
Rousey pressured her opponent early on, while Carmouche attempted fending her off with jabs. The champ ultimately got the fight to the ground and worked towards locking the arm, but the challenger persevered and avoided danger.
Carmouche scrambled to gain Rousey’s back and worked to sink in a rear-naked choke, nearly sinking the submission to the surprised of the Anaheim crowd.
“After I saw Urijah do that earlier, I said ‘no way that’s happening twice in one night,’” Rousey said of the close call.
Rousey escaped danger, putting her opponent on her back and scrambling to mount shortly after. It was then that Rousey transitioned to secure the arm and finish the fight with just 11 seconds left in the opening stanza.
With the win, Rousey keeps her MMA record perfect at 7-0, extending her streak of armbar finishes.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Lyoto Machida edges Dan Henderson for the split decision
Lyoto Machida fought a close fight with Dan Henderson in the UFC 157 co-main event, earning a split decision win Saturday night at the Honda Center.
Machida used his elusiveness to avoid Henderson’s power shots, and the judges scored the contest 28-29, 29-28 and 29-28.
Both fighters were calculated for a majority of the first round. Henderson threw low kicks and followed that up with looping right punches, one of which landed and was the most significant of his strikes in the round. Machida got a late trip-takedown and pounded away on his opponent just before the opening round ended.
Henderson continued pressuring in the second round, backing his opponent up with the same kick-looping punch combination he was using in the first round. In typical fashion, Machida avoided several strikes from his opponent, countering any opportunity Henderson came within range.
The third round had Machida land a solid midkick, but Henderson pushed forward moments later and scored a takedown. Henderson worked his ground-and-pound from guard, but his opponent escaped and returned to the feet. Machida taunted Henderson shortly thereafter, following that up with kicks and punches while controlling the center of the octagon.
With the win, Machida improves to 19-3 and makes some ground in gaining a rematch with UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Urijah Faber vs. Ivan Menjivar
Urijah Faber submitted Ivan Menjivar with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their main card fight at UFC 157 on Saturday night in Anaheim.
Faber grounded his opponent early on and rained punches and elbows from top position. Transitioning between guard and side control, Faber stayed active with his hands and gave his opponent no opportunity to mount an offense.
Manjivar briefly returned to the feet, but his opponent gained back control in the process and the end came moments later. Faber sank the choke while Manjivar carried him on his back, finishing the bout at 4:34 of the opening frame.
With the win, Faber improves his record to 27-6.
Court McGee vs. Josh Neer
Court McGee defeated Josh Neer by unanimous decision in the second fight of the Pay-PerView portion at UFC 157 on Saturday.
McGee opened up Round 1 with landing several combinations, then grounding his opponent towards the end of the round to nearly sink in a choke. He continued keeping his hands busy in the second round, but was visibly slower than he was in the first.
The third round showed Neer bringing more offense with strikes than he did in the two previous round, but his opponent took him down two times. McGee stayed in top position until time expired.
With the win, McGee is successful in his welterweight debut after dropping down from middleweight.
Josh Koscheck vs. Robbie Lawler
Robbie Lawler topped Josh Koscheck in the first round to open the Pay-Per-View portion of UFC 157 on Saturday.
Lawler was taken down early, but returned to the feet and defended Koscheck’s second attempt to get the fight to the floor. “Ruthless” then gained top postion and pounded away at Koscheck with strikes to finish the fight at 3:57.
Preliminary Bouts (on FX):
Brendan Schaub def. Lavar Johnson by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Michael Chiesa def. Anton Kuivanen by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:29, Round 2
Dennis Bermudez def. Matt Grice by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Sam Stout def. Caros Fodor by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Preliminary Bouts (on Facebook):
Kenny Robertson def. Brock Jardine by submission (kneebar from back mount) 2:57, Round 1
Neil Magny def. Jon Manley by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Nah-Shon Burrell def. Yuri Villefort by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
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