With the smoke from UFC 187 still clearing it was back down to business for the UFC as Goiania was the host city for the latest Brazilian fight night card.
Condit Comeback
In the main event of the evening there was a meeting of two of the world’s most exciting welterweights as former interim champion Carlos Condit returned after a year out to take on home favourite Thiago Alves. For Condit it was imperative to keep his range early in the fight and that’s exactly what he did as he circled around Alves from the off. Head seeking kicks from Condit were the first point scoring shots of the night but they didn’t do much damage. As he usually does, Alves attacked hard from the start with leg kicks but Condit clearly won the battle of range and output early. An exchange of elbows midway through the round was the first real meeting of the pair in the pocket as Alves struck hard as they moved out with another leg kick. One more pair of beautiful Alves leg kicks came in between a nice Condit left hook as the action intensified with every additional moment. In the last minute of the round Alves had his best success when he backed Condit against the cage and landed to the head and body with a series of hurtful looking kicks and punches. Condit didn’t seem perturbed, though, and jumped away from the cage before he went back to his seat for the first break.
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A huge leg kick from Alves opened the second as he looked ever more confident following the early skirmishes. As Condit came in to engage for the next exchange these was more Alves success as he caught the American with a jarring straight right which was fast becoming a trend. Another leg kick was landed by Alves quickly after that but as he backed out to reload, Condit caught him with a huge left hook which dropped him to the seat of his pants. Condit immediately dived down and attacked hard as he cut Alves’ face wide open with strikes before taking the back and then the mount. Amazingly, Alves survived, defended and got back to his feet but it was all in vain as he was hit with a fight altering elbow which broke his nose before Condit dropped him to his back again with a massive lift and throw. With 90 seconds still on the clock Condit went for the rear naked choke but the amount of blood spilled made it extra difficult. Instead, he maintained his position on top of Alves against the fence and beat him up until they stood late in the period. Before the bell, the wobbly Alves traded hard again as Condit sealed a huge round.
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As Alves sat in his corner, the cageside doctor was immediately called due to the nose of the Brazilian looking seriously damaged. After his examination, without hesitation, the doctor correctly called a halt to the bout with Alves clearly in no shape to continue. It was an unfortunate way for such an enjoyable fight to end but for Condit, nevertheless, it’s a huge win after such a long period out which should put him right back in the divisional mix.
Parke’s Pain
There was big Irish interest on the night too as Antrim’s Norman Parke went into the lion’s den to face hard hitting Brazilian Francisco Trinaldo. The fight opened up at a pretty slow pace with both men anxious to feel it out. A leg kick from each man was off the mark early before a couple of jabs were exchanged in the pocket. The centre of the cage was shared in the opening phases with neither man getting much of an advantage in the striking department. An overhand left from Parke was probably the best shot of the first half of the round but Trinaldo quickly answered back with a leg kick and punch combination. Midway through the period, Parke struck big first with a beautiful double leg takedown. On the floor the Antrim man was able to control momentarily but Trinaldo quickly got up before being clinched and tripped again. This time Parke attempted to pass from half guard but Trinaldo again rose to his feet late in the period.
Both men looked much looser starting the second and it was a Trinaldo body shot which stole the early show. Parke quickly closed the distance, though, and got the fight to the clinch again. To his credit, Trinaldo was able to stop the takedown attempts, turn the position and disengage before landing some nice punches and knees either side of a brief Parke takedown. As the round progressed, Trinaldo grew in confidence and stuffed Parke’s next takedown attempt while landing left hands, knees and leg kicks of his own. Parke didn’t look too damaged but his gas tank was certainly lower than usual as Massuranduba upped the pace entering the last minute of a round he clearly won.
Between rounds Parke was given clear instructions to go out and attack but Trinaldo was the man who had success to start to third with some nice combination boxing. Parke, though, didn’t take a backward step as he pushed his opponent against the cage. From there, Parke was able to get the hugely important takedown before slipping in two hooks and taking the back. Trinaldo did a great job of defending as he stuck against the cage for dear life but it was all Parke as he dominated position for most of the round. A neck crank attempt from Parke was never likely to get the finish but it did seem to tire out Trinaldo who struggled to escape. Eventually, though, he did get out after Parke slipped off of his back but he was immediately put on his back again right as the final bell went.
Amazingly, the judges’ decision was a split one and went the way of Trinaldo to the surprise of most people who watched the fight. For Parke, who pretty clearly won rounds one and three, it’s a devastating loss but he can take heart in his comeback performance after an extremely tough second round.
The rest of the card ranged from the sublime to the ordinary. The stand-out performance of the night came from featherweight prospect Mirsad Bektic who finished Lucas Martins in the second after a wonderful display which should get him a ranking when they are updated this week. Also impressive on the night were Darren Till and Jussier Formiga while Cage Warriors alumni Tom Breese and Nicholas Dalby both picked up debut wins. Elsewhere, the stinker of the night was certainly Jimmo vs. Barroso at light heavyweight but the excellent featherweight bout which saw Charles Oliveira submit Nik Lentz certainly made up for it.
Check out the full results below:
Carlos Condit def. Thiago Alves via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) – R2, 5:00
Charles Oliveira def. Nik Lentz via submission (guillotine) – R3, 1:10
Alex Oliveira def. K.J. Noons via submission (rear naked choke) – R1, 2:51
Francimar Barroso def. Ryan Jimmo via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Francisco Trinaldo def. Norman Parke via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Darren Till def. Wendell Oliveira via knockout – R2, 1:37
Rony Jason def. Damon Jackson via submission (triangle) – R1, 3:31
Jussier Formiga def. Wilson Reis via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Nicolas Dalby def. Elizeu Zaleski via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Mirsad Bektic def. Lucas Martins via TKO – R2, 0:30
Juliana Lima def. Ericka Almeida via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-25)
Tom Breese def. Luiz Dutra via TKO – R1, 4:58
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