Who were the winners at Fight Night: Chiesa vs. Lee? Click below to get the results for all the fights at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City on Sunday, June 25, 2017.
Chiesa vs Lee | Boetsch vs Hendricks | Herrig vs Kish | Christensen vs Reyes | Means vs Garcia | Penn vs Siver | Guida vs Koch | Miranda vs Vettori | Esparza vs Moroz | Powell vs Horcher | Gordon vs Quinones | Martin vs Case | Stansbury vs Kimball
Fight Night Oklahoma City main card
Main event: Kevin Lee def. Michael Chiesa
Kevin Lee slammed Michael Chiesa and then took his back and didn’t let go until he was pulled off by referee Mario Yamazaki, who controversially stopped the fight before Chiesa even tapped, giving Lee the submission win by RNC at 4:37 of the first round. The controversy aside, Lee looked to be just seconds away from either a tap or Chiesa passing out. The choke was tight and he was in very dominant position. The two lightweights engaged in a very personal back and forth in the lead up to the fight and after both agreed they’d rematch if it made sense. Lee now has the third-longest active win streak (5) in the lightweight division.
THEY SAID IT:
Kevin Lee: “I just got to watch the replay and, to me, it looks like he went out. If the fight hadn’t been stopped, it would’ve just been a few more seconds of me choking him. I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to show more out there because I was ready for four more rounds. When we stopped didn’t matter to me. I think he wanted me to come out and blitz but I’m a smart fighter. I stayed on my toes, kept the distance and worked a game plan. He is taller but I am longer so I wanted to work that to my advantage. I dictated where and when the fight took place and I’m very happy with it. The ref could see what was happening. He was fighting the choke and I changed my grip. When I changed the grip, he stopped fighting my hands and the ref stopped the fight. That’s the end of it.”
Co-main: Tim Boetsch def. Johny Hendricks
Tim Boetsch landed a titanic headkick that rocked Johny Hendricks and the rest was academic, as Boetsch stopped Hendricks by TKO at :46 of the second round. It was all Boetsch in the fight. He landed 41 significant strikes and proved to be just too big for the former welterweight champion.
THEY SAID IT:
Tim Boetsch: “Honestly, that is exactly how we saw the fight happening. I didn’t want to get ahead of myself and show him the kick so I had to be patient and wait for it. Sure enough, in the second round, I was able to find the opening, send it and it landed clean. I took the fight with a plan to make a statement and I feel I did that. I feel like I’m continuing to get better even though I’m one of the older guys. I have role models in this sport like Dan Henderson who continued to make noise even when they got older. I’ve got no expiration date as long as I can continue to be effective in the Octagon.”
Felice Herrig def. Justine Kish
Felice Herrig was as dominant as ever, winning the exchanges on the feet and the ground and almost finishing with a deep rear naked choke in the third round, taking out Justine Kish by unanimous decision, 30-26, 30-26, 29-27. Herrig has now won three in a row and is one of the hottest fighters at 115 pounds. Herrig scored three takedowns in the fight and controlled on the ground for 9:22 of the fight. Herrig out-struck Kish, 106-44 overall and had the one very close submission in the final round.
THEY SAID IT:
Felice Herrig: “I am very happy to get the win tonight. Even though Justine isn’t ranked, I know what a tough fighter she is and she proved that. She was very durable. I had one of the chokes in deep and I couldn’t believe that didn’t end the fight but that’s just how tough she is. I just had my 50th fight tonight between boxing, kickboxing and MMA and I’ve won 3 in a row. In my last fight, I beat Alexa Grasso who is considered a top prospect and now Justine. I feel like I keep getting better with each fight so I am looking for a tougher challenge. I want to prove that I’m one of the best there is in this division so I hope my next fight is a big one.”
Dominick Reyes def. Joachim Christensen
Dominick Reyes had a ton of hype surrounding his UFC debut and he delivered in a big way, knocking out Joachim Christensen at :29 of the first round. Reyes threw a pair of devastating straight left hands that about decapitated Christensen before the fight was called. Reyes improves to 7-0.
THEY SAID IT:
Dominick Reyes: “The last couple of months have been full of hard work and, specifically, this past month, has been an incredible ride. Now, I am here with my first UFC win and I am extremely thankful for the blessings I’ve been given. I never prepare for a quick fight but I am very confident in my abilities to finish so I am always looking for an opportunity to end the fight. I fought twice this month so I will take a little time to recover but I intend to get right back into the gym as soon as possible. Now is the time for me to show the world what I can do and I will be ready for the next opportunity.”
Tim Means def. Alex Garcia
It was a tough matchup for Tim Means, who is known for his vicious standing elbows inside on the feet. Alex Garcia wanted to get this fight to the mat, forcing Means to stay outside at distance. Means was able to deny all six takedown attempts by Garcia en route to the unanimous decision win, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28.
THEY SAID IT:
Tim Means: “I am very happy to be here, celebrating this win. I followed my game plan and listened to my coaches. I didn’t want to rush in on him because he’s a powerful guy and I wanted to make sure I stayed off my back. I also had a bad taste in my mouth from the last fight I had and wanted to get back in the win column. I was able to do that and I’m happy with it. Next thing for me is to get home and head out on the lake for some fishing. Maybe eat some banana pudding and a couple of cheat meals too. Then, I’ll be right back in there to prepare for the next fight.”
Dennis Siver def. BJ Penn
BJ Penn turned the clock back for a moment in the second round when he knocked Dennis Siver down with a perfect upper cut, but the rest of the fight was controlled by Siver, who walked away with a majority decision win against the legend, 28-28, 29-28, 29-27. Siver out-struck Penn in the fight, 117-59 and landed a staggering 51 significant strikes in the third round alone. Penn’s leg was brutalized from a consistent leg kick from Siver.
THEY SAID IT:
Dennis Siver: “It feels great to get the win here tonight. There were not many surprises in BJ’s game plan. I felt him get very tired in the third round and I capitalized on that. I am excited to get home and then I will get back into the gym and figure out what is next. For now, I am happy to celebrate this victory.”
Fight Night OKC FS2 prelims
Clay Guida def. Erik Koch
It was a vintage Clay Guida performance in the main event of the FS2 prelims, as “The Carpenter” grinded out Erik Koch for a unanimous decision win, 29-28, 29-26, 30-27. Guida only needed two takedowns to control Koch on the floor for 9:42 of the 15-minute scrap. He landed 131-15 for strikes and implemented his game plan to perfection to win for the first time in the Octagon since April 2015.
THEY SAID IT:
Clay Guida: “I feel great. If I had to say I was surprised by anything, it would be his resilience. We thought we were going to get him out of there and finish but he really dug in and showed grit and toughness. I was looking for the head and arm choke but he did a good job of not giving it up so I decided I was going to throw hammers while I had him down. I’m ‘The Carpenter’ and I feel like tonight I started building my ladder for another climb to the top.”
Marvin Vettori def. Vitor Miranda
Marvin Vettori landed three takedowns and out-struck Vitor Miranda, 76-65 to take home the unanimous decision win, 29-28, 30-27, 30-27. Vettori was aggressive with his grappling game plan and forced Miranda to play defense for most of their prelim bout. Vettori moves to 2-1 in the UFC with the victory.
Carla Esparza def. Maryna Moroz
Carla Esparza landed six of 13 takedowns and out-struck Maryna Moroz, 74-22 to earn the unanimous decision victory, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27. The former UFC strawweight champion has won two of three as she continues to move her way back to a title shot.
THEY SAID IT:
Carla Esparza: “It felt great to be back in the Octagon tonight and I’m really happy to have the win. I was impressed with Maryna’s ground game and durability. I studied a lot of tape on her and I hadn’t seen her defend takedowns or go for them either. I thought she did a good job of avoiding the single leg so I had to make adjustments to my game plan and start shooting for double legs. She was also good at neutralizing my ground game and showed some impressive jiu-jitsu. She’s a great fighter. That’s when I knew I had to start going for the ground and pound and that’s when I started to take over. I still feel like I’m in line for the title but Joanna [Jedrzejczyk] might not be next for me so we’ll see. If not her, then I would fight once more before the title shot. I know I’m not far away from getting my rematch.”
Darrell Horcher def. Devin Powell
Darrell Horcher outlasted Devin Powell, earning the split decision win, 29-28, 28-29, 29-28. Powell out-struck Horcher 80-69 in total strikes but Horcher landed 35 significant strikes to just 19 for Powell.
THEY SAID IT:
Darrell Horcher: “First and foremost, it just feels great to be back. After going through the past year, I have such an appreciation for being back in the UFC and doing what I love. I was a little let down that I didn’t get the finish but I did have a bit of nerves coming back tonight. I did my best to stay calm and work hard on what we trained in camp. The choke was never a worry to me. When he went for it, the first thing I did was shrug and get my shoulders tight so I’m actually more sore from defending than anything else. My plan is to take a week off and get right back into the gym. Now that I’m able to train harder, I want to fight again before the end of the year.”
Fight Night OKC FIGHT PASS prelims
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Jared Gordon def. Michel Quinones
Jared Gordon overwhelmed Michel Quinones to earn the TKO finish at 4:24 of the second round. Both fighters were making their debut in the UFC and Gordon was just too much for Quinones. Gordon pushed the pace early and got into the face of Quinones, who wanted to use his length and keep his distance to strike. The onslaught really began for Gordon in the second round, when he landed two of his three total takedowns. He landed 70 total strikes, 39 of which were significant, and was able to do enough damage to earn the win. Gordon missed weight by three pounds Saturday and was docked 20 percent of his fight purse.
THEY SAID IT:
Jared Gordon: “I expected [Quinones] to be a lot faster so I was surprised that he wasn’t but, when I saw that, I knew I had this fight. I even told the ref when I thought it should be stopped. Once I had him on the ground, I dominated him and I’m very proud of my performance. That’s what I am in the UFC to do. My goal now is to stay training and ready. I believe this is only the beginning. I am destined to be a UFC champion and I showed that tonight.”
Tony Martin def. Johnny Case
Tony Martin started a bit slow but turned it on in the final 10 minutes to take the unanimous decision, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28. Both Martin and Johnny Case worked strong jabs in the fight and Case established his first in the opening round, out-striking Martin in the frame 33-17. The final numbers also showed Case to have landed more, but it was Martin who landed the bigger shots, including a headkick that rocked Case in the third round. Martin improves to 4-3 in the UFC and has now won three in a row.
THEY SAID IT:
Tony Martin: “I am very happy with the performance. I felt like I really showcased my striking tonight. I wanted the finish but he did a lot of dipping to the right so he ended up dipping with my punches. I think my right hand was finding a home all night and, in the third round, I was just a few more seconds away from getting the finish so that’s all I can ask for. We were not on the best of terms coming into this fight but when you have a war like that, respect develops for one another. He is a tough guy. Where I come from, if you have a problem with someone, you settle it and move on. I think we put on an amazing show and we should both be proud of that. Next, I want someone in the Top 15. I think I’ve proven myself deserving of that. I want to be on big cards, having big fights.”
Jeremy Kimball def. Josh Stansbury
Jeremy Kimball waisted no time opening the night against Josh Stansbury with a first-round TKO finish at the 1:21 mark. Kimball landed a straight right hand and then followed it up with a standing hammer fist that dropped Stansbury and referee Mario Yamasaki stepped in to halt the fight. Kimball picks up his first win in the UFC.
THEY SAID IT:
Jeremy Kimball: “I felt great out there tonight. I have several finishes in the first minute so this fight went a little longer than expected but I knew I would find the opening. A key for me is not training for specific opponents or styles, just training hard to be a better fighter. I also know I have cinderblocks for hands and I wanted to rebound from my last fight so this was amazing. I love being here in OKC too, the fans have been great all week. I don’t care who is next, I just want to keep fighting and keep finishing anyone they give me.”
