(UFC Featherweight Clay Guida | Photo
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By Elias Cepeda
Chicago’s favorite MMA son, Clay Guida, returned home and earned his first win at featherweight at the United Center tonight on the UFC on Fox Card. Guida earned a decision win over Hatsu Hioki as well as the night’s loudest and most sustained cheers.
Over the course of three rounds, Guida withstood punishment from the sharp-striking Hioki to repeatedly take the Japanese fighter down. From there, Guida control the action on the ground, defended submission attempts and landed dozens of short strikes of his own.
Chants of “Guida, Guida!” filled the arena, before, during and after “The Carpenter’s” win. Scores on the divided judges’ scorecards were 29-28 for Hioki, and 29-28 and 30-27 for Guida.
Lamas Becomes Top Contender
Ricardo Lamas came out on top in dramatic fashion in a top contender’s fight against Milwaukee’s Erik Koch. The Chicagoan of Mexican and Cuban descent sauntered out to the cage to horns blasting and lyrics singing, “Rumba Mexicano para los Cubanos” and represented both proud fighting heritages well with a second round TKO stoppage win.
In the first round Lamas worked hard to take Koch down to the mat but after each of the two brief times that he was able to do so, Koch skillfully got back to his feet. In the second round Lamas took Koch down once more but this time kept him there.
Lamas wasted little time in raining hellacious punches and elbows down onto the head and face of Koch, cutting and stunning him. Referee John McCarthy soon decided that he had seen enough and pried Lamas off of a prone Koch.
Koch laid on the mat, hurt and dazed for several minutes after the bout while being tended to by medics, before getting to his feet with assistance. “If I get on top you’d better watch out. I’m not getting off until you’re bloody or knocked out,” Lamas told interviewer Joe Rogan after the fight.
With the win, Lamas’ fourth straight, he has solidified his place as the rightful number one contender to the 145 pound UFC welterweight belt. Champion Jose Aldo and former lightweight king Frankie Edgar fight
Lamas dedicated the win to his deceased grandparents and said his home town crowd had a calming effect on his nerves during the fight. “I’m a nervous wreck before all my fights but being here at home in Chicago friends and fans…I’m more at ease than ever before,” Lamas said.
Pettis Brings ‘Showtime’ to Chicago
Donald Cerrone called out Milwaukee’s Anthony “Showtime” Pettis and claimed that the Wisconsin native was scared to fight him. Pettis put that theory to rest in short order with a first round knockout win over “Cowboy” Cerrone.
The two lightweight contenders exchanged strikes but Pettis went hard and often to the body of Cerrone early on and it soon paid dividends. After landing several rear kicks to the rib cage of his opponent, as well as an electrifying flying, off-the-cage knee to the head, Pettis landed a rear knee to the chest of Cerrone that dropped and froze him.
Pettis added a couple academic punches to the turtle-up fighter out of New Mexico and the fight was over. The former WEC lightweight champion called for a title shot in both gestures and words post-fight.
“[UFC President} Dana White, what do I got to do for this title shot?,” Pettis said after pantomiming wrapping a title belt around his waist from atop the UFC Octagon. Perhaps not much more.
Russow Loses to Jordan
South-side Chicago policeman and former Eastern Illinois University wrestler Mike Russow lost by way of second round TKO to Shawn Jordan. Russow started off fast, landing big right hands and scoring takedowns in the first, but soon began to fade in the second.
Jordan scored a double leg takedown of his own, worked first into the dominant mount position on top, then onto the back of Russow. Jordan landed punches from the mount and looked for a choke from the back. Eventually, Russow got back to his feet but after being taken down again, he was pounded out on his back by Jordan until he was completely flattened out, face first, eating unanswered shots. The referee stepped in and called a stop to the heavyweight action.
Johnson Breaks Down Dodson in World Title Bout
In the main event of the night, the UFC’s two fastest fighters locked up as 125 pound champion Demetrious Johnson defended his title against “Ultimate Fighter” winner John Dodson with a decision win. The two traded hard strikes and take downs in an evenly-contested fight but Johnson finished stronger, earning the nod from the judges. Scores were 48-47, 49-46, 48-47 for Johnson.
“Rampage’s” Farewell?
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson lost what may end up being his final UFC bout. The future hall of famer dropped a decision to Chuck Liddell protégé Glover Teixeira after three rounds of slugging it out.
Teixeira had Jackson in trouble early on, taking him to the ground and working from the mount and back. “Rampage” continued to survive, get up and throw his own shots on the feet for the rest of the fight, but the Brazilian Teixeira landed more often on the feet, controlled the grappling and showed superior conditioning.
