Conor McGregor's left hand is a weapon of mass destruction
After months of breathless anticipation, title thievery, pro-wrestling-esque antics, and a doomed bout at UFC 189, longtime featherweight champion Jose Aldo saw his title reign evaporated by a vicious left hand from Conor McGregor in the main event at UFC 194 on Saturday night.
In the evening's co-main event, Luke Rockhold wrested the middleweight title from Chris Weidman in dominating fashion, burying Weidman under an avalanche of punches en route to a fourth round TKO.
See below for the complete results of UFC 194:
Conor McGregor def. Jose Aldo via 1st-round TKO
It only took a mere 13 seconds. With a clean, devastating left hand, Conor McGregor dethroned long-time featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo in the main event of UFC 145 on Saturday night. McGregor crushed a charging "Scarface" with a counter left (his first punch of the fight), and after a few brutal hammerfists, the fight was over. Wow.
Luke Rockhold def. Chris Weidman via 4th-round TKO
AAAAAAANNNNNNNNDDDDDDD .... NEEEEEEEWWWWWW. Swiss Army Knife of violence Luke Rockhold captured the middleweight title with an absolute drubbing of Chris Weidman in the co-main event. After a relatively competitive opening frame, Rockhold started taking over in the second stanza, and by the third he was absolutely decimating the now former champion. Impossibly, Weidman survived hellacious ground-and-pound to close the third round, but he wasn't able to withstand a similar barrage of punches in the fourth.
Yoel Romero def. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza via split decision
It was a tale of two fights. In the opening round, Yoel Romero pasted Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza with a spectacular spinning back fist, but wasn't able to close it out with the ensuing ground-and-pound. After something of a toss-up middle frame, Jacare took over in the final stanza, hurting Romero with heavy strikes before taking him to the mat and landing repeated elbows. It was razor-close, but Romero emerged with his hand raised.
Demian Maia def. Gunnar Nelson via unanimous decision
Demian Maia took Gunnar Nelson to school. For 15 grueling minutes, the Brazilian grappling ace completely dominated Nelson on the floor, regularly alternating between heavy ground-and-pound and hunting for rear-naked chokes, while Nelson - a good grappler in his own right - struggled to survive. Maia's BJJ wasn't just on another level - it was in another stratosphere.
Max Holloway def. Jeremy Stephens via unanimous decision
Whenever Jeremy Stephens tried to hit Max Holloway, Holloway was a ghost. A defensive savant, the Hawaiian lived on the fringes, picking the brick-fisted Stephens apart at range with slick counters and combinations. Although Stephens hunted for the takedown, Holloway was the one to drag the bout to the floor, working "Li'l Heathen" over with elbows and multiple submission attempts. Following the bout, Holloway needlessly apologized for his performance, and challenged the winner of Aldo-McGregor.
Urijah Faber def. Frankie Saenz via unanimous decision
It wasn't a cakewalk, but Urijah Faber walked away from UFC 194 with his hand raised. During an exceptionally violent stretch of the second round against Frankie Saenz, "The California Kid" wobbled Saenz with a big knee, and then followed it up with brutal, clubbing elbows. Through some sort of miracle, Saenz not only survived the onslaught, but worked his way back into a fight with some stinging strikes of his own. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late for the leather-tough Saenz, who couldn't do enough to reverse the damage an increasingly tired Faber had already inflicted.
Tecia Torres def. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger via unanimous decision
In a style unbefitting of her delightful nickname, "The Tiny Tornado" Tecia Torres deployed grueling clinch work along the cage, and solid, unspectacular ground-and-pound, to upend UFC newcomer Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger. For a beautiful moment in the final stanza, Torres briefly earned her aforementioned nickname, sniping the leather-tough Jones-Lybarger with a vicious combination.
Warlley Alves def. Colby Covington via 1st-round submission (guillotine choke)
Warlley Alves wasted little time polishing off Colby Covington. Before either man could even break a sweat, the crafty Alves snatched a flying guillotine choke. Covington desperately tried to slam his way out of it, but Alves only tightened the hold, earning the tap at 1:26 of the opening round.
Leonardo Santos def. Kevin Lee via 1st-round TKO
Leonardo Santos flipped the script. A spectacular grappler, and a massive underdog to Kevin Lee, Santos decided to flash his striking ability early, flattening Lee with a counter right hand. With a dazed Lee on the mat, Santos landed a series of jack-hammering punches until the bout was waved off at 3:26 of the opening stanza. Following the bout, an ecstatic Santos vaulted over the cage to celebrate with the frenzied crowd.
Magomed Mustafaev def. Joe Proctor via 1st-round TKO
Magomed Mustafaev came to destroy. The terrifying Russian completely laid waste to Joe Proctor to close out the Fight Pass Prelims, blistering the overwhelmed American with rib-roasting kicks before following them up with a barrage of knees and punches, until referee Mark Smith mercifully stepped in to make the save.
Yancy Medeiros def. John Makdessi via split decision
One key moment likely won the bout for Yancy Medeiros. After nearly 15 minutes of neither man clearly holding an advantage, Medeiros sparked Makdessi with a perfect left hook to the temple. It wasn't a kill-shot by any means, but it likely swayed a pair of judges to score the bout his way.
Court McGee def. Marcio Alexandre via unanimous decision
It was classic Court McGee. Fighting for the first time in nearly two years, the rugged (and unexciting) McGee outworked Marcio Alexandre over 15 minutes, controlling "Lyoto" in the clinch along the fence before dumping the Brazilian to the canvas, and denting him with a steady stream of ground-and-pound.
Main Card
Jose Aldo (145) vs. Conor McGregor (145)
Chris Weidman (185) vs. Luke Rockhold (185)
Yoel Romero (185) vs. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza (186)
Demian Maia (170) vs. Gunnar Nelson (170)
Max Holloway (146) vs. Jeremy Stephens (145)
Fox Sports Prelims
Urijah Faber (136) vs. Frankie Saenz (135)
Tecia Torres (116) vs. Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger (116)
Colby Covington (170) vs. Warlley Alves (171)
Kevin Lee (156) vs. Leonardo Santos (156)
Fight Pass Prelims
Magomed Mustafaev (155) vs. Joe Proctor (155.5)
John Makdessi (156) vs. Yancy Medeiros (155.5)
Court McGee (170) vs. Marcio Alexandre Jr. (171)
