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UFC's latest Fight Night edition was live from the Canadian Tire Centre from Ottawa, Canada, with a host of tantalizing fights making up a card that looked explosive on paper.
Donald Cerrone took on Al Iaquinta in the main event of the evening while Derek Brunson faced Elias Theodorou in a Middleweight co-main event.
The six-fight main card witnessed five decisions and just one finish. Don't let that fool you though, as the fights were pretty engaging and highly technical contests from the fans' perspective.
Let's not waste any more time then. Here are the results and highlights of the show:
UFC Fight Night 151 Results: Prelims
Macy Chiasson def. Sarah Moras via TKO (punches) (2:22, Round 2)
Vince Morales def. Aiemann Zahabi via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Nordine Taleb def. Kyle Prepolec via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Matt Sayles def. Kyle Nelson via submission (Arm Triangle Choke) (3:16, Round 3)
Arjan Bhullar def. Juan Adams via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28. 30-27)
Cole Smith def. Mitch Gagnon via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
UFC Fight Night 151 Results - Main Card
#1. Marc-Andre Barriault (11-1-0) vs. Andrew Sanchez (10-4-0) (Middleweight)
The 'Power-Bar' Marc Andre Barriault was on an 8-fight win streak coming into the main card opener, while his opponent, Andrew Sanchez had won his last fight against Markus Perez in August 2018. This was Barriault's UFC debut and Dana White wasn't intending to go easy on the newbie as he put him up against Sanchez, who was no spring chicken.
The fans inside the arena were firmly behind the UFC debutant. However, that didn't help his cause as he fell to a unanimous decision loss to Sanchez.
The fight was quite even going into the third round as both men had their moments. Sanchez took the first round by getting the better of the exchanges, and the same happened to Barriault, who landed more volume in the second round.
Sanchez managed to land a full takedown in the third round and controlled the fight when it mattered to most, to give him an edge in the judges' eyes.
A forgettable first Octagon experience for the Power-Bar meant Sanchez brought up his second consecutive victory.
Result: Andrew Sanchez def. Andre Barriault via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
#2. Walt Harris (11-7-0-1) vs. Sergey Spivak (9-0) (Heavyweight)
Walt 'The Big Ticket' Harris had a lot of naysayers in the build-up to the fight, after all, the decision of his last outing against Andrie Arlovski had to be overturned to a NC after he tested positive for LGD-4033.
His opponent, this time around though, wasn't a veteran, but an undefeated 24-year-old prospect. Sergey Spivak was another fighter who made his debut tonight, however, even he tasted the same fate as Marc-Andre Barriault did in the first bout of the main card.
Harris just needed 50 seconds to puncture the hype surrounding the undefeated Moldovian. Harris strung together a decent combination near the fence and hurt Sergey with some brutal punches and knees.
Spivak looked done and covered up to avoid more damage. Harris jumped in for the kill and applied the finishing touches before the referee stepped in to stop the fight.
The UFC is a whole different level and Spivak realised it the hard way in just under 50 seconds against Harris - who notched up his 12th knockout victory.
Result: Walt Harris def. Sergey Spivak via TKO (Knees and Punches)
#3. Brad Katona (8-0) vs. Merab Dvalishvili (8-4) (Bantamweight)
Hometown hero Brad Katona wanted to make Canada proud again, instead, he gave up his undefeated streak tonight in a fight that saw him get dominated by Georgian fighter Merab Dvalishvili.
Merab got his range in place early and was the one who landed the better shots in the first round. He even scored two takedowns and set the tone of the fight in his favour. He landed another takedown in the second round against Katona, who was getting the desired support from the fans inside the Canadian Tire Centre.
The second round was a dampener as the referee had to warn the fighters regarding the lack of action. Dvalishvili managed the pace of the fight to his liking and pushed Katona into the fence to run out the clock. Katona couldn't come up with the big finish that could have overturned his fortunes as the fight came to a close.
A disappointing night for the 'Superman'.
Result: Merab Dvalishvili def. Brad Katona via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
#4. Cub Swanson (25-10) vs. Shane Burgos (11-1)
Cub Swanson's fights are always wild and this one was no different. The perennial title contender found himself opposite 'The Hurricane' Shane Burgos, who had lost only a single fight in his career dating back to January 2018.
This was a proper stand-battle as both men stood toe-to-toe and put together diverse combinations, especially Swanson, whose distinct inventiveness was on full display.
The first round went to Burgos, who used the jabs to great effect. Swanson came in hot in the second round as he kept connecting with some big shots. Burgos stood in the pocket and countered fire with fire. Swanson got the second round despite eating many counter shots from Burgos.
Swanson's corner told him to up the ante as he may have lost the first two rounds. It was evident that Swanson had been in one too many wars as he laboured through the final round.
It was another back-and-forth spectacle as the fight went the distance. It looked really close, however, the judges decided to give Burgos the split decision victory. Check out the figures and you'd realise why it was a debatable outcome.
Result: Shane Burgos def. Cub Swanson via split decision (27-30, 30-27, 29-28)
#5. Derek Brunson (18-7) vs. Elias Theodorou (16-2) (Middleweight)
After consecutive losses to Israel Adesanya and Jacare Souza, another disappointment was not an option for Derek Brunson. As for Theodorou, it was an opportunity for the Canadian to break into the top ten rankings in the stacked Middleweight division.
At the end of the fight, Brunson had his hands raised in a bout that was fought at an expeditious pace.
Brunson's grappling proved to be the decisive factor as the American scored takedowns in rounds one and three despite Theodorou's resistance. The Spartan did win the second round owing to some smooth footwork, stance shifts and his usage of varied kicks.
However, Brunson's gameplan of working to his strengths and to exploit Theodorou's grappling weaknesses paid dividends. A well-deserved win for the 35-year-old, who was relieved to have ended his losing streak against Elias 'Cardio Machine' Theodorou.
Result: Derek Brunson def. Elias Theodorou via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
#6. Donald Cerrone (35-11-0-1) vs. Al Iaquinta (14-14-1) (Lightweight)
It was a little tad surprising that a majority of the pundits and fans picked Iaquinta to win while partially writing off the veteran Donald Cerrone. The Cowboy, though, meant business and continued his hot streak by notching up a masterful unanimous decision win against Iaquinta.
Cerrone was crisp in his striking as he completely dominated the proceedings in the five-round affair. Al just managed to get the second round in his kitty, other than that, it was Cerrone putting in all the good work.
Cerrone dropped laquinta in rounds three and four with a jab and a kick respectively. Cowboy was in the groove and landed his combinations on a bloodied laquinta. It was like watching prime Cerrone in action as he resumed his journey to another title shot in the Lightweight division. The MMA veteran extended his all-time UFC record to 23 wins.
Result: Donald Cerrone def. Al laquinta via unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-46)
“Dad Cerrone is 3-0 now so I’m on a new mission, I’ve got to build this boy a swimming pool,” Cerrone declared after the fight. He seemed open to the idea of facing either Conor McGregor or the winner of Poirier vs. Nurmagomedov next.
