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UFC on Fox 31 was an exciting event, bringing with it a lot of entertainment. The show was the last one to take place on Fox, with UFC starting a new deal with ESPN in the new year.
The final UFC event on Fox was headlined by none other than the ever-effervescent Kevin Lee, taking on an old rival in Al Iaquinta. The two had faced each other previously when Kevin Lee had been making debut in the Octagon. On that occasion, things had not really gone well for Kevin Lee, with Iaquinta getting the win.
The co-main event of UFC on Fox was none other than Edson Barboza taking on Dan Hooker. Hooker is undefeated since moving to Lightweight Division, with four wins to his name in his last four fights. This is a streak Barboza will be looking to end, as he tries to mount a bigger comeback.
In this article, we will be covering all the action from the main card of UFC on Fox 31. To find out what happened at UFC on Fox 31 read on!
Before heading into the main card, let's take a glance at the UFC on Fox 31 undercard results.
Preliminary card
Welterweight: Zak Ottow vs. Dwight Grant - Results: Zak Ottow defeated Dwight Grant via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Lightweight: Bobby Green vs. Drakkar Klose - Results: Bobby Green defeated Drakkar Klose via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Lightweight: Jared Gordon vs. Joaquim Silva - Results: Joaquim Silva defeated Jared Gordon via KO (Round 3, 2 minutes and 39 seconds)
Middleweight: Gerald Meerschaert vs. Jack Hermansson - Results: Jack Hermansson defeated Gerald Meerschaert via submission (Guillotine Choke, Round 1, 4 minutes and 25 seconds)
Featherweight: Dan Ige vs.Jordan Griffin - Results: Dan Ige defeated Jordan Griffin via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Middleweight: Trevor Smith vs. Zak Cummings - Results: Zak Cummings defeated Trevor Smith via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Early Preliminary Card
Light Heavyweight: Adam Milstead vs. Mike Rodriguez - Results: Mike Rodriguez defeated Adam Milstead (2 minutes and 59 seconds)
Heavyweight: Chris de la Rocha vs. Juan Adams - Results: Juan Adams defeated Chris de la Rocha via TKO (3rd round, 58 seconds)
Main Card
#1 Lightweight: Jim Miller vs. Charles Oliveira
Round 1: From the very first moment, Charles Oliveira went for the submission. He managed to fight down Jim Miller. The master submission expert, added to his extreme record one more time, as the Rear Naked Choke on Miller was too much for the fighter to withstand.
Miller tapped out, and Oliveira picked up his 12th UFC win via submission.
Results: Charles Oliveira defeated Jim Miller via Submission (Rear Naked Choke, 1st Round, 1 minute 15 seconds)
#2 Bantamweight: Rob Font vs. Sergio Pettis
Round 1: Rob Font began the first round by starting walk forward and walk down Sergio Pettis. Pettis had moved back up to the Bantamweight Division from Flyweight, and it was evident that Font did not respect Pettis. He walked him down and managed to get a take down in a round that Font completely controlled.
On the ground Font stayed on top, and even came back passing Pettis' feet to come in fro hammer blows to the body. Font's reach had him land some extremely good shots, but Pettis managed to get up and land a spinning kick on Font which finally saw Font acknowledge him.
Round 2: The second round was much better matched than the first round had been. Pettis managed to stop a takedown attempt by Font, but then Font went back to walking Pettis down and hitting him with big shots.
Pettis tried to keep getting close with head kicks, but Font kept him away with the jab. Font went for the takedown by Pettis reversed and got on top trying a Kimura. Font reversed and then tried for the straight armbar but the buzzer sounded.
Round 3: Both the fighters started throwing shots in the third round, but Font came out boxing. Font managed to take down his opponent and stay on top of him for most of the third round with Pettis struggling to get ip using the cage.
Font maintained excellent control of Pettis on the ground, controlling all the action on the ground as the third round came to an end.
Results: Rob Font defeated Sergio Pettis via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
#3 Lightweight: Edson Barboza vs. Dan Hooker
Round 1: Both fighters tried each other out in the beginning, testing with kicks and jabs to see if they could get each other's attention. Barboza landed a good body kick, which got Hooker's attention. Hooker landed a good shot, but Barboza landed a stunning kick and a head shot which ricker Hooker. Hooker came in towards Barboza, but Barboza landed two knees and three big head shots which Hooker was somehow able to absorb.
Round 2: Barboza continued as he went into Hooker with two leg kicks which hurt Hooker badly. He kept shooting at him, but Hooker tried to close the distance to stop Barboza. The fight turned more into a brawl as Hooker stayed in distance and hit with good shots. Hooker landed elbows, but Barboza knocked him down. Barboza tried to follow Hooker down, but ended up on the bottom and grappling.
Barboza managed to to get up and followed up on Hooker with three head shots on the drop each of which shook Hooker. Hooker kept taking big shots, somehow still absorbing them. Hooker nearly dropped on the referee, and had to get up as Barboza threw head shot after head shot. Barboza shot three more head shots, but Hooker would not go down. He managed to stay on his feet.
Round 3: The third round saw Barboza hit Hooker with shot after shot. Hooker hardly replied as he was not more than a punching bag. At this point the fight should have been stopped way earlier as Daniel Cormier pointed out repeatedly in commentary. The referee finally stopped when Hooker crumbled in a heap.
Results: Edson Barboza defeated Dan Hooker via TKO (3rd Round, 2 minutes and 19 seconds)
#4 Lightweight: Kevin Lee vs. Al Iaquinta
Round 1: Kevin Lee started off well, running around Iaquinta and landing big shot after big shot, with jabs opening him up. Iaquinta tried to find a way to get in Lee's guard, but Lee used his range to keep Iaquinta away.
Iaquinta came back wth a combo on Lee's guard. Lee seemed to have his guard up completely but Iaquinta had a hard job to reach him anyway. Lee's offence was not his usual, and he seemed to have changed up his game seeing that he was not going to be able to fight Iaquinta with what he usually did.
Round 2: The second round saw Kevin Lee in a lot of problem to begin with, but he managed to gain some amount of advantage. He took down Iaquinta and got his back. He had Iaquinta's back to him with the Body Triangle on and tried to cinch the Rear Naked Choke in. He pounded away at Iaquinta with his elbow but Iaquinta could get up.
After getting up, the rest of the fight was Iaquinta's. He was
Round 3: Kevin Lee showcased his talents against Iaquinta, as both fighters battled for the centre. However, Iaquinta took and kept the centre during his fight and did not seem to show that he was hurt.
Iaquinta went for a single-leg takedown, but failed. Kevin Lee managed to take his fight to the next level where he took Iaquinta's back and managed to be dominant, despite not being able to cinch in the Rear Naked Chokehold.
Round 4: Lee started the fourth round strong with some big head kick opportunities. However, the inside kicks from Iaquinta saw Lee in a lot of trouble. Lee got caught with a head kick, but he would not go down. Iaquinta walked Lee down and caught him with a short right hand.
Lee seemed to slow down a bit more as the fourth round progressed though he got a few key shots in. Iaquinta kept going at Lee until the round ended.
Round 5: Lee started shooting, but Iaquinta had his own action taking Lee's back. Lee got right back up and then tried to get the takedown.
Lee got a leg kick in but Iaquinta came back with a shot of his own to counter. Iaquinta landed another shot which hurt Lee. Iaquinta landed two more shots on Lee's ear. Iaquinta lowered Lee in and landed shots to his body and the showed no hesitation to put his hands down and walk up to Lee.
Results: Al Iaquinta defeated Kevin Lee via Unanimous Decision (48-47, 48-47, 49-46)
