BY NISAR KHAN
CHICAGO - Benson Henderson was victorious in the main event of UFC on FOX 10 in Chicago, defeating Josh Thomson in a well-fought main event.
UFC on FOX 10: Henderson vs. Thomson
Saturday 25 January 2014
United Center, Chicago, IL.
A total of eleven fights were featured on the whole card in the tenth edition of "FOX UFC Saturday", coming live from Chicago for the third consecutive year in January.
Five of those fights featured finishes, with some of the best action coming in the main event and preliminary main-event.
Benson Henderson defeated Josh Thomson via Split Decision in the main event, a decision that was deemed controversial by a few critics as it seemed Thomson's grappling gave him the edge in the fight. But the arguments went strongly either way.
Preliminary Action Overview
Four out of the seven undercard fights were finishes to kick start a wild night in the Windy City.
It all started just twenty-five seconds into fight action, with Nikita Krylov made quick work of his opponent, Walt Harris. Exchanging strikes early on, Krylov landed a head-kick which dazed Harris, allowing "Al Capone" to relentlessly strike away before the referee stoppage.
George Sullivan, Hugo Viana and Chico Camus were the winners via unanimous decision, defeating Mike Rhodes, Junior Hernandez and Yaotzin Meza respectively.
A stunning wheel-kick with just seconds remaining of Round 2 would prove conclusive as Daron Cruikshank got the win over Mike Rio. The breathtaking kick was followed up by a bombardment of strikes for the stoppage.
Having lost a title fight in September last-year, Eddie Wineland bounced back impressively, landing a ferocious right hand to reply to a leg kick, sending Yves Jabouin to the mat. After some reluctant defense by Jabouin, Wineland managed to get his back and pound away for the victory.
Alex Caceres and Sergio Pettis threw it down in a compelling and back-and-forth preliminary main event, with Caceres emerging as the late victor with a rear-naked choke. With just over twenty seconds remaining, Sergio would be forced to tap out to the choke to culminate a wild encounter in Chicago.
Jeremy Stephens def. Darren Elkins
Unanimous Decision (29 - 28, 30 - 27, 30 - 27)
Jeremy Stephens opened the main card with a comfortable win over Darren Elkins, with his stand-up and takedown prevention proving vital in his victory.
After exchanging early strikes, the fight went to the ground momentarily following Darren Elkins' slip. However, Jeremy Stephens decided to take it back to the feet, where he was excelling against his opponent and scored affirmatively.
At numerous times during the fight, we saw Darren Elkins diving for either a double-leg or single-leg takedown, but to no significant avail.
A good win for Jeremy Stephens, as he hopes it is one of many to come in the near future.
Donald Cerrone def. Adriano Martins
Knockout (Head-Kick, 4:40 of Round 1)
Donald Cerrone delivered an incredible highlight-reel head-kick knockout to Adriano Martins in the first round to send a statement to the Lightweight Division.
Despite a lone takedown attempt from the "Cowboy", in the four-and-a-half minutes of action, the two exchanged on the feet.
Looking focused and aware of the task in hand, Cerrone's Muay-Thai background was emerging with hard leg-kicks.
Then suddenly, following numerous kicks to the leg, Donald Cerrone landed a perfect shin-to-neck head-kick that knocked Martins completely out, before demonstrating great sportsmanship by not inflicting further damage knowing that Martins was already out.
Donald Cerrone delivered on his promise, with his focused approach definitely working in this fight. Can the Cowboy string together more wins for a title run?
Stipe Miocic def. Gabriel Gonzaga
Unanimous Decision (30 - 27, 29 - 28, 30 - 27)
Stipe Miocic managed to avoid Gabriel Gonzaga's big shots in a convincing victory for his eleventh career win.
Gabriel Gonzaga had the better in the opening round, with a couple of leg kicks and generally some clean striking.
However, as the bout progressed, it would be Stipe Miocic's boxing skills that would provide him with the threshold in the bout, keeping Gonzaga well away and jabbing away to pick up points from the judges.
In the final round, Miocic came relatively close to putting Gonzaga away, leaving him dazed for a while as the battle took to the ground, but the clock would tick down.
Back-to-back wins for Miocic, bouncing back from a loss to Stefan Struve in 2012, and Miocic is looking good once again to keep a big-hitter at bay.
Benson Henderson def. Josh Thomson
Split Decision (48 - 47, 49 - 46, 47 - 48)
Benson Henderson prevailed in a well-fought bout with Josh Thomson to bounce back from his title loss and defeat a game opponent.
Benson Henderson was able to escape some early trouble, after Josh Thomson landed an early takedown following a leg kick. For the majority of the round, Thomson worked on his back and looked for the choke, but eventually Henderson managed to escape carrying Thomson's body weight with him. Soon after, the two would exchange again, before Thomson this time escaped an arm triangle. Josh Thomson landed a big takedown to end the round, indefinitely sealing the first round in his favor.
A lot of action in the clinch would ensue in the second round. Benson Henderson scored with some calf-kicks, but yet again Josh Thomson would open up an advantage getting Benson's back. Yet again, Benson Henderson proved the stronger man, lifting Josh Thomson up and forcing him to release the body triangle. Both had their fair share of strikes too, with the feeling out process well and truly over, as both men got to the action and went for it.
As the fight went through its midpoint, Benson Henderson took more control. Josh Thomson seemed to be carrying a hand injury, with reports that his right hand was broken. Benson Henderson out-wrestled his opponent in the round, despite Thomson still throwing the hand that was damaged. Despite Benson Henderson's half-attempts to finish the fight, it would go to the main event rounds...
The fourth round was a much more contested one than the previous round. Josh Thomson took away the thoughts of his injured hand and wrestled with Benson Henderson, applying pressure yet again getting on his back. The Chicago crowd embraced a few laughs when Benson Henderson swept hair of his face when Josh Thomson was on his back, but the showboating would then come from Thomson, fist pumping while on Henderson's back.
They would complete the fight with another well-contested round in the fifth. Josh Thomson's numerous takedowns where his standpoint in the round, while hooks to the body and kicks to the body were scoring points for the former Champion.
It was unfortunate for Josh Thomson since he damaged his hand in the second round, and that is what could have held him back. Impressive by both men, and Benson Henderson's physical strength, striking and wrestling plays a pivotal role in his victory over Josh Thomson.
Comment: Benson Bounces Back in a Wild Night in Chicago
Well that's it for another FOX UFC Saturday, and it's another entertaining one.
First of all, a well-contested main event. A lot of justification following this bout could point Josh Thomson's hand injury as a key part in Benson's victory - but that takes little away from his fantastic performance today. This could start a resurgence for "Smooth" Benson Henderson. While Josh Thomson, who was in line for a title shot, deserves credit for taking the fight and taking it to Henderson.
Donald Cerrone delivered some of the best of the night in my opinion, a terrific head-kick. While the main event and preliminary main event were Fight of the Night candidates. Too bad Gonzaga didn't show up in the expected manner in the co-main event.
Benson Henderson is victorious in what could be the start of his resurgence having lost his title. So long Chicago for now, as the Octagon looks ahead to UFC 169 next week.
A total of eleven fights were featured on the whole card in the tenth edition of "FOX UFC Saturday", coming live from Chicago for the third consecutive year in January.
Five of those fights featured finishes, with some of the best action coming in the main event and preliminary main-event.
Benson Henderson defeated Josh Thomson via Split Decision in the main event, a decision that was deemed controversial by a few critics as it seemed Thomson's grappling gave him the edge in the fight. But the arguments went strongly either way.
Preliminary Action Overview
Four out of the seven undercard fights were finishes to kick start a wild night in the Windy City.
It all started just twenty-five seconds into fight action, with Nikita Krylov made quick work of his opponent, Walt Harris. Exchanging strikes early on, Krylov landed a head-kick which dazed Harris, allowing "Al Capone" to relentlessly strike away before the referee stoppage.
George Sullivan, Hugo Viana and Chico Camus were the winners via unanimous decision, defeating Mike Rhodes, Junior Hernandez and Yaotzin Meza respectively.
A stunning wheel-kick with just seconds remaining of Round 2 would prove conclusive as Daron Cruikshank got the win over Mike Rio. The breathtaking kick was followed up by a bombardment of strikes for the stoppage.
Having lost a title fight in September last-year, Eddie Wineland bounced back impressively, landing a ferocious right hand to reply to a leg kick, sending Yves Jabouin to the mat. After some reluctant defense by Jabouin, Wineland managed to get his back and pound away for the victory.
Alex Caceres and Sergio Pettis threw it down in a compelling and back-and-forth preliminary main event, with Caceres emerging as the late victor with a rear-naked choke. With just over twenty seconds remaining, Sergio would be forced to tap out to the choke to culminate a wild encounter in Chicago.
Jeremy Stephens def. Darren Elkins
Unanimous Decision (29 - 28, 30 - 27, 30 - 27)
Jeremy Stephens opened the main card with a comfortable win over Darren Elkins, with his stand-up and takedown prevention proving vital in his victory.
After exchanging early strikes, the fight went to the ground momentarily following Darren Elkins' slip. However, Jeremy Stephens decided to take it back to the feet, where he was excelling against his opponent and scored affirmatively.
At numerous times during the fight, we saw Darren Elkins diving for either a double-leg or single-leg takedown, but to no significant avail.
A good win for Jeremy Stephens, as he hopes it is one of many to come in the near future.
Donald Cerrone def. Adriano Martins
Knockout (Head-Kick, 4:40 of Round 1)
Donald Cerrone delivered an incredible highlight-reel head-kick knockout to Adriano Martins in the first round to send a statement to the Lightweight Division.
Despite a lone takedown attempt from the "Cowboy", in the four-and-a-half minutes of action, the two exchanged on the feet.
Looking focused and aware of the task in hand, Cerrone's Muay-Thai background was emerging with hard leg-kicks.
Then suddenly, following numerous kicks to the leg, Donald Cerrone landed a perfect shin-to-neck head-kick that knocked Martins completely out, before demonstrating great sportsmanship by not inflicting further damage knowing that Martins was already out.
Donald Cerrone delivered on his promise, with his focused approach definitely working in this fight. Can the Cowboy string together more wins for a title run?
Stipe Miocic def. Gabriel Gonzaga
Unanimous Decision (30 - 27, 29 - 28, 30 - 27)
Stipe Miocic managed to avoid Gabriel Gonzaga's big shots in a convincing victory for his eleventh career win.
Gabriel Gonzaga had the better in the opening round, with a couple of leg kicks and generally some clean striking.
However, as the bout progressed, it would be Stipe Miocic's boxing skills that would provide him with the threshold in the bout, keeping Gonzaga well away and jabbing away to pick up points from the judges.
In the final round, Miocic came relatively close to putting Gonzaga away, leaving him dazed for a while as the battle took to the ground, but the clock would tick down.
Back-to-back wins for Miocic, bouncing back from a loss to Stefan Struve in 2012, and Miocic is looking good once again to keep a big-hitter at bay.
Benson Henderson def. Josh Thomson
Split Decision (48 - 47, 49 - 46, 47 - 48)
Benson Henderson prevailed in a well-fought bout with Josh Thomson to bounce back from his title loss and defeat a game opponent.
Benson Henderson was able to escape some early trouble, after Josh Thomson landed an early takedown following a leg kick. For the majority of the round, Thomson worked on his back and looked for the choke, but eventually Henderson managed to escape carrying Thomson's body weight with him. Soon after, the two would exchange again, before Thomson this time escaped an arm triangle. Josh Thomson landed a big takedown to end the round, indefinitely sealing the first round in his favor.
 |
| Back-Off: Benson Henderson upright with Josh Thomson applying pressure up against the fence. |
A lot of action in the clinch would ensue in the second round. Benson Henderson scored with some calf-kicks, but yet again Josh Thomson would open up an advantage getting Benson's back. Yet again, Benson Henderson proved the stronger man, lifting Josh Thomson up and forcing him to release the body triangle. Both had their fair share of strikes too, with the feeling out process well and truly over, as both men got to the action and went for it.
 |
| Clinch: Benson Henderson scores on the clinch-game with Thomson |
As the fight went through its midpoint, Benson Henderson took more control. Josh Thomson seemed to be carrying a hand injury, with reports that his right hand was broken. Benson Henderson out-wrestled his opponent in the round, despite Thomson still throwing the hand that was damaged. Despite Benson Henderson's half-attempts to finish the fight, it would go to the main event rounds...
The fourth round was a much more contested one than the previous round. Josh Thomson took away the thoughts of his injured hand and wrestled with Benson Henderson, applying pressure yet again getting on his back. The Chicago crowd embraced a few laughs when Benson Henderson swept hair of his face when Josh Thomson was on his back, but the showboating would then come from Thomson, fist pumping while on Henderson's back.
 |
| Showboating: Josh Thomson hypes up the crowd while on Henderson's back. |
They would complete the fight with another well-contested round in the fifth. Josh Thomson's numerous takedowns where his standpoint in the round, while hooks to the body and kicks to the body were scoring points for the former Champion.
It was unfortunate for Josh Thomson since he damaged his hand in the second round, and that is what could have held him back. Impressive by both men, and Benson Henderson's physical strength, striking and wrestling plays a pivotal role in his victory over Josh Thomson.
Comment: Benson Bounces Back in a Wild Night in Chicago
Well that's it for another FOX UFC Saturday, and it's another entertaining one.
First of all, a well-contested main event. A lot of justification following this bout could point Josh Thomson's hand injury as a key part in Benson's victory - but that takes little away from his fantastic performance today. This could start a resurgence for "Smooth" Benson Henderson. While Josh Thomson, who was in line for a title shot, deserves credit for taking the fight and taking it to Henderson.
Donald Cerrone delivered some of the best of the night in my opinion, a terrific head-kick. While the main event and preliminary main event were Fight of the Night candidates. Too bad Gonzaga didn't show up in the expected manner in the co-main event.
Benson Henderson is victorious in what could be the start of his resurgence having lost his title. So long Chicago for now, as the Octagon looks ahead to UFC 169 next week.
TheSportMatrix.com
- Sports for the Fans, by the Fans.
Share This Post:
Connect With Us!
COMMENTS