Hello fight fans and welcome to InsideFights’ live coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 18 Finale headlined by a three-round lightweight battle between Gray Maynard and Nate Diaz, and including the finals of this season of The Ultimate Fighter. The event is taking place from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada and is being televised on FOX Sports 1 with preliminary action on FOX Sports 1 and online. Stay tuned for live play-by-play of the night’s fight card action and more notes coming from the event. Be sure to follow me on Twitter for extended coverage, and as always, enjoy the fights.
Joshua Sampo vs. Ryan Benoit
Referee: Chris Tognoni
ROUND 1- Both men are making their UFC debuts on short notice. Sampo missed weight for this bout, which was scheduled for 125 pounds. Chris Tognoni is the referee for the opening bout. No touch of the gloves as Sampo rushes forward but Benoit hits an uppercut. They trade an exchange and Benoit lands a body kick followed by a punch upstairs. Big right hand from Sampo rocks Benoit for a moment. Benoit drops down as Sampo gets the takedown and goes into the guard. Sampo lands from the top as he looks to improve position from the half-guard. Sampo with some more punches from the top. Benoit looks to create a scramble but Sampo lands a big elbow from half-guard. Sampo looking for the arm and a possible kimura. Benoit reverses out of a triangle attempt and ends up in the guard of Sampo. Sampo looking for a triangle and then sets up an omaplata as they scramble on the ground. Benoit looking to take the back and has Sampo’s arm tied up. A stalemate and they’re ordered to stand up. Benoit with a big body kick and both miss on exchanges. Sampo lands a left hand. Benoit lands a right hand followed by a left hook. Sampo with a leg kick and they trade punches. Sampo with a body kick. Benoit lands a nice combination. Benoit is bleeding and that’ll influence who gets the round. Benoit with a leg kick. Sampo is cut open as well. They tie up and Benoit lands an uppercut and the round ends. Close round there but we’ll give a slight edge to Sampo. 10-9 Sampo.
ROUND 2- Sampo lands a short uppercut to start the second round. Each miss on a combo but Sampo lands a small uppercut and then scores a takedown and moves into side control. Sampo has an arm trapped and is looking to get the kimura. He has the arm and switches to an armbar position as he lands some punches. He lets the arm go but grabs it again and is looking for the arm lock. Sampo gets into mount but Benoit reverses positions and gets into the guard of Sampo. Sampo rolls and Benoit takes the back and is looking to get the hooks in. He does and has full back control and is looking for a choke. Sampo gets out and Benoit gets to mount but rolls back to Sampo’s back and is looking for the choke once again. Benoit softens Sampo up with punches from the back. Sampo tries to escape but eats a big right hand from Benoit. Sampo reverses and escapes into the guard of Benoit. Sampo with some elbows from the guard as he moves into half-guard. Sampo gets into mount and has the arm again but lets go. Sampo with some smothering ground-and-pound from the top. Some solid grappling going on in this round. Sampo with punches from the top and is in the mount. Sampo takes the back as Benoit gave it up and Sampo has the choke in deep. Benoit taps! Sampo with the submission win in a fun round in his UFC debut.
Official Result: Josh Sampo def. Ryan Benoit by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:31 of Round 2
Sean Spencer vs. Drew Dober
Referee: Yves Lavigne
ROUND 1- Dober is making his UFC debut. Both men were injury replacements so they fight on short notice. Yves Lavigne is the referee. Spencer presses forward to start the fight as Dober is in the southpaw position. Dober with a high kick. They trade in short range and both land right hands. Dober misses a head kick. Spencer working the jab and Dober lands a body kick. Dober drops for a takedown and pushes the fight against the fence. Dober looking to take the fight down as Spencer is defending it well. Dober with some knees. They trade punches as they break the clinch. Spencer lands a nice straight left hand and Dober switches back to a takedown attempt. Spencer is defending it well again with overhooks. Dober working hard for the takedown. Spencer using his forearms to cause seperation. Spencer lands a big right hand and then another as they break. Dober is bleeding from the nose. Spencer with a high body kick. Dober with a leg kick. Both miss on combinations. Dober with a body kick and Spencer comes back with a body kick. Spencer with a nice right hand. Dober misses a head kick. Spencer with a nice body punch. Dober with a leg kick. Dober goes for a takedown but it is stuffed. Dober in deep for the single-leg but can’t get it. Spencer with a big body kick as they break and then lands a leg kick. Spencer with a nice solid jab. They trade in close range. Spencer with a body kick and then another and the round ends. 10-9 Spencer.
ROUND 2- Spencer presses forward to start the second round. Spencer with a body kick. Dober goes for the takedown but Spencer is defending it well against the cage. Spencer with a knee to the body and they break. Spencer with a big body punch. Dober with a high body kick. Spencer lands a big standing right elbow and Dober has quite the chin. They tie up against the fence and Spencer has a body lock. Spencer with knees to the legs of Dober. Spencer with a knee to the body. They break and Spencer lands some nice punches but Dober does land a right hand. Dober misses a combo. Spencer just misses a big right hand but is landing with solid accuracy. Dober with a leg kick. Spencer with a solid right hand. Dober ducks a combo and goes for the takedown but is unable to finish it. Dober has Spencer against the fence but can’t get his wrestling to work as Spencer is defending it well. Spencer with a knee against the fence. Yves Lavigne breaks them up. Dober with a leg kick. They each land punches. Spencer rushes in with some punches and they tie up against the fence. Spencer with a head kick. Spencer with a jab while Dober gets in a body kick. Dober starting to drop his hands and Spencer is capitalizing. They get against the fence but Spencer lands an inside elbow as they break. Dober with a nice left hand. Dober lands a solid combination but not with much power. Spencer with a left hook. Spencer lands a right hand and Dober is beginning to wear down dramatically. Spencer misses a flying knee just barely as the round concludes. 10-9 Spencer, 20-18 Spencer.
ROUND 3- Dober likely needs a finish as both men come out swinging. Dober starting to show good head movement. Spencer lands a nice combo but Dober counters it well. Spencer is leaving himself open to eating uppercuts. Dober goes for a takedown but Spencer defends it. Spencer loses his mouthpiece and we have a break to reset the action. Both miss big punches as they resume action. Spencer with a nice short uppercut and then lands a knee to the body. Spencer with a solid combo ending with a body kick. Dober with a body kick as he eats a combo. Dober goes back for the takedown but it is defended and Spencer pushes the fight against the fence. Dober with a knee to the body and they break. Spencer with a solid right hand. Spencer lands it again and then lands a body kick. Dober lands a nice body kick but misses a Superman punch. Spencer misses a Superman punch. Spencer lands a solid right hand and then stuffs another takedown attempt from Dober. Dober trying hard to get the fight down but is having no luck in doing so. Not much action going on as we have 90 seconds left. They’re warned to work and they break. Spencer lands a nice combo as they break and Dober is bleeding pretty solidly. Dober with another nice combination. Spencer with a knee to the head and then a left hook that hurts Dober. Spencer with a flying knee and Spencer is trying to end this fight emphatically. Spencer pushes the fight against the fence and is attacking the body. Spencer with a big head kick and then stuffs a takedown. Spencer with a high kick and then a leg kick and the round ends. This round goes to Spencer and he should get the decision. 10-9 Spencer, 30-27 Spencer.
Official Result: Sean Spencer def. Drew Dober by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Jared Rosholt vs. Walt Harris
Referee: Chris Tognoni
ROUND 1- Two heavyweights making their UFC debuts are matched up here. Chris Tognoni is the referee. Rosholt misses a leg kick to start the attack. Harris looking to set up a head kick from the southpaw stance. Harris with an inside punch. Rosholt with a leg kick. They trade leg kicks. Rosholt with a body kick. Harris with a head kick. Harris lands a right hand. Harris with a solid combo and ends with a nice body kick. Harris drops Rosholt with a left hand but he recovers back to his feet. Rosholt is dropped again with a right hand but gets up. Harris with two big knockdowns. Rosholt with a big front kick. Harris misses a head kick. Rosholt misses a leg kick. Rosholt with a big body kick. Rosholt seems to be fully recovered from the trouble he was in. Neither are attacking with a furious pace. Harris is finding his range really well. Rosholt lands a nice combo and stuffs a takedown. Rosholt just misses a big right hand. Both men trade left hands. Rosholt misses a left hook. Rosholt misses a short elbow. Rosholt misses a right hand but lands a front kick and then a left hand as the round ends. 10-9 Harris.
ROUND 2- They touch gloves to start the second round. Rosholt with a big high body kick to start the round. Rosholt lands a left hook. Rosholt with a body kick and Harris returns a leg kick but it is checked. Both men land nice combos and then they come out swinging. Harris landed some nice left hands. They are trading and Harris lands a body kick. Nice knee from Rosholt. Uppercut to the body from Rosholt. Rosholt lands a nice right hand. Rosholt lands a big right hand and Harris lands a body kick. Rosholt with an uppercut to the body as he fakes a takedown. Rosholt with a left hook as Harris is slowing down. Rosholt with a leg kick. Rosholt lands a right hand. Harris with a left hand to the body. Harris lands a right hook and Rosholt just barely lands a knee to the body. Rosholt misses a head kick. Rosholt with a right hand as he presses forward. Rosholt with a body kick. Harris misses a body kick. Rosholt comes in and both land punches. Rosholt with a nice right hand. Harris fires back with a nice combo that stuns Rosholt but he is pressing forward. We are going to a third round. 10-9 Rosholt, 19-19.
ROUND 3- This fight could be up for grabs though both could use a finish. Rosholt backs Harris up with a knee attempt. Neither is landing anything as the crowd begins to boo. Rosholt with a body kick. Rosholt goes for a takedown and gets it and is in half-guard. Rosholt looks to soften up the body of Harris. Rosholt with some elbows to the body and then lands some punches to Harris’ head. Rosholt with soft punches from the top as he looks to get out of half-guard. Harris tries to roll out but Rosholt is looking to trap the head. Harris has a right underhook in on the ground but Rosholt pins down Harris’ arm with his knee. Right hands from Rosholt are softening Harris up. Rosholt grabs the neck again as he lands some more punches and elbows from the half-guard. Rosholt with a big elbow from the top. More smothering ground-and-pound from the top from Rosholt. Harris can’t get out of this position and he continues to each punches and elbows. Academic here on the ground as he lands short elbows and punches. He may not finish it but Rosholt is clearly dominant here. Harris is unable to create a scramble. Rosholt with more elbows from the top and then body punches. Rosholt has the neck but ends on top. 10-9 Rosholt, 29-28 Rosholt.
Official Result: Jared Rosholt def. Walt Harris by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Rani Yahya vs. Tom Niinimaki
Referee: Kim Winslow
ROUND 1- Niinimaki is making his UFC debut in this bout and he has a tough one for his debut, though Yahya gets a tough newcomer. Kim Winslow will officiate this bout. Yahya with a leg kick to start off the fight. Yahya backs Niinimaki with a combination. Yahya with a takedown but Niinimaki has the neck and is looking to lock in a guillotine choke. Yahya is defending well and looks to plant Niinimaki on his back. They scramble and Niinimaki ends up on top. Yahya tries to get a leg as Niinimaki gets to his feet. Niinimaki with a right hand from a standing position. Yahya looking to set up a leg lock. Niinimaki goes down into the half-guard. Yahya still going for the leg from his back and he has an angle. They scramble and Yahya takes the fight down but Niinimaki has the neck. Niinimaki with another reversal and they are battling for position on the ground. They are battling on the ground and Yahya takes the back but Niinimaki escapes and they get up but Niinimaki gets the fight back to the ground. Nice grappling and transitions on the ground there. Niinimaki looking to set up an arm-and-neck choke from the half-guard, he just needs to get his legs out. Yahya gives up his back and Niinimaki gets back into deep half-guard. Niinimaki with some elbows and hammerfists from the top. Lots of technical grappling from both and the round concludes. Close, close round there but giving the slight edge to Niinimaki. 10-9 Niinimaki.
ROUND 2- Both men quickly come forward to start the second round. Yahya initiates the clinch against the cage and is looking to sweep but Niinimaki reverses and looks for the double-leg and gets the takedown against the fence. Yahya has the neck looking for the choke but Niinimaki is defending it. Yahya gets back to his feet and still has the neck and has the choke locked in. They roll as both look for something and Niinimaki ends up in side control after a nice scramble. Niinimaki looking to set something up from side control as he lands a short elbow. Another short elbow from Niinimaki. Niinimaki is keeping Yahya pinned down on the ground and is keep Yahya from rolling out. Kim Winslow warns for more action. Niinimaki with some small elbows as he is slowing down the pace and keeping Yahya from a transition. Niinimaki gets back into half-guard but they are stood up by Winslow. Niinimaki with a teet kick that backs Yahya into the cage and Niinimaki goes for the takedown. Yahya has the neck and drops down for the guillotine choke and he is cranking it. Niinimaki is hanging out and looks composed as it doesn’t look deep. Yahya trying but Niinimaki pops his head out and starts to land punches. Niinimaki gets up and looks to pass guard as he drops down into half-guard. The round ends with Niinimaki on top. 10-9 Niinimaki, 20-18 Niinimaki.
ROUND 3- We head to the final round of a fun grappling battle. Niinimaki immediately gets the takedown and puts Yahya on his back. Niinimaki isn’t afraid to go to the ground with the accomplished jiu-jitsu competitor. Niinimaki in the half-guard and is looking to pass guard. Niinimaki with a short punch. Niinimaki with a knee to the body. They are stood up again as Niinimaki is unable to improve. They trade punches as Yahya looks to set up a takedown. Yahya lands a nice combination. Niinimaki with a left hook but misses a head kick. Niinimaki goes for the takedown but it is stuffed and Yahya has the neck and is looking for the guillotine choke. Yahya has it deep and is looking for the finish. Niinimaki is looking to break the hands. Niinimaki is surviving and lands body punches from the bottom. Yahya lets go and is in half-guard. Yahya looking to pass guard and lands an elbow from the top. The fight is beginning to draw to an end with 30 seconds left. Yahya looking for side control and lands some punches from the half-guard. The fight comes to a close. Yahya likely got the last round but we have Niinimaki winning the fight. 10-9 Yahya, 29-28 Niinimaki.
Official Result: Tom Niinimaki def. Rani Yahya by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)
Akira Corassani vs. Maximo Blanco
Referee: Mario Yamasaki
ROUND 1- Two featherweight fighters conclude the night’s preliminary action. Blanco is a slight favorite in this bout. Mario Yamasaki sees his first action tonight. Blanco with a lunging front kick and some right hands to start the fight and he gets Corassani down to the ground. Corassani gets up and gets hit with a knee that may have been illegal and is hurt by several more punches. The fight is stopped for now as Corassani is hurt. Replay shows it was an illegal knee. Corassani is down and hurt and says he can’t see and this fight looks to be over. The fight is waved off. Blanco celebrates like he has won but it looks to be a DQ win for Corassani as the knee looked to be intentional as Corassani had both his hand and knee down on the ground when the knee was landed by Blanco.
Official Result: Akira Corassani def. Maximo Blanco by disqualification (intentional foul- illegal knee) at :25 of Round 1
Roxanne Modafferi vs. Raquel Pennington
Referee: Chris Tognoni
ROUND 1- We have our first of three women’s bouts tonight as Team Tate members clash. Chris Tognoni is the referee. Both ladies are feeling each other out to start. Modafferi lands a right hand. Modafferi backs Pennington up with a combination as she looks to find her range. Modafferi misses a right hand. Pennington with a leg kick. They trade punches as Modafferi lands the better combination. They trade kicks. They trade left hands. Pennington lands a right hand. Modafferi with a combination but Pennington answers with a sharp right hand. Pennington lands another right hand followed by a leg kick. Modafferi backs Pennington up with a one-two combination. Modafferi with a leg kick. Pennington with a side kick. Modafferi with a spinning back fist and then a body kick. Pennington lands a nice right hand but Modafferi comes back with a solid combination. Modafferi backs Pennington up against the fence. Pennington lands an uppercut as they are tied up against the cage. Modafferi is looking to drag the fight to the mat. They break and Pennington lands some elbows. Pennington with a right hand as Modafferi lands a leg kick. Pennington with a nice jab and then lands a combo. Modafferi with a body kick and they both land combinations. Big right hand from Pennington right at the end of the round. 10-9 Pennington.
ROUND 2- Modafferi misses a spinning back fist to start and Pennington is beginning to land her combinations. Modafferi with a front kick and then lands a nice combination. Modafferi gets a body lock and is looking to get the fight down but Pennington is defending it. Modafferi looks for a trip but Pennington keeps it upright and has underhooks. They trade punches as they break. Modafferi with a spin kick. Pennington with a combination. Modafferi goes for a takedown but Pennington sprawls and has the neck. Modafferi looks to go to her guard. Pennington is in the guard and Modafferi is looking for a submission. Pennington looks to break guard as she slams Modafferi against the mat. Pennington with a punch from the top and then some more right hands as Modafferi looks to throw her legs up. Pennington is trying to break guard as Modafferi looks to set up an armbar. Pennington with hammerfists from the top and breaks the armbar attempt. Pennington gets to her feet. The referee orders Modafferi to her feet. Both miss on combinations but Pennington lands a leg kick. Pennington lands a solid left hook. Pennington with a big right hand as a counter to a body kick. They clinch and Pennington lands some knees. Modafferi lands a right hand and the round ends. 10-9 Pennington, 20-18 Pennington.
ROUND 3- The ladies come out swinging to start the third round and both land solid right hands. Modafferi backs Pennington up with a side kick. Modafferi goes for a takedown but it is stuffed by Pennington. Modafferi with a body kick as she continues to press forward. Pennington with a right hand. Modafferi with a left hand followed by a leg kick. Pennington with a solid left hand and then she lands a solid combination. Modafferi initiates a clinch and pushes the fight against the fence but they break. Modafferi with a right hand but Pennington comes back with a right hand. Pennington lands a big right hand and then sprawls on a takedown. Modafferi switches to her guard and Pennington lands from the top as they battle on the ground. Pennington is in half-guard and is landing elbows. Modafferi switches back to guard but Pennington lands some body punches. Modafferi looking for a submission opening but Pennington knows it is coming. Modafferi lands from the bottom and is in high-guard. Pennington with big body hammerfists from the top. Modafferi spins and looks to set up an armbar but throws her legs up. Pennington throws big right hands from the top as we have less than a minute left. Pennington with an elbow as Modafferi looks to escape. They get to the feet and Pennington has a standing guillotine choke and she is cranking the neck. Pennington drags it down and has in a guillotine choke in mount. Modafferi is surviving and punches the body. Pennington tries to finish but Modafferi survives as the fight ends. 10-9 Pennington, 30-27 Pennington.
Official Result: Raquel Pennington def. Roxanne Modafferi by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Jessamyn Duke vs. Peggy Morgan
Referee: Kim Winslow
ROUND 1- We now have Team Rousey teammates squaring off. Kim Winslow will be the referee. Both ladies are very tall. They trade jabs to start. Duke with a front kick. They tie up for a moment as Duke lands a right hand. Duke with a nice combination. Duke lands to the body followed by to the head. They tie up and Duke lands some knees to the body against the fence. Duke with some short uppercuts as Morgan looks to drag the fight down. Duke switches positions and lands body punches. Morgan has a body lock but Duke gets it down for a moment. Duke grabs the neck and drops down with a guillotine choke. She has an arm in. Morgan is hanging on and is looking for an escape. Duke cranking the choke but Morgan is hanging on. Morgan gets out and Duke looks to move to high guard and transition to another submission. Duke with some elbows from the bottom. Duke looking for a triangle choke but she is still landing elbows from the bottom. Duke with punches from the bottom and is still looking to lock in that triangle choke. She gets it locked in and now it is a battle of getting it fully locked on. Duke lands elbows from the bottom and continues to soften Morgan up. Morgan is surviving but is eating a lot of shots from Duke on the bottom. Duke with more short elbows and punches as we have ten seconds left. Duke with more elbows to end the round. 10-9 Duke.
ROUND 2- Both ladies come out swinging to start the second round. Morgan with some right hands but Duke responds with right hands and a leg kick. Duke lands a left hook and then a solid combination. Duke with a body kick. They tie up and Duke lands a knee to the body but they break. Morgan with a nice jab. Morgan lands a good combination. Duke responds with a counter combination. Duke with an uppercut. Left hook from Duke. Both ladies land combinations as they exchange in close range. Duke lands a solid combination. Duke is getting the better of the stand-up action as this fight has yet to hit the ground this round. Both land left hands. Duke with another nice combination. Duke with a head kick. They tie up and Duke lands a knee. Duke with a left hand. Duke still landing combos as Morgan is having trouble landing. They clinch and Duke lands multiple knees to the body. Duke with a nice right-and-left hand combination. Duke with a right hand. Duke with a left hook. Duke with a combo ending with a knee to the body. Morgan has good footwork but not a lot of offense. Morgan with a jab. Duke with a takedown right as the round ends. 10-9 Duke, 20-18 Duke.
ROUND 3- Morgan likely needs a finish in this round. Duke comes out with a big right hand to start the second round. Duke with a left hook as Morgan is still unable to capitalize on any openings. They trade left hands. Duke with a body kick. Morgan with a soft left hand. Both land left hands and Duke mixes it up with a body kick. They tie up and Duke lands some knees to Morgan’s head and body. Morgan tries to fight for the clinch but Duke opens up and lands some nice punches on Morgan against the fence. Duke with more knees to the body and then lands short punches as Morgan has a body lock. Morgan is looking for a takedown but Duke is defending it with punches. Duke has a headlock on and drags the fight down but Morgan may be able to take the back. Duke has the headlock still on. Morgan gets out and has the back of Duke and is looking to lock in a choke with just over two minutes left. Morgan trying to get the hooks in. Morgan is trying to get an arm underneath the neck. The crowd begins to boo as there really isn’t much action. Morgan gets her arm free and is still trying to get the choke in. Duke is looking to roll out and Duke rolls and Morgan is in half-guard. Morgan with a punch from the top. Kim Winslow warns them to work. Morgan with soft punches from the half-guard and Winslow stands them up. Duke with a hard combination right off of the stand-up. Duke with a big combination and Morgan is all swollen up. Duke with an elbow and the fight ends. 10-9 Duke, 30-27 Duke.
Official Result: Jessamyn Duke def. Peggy Morgan by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Chris Holdsworth vs. David Grant
Referee: Yves Lavigne
ROUND 1- Time for the men’s finals of TUF 18. Both have good win streaks coming into this fight. Holdsworth represents Team Tate while Grant is from Team Rousey. Holdsworth is the favorite in this bout. Yves Lavigne is the referee for this one. Grant with a quick leg kick to start. Grant with another as Holdsworth looks to land a combination. Holdsworth misses a big right hand but they tie up and push against the fence. Holdsworth with a knee and Grant then lands a big right hand that rocks Holdsworth. They are tied up again but break. Grant with a leg kick and Holdsworth rocks Grant with a right hand. Grant with a leg kick. They tie back up against the fence and Holdsworth is looking for the takedown. Holdsworth with a knee to the body. Grant with a knee of his own. They trade knees to the legs before they break. Both miss on big right hands. Grant lands a right hand. Grant with a nice combination. Holdsworth misses a head kick. They tie back up and Holdsworth pushes the fight against the fence and is looking to get the fight down. Grant is keeping the fight upright as it almost went down. Holdsworth with a big knee and they break. They tie back up on the fence and Holdsworth with some knees to the legs. They both battle for the takedown but neither man is flinching. Holdsworth gets on top as they go to the mat and is in the guard. Holdsworth misses a big right hand as Grant looks to throw his legs up. They ride the round out on the ground. 10-9 Holdsworth.
ROUND 2- Holdsworth with a head kick and then lands a knee. Grant with a leg kick and they trade in close range. Holdsworth misses a right hand and Grant lands a glancing body punch. They tie back up and Holdsworth pushes the fight against the fence. Holdsworth gets the takedown and is looking to take the back as he is in side control. Holdsworth with some ground-and-pound as Grant is looking to escape. Holdsworth tries to take the back of Grant and does and has the hooks and body triangle in. Holdsworth with punches from the back and he has the choke locked in and Grant taps out! Holdsworth with the submission win and he gets the six-figure contract and remains undefeated in his career.
Official Result: Chris Holdsworth def. David Grant by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:10 of Round 2
Julianna Pena vs. Jessica Rakoczy
Referee: Mario Yamasaki
ROUND 1- Time for the women’s finale of TUF 18. Pena represents Team Tate while Rakoczy represents Team Rousey. Pena is the favorite in this fight. Mario Yamasaki is the referee. Pena starts with a left hand and pushes the fight against the fence and gets the takedown. Pena is in the half-guard and looking to move to side control. Pena with punches from the top but Rakoczy pushes her off and they get back to their feet. They are battling for underhooks against the fence. Still battling against the fence and Pena then scores another takedown and back into half-guard. Rakoczy has no answer for the takedowns of Pena so far. Pena looks to pass to side control. Pena with an elbow from the top. Pena with short punches from the top. Rakoczy has done much of nothing so far. Pena moves into full guard and lands a series of punches from the top. Pena moves to side control. Pena moves to mount and is throwing from the top. Rakoczy is trying to escape but Pena has her in mount pretty well. Pena with a short elbow from the mount. Big punches from the top from Pena. Rakoczy tries to escape but can’t get her legs in there. Pena with more ground-and-pound from the top and drops a hard right hand. Pena is going for the finish. Big elbow from Pena. Rakoczy is covering up and trying to use her legs to stop Pena’s attack. Pena is pouring it on and Yamasaki is coming close to stopping it. Yamasaki is in there and he stops the fight after tons of punches from Pena. Pena is the TUF 18 women’s bantamweight winner! She gets the six-figure contract and Team Tate has both winners.
Official Result: Julianna Pena def. Jessica Rakoczy by TKO (punches) at 4:59 of Round 1
Gray Maynard vs. Nate Diaz
Referee: Yves Lavigne
ROUND 1- Time for the main event. Reminder that this is only three rounds due to it not being the original main event. They’re 1-1 in the UFC against each other; this is the rubber match. Yves Lavigne is the referee for this fight. Maynard is the slight favorite according to the betting odds. Diaz looking to work the jab early. Maynard misses a big right hook. Maynard gets a takedown and goes to the ground with Diaz. Maynard is in the guard of Diaz. Diaz is dangerous off of his back. Maynard pushes the fight against the fence and takes the back. Diaz gets to his feet and gets a judo throw and Maynard is down. They get back up. They trade on a break and Maynard lands a left hand. Maynard with a leg kick. They trade punches. Diaz hurts Maynard with a left hand and pushes Maynard against the fence. Diaz is hurting Maynard with tons of punches and Maynard is in tons of trouble. Maynard is getting rocked with punches and Yves Lavigne stops the fight. Diaz knocks Maynard out! Big knockout win for Diaz. Maynard was out on his feet for a bit there. Diaz can now go to his high school reunion.
Official Result: Nate Diaz def. Gray Maynard by TKO (punches) at 2:38 of Round 1
