Leon Edwards comfortably beats Rafael dos Anjos over five rounds

If you doubted Leon Edwards and his run of seven consecutive UFC wins before UFC on ESPN 4, it’s unlikely you hold that opinion now.

On a warm night in San Antonio, Texas, Edwards comfortably beat former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos over five rounds.

Edwards, who held welterweight gold in BAMMA, seemed to be a step ahead of his opponent throughout the 25-minute contest.

The now-mustachioed Dos Anjos’ revered ground game was limited by Edwards’ stellar defence, while the latter also showed off his grappling prowess like he did against Gunnar Nelson by winning the scrambles and even scoring takedowns of his own.

On the feet, dos Anjos landed a number of chopping leg kicks to try and wilt Edwards’ energy and movement, but the Birmingham fighter appeared totally unfazed.

Edwards easily landed a crisp punching combinations mixed in with elbows – one of which opened up dos Anjos’ right eyebrow.

The judges rightly awarded Edwards the unanimous decision (50-45, 49-46 x2) and that pushes the rising welterweight contender to eight wins in a row.

Edwards called out rival Jorge Masvidal after the fight and that looks to be one of the most sensible booking decisions the UFC could make today.

 

Walt Harris flattens Alexey Oleynik in just 12 seconds

They say you should never blink when two heavyweights are squaring off. In this instance, that is some sage advice.

Walt Harris had barely broken a sweat by the time his fight with wily veteran Alexey Oleynik was over.

Perhaps inspired by Jorge Masvidal’s win over Ben Askren, Harris took the fight to Oleynik as soon as the contest began.

Harris was immediately on the offensive, throwing a right hook before launching into a flying knee which barely missed his intended target.

However, that was quickly followed up by a straight left which crumpled Oleynik, whose legs collapsed from underneath him.

Some swift ground and pound followed and the fight was rightly stopped in just 12 seconds – the third-fasted knockout in UFC heavyweight history.

Harris is now unbeaten in four fights and the heavyweight division becomes even more interesting now Harris’ potential is starting to come fruition.

 

Greg Hardy ends Juan Adams inside a minute

Another Greg Hardy fight, another quick finish. As a result, it’s another Hardy victory which produces more questions than answers.

Hardy took on the gigantic Juan Adams on Saturday night and the latter sought to take the fight to the floor as quickly as possible.

Hardy, a former NFL defensive end, was wise to this and sprawled Adams’ takedown attempt and went on to unload punches on his grounded opponent.

Clinging on for a desperate single leg, Adams wasn’t defending himself as Hardy continued to unleash a torrent of unanswered punches to the side of his head.

It’s unclear whether Adams was out of it, but he wasn’t defending himself adequately enough according to referee Dan Miragliotta, who called the fight off after just 45 seconds.

 

 

UFC San Antonio: Rafael dos Anjos vs. Leon Edwards full results:

Welterweight: Leon Edwards def. Rafael dos Anjos by unanimous decision after five rounds
Heavyweight: Walt Harris def. Alexey Oleynik by KO (punch) at 0:12 of round one
Heavyweight: Greg Hardy def. Juan Adams by TKO (punches) at 0:45 of round one
Lightweight: Dan Hooker def. James Vick by KO (punches) at 2:33 of round one
Lightweight: Alexander Hernandez def. Francisco Trinaldo by unanimous decision after three rounds
Heavyweight: Andrei Arlovski def. Ben Rothwell by unanimous decision after three rounds
Featherweight: Alex Caceres def. Steven Peterson by unanimous decision after three rounds
Women’s Bantamweight: Raquel Pennington def. Irene Aldana by split decision after three rounds
Light Heavyweight: Klidson Abreu def. Sam Alvey by unanimous decision after three rounds
Catchweight: Jennifer Maia def. Roxanne Modafferi by unanimous decision after three rounds
Bantamweight: Ray Borg def. Gabriel Silva by unanimous decision after three rounds
Bantamweight: Mario Bautista def. Jin Soo Son by unanimous decision after three rounds
Bantamweight: Felipe Colares def. Domingo Pilarte by unanimous decision after three rounds