- Robert Whittaker defeated Darren Till in the UFC on ESPN 14 main event.
- It was a close contest with both fighters being equal, but the judges decided in Whittaker’s favor.
- Fabricio Werdum submitted Alexander Gustafsson, while Mauricio “Shogun” Rua defeated Antonio Nogueira in their third match.
Whittaker’s Tough Win Over Till, Both Fighters Praise One Another
The UFC middleweight ex-champion, Robert Whittaker (21-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) made his comeback to the octagon with a win over Darren Till (18-3-1 MMA, 6-3-1 UFC). The “Reaper” had his first fight after seven months, and his defeat against Israel Adesanya.
In that bout, he not only posted a loss, but was stripped off the title in a pretty cruel way – via KO in the second round.
Against Till, he had one of the most demanding battles in his career, with the rival being exquisite. In the end, the judges have decided to score for Whittaker, handing him a unanimous, but a narrow win. All three scorecards have shown 48-47 for the fighter from New Zealand.
“My brain is on overload,” Whittaker said after the battle. “That fight was so stressful. Honestly, I hope the fans and everybody can appreciate it. For me, it was one of the most technical fights I ever had to fight.”
He would open the match slowly, allowing Till to drop him to the canvas with a massive elbow. After avoiding further problems from that situation, Whittaker gained control over the flow, and slowly began shifting the momentum onto his side.
He then got the second and the third round pretty dominantly, bringing down Till in the second with a nasty right hand.
The fourth and the fifth round were superb, with both fighters going all-in, and putting up a show for the fans. Till got an edge in the fourth from our point of view, while Whittaker might have been slightly better in the last sequence. Nevertheless, it wouldn’t be unfair to say that Till didn’t deserve to lose. He was outstanding tonight, and the Englishman himself isn’t disappointed because he lost as he gave his best.
“I’ve never felt like this after a loss,” Till said. “I feel OK. He was tough. It was probably one of the toughest fights I’ve been in. It was just so stressful.”
He also added that if Whittaker doesn’t get a chance to fight for the title against Adesanya, he would love to have a rematch against him, and wouldn’t mind going to New Zealand to fight.
Werdum Shocks Gustafsson, Rua Again Better Than Noguiera
Alexander Gustafsson (18-7 MMA, 10-7 UFC) had his debut in the heavyweight division last night. And he won’t remember it in a good way, He was submitted by the former champ in this division Fabricio Werdum (24-9-1 MMA, 12-6 UFC) after just two minutes and 30 seconds since the start of the battle.
It was something he didn’t plan for sure, and the Swed now has three consecutive defeats in his career. On the other side, Werdum bounced back following his split decision loss to Alexei Oleynik.
In their third head-to-head match, Mauricio Rua (27-11-1 MMA, 11-9-1 UFC) and Antonio Nogueira (23-10 MMA, 6-7 UFC) gave everything they had. And for the third time, it was “Shogun” Rua who defeated his great rival, this time via split decision.
Nogueira will retire after this clash, as he announced that earlier this year.
