Saturday night saw Montreal’s Bell Centre play host to UFC 186. What wasn’t the most enthralling card heading into the event turned out to be rather entertaining for those who tuned as, as four of the five main card fights featured excitement in one way or another. Other than being a good evening for viewers, it was also a good evening for favorites. The 12-fight card saw just one upset, and every other betting favorite had their hand raised. Here’s how the results broke down with Several Bookmakers’s closing odds: Favorites That Won Demetrious Johnson once again showed that he may be the most complete mixed martial artist in the world effortlessly transitioning from striking to grappling in order to keep surprisingly game challenger Kyoji Horiguchi off balance. After feeling the Japanese fighter out in the early going, Johnson zeroed in on his takedown game and inched closer and closer to a finish with each passing round. Eventually he found what he was looking for, and forced Horiguchi to tap at 4:59 of the fifth round, scoring the latest stoppage victory in UFC history. It was a consummate performance from ‘Mighty Mouse’ and likely one that those who left the Bell Centre in the middle of the bout will wish they had seen. Johnson closed a -900 favorite for the bout, and was as high as -10000 entering the fifth round. Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson made a somewhat successful return to the UFC, as he picked up a clear unanimous decision over Fabio Maldonado, although the fight itself was a bit of a letdown. Jackson showed more well-rounded striking than in many of his recent bouts, but Maldonado didn’t offer much coming back at him even though bettors supported him late. A line that opened at -315 when the fight was put back on earlier in the week got bet all the way down to -165, so those who backed the former champ got a nice price. Michael Bisping survived an early scare against CB Dollaway, as he was dropped with a left hook in the first round, but otherwise controlled the duration of a very entertaining bout en route to a unanimous decision victory. His typically stout takedown defense was on display, as was his clean volume striking. Bisping closed as a -145 favorite for the bout, cashing without much risk for bettors and showing he’s still a very capable middleweight in the process. Thomas Almeida continued to see his hype grow, as he put a variety of strikes on veteran Yves Jabouin, forcing a first round standing TKO. Jabouin scored an early takedown, but Almeida showed excellent dexterity in getting back to his feet while Jabouin still held one of his legs. After that, Almeida’s pressure and ability to mix his strikes was simply too much for Jabouin to absorb. Almeida was the second-biggest favorite on the card, closing at -420. The home crowd had something to cheer about in the featured preliminary bout as Patrick Cote took a unanimous decision over Joe Riggs due primarily to his wrestling. Much of the 15-minute contest was spent on the mat, and aside from some fleeting moments where Riggs took his back, Cote controlled from top position. Each judge found a round to give Riggs, but the scores were 29-28 across the board for the Canadian. Cote was one of the few favorites who saw support on fight day, as he ended up closing -260. Chad Laprise used a strong opening two rounds, and held on through a late surge from Bryan Barberena to take a unanimous decision and remain undefeated. Laprise once again showcased his crisp striking, but clearly needs to work on his cardio if he hopes to ascend the lightweight ladder. Laprise equalled Thomas Almeida’s mark of being a -420 favorite. Olivier Aubin-Mercier may have fallen to Laprise at the TUF Nations finale, but he looked more impressive at UFC 186, using his outstanding back control in rounds one and three to eventually find a rear-naked choke. The submission victory was his sixth in as many pro victories, and fifth by rear-naked choke. Mercier was another solid Canadian favorite, closing at -340. Nordine Taleb used his superior wrestling to get on top of Chris Clements time and time again, and win a decision. Each time Clements tried to close the distance enough to strike, Taleb was able to score takedowns and maintain top control. He suffered a bit of a scare in the third round, but managed to get through to the final bell and get his hand raised at -210. Valerie LeTourneau was another favorite who saw much of the betting action go against her on fight day, as her closing line of -125 was a far cry from the -215 opener, but she got the job done nonetheless. Early in the fight, she showed off her superior grappling with a close triangle, and in rounds two and three her more varied striking helped her get the job done against Jessica Rakoczy. Randa Markos rebounded from a loss in her UFC debut with a hard-fought decision over fellow cast member Aisling Daly. Markos was the more effective fighter early in the bout, but Daly managed to close the distance and turn it into a grappling battle. While she over committed in some spots, Markos was able to control enough of the grappling to earn unanimous 29-28 ballots. She closed at -275 for the bout. Underdogs That Won Alexis Davis was the lone underdog to get their hand raised at UFC 186, but it wasn’t easy. Davis was dominated in the striking exchanges by Sarah Kaufman, but managed to get the fight to the mat in the second round. Once there, she immediately got into mount and transitioned into a triangle. Kaufman defended the triangle, but Davis transitioned to an armbar and forced the tap to cash as a +178 underdog. Pick Em Bouts John Makdessi was extremely impressive in stopping UFC newcomer Shane Campbell with strikes late in the first round. Campbell controlled the bout early with his kicks, but Makdessi got his timing towards the middle of the round and began to land counter right hands. He dropped Campbell once and almost scored the stoppage, and then repeated the process towards the end of the round, forcing the referee to step in just before the final bell. Both Makdessi and Campbell closed at -105 after late money showed for Campbell.
