UFC Fight Night 82 came and went, producing a night of entertaining action that saw 50% of the bouts end inside the inside. After the event concluded, the UFC awarded $50,000 to two fighters for ‘Performance of the Night’ and two fighters for ‘Fight of the Night’. The lines to wager on these props were available at Several Bookmakerss. UFC Fight Night 82’s Post-Fight Bonus-Award winners were… Mike Pyle and Sean Spencer earn Fight of the Night honors for their 14-minute battle on the main card of this past Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night 82 in Las Vegas. It was a fight that saw both welterweights have their moments, but it was Pyle who poured it in late to hurt Spencer and get the TKO stoppage; a spinning elbow being the initial strike to mark the begining of the end. Back into the win column at 170-pounds, Pyle continues to keep his role as “gatekeeper” in the UFC at the age of 40. Noteworthy fight(s): – Joseph Benavidez defeated former Bellator bantamweight champion Zach “Fun Size” Makovsky via unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards following three closely contested rounds of action. It was a fun fight and Makovsky was a game opponent, but Benavidez appeared to be a slight step ahead, ultimately edging out the victory on the scorecards, making it five in a row for himself inside the Octagon. Stephen Thompson earns Performance of the Night for his impressive first round TKO of former UFC welterweight champion Johny Hendricks. Hendricks successfully scored a takedown at the start of the opening from but was unable to keep “Wonderboy” down or really close the distance again after that point. From there on out, it was all Stephen Thompson, as he landed a number of significant strikes on the feet before putting the finishing touches on Hendricks against the cage, forcing the referee to step in and halt the action. It was a very big win for Thompson, who puts himself right into title talks with the victory. Diego Rivas earns Performance of the Night for his come from behind, highlight reel knockout of Ameican Kickboxing Academy (AKA) product Noad Lahat. The Israeli fighter dominated Rivas on the mat in the opening from, but Rivas came out strong in the second, landing a perfectly timed flying knee that put Lahat out cold for 10-minutes. It was an impressive victory for the undefeated Rivas, and unfortunately for Lahat, his second defeat via brutal flying knee knockout. Noteworthy Performances: – Mike Pyle’s aforementioned third round TKO of Sean Spencer. – Legacy FC veteran Derrick Lewis dominated promotional newcomer Damian Grabowski on the mat and stopped him with his signature ground and pound inside of the very first round of action, picking up his second straight win in the UFC. – Mickey Gall made quick work of Mike Jackson, knocking him down with a punch, taking his back and sinking in the rear naked choke to earn the tap with 15 seconds remaining in the first minute of the first round of action. The fight could not have gone any better for Gall, who cemented himself as CM Punk’s opponent this summer.
