UFC 216 took place Saturday, October 7, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card was headlined by a lightweight title fight between Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee.
Closing odds are courtesy of Several Bookmakers. Here’s a quick recap of each of those fights.
Favorites that Won
In what ended up be a chess match both on the feet as well as in the grappling exchanges, Tony Ferguson weathered the early storm from Kevin Lee to win the interim UFC lightweight title. Lee punished Ferguson from full mount in the first round, then took punishment of his own on the feet in the second frame. Lee scored a takedown early in the third round, but he was noticeably fatigued and Ferguson transitioned into a beautiful triangle choke to force a tap. Ferguson closed a -275 favorite while Lee closed a +235 underdog.
In the co-main event, Demetrious Johnson set the record for consecutive title defenses with a late fifth round finish of Ray Borg. Johnson dominated almost all of the fight, eventually transitioning to a disgusting armbar during a back suplex to force Borg to tap out. Johnson closed -1000 with the return on Borg +650.
Fabricio Werdum didn’t screw around against Walt Harris, quickly looking for a takedown and once he had it, the fight was as good as over. Werdum advanced to mount and transitioned quickly to an armbar to earn a first-round finish. Werdum closed a -210 favorite while Harris closed +175.
Polianna Botelho showcased excellent takedown defense against Pearl Gonzalez to win a unanimous decision. Botelho was a -160 betting favorite while Gonzalez was +140.
Matt Schnell finally earned his first UFC victory by outworking an overmatched Marco Beltran over the course of three rounds to earn a unanimous decision. Schnell was a -125 favorite while Beltran was a +105 dog.
Brad Tavares outworked Thales Leites with superior striking over the course of three rounds, easily earning a one-sided unanimous decision victory. Tavares was -175 while Leites was +155.
Underdogs that Won Maria Romero Borella absolutely dominated Kalindra Faria on the ground eventually securing a first round rear naked choke submission win. Borella closed a +215 underdog while Faria closed at -155.
Cody Stamann utilized his elite wrestling and excellent pressure on the feet to pull off a surprise upset victory over mega-hyped bantamweight prospect Tom Duquesnoy. Stamann closed as a +140 underdog while Duquesnoy was -160.
Former flyweight title challenger John Moraga pulled off the shocker of the night when he flatlined Magomed Bibulatov on the Fight Pass prelims in just 98 seconds. Moraga was a huge +425 underdog while Bibulatov was a -550 favorite.
Draws Beneil Dariush and Evan Dunham fought to a majority draw in a competitive bout. Dariush closed as a -230 favorite while Dunham was a +190 underdog.
A point deduction from a blatantly thrown illegal knee cost Lando Vanatta a chance at victory as his bout against Bobby Green was ruled a split draw. Vanatta had been a -175 betting favorite while Green was a +155 underdog.
