Surprises and Disappointments is a column featured on MMAOddsbreaker.com after every UFC event, highlighting three fighters who had surprising performances and three fighters who disappointed. Here are the three surprises and the three disappointments from UFC 171. Surprises Tyron Woodley — In the co-main event of the evening, Tyron Woodley became the first man to stop Carlos Condit with strikes as he defeated him via second-round TKO when Condit injured his knee on a leg kick. I don’t think anyone envisioned Woodley winning in this method, so for me he was the biggest surprise of the night. Sean Strickland — In one of the Fight Pass prelims, Sean Strickland showed that he’s a prospect to keep your eye on as he dispatched of veteran Bubba McDaniel in just minutes, submitting the Greg Jackson-trained fighter with a rear-naked choke. It was a tremendous debut for young Strickland, and for him to go out there and submit a tough vet like McDaniel in less than one round is extremely impressive. Robert Whiteford — In the very first bout of the night, Robert Whiteford was able to grind out Daniel Pineda and take home the win as a decent-sized underdog. No one was picking Whiteford to win this fight but he showed he’s better than everyone gave him credit for as he was able to take Pineda down and outwrestle him for his first UFC victory. Disappointments Jake Shields — In a welterweight bout, Jake Shields was thoroughly dominated by Hector Lombard over the course of three rounds, dropping a unanimous decision in the process. Shields just didn’t look up to par and showed that he’s not even close to getting another title shot, while Lombard proved he’s a legitimate contender. Nikita Krylov — In a light heavyweight matchup, Nikita Krylov was submitted in just over a minute by Ovince St-Preux. I know Krylov was a big underdog in the fight, but I really thought he’d be more competitive in the fight. But he wasn’t, and once again he showed he has massive holes in his game that need fixing if he ever wants to move up the ladder. Jimy Hettes — In a featherweight bout, Jimy Hettes was absolutely dominated by Dennis Bermudez, losing via third-round TKO when he just couldn’t take the strikes anymore. Bermudez looked amazing in the fight, but I really thought Hettes was going to look a lot better than he did and I was overall disappointed in his performance.
