UFC Fight Night 50 last night came to us live from Connecticut, and with only nine scheduled bouts. It was a night of surprises and definitely one fight fans won’t soon forget. 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. Ben Rothwell earns Performance of the Night (formerly, Knockout of the Night) “Big Ben” looked incredible in the co-main event of last night’s UFC Fight Night 50, scoring the TKO upset over one of the biggest icons in the sport in Alistair Overeem. The win makes it two in a row for Rothwell, though he will have to wait a while before he gets the chance to extend that streak to three, as he suffered a broken forearm during the bout. Blocking one of Overeem’s kicks is what did the damage. Injuries aside, for the first time since signing with the UFC five years ago, the Wisconsin native has managed to string together two consecutive victories. As long as he continues to keep improving, I expect “Big Ben” will continue to impress inside the Octagon. Noteworthy T/KOs: – In another heavyweight contest on the evening’s main card, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 veteran Matt Mitrione defeated surging heavyweight prospect Derrick Lewis via knockout at only 0:41 seconds into the fight. Not only was the loss the first Octagon loss for Lewis, but also the first time he has been knocked out in his professional mixed martial arts career. Mitrione is now on a two-fight winning streak, with both wins coming by first round knockout. For his next outing, he hopes for a ranked opponent. – “Raging” Al Iaquinta defeated the veteran Rodrigo Damm via third round TKO, after dominating the Brazilian for two-and-a-half rounds. It was a very impressive outing by Iaquinta, and a great way for him to bounce back into the win column. Jacare Souza earns Performance of the Night (formerly, Submission of the Night) The Brazilian earned arguably the most impressive victory of his professional mixed martial arts career in a rematch against former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi in the main event of last night’s UFC Fight Night 50 in Connecticut. Souza had trouble taking the Armenian down at the beginning of the first frame, but eventually got the fight there. After that, every takedown came easier. Mousasi remained active from bottom position, and took risks doing so. He exposed his neck for a second, and against the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace in Jacare, one second is two seconds too long. Before he knew it, Souza had the guillotine choke sunk in deep, and he was forced to tap. It was an incredible performance by Jacare, who will be hoping to take on the winner of Belfort vs Weidman, which will be taking place at UFC 181 in December. Noteworthy Submissions : – John Moraga defeated Justin Scoggins via guillotine choke submission at 0:47 seconds into the second frame. Scoggins had controlled the bout up ‘til that point, having exposed his neck several times in the process. Moraga noticed Scoggins was allowing him to get his arm under his chin, so he figured he would go all-in on a guillotine when presented with another opportunity. At the start of the second round when Scoggins again decided to take the fight to the mat, the opening immediately presented itself and Moraga was all over it. Before anybody knew it, the fight was over. Scoggins tapped, awarding Moraga the victory. Joe Lauzon and Michael Chiesa earn Fight of the Night for having the most entertaining bout on the entire UFC Fight Night 50 fight card, which only featured nine bouts, including a four-fight main card that was televised live on FOX Sports 1. The fight was stopped short in the second round due to a knee Lauzon landed above Chiesa’s eye that cut him deep. Referee Herb Dean paused the action and called the doctor in, who immediately deemed Chiesa unable to continue after only a glance at the wound. It was a bad cut and a justifiable stoppage, although I have seen fighters in worse shape be allowed to continue. Chiesa argued the stoppage and even said that Lauzon was brutally busted up in the Miller fight and that fight was allowed to go on. The Ultimate Fighter season 15 winner exited the Octagon very unhappy, having suffered his second loss as a professional mixed martial artist; but perhaps the extra $50,000 helped take the sting off it. Other noteworthy fights: – The aforementioned Jacare vs Mousasi, which headlined the UFC Fight Night 50 fight card.
