UFC 179 took place tonight live from Ginásio do Maracanãzinho in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and the card overall was pretty exciting as there were a number of slick finishes and a few standout performances that were of merit. Overall from a betting perspective, eight favorites and two underdogs won, while one fight closed as a Pick ’em based on the closing odds at Several Bookmakers. Here’s a quick recap for each fight. Favorites That Won In the main event of the evening, Jose Aldo defeated Chad Mendes via unanimous decision (49-46 x 3) to retain the UFC featherweight title. This was a closely-contested battle and I am very surprised that Aldo won so clearly, but regardless he was able to get the win and defend his title. Aldo closed as a -200 favorite (bet $200 to win $100) while Mendes lost as a +185 dog (bet $100 to win $185). In a light heavyweight bout, Fabio Maldonado defeated Hans Stringer via second-round TKO (punches). Maldonado was taken down and controlled in the first round but in the second he was able to tire Stringer out, get on top of him on the ground, and rain down punches until the referee stopped it. Maldonado closed at -130 while Stringer closed at +120. In a featherweight bout, Darren Elkins defeated Lucas Martins via split decision (27-30, 30-27 x 2). Elkins grinded Martins up against the fence and deserved a clear win, yet for some reason one judge made it a sweat by giving him their card. Regardless, the right man won and Elkins scored as a -225 favorite while Martins lost as a +205 dog. In a lightweight bout, Yan Cabral defeated Naoyuki Kotani via second-round submission (rear-naked choke). Cabral was able to outgrapple Kotani in the first round and then in the second do the same, only this time finding the finish. Cabral closed at -700 while Kotani closed at +568. In a flyweight bout, Wilson Reis defeated Scott Jorgensen via first-round submission (arm-triangle choke). Reis hit Jorgensen with a nasty body kick that took the wind out of his opponent, and then he followed it up with ground and pound before finally sinking in the fight-ending submission. Reis cashed at -215 while Jorgensen lost at +195. In a featherweight bout, Andre Fili defeated Felipe Arantes via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3). This was extremely competitive bout between two very underrated featherweights that took place both on the feet and on the ground, but at the end of 15 minutes it was Fili who controlled more of the fight with his wrestling and striking and he deserved to get the win. Fili cashed at -160 while Arantes lost at +150. In a welterweight bout, Neil Magny defeated William Macario via third-round TKO (punches). Macario looked good early on with his striking, but eventually he was worn down by the much bigger Magny and eventually finished late in the third round by a barrage of strikes. With the win, Magny improved to 5-0 in the UFC in 2014. He won as a -215 favorite while Macario lost as a dog +195. In a lightweight bout, Gilbert Burns defeated Christos Giagos via first-round submission (armbar). Burns was able to get the takedown early in the round, and then get into a dominant position on the ground before finally sinking in the fight-ending submission with just seconds left on the clock. Burns cashed as a -405 favorite while Giagos lost as a +360 dog. Underdogs That Won In a light heavyweight bout, Phil Davis defeated Glover Teixeira via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3). Davis’ wrestling was very effective in this fight and he also had a high workrate on the feet that led him to victory. He closed as a +190 dog while Teixeira lost as a -210 favorite. In a lightweight bout, Beneil Dariush defeated Carlos Diego Ferreira via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3). Dariush controlled the fight with his grappling and striking and clearly deserved the win. He closed at +225 while Ferreira closed at -245. Pick ’em Fights In a lightweight bout that kicked off the evening’s festivities, Tony Martin defeated Fabricio Camoes via first-round submission (kimura). Martin slammed Camoes down to the mat early on and had lots of time to work his submission game. Although Camoes was able to tough out a few submission attempts, eventually Martin was able to crank his arm far back enough to coax the tapout out of the Brazilian. Martin cashed at -105 while Camoes lost at -105 in a true Pick ’em fight.
