J. Blachowicz in victory for the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Twitter @ufc
Frustrating! No words can better describe the debut of Ronaldo Jacare in the light heavyweight division (up to 93kg.). In a fight highly anticipated by Brazilian fans, the main fight of the UFC Sao Paulo, which took place this Saturday (16), had little action and, when it came to an end, the athletes were extremely booed by most of the public, who filled the Ibirapuera Gymnasium. After five rounds, the judges gave the Polish victory in a split decision (48-47 47-48 48-47).
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Jacaré left the middleweight division (up to 83,9kg) in order to try to win a UFC belt. Hired by the company in 2013, the fighter, who was once considered one of the most dangerous in the lower category, never had a chance to fight for the title and decided to take a risk in the division that is dominated by Jon Jones.
As its first opponent, the company immediately chose a quarry. Jan Blachowicz came from an overwhelming victory over Jacaré's old rival, Luke Rockhold. With high knockout power, the Brazilian knew he needed to be careful not to be surprised by his opponent.
The Espírito Santo's bet, then, would be on jiu-jitsu, as declared by the fighter himself in the week before the show.
Finally, no knockout or submission. The protagonists of the night took little risk and fought a fight that looked like an exhibition fight. Unpretentious, both were heavily booed at the end of the fifth round.
The fight
The athletes started the fight studying each other. Jan took the initiative after delivering a high kick, which was saved by the Brazilian, who responded with a left cross, which touched his face and caused the Pole to walk backwards. After the attack, the athlete started trying to take him down, pressing Blachowicz into the bars. The Espírito Santo tried hard, but was unable to succeed in trying to take the fight to the ground. The duel continued on the gridiron until close to two minutes, until the combatants freed themselves. The duel was once again played in the center of the octagon, with a lot of study and few attacks. Jan again risked a high kick, but the Brazilian remained alert. The man from Espírito Santo once again put pressure on his opponent against the bars and tried to take the dispute to the ground. The fighters remained clinging until the horn sounded.
Just like in the first round, Blachowicz took the initiative with a kick, which was once again saved by the Brazilian. Jacaré tried not to enter the opponent's range of action and showed concentration in his actions. The Espírito Santo player walked forward and forced his rival to move away. Jan continued to rely on low kicks and the Brazilian continued to look for the best moment to attack the legs and take the fight to the ground. Two minutes later, the man from Espírito Santo tried to take him down again, but the Pole's physical strength frustrated the Brazilian's actions. The public began to boo the lack of action from the fighters, who saved their strikes. With one minute remaining in the stage, Jacaré threw a strong low kick, which drew applause from the audience. The combatants rehearsed a frank exchange, but there was no more time.
Following the script, Jan started the third round by kicking Ronaldo's legs, who soon responded with a jab. Jacaré was betting on a counterattack, or an attack on the legs. Blachowicz scared the crowd by unleashing a series of crosses, but Ronaldo was well on the way. The Brazilian, in an attempt to attack, ended up being surprised by an upper, which touched his chin, but the man from Espírito Santo didn't move. The fight was fought again on the grid, and the public booed again. After separating, the fight returned to the center of the octagon. There, the rivals continued to study each other and attempted few actions. With just over a minute remaining, Jacaré tried to take the duel to the ground, but, again, without success. Again, at the end, the fighters exchanged some frank blows, but the round was ended.
The Pole began the assault by risking a high kick, which stopped in Ronaldo's guard. The Brazilian kept his distance and tried a counterattack to surprise his rival. Once again, the public began to criticize the athletes for their lack of action. The fight was once again played on the grid. After just over two minutes, the public turned on the lights of their cell phones in protest, which attracted more attention than the fight itself. Almost in the final minute, Jacaré appeared to feel a kick from Jan. The Brazilian barely moved. From then on, the Pole began to take advantage of the moment and landed good blows on the Espírito Santo.
In the last round, Blachowicz looked more confident. Launching jabs more frequently, the Pole managed to hit the Brazilian on some occasions. After an attack from Jan, Ronaldo attempted a takedown, but it was again saved by the Pole. The fight went to the cage again, but this time, it didn't take long for the referee to interrupt and ask them to return to the center of the octagon. Almost in the final minute, a sequence of punches shook the Brazilian, who fell to the ground, but quickly got up. Blachowicz continued to chase Jacaré, who did not attack and remained only on the defensive. Under many boos, the confrontation ended with the two athletes far from each other.
UFC São Paulo results
MAIN CARD
Light heavyweight (up to 93kg): Jan Blachowicz derrotou Ronaldo Jacare in the judges' split decision (48-47 47-48 48-47)
Light heavyweight (up to 93kg): Mauritius Shogun tied Paul Craig in the judges' split decision (29-28, 28-29, 28-28)
Light weight (up to 70,3kg.):Charles of the Bronx derrotou Jared gordon by knockout at 1m26s of R1
Average weight (up to 83,9kg): André Sergipano derrotou Antonio Arroyo in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Average weight (up to 83,9kg): Wellington Turman derrotou Markus Maluko in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27 30-27 30-27)
PRELIMINARY CARD
Welterweight (up to 77kg): James Krause defeated Serginho Moraes by knockout at 4m19s of R3
Featherweight (up to 65,7kg): Ricardo Carcacinha submitted Eduardo Garagorri with a rear naked choke at 3m57s of R1
Light weight (up to 70,3kg.): Francisco Massaranduba derrotou Bobby Green in the unanimous decision of the judges (29-28 30-27 29-28)
Welterweight (up to 77kg): Randy Brown finished Warlley alves with a triangle 1m22s from R2
Featherweight (up to 65,7kg): Douglas D'Silva derrotou Renan Barao in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27 30-26 30-27)
Flyweight (up to 56,7kg): Ariane Lipski derrotou Isabella of Padua in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-26, 29-27, 30-26)
Bantam weight (up to 61,2kg): Tracy Cortez derrotou Vanessa melo in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
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