D. Poirier (photo) was erased with an illegal strike (Photo: Reproduction/Twitter)
The preliminary portion of UFC 211 was an excellent appetizer for the main fights of the event. With submissions, knockouts and controversies, as well as two “wars”, the first duels of the show were full of emotion.
In the great rivalry of the preliminary part, a fatality ended up interrupting what was shaping up to be one of the biggest fights of the year. Dustin poirier and Eddie Alvarez were fighting a fight full of twists and turns, when the former champion landed a knee in four stances on “Diamante”, who ended up being knocked out and unable to continue. Referee Herb Dean interpreted that the blow released by Alvarez was accidental, as he was unable to see that his opponent was on all fours. Thus, the duel ended without result, instead of Poirier winning by disqualification, as is common in cases like this.
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The duel was without a winner, but the expectation is that there will be a rematch. This is because after the fight ended, the two came to an understanding, with Poirier asking the audience not to boo Alvarez and they agreed on a new fight.
THE FIGHT
In the first round, there was a lot of study between the two, with Alvarez still seeming to feel the effects of his devastating defeat to Conor McGregor, in November. Insecure and slow, the former champion accepted his opponent's combinations and, even though he tried to fake takedowns, he had very little success. Poirier, on the other hand, connected several hard blows, as well as high kicks and kicks to his rival's body, calmly winning the initial round.
At the turn of the second round, Alvarez's corner asked for more action and aggression. The former champion responded and started applying pressure and trying for a takedown. Poirier fell and got up immediately. Soon after, he connected a sequence that left his opponent dizzy. With his eye swollen and bleeding profusely, as well as almost being knocked out, Alvarez went for all or nothing. Throwing random blows, he ended up finding Poirier's chin, who also shook.
When trying to take down “Diamante”, the former champion was in a good position to throw knees at the head of his rival, who was in three supports (now legal in Texas, where UFC 211 takes place). But upon feeling one of the blows, Poirier placed his other hand on the ground, getting on all fours and the next knee that came ended up knocking him out. The illegal strike was decisive, but interpreted as accidental.
Casey x Aguilar
The third fight was also quite exciting. North American Cortney Casey surprised Mexican Jessica Aguilar and won by decision. In the first round, Casey prevailed on the feet, using combinations and his size to neutralize “JAG”, who three years ago was the best strawweight in the world. The Mexican managed to get a takedown, but the dominance of “Iron Cast” was already taking shape.
In the second round, the North American managed to damage her opponent by playing from below. Whenever Aguilar got a takedown and got up to try to get an angle for ground and pound, Casey used his long legs to throw kicks and “pedals”. One of them hurt the Mexican woman's face, which started to bleed profusely. The third round saw even greater dominance from Cortney, who once again dominated on the feet and almost managed a knockout on more than one occasion. In the end, she won all three rounds on the scorecards of all the side judges.
Sherman vs. Coulter
After James Vick's victory over Marco Polo Reyes, by knockout, the heavyweights Chase sherman and Rashad Coulter had one of the most exciting fights of 2017. Sherman was more technical and prepared, as his opponent accepted the fight two weeks in advance. With that, he managed to land good combinations and low kicks, which undermined Coulter's left leg. The North American ended the first round barely able to balance himself.
In the second round, however, he showed a lot of heart and stayed in the fight, even with his leg severely injured. Coulter landed good blows and left Sherman dizzy on a few occasions. More intact, however, Chase ended up getting the upper hand when he threw an elbow, definitively erasing Rashad.
Other fights
The night started with another quick victory for the Russian Gadzhimurad Antigulov. Like his first UFC triumph, against Marcos Foot, the light heavyweight submitted Joachim Christensen in the first round, this time with a rear naked choke. In the second duel of UFC 211, a balanced battle between Enrique Barzola and Gabriel Benítez. Better for the Peruvian Barzola, who kept the Mexican Benítez under control with his game of takedowns and standing pressure, winning by decision.
Then, it was Jason Knight's turn to score an excellent knockout over Chas Skelly, improving his UFC record to four wins and one loss. After showing an active guard in the first round, complete with a gogoplata attempt, the North American obliterated his opponent in the third round and placed himself close to entering the featherweight rankings.
UFC 211 preliminary results
Lightweight: Eddie Alvarez x Dustin poirier – No result (illegal, accidental blow)
Featherweight: Jason Knight defeated Chas Skelly by TKO at 39 seconds of R3
Heavyweight: Chase sherman beat Rashad Coulter by knockout at 3:36 of R2
Lightweight: James Vick defeated Marco Polo Reyes by technical knockout at 2:39 of R1
Strawweight: Cortney Casey defeated Jessica Aguilar by unanimous decision (3x 30-27)
Feather weight: Enrique Barzola beat Gabriel Benítez by unanimous decision (3x 29-28)
Light Heavyweight: Gadzhimurad Antigulov beat Joachim Christensen via submission (rear naked choke) at 2m21s of R1
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