UFC 141:Overeem retires Lesnar and challenges Cigano

alistair overeem (right) lands a straight right on Brock Lesnar. Photograph; Josh Hedges

The Dutch alistair overeem said that the fight against Brock Lesnar I wouldn't make it past the first round. And the last Strikeforce heavyweight champion fulfilled his promise and knocked out the former UFC champion in the first round of the main fight of UFC 141, an event held this Friday (30), in Las Vegas, in the United States.

With the result, Overeem qualifies as the next challenger for the Brazilian's belt junior gypsy. In turn, Lesnar, who has suffered in recent years with a serious problem of diverticulitis, announced his retirement as an MMA fighter.

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In addition to the duel between heavyweights, UFC 141 featured two Brazilians on the fight program: Diego Nunes had a balanced fight, but defeated Armenian Manny Gamburyan via judges' decision. Júnior Assunção started well, but felt the rhythm of the fight and was overcome by Englishman Ross Pearson, also in the decision.

Overeem retires Lesnar and challenges Cigano
Expectations for the duel of giants were high, but the Dutchman alistair overeem needed just over two minutes to knock him out Brock Lesnar and score his twelfth consecutive victory as a heavyweight, remaining undefeated in the division.

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Lesnar started the fight trying to take his opponent to the ground, but after some unsuccessful attempts, Brock accepted the exchange of blows and even connected good punches on the Dutchman. opening a cut near Alistair's eye

However, with a powerful knee delivered by Overeem to the waistline, Lesnar felt the blow and was no longer able to continue the fight, falling to the ground. With that, the Dutch athlete began a sequence of blows until the referee ended the dispute.

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After the duel, Overeem did not hide his desire to face the Brazilian junior gypsy for the UFC heavyweight belt. “It’s next,” said the heavyweight. Already Brock Lesnar, after experiencing several health problems over the past two years, announced his retirement from MMA.

“I had very difficult years because of my illness. This is the last time you saw me fight. I promised my wife that this would be my last fight if I lost,” said Brock.

Diaz wins the battle against Cerrone
Nate diaz e Donald Cerrone They exchanged provocations before UFC 140, but inside the octagon the fighters settled their differences and put on the best fight of the night. The duel started in an electrifying way, with both athletes entering the range of action and seeking to define the fight. Surprisingly, Nate chose to work on striking, Cerrone's specialty, and not on the ground game. And Diaz did well in the decision. throwing several straight blows, the punches passed to Donald's guard and already marked the “Caubói's” face.

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In the second round, Cerrone still managed to knock Diaz down a few times with low kicks, however, he preferred not to enter Nate's guard and the fight resumed on the feet. In turn, Cesar Gracie's pupil exuded confidence and invited his opponent to exchange blows. With the decision in the hands of the judges, the victory was left to Nate diaz unanimously.

At the end of the dispute, the fighters hugged each other and put an end to the rivalry, which became spicy during the match. show press conference.

Hendricks beats Fitch in 12 seconds
After a long wait, the knockouts arrived at UFC 141, and this time in lightning fashion. John hendricks He was considered an underdog in his fight against Jon Fitch, but he needed just 12 seconds to take down the favorite. In the first moment of the duel, Hendricks threw a right swing that hit Fitch's chin and he fell to the ground. Unable to defend himself, the referee stopped the fight and a technical knockout was declared.

Gustafsson knocks out Matyushenko
After six fights in the decision, the first knockout came at UFC 141. The Swede Alexander Gustafson took no notice of veteran Vladimir Matyushenko and knocked out the Belarusian athlete in the first round. With more speed, Gustafsson took the initiative when exchanging blows and connected the best punches. And after Matyushenko tried to apply a jab, Gustafsson responded with a straight shot and knocked his opponent down. Quick on the trigger, Alexander started punching the ground and forced the referee to end the fight.

Jim Hettes dominates Nam Phan
The first fight on the main card followed the same line as the preliminary fights: tied up and without great emotions. But the one who could celebrate at the end of the duel was Jim Hettes, who maintained his unbeaten record in MMA by overcoming his compatriot Nam Phan. Hetter began the fight by immediately taking down his opponent and keeping the fight on the ground, from where he was able to evolve into some positions and connect some punches. History repeated itself in the following rounds, and surprisingly, Phan, who was coming off good performances, was unable to react. In the end, Jim Hettes won the unanimous decision of the judges

Júnior Assunção fights well, but loses to Ross Pearson
Pernambuco's Júnior Assunção started the fight well against Ross Pearson. Right at the beginning of the fight, the Brazilian started moving well, landing the best blows and managing to take down the English fighter. But upon returning for the second round, the Brazilian athlete was already showing fatigue and ended up being the target of the Brit's powerful boxing blows. In the third round, the duel was once again balanced, but with Ross having the best attacks. At the end of the duel, the side judges saw Ross Pearson's victory unanimously (29×28, 29×28, 30×27)

Diego suffers, but beats Gamburyan
In the first fight of the night, Diego Nunes and Manny Gamburyan fought a very balanced fight from start to finish. While the Brazilian worked with low kicks and straight punches, taking advantage of his better reach, the Armenian tried to take down and keep the fight on the ground. In the second round, however, Manny connected with a counter blow and Diego felt it. But with a good recovery, the Tupiniquim athlete recovered and continued in the dispute. In the last round, it was the Tupiniquim athlete's turn to land the best blow and press his opponent against the fence. After 15 minutes, the judges saw Diego Nunes' victory (29×28, 29×28, 29×28)