Eddie Alvarez batters Rafael dos Anjos to claim UFC lightweight title
Philadelphia lightweight produces a spectacular performance to claim the UFC's undisputed 155lb title at UFC Fight Night Las Vegas
EDDIE Alvarez delivered a phenomenal performance at the MGM Grand to rip the UFC lightweight title away from Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Fight Night.
Alvarez looked to work his angles early and hit the jackpot with a perfectly-placed right hand that sent the champion staggering backwards.
The Philadelphia fighter, seeing the opportunity, charged after the disorientated Brazilian and unleashed a furious flurry of punches that dos Anjos somehow absorbed as the crowd jumped to their feet, sensing a finish.
That finish eventually came with dos Anjos still standing, as referee Herb Dean jumped in to call an end to the contest with Alvarez unleashing another vicious salvo of strikes on the Brazilian.
[youtube //www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUVjC_vz9DY?rel=0&w=620&h=349]
The co-main event saw a remarkable heavyweight bout between big-hitters Roy Nelson and Derrick Lewis, which surprisingly went all the way to the judges.
Nelson looked to smother Lewis, leaning on him against the cage and landing takedowns when 'The Black Beast' attempted to move off.
But when the fighters were separated, it was all Lewis, who battered Nelson with huge punches and knees.
But despite Lewis' heavy artillery, Nelson absorbed everything that came his way and persisted with his smothering approach.
When the scorecards were totted, the judges were split, with Lewis taking the win with scores of 29-28, 28-29, 29-28.
[youtube //www.youtube.com/watch?v=GK2opnoovwg?rel=0&w=620&h=349]
Alan Jouban claimed a unanimous decision win over Belal Muhammad, but it was anything but plain sailing, despite a huge opening round.
Jouban dropped Muhammad twice in the first, with the second knockdown looking very close to bringing a stoppage, but Muhammad somehow weathered the storm and came roaring back in the final round.
When the final buzzer sounded the crowd rose as one to acclaim both fighters as Jouban took the win, stopping his post-fight interview to pay tribute to his opponent.
Irishman Joe Duffy kicked off the main card with the most spectacular performance of his UFC career to date, decking Mitch Clarke with a huge overhand right, then choking him into submission with a rear-naked choke.
Duffy came into the bout looking to prove a point after losing out to Dustin Poirier in his last outing.
And he didn't disappoint, as he dusted Clarke in just 25 seconds to claim one of the most impressive victories of the night.
The main card got the perfect setup with Alberto Mina's spectacular display in the final preliminary bout as he knocked out veteran Mike Pyle with a huge flying knee and hammerfists to round off the preliminary card in the grand manner.
But his wasn't the only finish of the undercard. The opening bouts of the evening delivered a fistful of finishes, with a remarkable run of FIVE submission finishes in a row.
Pedro Munhoz completed that set of submissions with a slick guillotine finish of Russell Doane, who had looked particularly aggressive in the stand-up in the early part of the fight.
But the first time the fight went to the mat Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt Munhoz locked up the submission to close the show after just 128 seconds of their bantamweight bout.
Before that impressive win, Brazilian Felipe 'Sertanejo' Arantes made it back-to-back submissions wins in the UFC with an impressive performance of his own, scoring a second-round armbar finish of Jerrod Sanders.
Former Brazilian Jiu Jitsu world champion Gilbert Burns showed just why his grappling skills took him all the way to the world title in 2011 with a beautiful armbar submission finish of a the tough Pole Lucasz Sajewski.
Burns was in the process of locking up a rear-naked choke on the Polish lightweight, but couldn't quite get the purchase he needed so, with just seconds remaining in the opening round, transitioned brilliantly to an armbar to claim a hugely impressive finish.
Mexican prospect Marco Beltran claimed an impressive finish as he landed a huge up-kick on opponent Reginaldo Vieira before finishing him with a rear-naked choke to continue his unbeaten start to his UFC career.
The opening fight of the night saw former TUF competitor and Blackzilians prospect Vincente Luque score his second straight submission win in the Octagon with a smartly-applied D'Arce choke finish of Alvaro Herrera.
