UFC 215 live results: Amanda Nunes vs. Valentina Shevchenko 2

Preview by Ryan Frederick

Welcome to our live cageside coverage of UFC 215 from Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.

The UFC heads to Edmonton for the very first time, and unfortunately, the originally planned main event of flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson vs. Ray Borg was scrapped due to illness from the challenger. Johnson was in search of history as he was looking for his eleventh consecutive title defense.

UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes defends against Valentina Shevchenko in the new main event. The two were originally scheduled to fight at UFC 213 in July, but the fight was cancelled the day of the event as Nunes fell ill and was forced out of the bout. Their history has been long documented. Nunes holds a win over Shevchenko but Shevchenko came on strong at the end of their first fight with many thinking she would have won a five-round bout. She gets that five rounds and that chance to wrap a UFC title around her waist tonight.

The co-main event is a welterweight bout with title implications on the line as Neil Magny takes on former lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos. Also on the card, fighters known for exciting fights square off in the main card opener as Jeremy Stephens slugs it out against Gilbert Melendez.

Follow along with our live coverage of the event beginning at 7 p.m. Eastern time with preliminary action all the way through the main card.

Send a thumbs up, a thumbs down or a thumbs in the middle along with a best fight and a worst fight to Dave at dave@wrestlingobserver.com after the show.

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UFC FIGHT PASS PRELIMS | 7 PM ET/4 PM PT

> Kajan Johnson (21-12-1, 2-1 UFC) vs. Adriano Martins (28-8, 4-2 UFC)
Lightweights

Not a lot of action early, as Martins laid claim to the center of the cage and kept Johnson to the outside. Not surprisingly, the crowd wasn’t too thrilled with this early approach. But in the final minute of the round, Martins floored Johnson with a hard left and nearly finished him with a kneeling guillotine choke but Johnson was saved by the horn. 10-9 Martins.

More circling by Johnson to evade Martins in the second round. Johnson attempted more strikes than he did in the first round, but Martins was able to evade many of them and score some counter shots. Johnson generated more attempted offense, but Martins had the edge in Octagon control. 10-9 Martins, 20-18 on my scorecard.

Early in the third round, Johnson caught Martins coming in for a takedown with a counterpunch and dropped him for the knockout finish. The crowd didn’t like this fight at all until the finish.

RESULT: KAJAN JOHNSON (22-12-1) by knockout at 0:49 of the third round

> Luis Henrique (10-3 1 NC, 2-2 UFC) vs. Arjan Bhullar (6-0, 0-0 UFC)
Heavyweights

No Jinder Mahal for Bhullar’s walk to the cage. According to Ariel Helwani, Bhullar requested to wear his turban during his entrance and was denied.

It was a fairly back and forth opening round. Both fighters had their moments, but Bhullar was more of an aggressor and seemed to get the better of most of the exchanges. 10-9 Bhullar.

More back and forth early. Bhullar dropped Henrique with a right hand but couldn’t finish him on the ground. Bhullar got a slam, though Henrique almost wriggled free in the process. Loud “Arjan” chants. Bhullar couldn’t get much done on the ground, though, and Henrique survived. 10-9 Bhullar, 20-18 on my card.

Henrique dictated the pace early, seemingly pressing due to Bhullar’s performance in the previous round. Both fighters were pretty tired, though, and their strikes were a bit sloppy and lacked a lot of power. Henrique got the better of the exchanges, but didn’t do a ton of damage. Henrique 10-9, but 29-28 Bhullar overall. Big ovation from the crowd at the final horn.

RESULT: ARJAN BHULLAR (7-0) by unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)

Another very loud ovation for the decision.

FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS | 8 PM ET/5 PM PT

> Mitch Clarke (11-4, 2-4 UFC) vs. Alex White (11-3, 2-3 UFC)
Lightweights

Loud ovation for Clarke’s introduction, as he lives in Edmonton.

Clarke came out of the gates with some energy, controlling the middle of the Octagon and getting the best of some striking exchanges. He slowed down a little bit as the round wore on, though, and White began to execute. He did just enough in the first half of the round to have a very slight edge. 10-9 Clarke, but it was a close round.

White seemed to take the fight over in the second. Clarke’s strategy seemed to be tying White up in the clinch and trying to score some short-range punches. But White wriggled free and connected with a lot of elbows in the clinch, bloodying Clarke’s nose. After a couple back and forth exchanges that White got the better of, Clarke was knocked down hard and the referee waved it off.

RESULT: ALEX WHITE (12-3) by technical knockout at 4:36 of the second round

Following the fight, Clarke said it was a pleasure to fight in front of his adopted hometown and that it was his last professional fight. He thanked the Edmonton fans.

> Gavin Tucker (10-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Rick Glenn (19-4-1, 1-1 UFC)
Featherweights

Another loud ovation for the entrance and introduction of a Canadian, this time for Newfoundland’s Tucker.

Tucker came out with a frenzy of offense early, but Glenn weathered the storm and began to exert control as the round wore on. Tucker seemed to initiate the offensive flurries, but Glenn’s counter-punching was more effective and he likely did more damage during the round. 10-9 Glenn.

Glenn got an early takedown, but Tucker was able to escape. After a brief back and forth, Glenn got Tucker against the cage and eventually worked him to to the ground. He didn’t get close to a finish, despite a late flurry of strikes on the ground, but Glenn had Tucker’s back or had him on his back for much of the round. 10-9 Glenn, 20-18 overall.

Glenn seemed content to stick to his gameplan in the third, clinching Tucker against the cage and once again working him down to the mat. Glenn kept going for strike finishes on the ground – punches, then knees – but Tucker kept wriggling free before the referee jumped in. Tucker nearly got finished again on the ground via Glenn’s strikes, but he once again managed to wriggle free and survived the round. The referee realistically had three or four good chances to stop the fight, but didn’t. Tucker may not have gotten a single instance of offense during the entire round. Glenn 10-8, 30-26 overall.

RESULT: RICK GLENN (20-4-1) by unanimous decision (30-25, 30-24, 29-27)

> Sarah Moras (4-2, 1-1 UFC) vs. Ashlee Evans-Smith (#15, 5-2, 2-2 UFC)
Women’s Bantamweights

Evans-Smith got Moras down and was working on the ground for position. Moras wriggled free out of a tough spot and, eventually, grabbed hold of Evans-Smith’s arm and rolled through for an armbar and a submission victory. Moras spent roughly 85% of the round on her back with a foot, shin or knee in her face, but she executed some impressive grappling.

RESULT: SARAH MORAS (5-2) by submission at 2:51 of the first round

“All I heard was my coach shouting ‘use your legs!’ So I used my legs.” – Moras, explaining her submission victory to Joe Rogan.

> Sara McMann (#6, 11-3, 5-3 UFC) vs. Ketlen Vieira (#13, 8-0, 2-0 UFC)
Women’s Bantamweights

McMann came out fast and took Vieira into the cage with a clinch, eventually executing a takedown attempt that ended with her in Vieira’s guard. Vieira defended well for a while, then survived a flurry of McMann strikes from the mount and countered and grabbed McMann’s ankle, but McMann fought out of that as the round ended. McMann 10-9.

Vieira was very sharp in the second round. She stuffed a takedown attempt from McMann and got the better of their exchanges in the clinch along the cage. Eventually Vieira scored a takedown and gradually worked into an arm triangle on the ground. With no way out, McMann tapped out.

RESULT: KETLEN VIEIRA (9-0) by submission at 4:16 of the second round

PPV MAIN CARD | 10 PM ET/7 PM PT

After being roughly 60% full for much of the prelims, Rogers Place looks to be roughly 85% full for the beginning of the main card. The biggest gaps in the seating are down low, in the expensive seats.

> Jeremy Stephens (#8, 25-14, 12-13 UFC) vs. Gilbert Melendez (#14 LW, 22-6, 1-4 UFC)
Featherweights

Stephens hung back a bit early in the first, letting Melendez take the fight to him and executing leg kicks to Melendez’s lead leg to wear him down. Twice he dropped Melendez with this method, the second time Stephens went for the finish but the horn saved Melendez. Otherwise, Stephens still got the better of their striking exchanges. 10-8 Stephens. The commission doctor checked on Melendez before the second round began.

Both fighters made adjustments for the second round. Melendez slightly adjusted his stance, but kept advancing on Stephens. Stephens kept hanging back, but was much more active in initiating striking exchanges and mixing up his combos. Melendez continued to be on the receiving end of much of Stephens’ offense and was knocked down by another leg kick late in the round. 10-9 Stephens, 20-17 Stephens through two.

Stephens continued his dominance in the third round. He knocked down Melendez with a leg kick and he rolled to his feet, so Stephens encouraged the crowd to cheer for him. Stephens dropped Melendez twice more with leg kicks, but wasn’t able to finish the fight. 10-8 Stephens, 30-25 Stephens overall.

RESULT:JEREMY STEPHENS (26-14) by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25)

Post-fight, Stephens put over his fiance for letting him postpone the wedding to take this fight. He also put over Melendez as one of the best ever, but noted he doesn’t think his game has evolved.

> Ilir Latifi (#10, 12-5 1 NC, 5-3 UFC) vs. Tyson Pedro (#13, 6-0, 2-0 UFC)
Light Heavyweights

The opening round was incredibly close. Punches were met by counterpunches. Clinches were met with counters. Takedowns were followed by scrambles to standing positions. Latifi got a couple big takedowns, the best countering a Latifi attempt at a headkick, so he had a very slight edge. But both men executed well. Latifi 10-9.

The second was even early on, with Pedro anticipating Latifi’s strikes well and countering. But the round swung on a takedown by Latifi midway through, as Latifi was able to keep Pedro on the ground or on the fence in the clinch for the duration. 10-9 Latifi, 20-18 Latifi through two.

Latifi seemed content to counter Pedro’s offense and stay out of danger early in the third, but eventually he scored a takedown out of the clinch and kept Pedro on the mat for the remainder of the fight. 10-9 Latifi in the third and it should be 30-27 in his favour overall. It wasn’t an incredibly entertaining fight, but Pedro had no answer for Latifi’s gameplan.

RESULT: ILIR LATIFI (13-5, 1 NC) by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

> Henry Cejudo (#2, 10-2, 4-2 UFC) vs. Wilson Reis (#5, 22-7, 6-3 UFC)
Flyweights

It was back and forth early, with Cejudo consistently getting the better of the exchanges. Reis scrambled out of a guillotine attempt by Cejudo, but Cejudo managed a few nice offensive flurries and a takedown late. 10-9 Cejudo.

Cejudo caught Reis on the button with a clean right hand that dropped him, then followed up with a flurry of punches on the ground before the referee jumped in to stop the fight. Very strong performance by Cejudo, particularly with his striking.

RESULT: HENRY CEJUDO (11-2) by technical knockout at 0:25 of the second round

> Neil Magny (#6, 19-5, 12-4 UFC) vs. Rafael Dos Anjos (#10, 26-9, 15-7 UFC)
Welterweights

Dos Anjos countered an early Magny punch with a leg sweep to get him on the ground, then gradually worked through Magny’s guard and finally locked in an arm triangle for the submission. Magny never really got out of the gates in this one.

RESULT: RAFAEL DOS ANJOS (27-9) by submission at 3:43 of the first round

Joe Rogan put over dos Anjos as a potential title contender during the post-fight interview, and dos Anjos declared that he’s coming for the belt.

Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid was shown on the big screen for easily the loudest crowd reaction of the night. (Arjan Bhullar was the second loudest.)

> Amanda Nunes (C, 14-4, 7-1 UFC) vs. Valentina Shevchenko (#1, 14-2, 3-1 UFC)
UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship

Once she got into the cage, Nunes didn’t look at Shevchenko at all during the fighter introductions, stretching in her corner facing her coaches until Bruce Buffer finished his introductions.

Nunes controlled the middle of the cage throughout the first round, but seemed to hestitate with her striking – double-clutching on a couple openings early on. She avoided a Shevchenko takedown attempt and narrowly got the better of a few striking exchanges. It was a very close round. 10-9 Nunes, but it was extremely close.

The second round was equally close. Nunes maintained her Octagon control, but Shevchenko was much more active in engaging with strikes and was more effective than Nunes was in terms of delivering damage. Another very close round, leaning 10-9 Shevchenko. 19-19 through two rounds.

Nunes and Shevchenko continued at the same pace in the third round. Once again, Nunes controlled the middle of the Octagon and left Shevchenko to circle around the outside. Nunes engaged a bit more with her striking, though, with Shevchenko attempting to create offense via counters. It was another tough round to score, leaning 10-9 Nunes. 29-28 Nunes through three rounds but really any scores could be defensible.

The fourth round was very similar to the third. Nunes began throwing more leg kicks, but they were the extent of her offense. Shevchenko began engaging more from the outside and got the better of several striking exchanges, including a very nice knee to the body of Nunes in the middle of the round. 10-9 Shevchenko, arguably the least close round so far. My scorecard is 38-38 through four close rounds.

The fifth round opened up a bit, as both fighters were more aggressive than they had been previously. Shevchenko got the better of several standing striking exchanges. After a failed takedown attempt along the cage, Nunes managed to get one and take Shevchenko’s back. Shevchenko escaped, then was taken down again after some work along the cage by Nunes. Shevchenko was on the defensive for the better part of this round. 10-9 Nunes. My scorecard reads 48-47 Nunes through five very close rounds.

The crowd booed frequently throughout the fight (and chanted for their hockey team), which is a bit of a shame considering it was a very tactical bout between evenly-matched opponents.

RESULT: AMANDA NUNES (15-4) by split decision (48-47, 47-48, 48-47)