Tyron Woodley submits Darren Till to emphatically retain UFC welterweight championship

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Tyron Woodley proved why he is the UFC welterweight division’s kingpin on Saturday night.

Darren Till looked a worthy contender to steal Woodley’s crown, but started the first round slow to gauge his opponent.

That counted for nothing as Woodley quickly drilled Till with a big right hand in the opening stages of the second round to floor the Liverpudlian.

From there, Till was on the defensive, showing a ridiculous level of toughness to withstand Missouri native Woodley’s onslaught.

But as the punches and elbows from guard slowed, Woodley expertly slid through an arm to take the D’arce choke which forced Till to submit.

At 25 years old, this is certainly not the end of the road for Till, who remains one of MMA’s brightest prospects. But Woodley’s win tonight sees him placed among the greats at 170lbs.

 

Jessica Andrade starches Karolina Kowalkiewicz in first round

Jessica Andrade certainly made her case for another shot at the UFC women’s strawweight title with a first-round KO over Poland’s Karolina Kowalkiewicz.

Andrade was aggressive from the outset, catching Kowalkiewicz with a number of big punches, but the latter once again proved her toughness as she hung in there under pressure.

Just as Kowalkiewicz got back into the fight in the first round, Andrade landed a huge overhand right, followed by a left hook, which sent Kowalkiewicz crashing to the canvas for good as the fight was rightly called off.

A big win for the resurgent Andrade, who will hope this victory is enough to face champion Rose Namajunas next.

 

Zabit Magomedsharipov impresses as he submits Brandon Davis in the second round

Russia’s Zabit Magomedsharipov looked better than ever as he took on game challenger Brandon Davis at UFC 228 in Dallas, Texas.

Davis took the fight on less than two weeks’ notice, but had little answer for all facets of Magomedsharipov’s game.

From crisp boxing, to karate-turn-Tae Kwon Do kicking, Magomedsharipov appeared to do whatever he wanted with his opponent. He even threw in a couple of suplexes his fellow fighters from Russia’s North Caucasus have now patented for good measure.

A weary Davis emerged from the first round scathed, but undeterred as he pressed on in the second round.

But the above slam saw Magomedsharipov quickly sink both hooks in to take Davis’ back.

After diligently defending the rear-naked choke, Davis had his left leg snatched by Magomedsharipov.

From there, Magomedsharipov cranked – and we mean cranked – hard on a modified kneebar to force the second-round submission.

In the post-fight press conference, Magomedsharipov (through his translator) proclaimed he wanted to show off his submission skills in tonight’s fight. He did exactly that and in some style.

It’s no wonder why very few, bar Davis, apparently, is willing to take on the Dagestani martial artist in the UFC’s featherweight division.

 

UFC 228: Woodley vs. Till full results

Welterweight championship: Tyron Woodley defeats Darren Till by submission (D’arce choke) at 4:19 of round two.
Women’s Strawweight: Jessica Andrade defeats Karolina Kowalkiewicz by KO (punch) at 1:58 of round one.
Featherweight: Zabit Magomedsharipov defeats Brandon Davis by submission (modified kneebar) at 3:46 of round two.
Bantamweight: Jimmie Rivera defeats John Dodson by unanimous decision after three rounds.
Welterweight: Abdul Razak Alhassan defeats Niko Price by KO (punches) at 0:43 of round one.
Women’s Strawweight: Tatiana Suarez defeats Carla Esparza by TKO (punches and elbows) at 4:33 of round three.
Bantamweight: Aljamain Sterling defeats Cody Stamann by submission (modified kneebar) at 3:42 of round two.
Welterweight: Geoff Neal defeats Frank Camacho by KO (head kick) at 1:23 of round two.
Middleweight: Darren Stewart defeats Charles Byrd by TKO (elbow and punches) at 2:17 of round two.
Welterweight: Diego Sanchez defeats Craig White by unanimous decision after three rounds.
Lightweight: Jim Miller defeats Alex White by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:29 of round one.
Women’s Bantamweight: Irene Aldana defeats Lucie Pudilova by split decision after three rounds.
Flyweight: Jarred Brooks defeats Roberto Sanchez by split decision after three rounds.