UFC Fight Night 61 Results: Real Winners and Losers from Bigfoot vs. Mir
The UFC's first trip to Brazil in 2015 will be remembered as a night of memorable upsets.
Underdogs made statements with notable upsets in every fight but the night's first at UFC Fight Night 61: Bigfoot vs. Mir, including 37-year-old Marion Reneau, who submitted 10th-ranked women's featherweight Jessica Andrade on Sunday.
In the same vein, a large group of favorites, like eighth-ranked bantamweight Iuri Alcantara, got knocked down a few pegs after suffering disappointing defeats.
Although the primary theme was the success of the night's underdogs, the secondary storyline was the promotion's decision to allow 13th-ranked heavyweight Frank Mir to fight eighth-ranked Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva in the main event.
While both men are decorated heavyweights who stay active against the world's best, heading into the night Mir hadn't won a fight since submitting Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 140 in December 2011. Bigfoot, conversely, hadn't tasted victory since KO'ing Alistair Overeem at UFC 156 over two years ago.
It's difficult to argue that Mir and Bigfoot don't deserve to be called top-flight heavyweights, but to pit them against each other in a main event at this point in time made little sense. Truth be told, the UFC could have made a more sensible main event matchup with co-main event fighters and budding lightweights Michael Johnson and Edson Barboza.
Coming into the bout, the 12th-ranked Johnson had won six of his last eight bouts, and sixth-ranked Barboza had prevailed in five of his last six.
Did the UFC make the right decision by pitting Mir and Silva in the big show? Or should the seemingly obvious barnburner between Johnson and Barboza have gotten tabbed as the main event?
Read on to find the answers to the most significant questions that surrounded UFC Fight Night 61.
Winner: Frankie Saenz
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On the second fight of the main card, former NCAA Division I wrestler Saenz overcame the largest odds of the night by earning a unanimous decision over Alcantara in a bantamweight clash.
Saenz, who was deemed a 7.25-1 underdog (plus-725) against Alcantara (-925), according to Odds Shark, utilized his fast hands and his superior wrestling and scrambling skills to outfox the Brazilian contender.
The heavy odds in Alcantara's favor seemed justified in the first round after the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt earned 10-9s on two of the judges' cards.
The ever-resilient Saenz mixed his punches with his shots much better in the second and third rounds, and in every instance that Alcantara threatened with his grappling, Saenz used his wrestling prowess to escape or reverse the position.
Even though he won his UFC debut, at 34 years old, Saenz essentially needed to pull off an upset over Alcantara to catch the eye of the company's brass. With two wins in six months in the UFC and his latest coming over a massive favorite, Saenz will surely crack the top 15 in his weight class.
Loser: Iuri Alcantara
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Alcantara legitimately put himself in position for a title run following his unanimous-decision loss to Urijah Faber in August 2013 by reeling off three straight wins, including a KO of Vaughan Lee at UFC Fight Night 41.
But after an essentially flat performance in his loss to Saenz, Alcantara will surely have to start over from scratch in order to ever get a crack at the bantamweight strap.
Alcantara started off with a strong first round in which he controlled the action in the standing position and surprised Saenz with a late takedown.
But unfortunately for the Brazilian, he couldn't match the stamina and scrambling ability of the former Arizona State University wrestler in the final two rounds and dropped a unanimous decision.
Alcantara, who was a 9.25-1 favorite to beat Saenz (plus-725), will likely fall out of the top 10 and probably won't re-enter until he starts another winning streak.
Winner: Marion Reneau
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Like Saenz, the 37-year-old Reneau shook up her respective division at just the right time.
Reneau needed just 1:54 to submit 10th-ranked women's bantamweight Andrade with a smooth triangle choke on the preliminary card's main event.
Reneau, who won her promotional debut with a unanimous-decision win over Alexis Dufresne at UFC 182 last month, missed her first opportunity to cinch up a triangle on the Brazilian. But the second time Andrade gave Reneau an opening for the choke, the Californian capitalized.
The instant she put on a proper lock, Reneau scooped Andrade's left leg and tightened the triangle with superb technique, forcing an almost instant tap. The loss was Andrade's first career setback by submission.
Reneau was a 2.48-1 underdog against Andrade (minus-270).
The once-beaten Reneau doesn't have as many years as Andrade to try to earn a title shot. But for now, the media should recognize Reneau's feat and vote her into this week's top-15 rankings.
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Loser: Rustam Khabilov
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Prior to his last two fights, 14th-ranked Khabilov had a 3-0 UFC record and every reason to believe that a lightweight title shot would eventually come his way.
Although Khabilov's stock dropped slightly in his submission loss to Benson Henderson at UFC Fight Night 42, that setback did little to his value in comparison to Sunday's defeat to Adriano Martins.
For the second straight fight, the 28-year-old Russian failed to implement his wrestle-heavy game or capitalize on any of his high-risk, high-rewards combinations.
Khabilov managed to win just one round, the second, and simply wasn't busy enough to outwork the game Brazilian.
Khabilov will undoubtedly fall out of the top-15 rankings, and Martins, who has lost just once in the UFC, could take his place.
Winner: Michael Johnson
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Johnson continued to state his case as the lightweight division's most underrated fighter with an impressive unanimous-decision win over a streaking Barboza.
From bell to bell, Johnson continuously moved forward and pressured Barboza with crisp hand combinations. Johnson's smothering style disallowed Barboza from setting up his potent muay thai game, particularly his kicks, and generally frustrated the Brazilian.
Johnson's performance evidently made quite an impression on the bout's judges, as he swept the cards in all three rounds en route to a 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 win over Barboza.
Johnson has reeled off four straight wins and has prevailed in seven of his last nine fights. Each of his last four wins has come against savvy veterans, and with his latest feat, Johnson deserves a spot in the top 10.
Loser: Cezar Ferreira
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While it's safe to say that Ferreira's a physical specimen who has the ability to entertain, Mutante has not yet hit his stride in the UFC.
Mutante got KO'd for the second time in his last three fights, this time succumbing to a devastating combination from Sam Alvey in the fourth fight on the main card.
Mutante seemed in control of the action when he landed a stepping, upward elbow on Alvey. Alvey ate the elbow, however, and made the most of an opening he saw seconds later by putting Mutante to sleep with a masterfully timed two-punch combination.
Ferreira's KO losses to C.B. Dollaway and Alvey, who was a 3.15-1 underdog, will certainly put the 30-year-old Mutante on the hot seat in his next fight.
Winner: Sam Alvey
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Alvey was correct when he said it in post-fight interview that Sunday's win over Mutante was the most meaningful of his career.
Like he usually does, the stone-chinned Alvey got off to a less than stellar opening minute against an opponent who looked to have a tremendous physical advantage. But the Team Quest standout waited the for the ideal moment to pounce, and when he did, he made KO'ing Mutante look easy.
After absorbing a stepping, upward elbow from the Brazilian, Alvey countered a punch from Mutante with a two-punch combination that sent him crashing unconscious to the canvas.
Alvey has won two straight fights by brutal first-round KO, a fact that will surely land him a top-10 opponent in his next bout.
Loser: Bigfoot Silva
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He may have entered the fight ranked No. 8 in the UFC at heavyweight, but Bigfoot undoubtedly left the Octagon contemplating his future in the sport.
Bigfoot continued his losing skid and suffered his third KO/TKO loss in four fights when he got KO'd by 13th-ranked Mir in just 1:40 in the night's main event.
The left-handed Mir came out in an orthodox stance and took advantage of Bigfoot's sluggish start by dropping the massive Brazilian with a lead jab-lead hook combination. Mir sensed that Bigfoot was hurt and rushed him with a series of elbows that eventually ended Silva's night.
Akin to Mir, Bigfoot has only lost to top-flight competition in his UFC career. However, at 35 years old and with a chin that's clearly unstable, Silva should seriously consider retirement.
Winner: Frank Mir
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For at least the time being, former UFC heavyweight champ Mir has silenced the critics that claimed that the Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace should have retired after suffering his fourth straight loss last February.
But an over-year-long layoff apparently did the trick for Mir, as the 35-year-old southpaw needed just 1:40 to dispatch of the eighth-ranked Bigfoot in violent fashion.
Bigfoot appeared frozen in the bout's early stages, presumably on account of Mir's decision to come out in a right-handed stance. Regardless of his lackadaisical start, Bigfoot paid for it and did so with his consciousness.
Mir landed a flush lead jab-lead hook combination that sent Bigfoot falling to his back in a daze. Like he's done many times before, Mir sensed the end and made the most of the opportunity, raining elbows down on Silva's jaw until his lights went out.
Mir won't land a title shot at any point in the near future, but it's clear that with proper rest and focus, the Las Vegas native still brings, at the very least, top-notch finishing abilities to the table.
Odds courtesy of Odds Shark.
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