UFC 187 Results: Winners and Scorecards from Johnson vs. Cormier Fight Card

UFC 187 looked like it was a "can't miss" event on paper. Simply put, it delivered.

The night was capped off by Daniel Cormier becoming the new champion at light heavyweight, but it also featured a brilliant title defense from Chris Weidman. Not to be forgotten, Donald Cerrone also added another notch to his belt with a TKO win over John Makdessi who took the fight on short notice. 

Here's a quick look at all the results from the UFC 187 main card:

• Daniel Cormier def. Anthony Johnson, submission (Round 3, 2:39)
• Chris Weidman def. Vitor Belfort, TKO (Round 1, 2:53)
• Donald Cerrone def. John Makdessi, TKO (Round 2, 4:44)
• Andrei Arlovski def. Travis Browne, TKO (Round 1, 4:41)
• Joseph Benavidez def. John Moraga, unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Read on for analysis and reaction from all the fights that made UFC 187 a memorable pay-per-view card that will go down as one of the best cards of 2015.

Daniel Cormier vs. Anthony Johnson

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Daniel Cormier capped off the night by realizing the dream he came short of achieving at UFC 182—become UFC champion. The former Olympic wrestler defeated Anthony “Rumble” Johnson for the light heavyweight crown via third-round submission in the main event at UFC 187.

Rumble certainly had his moments early on. He rocked Cormier with an overhand right early in the bout and showcased his power multiple times in the first round. However, Cormier’s ability to grind opponents down ultimately won out. His ground-and-pound drained Johnson throughout three rounds and he ultimately sunk in the rear-naked choke when Johnson could no longer defend himself.

Cormier becomes the 12th man to hold the light heavyweight championship belt. The giant elephant in the room, of course, is the 11th man to hold that belt, Jon Jones. Bones was stripped of the belt after a hit-and-run incident in New Mexico following his positive test for cocaine metabolites, per UFC.com.

A title shot will be waiting for Jones if and when he is able to put his personal demons behind him. Until then, Cormier holds the title and there are plenty of men who will be looking to take it from him.

Fighters like Ryan Bader and Rashad Evans had all been eliminated from contention by Jones. Now they all have new life as contenders for Cormier’s crown.

Chris Weidman vs. Vitor Belfort

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Chris Weidman can add another Brazilian legend to his impressive resume. He successfully defended his middleweight title against Vitor Belfort via first-round TKO.

The fight continued the trend of excellent scraps at UFC 187. Belfort appeared to have the champion in trouble early, opening up a cut on the champion's eye with a combination. However, once Weidman got the fight to the mat, he got to work and earned the finish with brutal ground-and-pound from mount. 

After defeating Anderson Silva twice, Lyoto Machida and now Belfort, all of Weidman’s title defenses have come against former UFC champions. That’s a resume that should force fans to realize the place that the All-American deserves among the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world.

It doesn’t mean that Weidman has cleared out the division, though. The 185-pound division is still rife with contenders including Luke Rockhold. The former Strikeforce middleweight champion has been on a roll lately with submission wins over Tim Boetsch, Michael Bisping and Machida. His impressive jiu-jitsu pitted against Weidman’s powerful brand of wrestling would be an intriguing battle to watch unfold.

Donald Cerrone vs. John Makdessi

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Make it eight straight for Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone. The 32-year-old extended his winning streak with a second-round TKO victory over John Makdessi.

Makdessi did his best to bring the fight to Cerrone. The two engaged in an entertaining Muay Thai match that saw Cerrone get the better of multiple technical exchanges. The tipping point came with Cerrone landing a devastating high kick to Makdessi’s chin that broke his jaw and forced the Canadian to attempt to call a timeout. That gave Jason Herzog reason to stop the fight, via MMAFighting.com.

This bout was supposed to be a lightweight title eliminator between Cerrone and Khabib Nurmagomedov. Instead, it was Makdessi, who just fought at UFC 186, who stepped in and took on the Cowboy on short notice.

Cerrone, for his part, wasn’t sure this win will be enough, but he’s willing to do what he needs to get that elusive title shot. “If I’ve got to fight three more times to get the belt, so be it,” Cerrone told Brent Brookhouse of  MMA Junkie. “I’m just here to fight, man. I’m not rallying and saying, ‘Oh, I’ll only fight Makdessi if you promise me a title shot.’ That’s not at all what happened. I said I’ll take the fight, come on, let’s go. So, I have no idea what’s going to happen over the next year. A lot can happen between then and now.”

That attitude is exactly why Cerrone will continue to be a fan favorite in the lightweight division. Whether that will ultimately be enough to put him in a title fight remains to be seen.

Andrei Arlovski vs. Travis Browne

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The career renaissance of Andrei Arlovski continued at UFC 187 with the Pit Bull picking up a first-round TKO win over Travis Browne.

The fight may have only lasted a round, but the two heavyweights packed three rounds worth of action into the one-round bout. Both fighters landed massive shots to the chin, but ultimately it was Arlovski’s power that won out and got his hand raised.

A full decade since holding the heavyweight championship, it’s hard to fathom that the 36-year-old is in the mix, but here we are. With a win over the No. 3 heavyweight as of May 23, it’s hard to argue against him being in the mix.

The loss for Browne continues a troubling career trend for the 32-year-old. Every time he works his way up the rankings, he seems to suffer a deflating loss. The Hawaiian bounced back from his loss to Fabricio Werdum with a TKO win over Brendan Schaub only to suffer this loss to Arlovski.

Joseph Benavidez vs. John Moraga

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Joseph Benavidez might have two losses to Demetrious Johnson, but he's well on his way to creating an opportunity for a trilogy. The veteran flyweight picked up a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) win over John Moraga to kick off the UFC 187 main card.

The scrap was an instant contender for Fight of the Night honors as both men engaged in exchanges with bad intentions behind every strike. Ultimately it was Benavidez’s wrestling that made the difference, as all too often those exchanges ended with Benavidez on top of Moraga.

The win for Benavidez is his third consecutive. His last loss came in the form of a first-round loss to Demetrious Johnson, but it’s one he still believes he’s ready to avenge.

“I feel I’m always right there,” he told MMA Junkie. “It’s just kind of the logic of putting me there, because talent-wise, I think I’m always there and ready to beat everyone and give Demetrious the best fight he could handle. Of course, I believe I can beat him, too.”

The only question for him now lies in whether the UFC is buying what he’s selling. It’s difficult to sell a trilogy when he’s 0-2 against the champion, but at this point the division is running out of contenders.