UFC Fight Night 78 Results: The Real Winners and Losers from Mexico
UFC Fight Night 78 went down Saturday from Monterrey, Mexico. Programmed against the big Miguel Cotto-Canelo Alvarez boxing match and sandwiched between the biggest upset in MMA history and the monstrous UFC 194, this event—which doubled as the finale for the second season of The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 2—was overlooked by a good portion of the fighting populace.
This fight night won't satisfy any normal definition of a blockbuster, but it contained some interesting contests nonetheless, with prospects and veterans followed closely by the sport's hardcore fans.
At the top of the card, Kelvin Gastelum took on Neil Magny. If Gastelum can master his struggles with weight, he could be the best young welterweight on the UFC roster. Either way, the prolific Magny, who is 8-1 over the past two years, was a stiff test.
In the co-headliner, Ricardo Lamas and Diego Sanchez promised a lot of violence in their bout. Given that both men—along with 11 other fighters on the card—boast Mexican heritage, there was that much more electricity in the air.
As always, the final stat lines only reveal so much. These are the real winners and losers from UFC Fight Night 78.
And if you need the hard, cold facts, full results appear on the final slide.
Winner: Neil Magny
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Plenty of fans don't love Neil Magny. He's not supremely gifted or talented. He hasn't fought the top caliber of competition. He's not an electric personality on the mic.
But you know what he does do? He wins, and he wins often. Coming into the main event Saturday (which he took on short notice when original Gastelum opponent Matt Brown came up injured), Magny was 8-1 in the past two years. That's a lot of fighting and a lot of winning.
Now make that 9-1.
Fueled by his seemingly endless cardio, Magny used his long reach and a rapidly improving ground game to tire out Gastelum. Magny's takedowns came with surprising ease, especially early, and he held a surprising edge in matt scrambles.
The fight was close, and Gastelum fought well. In one round, he knocked Magny down twice. Ultimately, though, two of the three judges saw it for Magny. There was some disagreement with the decision, but nothing that could be deemed controversial.
After the win, Magny did what he always does: He made thoughtful, gracious, magnanimous comments that came off as heartfelt.
"With all the crazy drama [in the world] right now, it's important to come together and do all this together," Magny told broadcaster Jon Anik and a booing Mexican contingent in the cage after the fight.
Indeed. What's next for this welterweight? I tell you what: I wouldn't mind a rematch with the only man to beat him over the last two years, Demian Maia.
Winner: Diego Sanchez
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Ricardo Lamas is a doggone good fighter. In his unanimous-decision victory over Diego Sanchez, he landed 57 of 109 significant strikes (compared with 30-of-86 for Sanchez) along with three of his six takedown attempts, according to FightMetric.
Even though the outcome was never deeply in doubt thanks to Lamas' superior athleticism, Sanchez did what he always does: He made it interesting. He sacrificed his own well-being for a good fight, constantly beckoning Lamas into a brawl.
Sanchez kept going even at the end, when a series of wicked Lamas leg kicks appeared to injure his leg. (Sanchez was actually the second fighter of the night to compete with an injured leg, and we'll get to that.)
On a card that was mainly drudgery, Sanchez's presence was welcome, and he underscored his almost singular toughness as a brawler.
Winners: Fighters with Mexican Heritage
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The UFC makes no secret of its desire to penetrate Mexico's fight-happy consciousness.
That's why it put 13 Mexican and Mexican-American fighters on the card Saturday, just hoping something will stick. It came out as a winning experiment if you look at the numbers, though just barely.
Unfortunately, the winners—Ricardo Lamas, Henry Cejudo, Erick Montano, Erik Perez, Alejandro Perez, Alvaro Herrera and Marco Polo Reyes—did not include the main eventer. Along with Gastelum, Sanchez, Horacio Gutierrez, Efrain Escudero, Hector Urbina and Gabriel Benitez came up empty.
But we'll be friendly and give the win to Mexico. It wasn't the prettiest card or the most dominating hometown effort, but it got the job done. Just barely.
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Loser: Heightism
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Enrique Barzola was an underdog at UFC Fight Night 78. And that's to be expected. Despite competing in the lightweight bracket of TUF Latin America 2, Barzola made most of his bones at featherweight.
When he stepped in against Horacio Gutierrez for the vaunted six-figure contract, the 5'7" Barzola gave up three inches of height, and it looked like even more.
So much for a height advantage.
Or, if you're Gutierrez, any other kind of advantage. He was supposed to have a striking advantage, but we never found out for sure, mainly because Barzola powered five of his nine takedown attempts to completion (according to FightMetric) and kept Gutierrez smothered on his back while peppering the taller man with ground strikes.
Was part of this a result of the fact that Gutierrez had the takedown defense of a shooting-gallery cowboy? Yes. But that wasn't all of it. Give it up to the smaller man who surprised plenty of onlookers and took home the crystal trophy.
Losers: Gary Copeland and Kit Cope
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In the final seconds of the first round of their bout, Alejandro Perez landed a kick low on the leg of Scott Jorgensen. He pulled up in immediate pain; saved by the horn, he hobbled to his corner.
He answered the bell for the second round, but within moments it was clear he was not 100 percent. A few moments after that, it was clear he was fighting on one leg.
Perez attacked the leg and threw a few half-hearted punch combinations from distance, seeming fully confident that time was on his side and that he could simply wait Jorgensen out. For several minutes, however, Jorgensen gamely continued on. Unlike Sanchez later in the card, though, Jorgensen was entirely one-legged, seemingly unable to put much weight on the foot at all. It also happened earlier in the bout than it did for Sanchez.
In any case, props to Jorgensen for staying tough. It's his job as a fighter, after all. Much like it's referee Gary Copeland's job to keep fighters safe. He was right on top of the action but did nothing to intervene, even as Jorgensen's injury grew visibly worse.
At least Jorgensen's cornermen, led by ex-fighter Kit Cope, did more than nothing. They exhorted Jorgensen to continue with one leg.
"Look what you're doing without a foot!"
They actually said that, according to Bloody Elbow, among others. Easy for them to say.
I mean, forget these guys.
Eventually, Jorgensen collapsed under the pain and appeared to tap the canvas in defeat. The bout was ruled a TKO, but not before Copeland failed in his primary duty and the knuckleheads in Jorgensen's corner disgraced themselves and their gym.
After the fight, Jorgensen and Cope took to social media to claim that the injury wasn't serious and belittle media critics, who aren't about that life and so forth. That sort of reaction probably feels good but ignores the fact that, you know, he was fighting on one freaking leg. Hey, I'm no Kit Cope, but that doesn't look to me like a strong formula for victory.
As a direct result of this injury, Jorgensen lost his sixth fight in seven contests. Here's hoping the doctors concur with their claims that no serious injuries occurred. In the meantime, I'll keep the fire for more professionalism in MMA when it comes to maximizing common-sense safety practices for its athletes.
Winner: Team Alpha Male's Striking Coaches
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Andre Fili needed a win. Though talented and still only 25 years old, the featherweight had dropped two of his last three.
The Team Alpha Male product made a statement Saturday night, both for himself and his recently beleaguered camp.
With about two minutes to go in the opening round, Fili landed a kick upside the head of Gabriel Benitez and then followed his quarry when Benitez sagged back to the fence. A flurry of punches went unanswered, and a right cross down the middle shut off the lights. It was a knockout win for the prospect.
Speaking to broadcaster Jon Anik in the cage after the fight, Fili thanked his striking instructors, particularly Justin Buchholz.
Why is that significant?
Well, as you may have heard, former Alpha Male striking guru Duane Ludwig recently left the team and started a public tug of war over the team's best fighter, UFC bantamweight champ T.J. Dillashaw.
Regardless of whose side of the rope you take, you have to acknowledge UFC Fight Night 78 was a much-needed notch for the lads from Sacramento.
UFC Fight Night 78 Full Card Results
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Main Card
- Neil Magny def. Kelvin Gastelum by split decision
- Ricardo Lamas def. Diego Sanchez by unanimous decision
- Henry Cejudo def. Jussier Formiga by split decision
- Erick Montano def. Enrique Marin by split decision (wins welterweight half of The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 2)
- Enrique Barzola def. Horacio Gutierrez by unanimous decision (wins lightweight half of The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America 2)
- Leandro Silva def. Efrain Escudero by unanimous decision
Preliminary Card
- Erik Perez def. Taylor Lapilus by unanimous decision
- Bartosz Fabinski def. Hector Urbina by unanimous decision
- Alejandro Perez def. Scott Jorgensen by TKO (injury), 4:26, Rd. 2
- Andre Fili def. Gabriel Benitez by KO, 3:13, Rd. 1
- Alvaro Herrera def. Vernon Ramos by TKO, 0:30, Rd. 1
- Marco Polo Reyes def. Cesar Arzamendia by KO, 3:42, Rd. 1
- Michel Prazeres def. Valmir Lazaro by split decision
Scott Harris writes about MMA for Bleacher Report. For more stuff like this, follow Scott on Twitter.
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