UFC 161 as it happened: Rashad Evans edges past Dan Henderson in Winnipeg

Recap the UFC's record-breaking event in Winnipeg, Canada, as the former UFC light-heavyweight champion made a big step back towards a title shot

11:54 pm
Simon Head

Good evening fight fans!

Welcome to Mirror Online's live coverage of UFC 161, the latest big pay per view event hosted by the world's biggest mixed martial arts organisation, the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Tonight's event takes place in the Canadian city of Winnipeg for the first time ever - and clearly the fans in the region are delighted the UFC has arrived in their city.

The MTS Centre's previous gate receipts record was $1.8million for a concert by The Rolling Stones, but this evening UFC president Dana White tweeted to confirm tonight's UFC 161 event smashed that record, raising $3.2million.

11:57 pm
Simon Head

Here's the order of play tonight:

12:00 midnight: Facebook Prelims

  • Yves Jaboin vs Dustin Pague (bantamweight)

  • Mitch Clarke vs John Maguire (lightweight)

1:00am: Prelims

  • Roland Delorme vs Edwin Figueroa (bantamweight)

  • Sean Pierson vs Kenny Robertson (welterweight)

  • Sam Stout vs James Krause (lightweight)

  • Jake Shields vs Tyron Woodley (welterweight)

3:00am: Main card

  • Pat Barry vs Shawn Jordan (heavyweight)

  • Alexis Davis vs Rosi Sexton (women's bantamweight)

  • Ryan Jimmo vs Igor Pokrajac (light-heavyweight)

  • Roy Nelson vs Stipe Miocic (heavyweight)

  • Rashad Evans vs Dan Henderson (main event - light-heavyweight)

12:04 am
Simon Head

We're about to get get underway with our first bout of the evening as Dustin Pague takes on the explosive Yves Jabouin.

Pague has lost his last two fights, meaning tonight's bout has added significance for him.  Usually in the UFC, if you lose three on the spin, you're cut from the promotion.

Jabouin will be well known to British fans who saw him spectacularly knocked out by London's Brad "One Punch" Pickett in a breathless contest in Nottingham last September.

With both men preferring to stand and trade, this should produce an exciting, all-action contest to kick off proceedings in Winnipeg tonight. 

Both men are in the cage and "The Voice of the Octagon" is about to get things underway.

12:11 am
Simon Head

Yves Jabouin is likely to be feeling his left elbow tomorrow morning. He had his left arm hyperextended in a nasty way by Dustin Pague in that opening round.

Jabouin took Pague to the mat and looked to administer some ground and pound, but Pague produced even more offense from his back, using triangle chokes, armbars and a nasty looking heel hook to try and finish the Canadian.

Pague than nearly locked in an arm triangle choke before the Canadian reversed positions and landed some heavy ground and pound to finish an all-action first round of the evening.

Pague may have been on his back for most of that round, but he wins the round with his array of jiu jitsu offence from the ground. Jabouin will want to keep this standing as we go into Round 2.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Pague

12:20 am
Simon Head

Pague completely dominates Round 2 with a strong display of ground fighting, firstly taking Jabouin to the mat with a superb trip that sent the Canadian through the air before hitting the canvas.

Then Pague set to work on trying to submit his opponent, making several attempts to put Jabouin away, but the crowd favourite is still in this fight.

Pague has won the first two rounds of this three-round contest, but Jabouin has the power to end a fight too.

He needs to use it if he wants to go home with another mark in his win column.  Right now it's all Pague.

Scorecard: 20-18 Pague

12:25 am
Simon Head

Pague takes the third round to claim a clean sweep on my (very unofficial) scorecard.

His constant submission attacks meant Jabouin was on the defensive for most of the bout, only showing an occasional threat from ground and pound attacks.

But Pague, despite fighting from his back, was clearly the stronger, more aggressive fighter, looking to attack and finish the fight.

But we've seen MMA judging raise eyebrows before...

Scorecard: 30-27 Pague

12:27 am
Simon Head

Wow! The judges give it to Yves Jabouin by split decision, proving how it's all about interpretation when the man on the bottom is attacking.

It's too easy sometimes for people to assume the man on top is the man on the attack.  I certainly didn't see it that way in that particular fight, and couldn't disagree with the decision more.

RESULT: Yves Jabouin def Dustin Pague via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

12:31 am
Simon Head

Up next, Brit John "The One" Maguire enters the arena to music from "Flashdance" wearing denim shorts - the result of a bet he made with his Twitter followers.  If he reached 10,000 followers before fight night, he'd come out to the arena like this...


And he just has!

12:34 am
Simon Head

Maguire takes on Canadian Mitch Clarke at lightweight.  It's Maguire's debut at 155 pounds after previously operating as a welterweight.

Maguire's unorthodox style, utilising what he calls "Gypsy Jiu Jitsu" has been an effective weapon during his career, but after two disappointing defeats, he's under pressure to raise his game and impress tonight.

We're about to get off and underway in Round 1.

12:39 am
Simon Head


12:41 am
Simon Head

The local man takes the opening round as Clarke goes 10-9 up on my scorecard after Round 1.

Maguire hasn't started quickly at all - something we've seen from him in both of his last two fights - and he needs to up his work rate significantly in the remaining two rounds.

Clarke has looked solid, but unspectacular, thus far, but did more than enough to secure the 10 points for winning the opening stanza.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Clarke

12:46 am
Simon Head

Maguire had more success in Round 2, but still lost the round after being outworked by Clarke.

Maguire's relative lack of urgency is costing him dear. He took Clarke to the mat, but didn't really take full advantage once he'd put him there.

It's all on this last round for Maguire, who needs a stoppage to win it.

SCORECARD: 20-18 Clarke

12:54 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance, and it's almost certainly a win for Canada's Mitch Clarke.

Maguire improved in the final round and looked to pull out the submission victory, taking Clarke's back and working for a rear naked choke.

But the Canadian managed to defend the move and avoid any serious danger, before reversing the position and finishing the fight on top.

I've given that final round to Maguire, just. But it's not enough to give him the win on my card.

SCORECARD: 29-28 Clarke

12:57 am
Simon Head

All three judges are in agreement, giving the win to a very emotional Mitch Clarke, who drops to his knees and bursts into tears.

For Maguire, there's a real fear he may get cut from the UFC after three straight defeats, with all of them in disappointing fashion.

Maguire's talent hasn't really shone through in his last three bouts - and hopefully he can rebound from his latest disappointment and come back strong.

Whether that's in the UFC or elsewhere remains to be seen.

RESULT: Mitch Clarke def John Maguire via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

12:59 am
Simon Head

The action switches from live internet-only streaming to UK television, with the remainder of the evening being screened live on ESPN.

Next up on the schedule, a bantamweight bout between Roland Delorme and Edwin Figueroa.

1:10 am
Simon Head

We're off and underway in Round 1. Local boy Delorme cheered to the rafters.  Figueroa - sporting a Ming The Merciless-style beard - less so.

1:16 am
Simon Head

The crowd are on their feet as Roland Delorme - a Winnipeg fighter, no less - produces a quite superb opening round, comprehensively outgrappling Figueroa for almost the entire five minutes of the first round.

The Texan did have some success with one ground and pound attack, landing some heavy punches to the grounded Canadian, but that was a rare success.  Delorme dominated the rest of the round and very nearly locked in a rear naked choke at the end of the round. Figueroa's excellent submission defence kept him in the fight.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Delorme

1:22 am
Simon Head

After being largely dominated in Round 1, Edwin Figueroa came roaring back in Round 2 and arguably shaded a very close, back and forth round..

Figueroa had a very deep triangle choke locked in on Delorme, who did superbly to survive and escape the hold.

It's all coming down to the final round. This could be a wild five minutes.

SCORECARD: 19-19 Even

1:29 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance and the crowd absolutely loved it.

Both fighters were absolutely spent by the end of the bout after some punishing grappling and wild ground striking.

After being dominated in Round 1, Figueroa came back to nick it in the final round on my scorecard.

It was very close, and we could easily see a split decision either way here, but it was a cracking contest.

SCORECARD: 29-28 Figueroa

1:30 am
Simon Head

The judges are unanimous. Roland Delorme takes it two rounds to one against Edwin Figueroa in a cracking contest.

RESULT: Roland Delorme def Edwin Figueroa via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

1:35 am
Simon Head

Coming up next, a welterweight contest at 170 pounds between Canada's Sean Pierson and American Kenny Robertson.

Robertson is a former NCAA Division I wrestler who has lost just twice in his 14-fight MMA career.

He faces Pierson, who makes his sixth appearance inside the UFC's Octagon, and has 13 wins from his 19 career MMA bouts.

1:45 am
Simon Head

Pierson takes a tough opening round as the two fighters high-five one another at the conclusion of the opening five-minute period.

The Canadian looks the bigger, stronger man in there, and is having more success in the clinch and in the stand-up.

Robertson, an accomplished wrestler, hasn't been able to bring his skills to bear against Pierson so far.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Pierson

1:52 am
Simon Head

Pierson shades Round 2 with his effective striking, despite being taken down and held there for a while by Robertson towards the end of the round.

The Canadian is two rounds up on my card, meaning Robertson needs something big in the final round to pull out the victory.

SCORECARD: 20-18 Pierson

1:58 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance and Pierson survives a final-round assault from Robertson to take the verdict on my (unofficial!) scorecard.

Robertson wobbled Pierson badly with a huge punch early in the round, but couldn't capitalise enough to finish the fight and the fight went to the ground, giving the Canadian fighter chance to regain his senses.

It was another entertaining scrap, with the Toronto native likely to get the nod from the judges.

SCORECARD: 29-28 Pierson

2:00 am
Simon Head

Pierson takes the majority decision victory, with one judge scoring the fight a 28-28 draw.

The last round made it interesting, and it would appear one judge scored it as a 10-8 round to Robertson, hence the draw, but the other two judges had Pierson winning by two rounds to one.

RESULT: Sean Pierson def Kenny Robertson via majority decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28)

2:02 am
Simon Head

Up next, it's our penultimate preliminary bout, as Canadian Sam "Hands of Stone" Stout faces off against American submission specialist - and UFC newbie - James Krause in a lightweight battle.

2:05 am
Simon Head

While we're waiting for the fighters to emerge from the dressing room area, let's check in with Octagon girl Brittany Palmer, via her latest Vine post...


2:15 am
Simon Head

The first round is an absolute bloodbath as Krause cuts Stout above his right eye, leaving the Canadian covered in a half-mask of crimson after the opening five minutes.

To make matters worse, Stout lost the round too. 

Krause is the bigger man, with a longer reach, and he's making it pay.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Krause

2:21 am
Simon Head

Sam Stout comes back well in Round 2 and takes it on my card after taking control of the exchanges.

Krause is coming into this fight at short notice and while he looks in excellent shape, cardio could be an issue as this fight goes into the final round.

Stout is used to seeing his fights go the distance - 15 of his 28 career bouts have gone to the scorecards - so his cardio shouldn't be a problem.

SCORECARD: 19-19 even

2:28 am
Simon Head


Sam Stout, looking to push on and win the fight in the final round, takes Krause to the mat with a good single-leg takedown.

It proved a very bad move.

Krause, who has defeated 12 of his 19 victims by submission, locks in a VERY tight guillotine choke and squeezed until Stout had no option but to tap out.

The crowd booed - they were rooting for the Canadian - but James Krause finished that fight superbly.

RESULT: James Krause def Sam Stout by submission (guillotine choke), Round 3

2:30 am
Simon Head

Up next, it's the final preliminary bout before the main pay per view event.

Two former Strikeforce stars, ex-world champ Jake Shields and rising star Tyron Woodley, face off in an intriguing welterweight clash.

2:45 am
Simon Head

Jake Shields wins the first round on the back of his light pitter-patter striking, which outworked Woodley, who seemed content to wait for his opportunity to explode.  Problem was, he didn't in that round.

Shields' striking doesn't look overly dangerous, so it'll be interesting to see how Woodley approaches Round 2. If he goes for it, I can see him stopping Shields in the next five minutes, but he has to let his shots go.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Shields

2:51 am
Simon Head

Tough round to score, because neither man really impressed with their work in Round 2. Shields probably just shaded it, but it's not a fun fight to watch.

Woodley looks gun-shy and a little gassed out, while Shields' style is doing just enough to win the fight, but it's not winning any fans.

SCORECARD: 20-18 Shields

2:58 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance, and the less we say about it the better.

It was a stinker of a contest. Nothing much to enjoy apart from a spectacular spinning backfist from Woodley that landed flush on Shields' jaw.

But the former Strikeforce world champ ate it up and ploughed forward grimly, just as he has done for the entire fight.

While carrying virtually no threat, Shields managed to outstrike Woodley throughout the fight and wins it 30-27 on my card.

SCORECARD: 30-27 Shields

3:00 am
Simon Head

Wow. Some quite astonishing variations in the scoring between the judges, who give it to Sheilds via split decision.

No idea what the judge who scored all three rounds to Woodley was looking at, but there you go. Iffy scoring aside I think the right man won, but he won't need to wait around for a post-fight bonus.

RESULT: Jake Shields def Tyron Woodley via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)

3:03 am
Simon Head

Right ladies and gents. After that dreadful bout, we're about to launch into the pay per view portion of the card, where the UFC have lined up five bouts, all of which could result in a stoppage finish.

First up, it's the always entertaining and hugely popular Pat "HD" Barry against former NCAA football star Shawn Jordan in a heavyweight contest.  If this goes to the judges I'll be absolutely amazed.  In fact, I'll be quite surprised if it gets to the second round.  Both these guys can really bang.

3:18 am
Simon Head


Shawn Jordan takes the victory with a VERY quick stoppage win over Pat Barry.

A big right hand flattened Barry, then pounded him repetitively until the referee decided enough was enough.

Shawn Jordan's power is quite something.  A huge uppercut started it all and it finished just seconds later.

That was pretty darned impressive - and it all happened inside 59 seconds.

RESULT: Shawn Jordan def Pat Barry by TKO (punches), Round 1

3:28 am
Simon Head

Up next, it's a women's bantamweight bout featuring Britain's own MMA pioneer Rosi Sexton.

She takes on Canadian Alexis Davis in the first women's UFC bout in Canada and only the fourth female bout in UFC history.

This should be a cracking contest.

3:35 am
Simon Head

Superb first round that was incredibly difficult to score.

The last two and a half minutes of the round saw Sexton trapped in a tight triangle choke, but she not only survived the hold, she landed a succession of big punches to the grounded Davis.

It's all down to interpretation and I'm inclined to give it to the person causing damage, and that fighter is Rosi Sexton, who also looked the better fighter when the fight was standing up.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Sexton

3:41 am
Simon Head

Huge round for Alexis Davis, who came VERY close to stopping Sexton at the end of that round.  Only referee Herb Dean's generosity allowed the Brit to stay in the fight. It could easily have been stopped.

It was such a dominant round for Davis that I've scored it a 10-8, which puts her a point ahead going into the third and final round.

SCORECARD: 19-18 Davis

3:46 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance, and it's unfortunately a loss on her UFC debut for Britain's Rosi Sexton.

She lost the fight on my scorecard, but she proved to be arguably one of the toughest women fighters we've seen - if not THE toughest - in her performance.

SCORECARD: 29-27 Davis

3:56 am
Simon Head

Next up, it's a battle between two hard-hitting light-heavyweights. 

Canada's Ryan Jimmo takes on Croatia's Igor Pokrajac at 205 pounds.

The Croatian enters the arena to AC-DC's "Back in Black" and has knocked out 13 of his 25 victims so far in his mixed martial arts career.

Ryan Jimmo has an impressive MMA record of his own, with just two losses in his 19-fight UFC career.

He's looking to bounce back from defeat to James Te Huna in London in February, but before then he was on a 17-fight winning streak.

Jimmo has power, Pokrajac has power.  This one could be explosive.

4:05 am
Simon Head

Very close opening round, shaded by Pokrajac thanks to a big right hand right at the end of the round.  Other than that they were inseparable - except by referee Yves Lavigne, who seemed to be the busiest of the three men inside the Octagon in that opening round.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Pokrajac

4:10 am
Simon Head

This bout had the potential to be explosive, but it's been a damp squib. 

Jimmo wins Round 2, but his safety-first approach isn't making for an exciting fight.  One huge right hand aside, Jimmo hasn't really gone out to finish the fight, playing things very safe.

He had Pokrajac wobbled and hurt, but rather than picking his punches and going for the finish, he closed the distance and ended up in a clinch, which saved the Croatian.

We're all square going into the final round.

SCORECARD: 19-19 even

4:19 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance, but most fans in the arena wish it hadn't.

As a spectacle it really wasn't very good to watch. Jimmo's smothering tactic of throwing one or two strikes then clinching meant we didn't get to see anything at all.

UFC president Dana White sums it up with his latest tweet:

"That fight SUCKED!!!!!"

Jimmo knew it, too. He apologised to the crowd for fighting too conservatively.

RESULT: Ryan Jimmo def Igor Pokrajac via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

4:21 am
Simon Head

Two fights to go, with Roy "Big Country" Nelson looking to add to his list of knockout victims as he takes on Ohio firefighter and all-round athlete Stipe Miocic in our co-main event of the evening.

Nelson always entertains, and Miocic is a good heavyweight to watch, so I'm hopeful we'll have a fight to entertain the fans a whole lot better than the last bout.

4:36 am
Simon Head

Stipe Miocic wins the first round, executing the perfect gameplan against Roy Nelson.

The Ohio man is circling away from Nelson's power hand, never standing still in front of him and punishing Nelson with combinations before moving away again.

Toward the end of the round Miocic hurt Nelson and looked close to winning the fight with a late flurry, but Nelson survived.

It's so far, so good for Miocic. If he can continue to avoid Nelson's honey punch, he can claim the biggest win of his career tonight.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Miocic

4:41 am
Simon Head

That's two rounds down, and two rounds to Stipe Miocic. The Ohio firefighter is fighting superbly. His technique is crisp, he's keeping Nelson guessing by mixing up his strikes well and he's ensuring he remains a moving target at all times.

All in all a smart gameplan, being executed to perfection.

SCORECARD: 20-18 Miocic

4:49 am
Simon Head

That was as convincing a points win as you could wish to see. Roy Nelson's famed overhand right was never a factor, thanks to Miocic's more well-rounded game and fighting intelligence.

Miocic out-manoeuvred, out-boxed and out-worked Nelson, who looked battered and exhausted after being well beaten.

RESULT: Stipe Miocic def Roy Nelson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

4:54 am
Simon Head

Still with us?  Well done! Your reward is a main event bout between two of the best light-heavyweight fighters in the world.

With injuries putting paid to the scheduled main event bout between Renan Barao and Eddie Wineland, the co-main event bout between two former 205-pound world champions was bumped up to the main event a few weeks ago.

The matchup is an extremely close one. Both men possess lethal knockout power in both hands and both men have excellent wrestling skills.  Evans holds the speed advantage, while Henderson undoubtedly holds the edge in the power stakes.

Despite being bumped to the main event, the fight will remain a three-round, rather than five-round, contest, and may play into Evans' hands significantly.

Henderson is a veteran of long-format fights and often comes on strong down the stretch, but over a shorter course, Evans' speed and movement could help him outpoint the iron-chinned former Olympian.

The X-factor is Henderson's fight-ending power - he's capable of finishing any 205-pounder in the world with one cleanly-landed right hand - and Evans will need to be wary, and stay mobile, in order to survive.

It's the main event of the evening and it's next.

5:12 am
Simon Head

First round goes to Dan Henderson, thanks to a stiff left hand that sent Rashad onto wobbly legs.

Hendo swarmed all over the former UFC champion, but couldn't finish him off.

SCORECARD: 10-9 Henderson

5:12 am
Simon Head


5:17 am
Simon Head

Rashad takes Round 2 to bring the fight level, but he looks completely exhausted on his stool.

Neither man looks particularly fresh, but Evans looks noticeably fatigued.  The pace is likely to slow in the third and final round. Who can take advantage and win the fight?

SCORECARD: 19-19 even

5:23 am
Simon Head

The fight goes the distance. Rashad Evans won that final round on my scorecard, taking the fight in the process.

It was a close fight, but not one that quite lived up to the pre-fight expectation.

We've had one or two interesting pieces of scoring today, so we'll wait and see what the judges say, but I think Evans shaded it.

SCORECARD: 29-28 Evans

5:29 am
Simon Head

Rashad Evans gets the decision, but the judges were split on the final result.

The first round was undoubtedly Henderson's, while the final round clearly belonged to Evans.  But the scoring of Round 2 split the judges.

Evans looked emotional and delighted to get the nod from the judges, while Henderson looked disappointed and, as he revealed in his post fight interview with Joe Rogan, annoyed at himself for slowing down in the final round.

RESULT: Rashad Evans def Dan Henderson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)



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