Heavyweight on Alert After ‘Drago’ Puts Werdum to Sleep in London…

UFC Fight Night 127 went down last night in London and it threw more than a few surprises. The card was headlined by Brazilian fan favorite and former heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum, who took on Alexander Volkov in the main event. Werdum was the heavy favorite going into the fight, but let’s just say things didn’t go to plan.

Meanwhile, in the co-main event, fans were served up a back and forth doozy. Home hero Jimi Manuwa took on Jan Blachowicz in the fight of the night. Once again there was an upset on the cards. After taking a lot of damage in the first round, Manuwa was never able to properly assert himself.

It was a night of violence, new contenders, and dubious refereeing decisions. A night that drew angry messages from Colby Covington on Twitter. With the UFC returning to the UK in May for its first-ever fight card in Liverpool, this could be a big year for British MMA.

Mandatory Credit: USA TODAY Sports.

Werdum is Done

Werdum was possibly the most favored fighter going into tonight’s contest. The Brazilian was coming off the back of a win over Marcin Tybura. Volkov was unbeaten in three UFC appearances, but ‘Drago’ had six losses on his record of thirty fights.

Early on it was all Werdum. Coming out with a typically crazy flying kick, he was all smiles. Quickly, he was able to implement his ground game to great effect, dominating Volkov. However, the Russian was able to hang on in there.

Volkov was on the defense again in the second. Werdum came out with low kick and high kick combo. He then tried to shoot for the takedown. Eventually, he got the Russian down. Volkov hung in again, although a cut opened up on his forehead.

 

Wild Finish

Round three reversed the trend. We were given a lot more stand-up action. This took its toll on Werdum. His face was a bloody mess after exchanging with Volkov in the center. He kept trying to take the fight to the ground and you can see why. Still though, by the end of the round, Werdum was up by at least two.

Finally, in the fourth round, Werdum was visibly tiring. Volkov managed to catch him with a few right hands. The Brazilian went crashing to the canvass. A few more punches and this fight was finished. A stunning upset for the Russian, as he properly announced his arrival.

Elsewhere

On another wild night in the world of MMA, we saw our fair share of knockouts and submissions. The full list of results can be seen below:

  • Jan Blachowicz def. Jimi Manuwa via unanimous decision.
  • Tom Duquesnoy def. Terrion Ware via unanimous decision.
  • Leon Edwards def. Peter Sobotta via TKO.
  • Charles Byrd def. John Phillips via submission.
  • Danny Roberts def. Oliver Enkamp via knockout.
  • Danny Henry def. Hakeem Dawodu via submission.
  • Paul Craig def. Magomed Ankalaev via submission.
  • Kajan Johnson def. Stevie Ray via split decision.
  • Dmitry Sosnovskiy def. Mark Godbeer via submission.
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