Last Time in New Orleans

Coming into this fight, Dan Henderson was on the wrong end of a two-fight skid, both by finish. So Henderson went into this fight against #13 ranked Tim Boetsch looking for redemption, and even though both men promised knockouts, only one could deliver. It would be the underdog Henderson that would land the big knockout, although he was the oldest man on the active roster at an age of 44.

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In the main event spotlight, Henderson could not have avenged his losses any better as he finished Boetsch less than 30 seconds into the fight. It started with the second punch that landed for Henderson, as he slipped back and landed a flush straight punch that wobbled Boetsch before he landed a nasty barrage of punches. It would take another clean uppercut to sit Boetsch down before Henderson landed some ground-and-pound that would end the night early for both fighters.

The Diamond Shines Bright In Louisiana

Following a successful return to lightweight, Dustin Poirier was set to face off against Hawaiian Yancy Medeiros in a much-anticipated bout. It was the first time Poirier was fighting in his home state of Louisiana in five years, but the crowd never forgot about their “Diamond.” Medeiros missed weight by 3.5 pounds and was a slight underdog as he entered the Octagon to a chorus ofboos.

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The fight started out with the unorthodox Medeiros finding his kicking range as Poirier was trying to close the distance. In one of those entries, Poirier landed an overhand right that knocked Medeiros down momentarily before another left hand by Poirier sat him back down. That was the start of the end for Medeiros as the “Poirier Pressure” ensured no time to recover.

Credit to Medeiros for withstanding two knockdowns, a takedown into a body lock, a vicious body kick and then an onslaught of punches that made the ref call the fight. Poirier made a statement to the lightweight division, and following this win, he never returned to the featherweight division. This made it two in a row for Poirer and contributed to a 9-1 record in his first ten fights at lightweight that saw him capture the interim lightweight belt against none other than Max Holloway in their rematch at lightweight.

Brian Ortega

This bout between a young 24-year-old undefeated Brian Ortega and Thiago Tavares was set to be a delight for grappling enthusiasts, with Ortega being a Gracie black belt and Tavares coming off a submission win in his featherweight debut while being a very capable grappler himself. Ortega, the underdog and six years younger than Tavares, found some early adversity by being brought to the canvas within 30 seconds.

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Immediately, Ortega threw up two submissions via an armbar then a triangle. But it would not be until the second round when Ortega started to impose his will. A spinning elbow momentarily dropped Tavares. It certainly looked like Tavares was losing, but Ortega could very well have been behind on the scorecards due to his willingness to fight off his back.

In the early moments of the third round, “T-City” found the chin of Tavares through a flurry of punches and utilized ground-and-pound while in mount to finish the fight. While Ortega was a known prospect and undefeated, this was the moment that he became a noticeable threat to the entire featherweight division.