UFC 50: Matt Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre and Tito Ortiz vs. Patrick Cote

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The final results:

Matt Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre (UFC Welterweight Championship)

Round one got underway with a few seconds of circling. Each fighter took a few swings at the other, neither one making significant contact. The American Hughes finally caught Canada’s St. Pierre with a takedown and looked to use his wrestling skills to control his opponent, but could not seem to get anything going against the strong defensive groundwork of St. Pierre. As St. Pierre again tried to return to his feet Hughes saw an opening and took it, applying an rolling arm bar, immediately causing St. Pierre to tap out at 4:59 of Round 1.

This win was historic: Hughes became the first man to win a title for the sixth time.

Tito Ortiz vs. Patrick Cote

Early on Cote staggered Ortiz with a solid right punch to the head. Tito answered with a strong takedown in the center of the ring, rattling Cote with several quick right elbows and punches. Cote tried to defend himself via the guard position, but Ortiz worked to wear down his opponent by continuing his barrage of small, quick strikes.

Though he otherwise held his own in the second, whenever the fight went to the ground Cote seemed unable to mount a serious major offense against his opponent. The final round at first saw a renewed Cote, who landed some of his patented strong punches; but this night wasn’t his. The few final blows were landed by Ortiz, who rightly earned the unanimous decision and thereby snapped his two-fight losing streak.

Undercard Results

Travis Lutter vs. Marvin Eastman

Except for an attempted takedown by Eastman deep into the first, Round 1 was a snoozer. Round two got off to a much quicker start. Lutter landed a hard overhand right as Eastman went for a low kick. Eastman went down, flat on his back and unable to continue.

Frank Trigg vs. Renato Verissimo

Opening round saw both men exchanging a flurry of knees and grappling attempts. Trigg scored a takedown midway through the round and delivered a few strikes; Verissimo answered by a game attempt to counter with his legs. Verissimo landed a takedown, then tried for an arm lock, but went with a triangle choke hold. Trigg succeeded in getting his feet under him and somehow lifting “Charuto” off the mat, breaking the choke.

The middle round started with the fighters exchanging vicious blows. Trigg finally caught Verissimo with a big left hand, then followed with a shower of strikes, raining down elbows and punches to the head of Verissimo. The barrage prompted referee Herb Dean to step in at 2:10 of round two, stopping the fight.

Evan Tanner vs. Robbie Lawler

Tanner turned the heat on early, landing a couple of short punches to Lawler’s head. For his part, Lawler was clearly working too hard to deliver the knockout punch. Lawler responded by lifting up Tanner and taking him down with a body slam. Lawler delivered a solid elbow down onto Tanner; but Lawler’s reckless style left him open, providing Tanner the chance to propel him into a triangle choke hold. This forced Lawler to tap out, causing referee Tony McCarthy to stop the bout at 2:22 of the opening round.

Rich Franklin vs. Jorge Rivera

After recovering from a low knee to the groin, Franklin was quick to force a takedown of Rivera and an attempt at a side mount. Both fighters agreed to return to the standing position, where Franklin landed a left kick, followed by a clinch. Rivera answered with a combination that suddenly gave him the momentum. Franklin struck back though, quickly putting Rivera on the mat, then continued the onslaught with a head kick and a number of attempted strikes.

After a flurry of punches by Rivera cut Franklin’s right eye in the middle round, Franklin opened up the third with a hard left hand, then soon after scored a takedown and a brief headlock. Through the grappling attempts Franklin saw an opportunity and seized it, applying the arm bar for the tap out at 4:28 of the third and final round.

Ivan Salaverry vs. Tony Fryklund

The fighters virtually jumped into a lock up at the start of Round one. Finally Salaverry sent Fryklund to the canvas with a hard straight right, which he followed up with a kick to the head. Salaverry then pounced on Fryklund; the fight stayed on the ground until Salaverry found an opening and locked Fryklund in a triangle body lock, ending the fight at 1:36 of the first round.