This is the UFC 153 undercard live blog for the Silva vs. Bonnar event at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro.
There will be six fights on the undercard. Rony Jason vs. Sam Sicilia, Gleison Tibau vs. Francisco Trinaldo, Diego Brandao vs. Joey Gambino, Sergio Moraes vs. Renee Forte, Luiz Cane vs. Chris Camozzi, and Cristiano Marcello vs. Reza Madadi will be featured on the prelims.
Check out the live blog below.
Cristiano Marcello vs. Reza Madadi
Round 1: Fernando Yamasaki oversees the action. The Brazilian crowd is raucous already, cheering wildly at every Marcello strike. Madadi charges forward with a one-two, Marcello answers by tossing out a few jabs. Madadi blocks a looping overhand right, then a high kick. Madadi misses with a superman punch. Marcello eats a big left hook, and another. Marcello seems a little shaken but he continues to pressure the Swede. 40 seconds left and Madadi takes Marcello down to the mat, but both fighters quickly stand back up. Marcello misses wildly with a spinning back kick and the crowd explodes. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Madadi.
Round 2: Madadi the more active striker to open the second round but nothing lands flush. Marcello eats another looping right hook. Madadi works the body against the fence. Huge uppercut from Madadi nearly finds its mark. Both fighters are bloodied and maintaining their pressure. Madadi rocks Marcello with a massive right hand. Madadi unloads another salvo, Marcello turns his back and retreats. A minute to go and Marcello drags Madadi into his guard. Wow, quick stand-up from Yamasaki and the crowd voices their disapproval. Another furious exchange closes the round. Great fight so far. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Madadi.
Round 3: Madadi connects with a wild right hook. Marcello eats it and continues to work his jab. Madadi changes levels and powers Marcello down with a double-leg. It's short lived and both fighters are quickly back on their feet. Madadi's face is a bloody mess, but so is Marcello's. Both men throwing with reckless abandon. Marcello nearly lands a crushing spinning back kick, Madadi takes a bow and the crowd boos. Madadi has Marcello on the ropes briefly, but a counter knee changes everything. Marcello starting to open up now. Thirty seconds left and Madadi has slowed down significantly. Marcello wings a few more shots out as the horn sounds. What a fight. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Marcello.
Cristiano Marcello def. Reza Madadi via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Round 1: Marc Goddard is the man in charge. Camozzi the aggressor early, nearly lands a short standing elbow. Cane seems hesitant while Camozzi swings freely with combinations. Camozzi connects with a jumping knee to the body. Cane finally answers with a body kick, then circles around, grabs Camozzi's back and drags him to the mat. Cane quickly gets one of his hooks in. He's hunting for a rear-naked choke. He doesn't quite have it, though the crowd seems to be on the verge of exploding. Camozzi rolls and escapes, eating a huge knee on the way up. Camozzi charges forward with his own knee to the body. Cane unloads with a huge right hand as the horn sounds. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Camozzi.
Round 2: Camozzi continues to remain the aggressor, pushing forward with a series of jabs and combinations. Cane circles, missing wildly with a one-two. Camozzi lets loose with a leg kick and eats one in return. Another exchange, and another, with Camozzi getting the better of the action. Camozzi connects with a left hand that puts Cane on his heels. Camozzi shakes off a takedown attempt and answers with another left. Cane largely seems lethargic with his offense so far. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Camozzi.
Round 3: Camozzi wastes no time cracking Cane with another series of straight rights. Cane eats a set of jabs and misses with his counter. Camozzi finding a home for his right hand, at will. Cane slips an uppercut and answers with a body kick. Another exchange with Camozzi getting the better of it. The crowd seems to be growing restless at Cane's inability to fire off. Cane finally connects with a solid left hand, but Camozzi just shakes it off. Another furious exchange closes out the round, with Camozzi eating a huge shot at the horn. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Cane.
Chris Camozzi def. Luiz Cane via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Round 1: Our referee for the first fight on FX is Mario Yamasaki. 40 seconds in and the crowd is already getting restless as neither man seems willing to engage. Moraes finally changes levels and works on a deep single, but Forte successfully fights it off. Moraes tries again and this time it works, eventually tripping Forte to the mat and landing in half guard. Forte pops up and Moraes nearly jumps onto his back. Yamasaki stands the action back up. Moraes blocks a switch kick, answering with a wild right hand that misses. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Moraes.
Round 2: Moraes misses with a looping combination, and another. Moraes ducks under a punch and plops Forte on his back. Forte uses the fence to climb back to his feet and both men retake the center of the Octagon. Moraes changes levels again, but this time he can't get it. Jeers come raining down from the crowd at the lack of action. Forte slips after a missed knee to the head. After an inactive stretch against the fence, Yamasaki separates both fighters. Forte lands a huge uppercut followed by a left hook. Moraes crashes to the mat but Forte seems reluctant to follow. Forte might've just stolen the round there. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Forte.
Round 3: A wild overhand right misses for Moraes. More boos come raining down from an increasingly impatient Brazilian crowd. Forte charges forward with a combination, but Moraes slips it and powers Forte to the mat. Moraes scrambles to Forte's back and locks in a body triangle. Forte stands with Moraes still clinging on, looking for the choke. Forte valiantly defends the submission but this is a bad, bad spot. Forte slams himself to the mat but he can't shake Moraes off. And there's the tap. This one is over.
Serio Moraes def. Renne Forte via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:10 of round 3.
Diego Brandao vs. Joey Gambino
Round 1: Fernando Yamasaki is the man in charge of the action. Brandao unloads a massive head kick and Gambino crumbles to the mat. Oh, wow. Brandao swarms and this one could be over already. Somehow Gambino survives, pops back to his feet and looks fresh as a daisy. Hell of a chin on that guy. Brandao misses with another head kick. Gambino presses forward and nearly connects with a big uppercut. A Brandao side kick backs up Gambino. Gambino catches another kick and ties Brandao against the fence. Brandao secures a leg and tosses Gambino to the floor, landing in side control. Gambino works his way back to half guard. Gambino generates some space, kicks Brandao off of him and quickly stands back up. Gambino finds his mark with a combination and looks to take Brandao down as the horn sounds. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Brandao.
Round 2: Gambino connects with a flurry then nearly lands a jumping front kick. Huge right hand blasts Gambino off his feet. What a shot! Brandao swarms, but Gambino implausibly keeps his wits about him and scrambles into half guard. Brandao works a little ground and pound from guard until Gambino grasps for an armbar and nearly gets it. Brandao stands back up, motioning for Gambino to follow. Brandao promptly lifts Gambino into the air and tosses him back onto the mat. Brandao staying active on top, only to be thwarted by an early stand-up from Yamasaki. Gambino misses wildly to close out the round. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Brandao.
Round 3: Brandao slips an uppercut but eats a jab for his troubles. Brandao catches a body kick and unloads a huge right hand on Gambino's jaw. Gambino crumbles, only to have Brandao yell for him to stand back up. Brandao clinches and trips Gambino to the mat. Brandao working from full guard but Gambino is defending well. Gambino wildly grasps for a triangle. Brandao postures up and escapes. Yamasaki with another questionable stand up. Greg Jackson screaming "Simulation! You've got this!" at Brandao cageside. Brandao drops his hands and nearly connects with a bomb of a right hand. Ten seconds left. Brandao starts playing to the crowd, and they're eating it right up. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Brandao.
Diego Brandao def. Joey Gambino via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Gleison Tibau vs. Francisco Trinaldo
Round 1: Marc Goddard is our referee. Trinaldo lunges forward with a straight right. Tibau changes levels and powers Trinaldo down with a double-leg. Trinaldo fights out of a deep, deep guillotine and stands back up. Tibau connects with a solid combination, Trinaldo answers with a wild right hand. Tibau gets another takedown but this one is short lived. Trinaldo launches a hard knee to the body of Tibau, and another, and another. Tibau storms back and plants Trinaldo down on the mat. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Tibau.
Round 2: Both fighters touch gloves to kick off the second frame. Tibau connects flush with a one-two. Tibau rips a big left hand into Trinaldo's body. Trinaldo lands a strong back elbow out of the break. Trinaldo floors Tibau with a looping left haymaker. What a shot! Trinaldo scrambles onto Tibau's back and sinks in a deep choke attempt. Tibau is fighting it off but this one is close. Tibau rolls, Trinaldo gives up the choke to rain down vicious punches from the top. 90 seconds left and this is all Trinaldo. Trinaldo unloads a few elbows and advances into half guard. Heck of a turnaround. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Trinaldo.
Round 3: Trinaldo comes out swinging and Tibau answers right back. Tibau connects with a wild left, eats a knee to the body, then slams Trinaldo to the floor. Tibau not doing much from the top, and the crowd knows it. Nearly two minutes in and the boos are raining down. Tibau advances to half guard, smothering Trinaldo. Goddard has seen enough, stands it up. Tibau immediately plants his face into Trinaldo's stomach and powers him back down. Tibau seizes mount and grasps for an arm triangle. He might have it. Trinaldo flashes a thumbs up but this looks bad. Thirty seconds left and Tibau finally lets it go. Trinaldo eats a few shots from the bottom as the final horn sounds.
Gleison Tibau def. Francisco Trinaldo via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Rony Jason vs. Sam Sicilia
Round 1: Fernando Yamasaki oversees our final preliminary bout. Jason swings and misses wildly with a huge head kick. Sicilia is rocked by a looping shot but Jason can't follow up. Jason connects again and this time Sicilia is ready for it, countering and powering Jason down to the floor. Sicilia postures up and unloads a pair of thunderous right hands. Jason explodes for a triangle/armbar, but can't get either of them. Wow, another premature standup from Yamasaki. Bizarre. Sicilia ducks under a left hook and fires back. Jason unleashes a salvo but Sicilia seems content exchanging in the pocket. Good pace to this round. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Jason.
Round 2: Sicilia pressing the action to start off. Jason ducks under a looping hook, missing with a counter. Sicilia connects with a combination to the body. Jason flashes a smile and trudges forward. Jason finds his mark with a right hook, then a knee. Sicilia regains his bearings and answers right back. Frantic pace so far. Jason lands with a right hook, and another. Sicilia digs into the body. A counter right floors Sicilia! Jason swarms. A volley of thunderous hammerfists caps this one off. The HSBC Arena erupts. What a finish.
Rony Jason def. Sam Sicilia via TKO (strikes) at 4:16 of round 2