In a battle of two excellent collegiate wrestlers that was fought mostly on the feet, Mark Munoz beat Aaron Simpson by unanimous decision at UFC 123."I was prepared to go three rounds and go as hard as I can," Munoz said afterward. "I know Aaron doesn't back down, and I didn't back down for three rounds."
As is so often the case when two wrestlers step into the Octagon, they ended up spending most of the time on their feet in the first round, feeling each other out in the stand up, trading punches, and stalemating more than anything else when they clinched. Simpson probably did a little more than Munoz and deserved to win the first.
In the second round a big gash opened up on Munoz's forehead after a clash of heads, but it was right in the middle and the blood dripped down between his eyes, rather than into them. Munoz and Simpson also traded accidental low blows, and the fight was paused twice, but neither man was worse for wear. The best striking of the round was done by Munoz, who landed a good elbow and a kick to the chin, and that was enough for Munoz to win the round.
In the third round Munoz punched Simpson hard in the right eye, and Simpson pulled up, motioning to the referee that he had been poked. The ref accepted that Simpson had been poked and called a pause to the fight, but replays appeared to show that Munoz had landed a clean punch, not a poke. Munoz then proceeded to control the striking for most of the rest of the round, but Simpson kept fighting, securing a takedown with a minute to go. He wasn't able to do any damage on the ground, however, and Munoz got back up, and as the fight ended they traded punches, with Munoz landing more effectively.
All three judges scored it 29-28 for Munoz, as did I. The win improved Munoz's record to 9-2, while Simpson falls to 7-2.
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