LAS VEGAS -- This is the UFC 132 undercard live blog for the four non-televised preliminary bouts in support of tonight's UFC pay-per-view at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.The bouts are Brian Bowles vs. Takeya Mizugaki, Aaron Simpson vs. Brad Tavares, Anthony Njokuani vs. Andre Winner and Jeff Hougland vs. Donny Walker.
The first bout is scheduled to begin at 6:15 p.m. ET.
The live blog is below.
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Brian Bowles vs. Takeya Mizugaki
Round 1: Bowles paws his way in with a jab and Mizugaki comes over the top with a right. How many times will I misspell Mizugaki's name in this liveblog? I'll put the over/under at 7. Good body punch by Bowles off a Mizugaki kick attempt. Both men seem to be waiting for the other to go first right now. Couple good leg kicks by Mizugaki thud off Bowles' thigh. Decent overhand right by Mizugaki, then another a few moments later that catches Bowles flush on his way in. Half-hearted USA chant starts up, then dies in the crowd. Just sad. And so close to Independence Day. They clinch against the fence and Mizugaki sneaks a nice knee strike to Bowles' head. Referee Mario Yamasaki has had enough of this clinch work, and he separates them. Before they can start up again, the horn sounds. MMA Fighting gives the first round to Mizugaki, 10-9.
Round 2: Even when Mizugaki misses with his strikes, his corner reacts like he's killing Bowles. You always have to wonder how that will impact the judges. Mizugaki is following Bowles now, looking to counter off his combos. Bowles jabs him back, then takes a moment to wipe his hair away. A leg kick by Mizugaki knocks Bowles off balance. Bowles backs Mizugaki up with a combo, then Mizugaki returns the favor. Neither seems to be landing many clean shots. Bowles catches a Mizugaki kick and then drops him with a straight right. Bowles follows to the mat and takes his back right away, looking for the rear naked choke with a body triangle sunk in. Mizugaki gets control of a wrist, but Bowles uses his free hand to hammer him with punches. Less than a minute left in the round, but Bowles seems no closer to getting the choke. Mizugaki ties up his wrist and waits out the round. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Bowles.
Round 3: Mizugaki jumps in with a left uppercut that lands, but Bowles quickly ties him up and puts his back against the fence. They jockey for position in the clinch, trading knees in close. Mizugaki catches one of Bowles' knees and uses it to try and put him down, but only succeeds in getting out of the clinch. Bowles briefly gets the takedown, settling instead for jumping to Mizugaki's back as he's returning to his feet. Mizugaki stays on his feet against the fence, and there isn't much Bowles can do from there. The crowd, once again, is getting antsy. Can't say that I blame them with the way these prelims have gone so far. Yamasaki has seen enough, and he steps in to remove Bowles from Mizugaki's back and restart them in the center. Mizugaki starts to open up with punches in the final minute, chasing a retreating Bowles around the cage with little effect. The round winds down, and the crowd remains unimpressed. MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 for Bowles.
Brian Bowles def. Takeya Mizugaki via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Aaron Simpson vs. Brad Tavares
Round 1: Good body kick from Tavares to start things off, but that's all the invite Simpson needs to dive in for the takedown. He doesn't get it, but he'll settle for the clinch against the fence. The action stalls there, and it doesn't take long for the crowd to get restless. Referee Josh Rosenthal lets them work, but Simpson can't get much going with leg trips or throws. Half the round has gone now, and Rosenthal finally steps in to restart them. Simpson reaching in with a lunging hook, and Tavares tags him with a hard right. Simpson punches his way into the clinch again, and this time manages to drag Tavares down, but Tavares is right back up before his shoulder blades even touch the mat. They exchange knees to the body in the clinch, and Simpson nabs a takedown right at the horn. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Simpson.
Round 2: They both fire off punch flurries to start the round, then Tavares catches Simpson coming in and stings him with a short left that sends him staggering back. Tavares follows, but Simpson recovers and gets the clinch up against the fence again. Instead of just trying to stay upright in the clinch, Tavares turns the tables by looking for a takedown of his own. Simpson defends well for a time, but Tavares manages to scoop him up for a big slam. Simpson pops right back up and grabs Tavares in a front headlock, looking for knees and a possible choke. Tavares hangs on and goes from standing to downed to make the knee strike situation tricker for Simpson. Simpson lands a few blows, but ends the round clinched up again, looking for a takedown that isn't there. MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 for Tavares.
Round 3: Simpson wastes very little time slugging his way into the clinch again, but this time Tavares manages to extricate himself fairly quickly. Tavares catches him coming in with a good combo that unsteadies Simpson, then nearly uses a whizzer to put Simpson on his back, but comes up short. Simpson brings it back to the clinch again, and the crowd voices its displeasure. Simpson may win the decision this way, but he's not winning many fans at the moment. Leg trip takedown for Simpson, and his corner responds as if it's a near knockout rather than what it is: thirteen minutes of work for a few brief moments on the mat. Tavares works back to his feet, and Rosenthal seems content to watch them pummel for position in the final minute. He finally separates them with 30 seconds left. Simpson wings a big overhand right and transitions into his cleanest takedown of the night. Tavares gets to his feet quickly, however, and nails Simpson with a short right hand before the horn. MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 for Simpson, reluctantly.
Aaron Simpson def. Brad Tavares via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
The crowd responds with a smattering of boos. As he leaves the Octagon, Simpson sprints away from his escort to go hug Mark Munoz in the crowd. Wrestlers 4 life.
Anthony Njokuani vs. Andre Winner
Round 1: Both men working their punches from a safe, yet not terribly effective distance early on. A sharp right hook from Njokuani catches Winner flush on the jaw. In Winner's corner, Paul Daley encourages him to get his counters working. Njokuani tries a spinning back elbow that gets jammed up, but then ducks under a Winner punch and lands a nice right hook counter. Njokuani is just a little sharper with his punches right now. Good right uppercut stings Winner. Njokuani slips a jab and fires a right. Daley tells Winner not to jab at his head anymore. Must be nice for Njokuani to know that. Njokuani nails Winner with a hard shot and Winner wobbles back. Njokuani goes in full attack mode now, hammering him with right hands and brutal knees. Winner is reeling, but still on his feet. Njokuani just brutalizing Winner now. Referee Yves Lavigne taking a hard look at it, but somehow Winner survives the round, though he's not looking so pretty. MMA Fighting scores it 10-8 for Njokuani.
Round 2: Amazingly, Winner seems to have recovered well in the 60 seconds between rounds. His face still shows signs of the beating, but he's moving well and his punches still have snap. Njokuani stings him with a hard shot that staggers him, and Winner eats another dose of knees against the cage before managing to turn Njokuani. Back to work in the center of the cage after a referee restart, Winner's corner implores him to feint and move, but it's all he can do not to get brutalized by Njokuani at the moment. They end the round with Njokuani looking perhaps a little fatigued from his efforts to finish. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Njokuani.
Round 3: Njokuani's work rate has certainly slowed, but what's really remarkable is how fresh Winner looks after some of the beatings he's taken tonight. Njokuanki charges forward with a punch combo and finishes it with a kick to the head that Winner blocks most of. They trade leg kicks. Winner still has some pop in him, but he seems reluctant to throw too much out there and risk the counters that might be coming back. They clinch against the fence and Winner lands some decent knees. This seems to be where he has the edge, but Njokuani sees it too and is quickly out of there. Winner throwing some heavy leather in the final 30 seconds, but Njokuani is proving tough to hit. Winner walks him down and unleashes a combo at the horn, including one left hook that might have been a tad late. Njokuani appears unfazed, smiling and putting his hand in the air in anticipation of the judges' decision. MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9 for Njokuani.
Anthony Njokuani def. Andre Winner via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
Jeff Hougland vs. Donny Walker
Round 1: Houghland starts us off with some inside leg kicks. Walker comes in with a right hand and Houghland drops under for a takedown. Walker trying to work the high guard, but Houghland stands up out of it and goes to work with punches from the top. Walker tries to tie him up from the bottom, but Houghland smashes him with a hard elbow in close. Houghland stacks Walker against the cage and sinks an arm-in guillotine. He falls back with it, but Walker doesn't see too concerned. He holds on and Houghland is eventually forced to relinquish it, with Walker now working from the top. Walker forces Houghland's ankles up over his head, drawing a titter from the crowd, then works for an anaconda choke, but can't complete it. Houghland does a nice job of scrambling up off the bottom and puts Walker on his back again. Walker tries for a toe hold in the final seconds, but he's not even close. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Houghland.
Round 2: It's back to a kicking contest to start the second round. Houghland is the busier fighter on the feet, which counts for a lot in the judges' eyes. Nice right hand by Houghland, followed by one from Walker. They're both opening up with punches now, and Houghland is cut above his eye, near the bridge of his nose. Walker's trying to come forward behind his left hook, but his punches seem to have lost a lot of their snap. Houghland tries a front kick and Walker seems to think it caught him in the groin. I'll take his word for it. After the restart Walker attacks Houghland's legs with kicks, but Houghland hurts him with a punch and knee and then drops immediately into another guillotine. He must think it's his ace in the hole, but Walker is hanging out in there just fine. Houghland adjusts and squeezes with everything he's got in the final ten seconds, but Walker lasts until the horn. MMA Fighting scores it 10-9 for Houghland.
Round 3: Walker seems to have a sense of desperation to start the final round. He comes after Houghland hard right off the bat and then stops a Houghland takedown attempt by faceplanting him into the mat. Walker moves for the anaconda again and Houghland goes to his back before locking up an armbar. Walker is in trouble, so he lifts Houghland up and slams his way out. Houghland transitions for a triangle choke, but it's not there. Walker seems content to survive on top for now, and that prompts a restart by Yamasaki. Houghland goes for another takedown and gets stopped and but on bottom again, but works for the sweep and eventually manages to put Walker on his back. They finish the fight with both men frantically throwing punches and elbows -- Houghland from the top and Walker from the bottom -- but it's more light than heat. MMA Fighting scores 10-9 for Walker.
Jeff Houghland def. Donny Walker via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
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