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Welcome to the PWInsiderXtra.com live coverage of UFC 143: Diaz vs. Condit Preliminary Card, live from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Fight #1 - UFC Welterweight Division Fight
Stephen Thompson (5-0-0) vs. Dan Stittgen (7-1-0)
Referee: Josh Rosenthal
Round One
The round begins with Thompson testing Stittgen early with various kicks, Thompson then catches Stittgen with a side kick to the midsection. Thompson then charges at Stittgen with throwing short range punches, Thompson then catches a charging Stittgen with multiple punches. Stittgen then catches Thompson with a leg kick that barely connects, Thompson responds by landing a leg kick of his own. Thompson then charges at Stittgen while throwing a mixture of strikes, Thompson then lands a spinning side kick to the body of Stittgen. Thompson then lands two punches and a head kick that knocks out Stittgen and the fight is quickly stopped.
Fight Result: Stephen Thompson def. Dan Stittgen by KO via head kick (4:13, R1)
Post fight interview with Stephen Thompson, who says that he cannot describe his feelings about making his UFC debut and he is here to stay.
Fight #2: UFC Middleweight Division Fight
Rafael Natal (13-3-1) vs. Michael Kuiper (11-0-0)
Referee: Steve Mazzagatti
Round One
The round begins with Kuiper nailing Natal early with some leg kicks, Natal scores a quick takedown and Kuiper quickly gets him off of him. They stand up and Kuiper forces Natal up against the cage wall, Natal and Kuiper then exchange a few leg kicks. Natal then scores another takedown on Kuiper and he gets the open guard, Kuiper uses the wall walk to get the fight standing. Natal grabs a hold of Kuiper and he drags him back to the ground and winds up in the half guard, Kuiper uses a scramble to get the fight back onto the feet. Natal then lands a right before scoring another takedown on Kuiper, Kuiper powers free and he finds a way to get on top of Natal. Natal rolls for an arm bar and Kuiper attacks him with hammer fists, the fighters stand up as the round ends.
Round Two
The round begins with Natal attempting a high kick on Kuiper, both fighters exchange a few punches after Kuiper lands a leg kick. Natal then charges at Kuiper with throwing several punches, both fighters swing wildly again with Kuiper getting the advantage. Natal then lands two right hooks to the chin of Kuiper, Natal then holds Kuiper against the cage wall while landing knee strikes. Natal backs away while landing a three punch combination on Kuiper, both fighters then simultaneously land rights on each other. Kuiper follows it up by catching Natal with an upper cut, Natal then lands an odd looking back fist strike on Kuiper. Natal then fails on a double leg takedown attempt on Kuiper, Natal makes a second effort and he scores a takedown on Kuiper as the round ends.
Round Three
The round begins with Kuiper dropping Natal with an upper cut, Kuiper then follows it up with ground and pound while attaining half guard. Kuiper then tries to control the head of Natal while throwing more punches, Kuiper postures up and lands more strikes as Natal pulls him into the guard. Kuiper eventually breaks free and both fighters get back up, Natal then grabs Kuiper and holds him against the cage wall. Natal then scores a takedown on Kuiper and he gets side control, Natal then starts landing some elbows strikes on Kuiper. Natal then passes to full mount on a tired Kuiper, Natal then locks on an arm triangle choke on Kuiper as the round ends.
Fight Result: Rafael Natal def. Michael Kuiper by (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Post fight interview with Rafael Natal, who says that the arm triangle is his best submission hold and he was hurt early in the third round after getting hit with the upper cut.
Fight #3: UFC Welterweight Division Fight
Matt Riddle (5-3-0) vs. Henry Martinez (8-1-0)
Referee: Herb Dean
Round One
The round begins with Martinez jumping at Riddle while throwing strikes, Martinez follows it up by catching Riddle with a leg kick/punch combination. Riddle then backs Martinez up with a two jab combination, Martinez then catches an incoming Riddle with a short left. Martinez and Riddle both exchange several blows in the center of the octagon, Riddle then lands a kick to the rib cage of Martinez. Martinez then charges at Riddle with a punching combination, Martinez follows it up by clobbering Riddle with more strikes. Riddle then lands a leg kick after eating a right to the face, Martinez then lands a counter right on a charging Riddle. Martinez then catches Riddle with a few leg kicks as the round ends.
Round Two
The round begins with both fighters exchanging some leg kicks, Riddle then goes for a takedown and Martinez easily stuffs it. Martinez then catches Riddle with a two punch counter combination, Riddle recovers to land a body kick on Martinez. Martinez then catches Riddle with a three punch combination, Martinez then pops Riddle with two lefts to the jaw. Riddle the barely catches Martinez with a punch to the belly, Riddle then catches Martinez with a kick to the midsection. Martinez responds by attacking Riddle with a punching combination, Riddle then lands another body kick before eating a left. Riddle then starts attacking Martinez with kicks to the midsection, Martinez then nails Riddle with a counter right. Both fighters then start exchanging some with strikes with Riddle getting the edge as the round ends.
Round Three
The round begins with Riddle immediately attacking Martinez with kicks to the ribs, Martinez then catches Riddle with a right after eating a kick. Riddle then drills Martinez with a right to the head after hitting a leg kick, Martinez then lands a two punch combination on Riddle. Riddle then starts backing Martinez up with a lot of leg kicks, Martinez then catches an incoming Riddle with a left. Riddle then resumes his body kick attack on Martinez, Riddle then scores a takedown on Martinez and he gets the guard. Riddle then transitions to back control on Martinez while attacking with light striking, Martinez then shakes Riddle off of him to get the fight standing. Martinez then catches Riddle with a counter left during a kick attempt, Riddle then scores a takedown on Martinez and he gets the guard. Riddle then starts landing a ton of ground and pound on Martinez, Riddle continues the assault on Martinez until the round ends.
Fight Result: Matthew Riddle def. Henry Martinez by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Fight #4 - UFC Welterweight Division Fight
Matt Brown (14-11-0) vs. Chris Cope (5-3-0)
Referee: Kim Winslow
Round One
The round begins with both fighters testing each other early with punches, Brown then catches Cope with a three punch combination. Brown then forces Cope up against the cage wall while landing knee strikes, Cope reverses spots with Brown to land knee strikes of his own. Cope then catches Brown with an elbow strike to the head, Brown then ducks some strikes before scoring a takedown on Cope. Cope quickly found a way to get back up and get the fight standing, Cope and Brown then battle for position along the cage wall. Brown then connects with a leg sweep and knee strike to the ribs of Cope, Cope recovers by punching Brown in the body. Brown then pops Cope with a leaping left jab and leg kick, Cope responds by landing a leg kick of his own as the round ends.
Round Two
The round begins with Brown landing a kick to the upper body of Cope, Brown then starts catching Cope with some jabs. Brown then nails Cope with a four punch combination, Cope then starts catching Brown with some jabs of his own. Brown then drops Cope with a left hook and he follows it up with ground and pound until the referee jumps in.
Fight Result: Matt Brown def. Chris Cope by TKO via strikes (1:19, R2)
Post fight interview with Matt Brown, who says that he found his way back to his old fighting style and he will always be learning new things.
Fight #5 - UFC Bantamweight Division Fight
Alex Caceres (6-4-0) vs. Edwin Figueroa (8-1-0)
Referee: Herb Dean
Round One
The round begins with Caceres attacking Figueroa early with leg kicks, Caceres then briefly drops Figueroa with a right. Caceres then accidentally kicks Figueroa low and the fight is halted, the fight resumes with Figueroa barely catching Caceres with a right. Figueroa then charges at Caceres while throwing a few strikes, Figueroa then catches Caceres with a kick to the ribs after eating a right. Figueroa then drops Caceres with a head kick, Figueroa then attacks Caceres with a ton of ground and pound. The fighters stand up and Caceres grabs the head of Figueroa to drag him to the ground, Caceres then gets back control before both fighters stand up. Cacers then gets standing back control to drop Figueroa to the ground, Figueroa then uses a scramble to get the fight back to the feet. Caceres is quick to regain back control again on Figueroa and put the fight back to the ground as the round ends.
Round Two
The round begins with Caceres keeping Figueroa at bay with a variety of kicks, Figueroa then starts chasing Caceres while throwing strikes. Caceres then catches Figueroa with a head kick after landing a leg kick, Figueroa then tries to slow Caceres down with leg kicks. Caceres then nails Figueroa with a body kick before being dropped with a right, Caceres then accidentally nails Figueroa in the balls again with a kick and the fight is halted. Referee Herb Dean then takes two points away from Caceres before the fight resumes, Caceres then catches Figueroa with a head kick. Caceres then clobbers Figueroa with a flying knee strike to the jaw, Caceres then scores a takedown on Figueroa and gains back control. The fighters both battle for position as Caceres goes for the rear naked choke, Figueroa uses a scramble to get on top of Caceres. Caceres then goes for a triangle attempt on Figueroa and he fails, Figueroa postures up on Caceres as the round ends.
Round Three
The round begins with both fighters throwing kicks at each other, Caceres then starts catching Figueroa with a few leg kicks. Caceres then lands a spinning back kick on the ribs of Figueroa, Cacers then barely catches Figueroa with a superman punch. Figueroa then lands two straight kicks to the legs and body of Caceres, Caceres uses his speed to get a standing back mount on Figueroa. Both fighters then battle for rear naked choke positioning until Figueroa shakes Caceres off of him, Caceres quickly recovers to get Figueroa back on the ground. Caceres then gets back control until Figueroa finds a way to get on top of him, Figueroa then starts attacking Caceres with some ground and pound. Figueroa then rolls for a knee bar and Caceres quickly escapes to get back control as the round ends.
Fight Result: Edwin Figueroa def. Alex Caceres by split decision (28-27, 27-28, 28-27)
Fight #6 - UFC Featherweight Division Fight
Dustin Poirier (11-1-0) vs. Max Hollaway (4-0-0)
Referee: Steve Mazzagatti
Round One
The round begins with Hollaway immediately attempting a push kick on Poirier, Poirier then charges at Hollaway while throwing many strikes. Hollaway then attempts a flying knee strike on Poirier, Poirier then connects with two lefts to the face of Hollaway. Poirier then scores a takedown on Hollaway and immediately gets full mount, Poirier then starts attacking Hollaway with elbow strikes. Poirier then goes for an arm bar and Hollaway escapes, Poirier then catches Hollaway with a mounted arm bar and a tap out quickly follows.
Fight Results: Dustin Poirier def. Max Hollaway by submission via arm bar (3:23, R1)
Post fight interview with Dustin Poirier, who says he is happy with tonight’s victory and he says he is in the UFC to be a champion.
