The UFC returned to the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas to see the first UFC welterweight champion crowned in the absence of Georges St-Pierre.
The title challengers, Johny Hendricks and Robbie Lawler, certainly did not disappoint.
The two knockout specialists put on a highly entertaining 25-minute slugfest that was won by the slimmest of margins, to the delight of the enthusiastic crowd.
There were several other pivotal matchups at 170 pounds, as well as a possible changing of the guard at lightweight.
Check out the biggest winners and losers from UFC 171
BIGGEST WINNER
Johny Hendricks – Many believe “Bigg Rigg” was robbed in a split decision loss to Georges St-Pierre at UFC 167, so it should come as no surprise that the Texas native brought it in front of his home crowd.
While Lawler was a game opponent who had Hendricks on roller skates after landing solid shots in the third round, the Team Takedown standout just had more weapons in his war chest.
Hendricks effectively utilized punches, leg kicks, knees and takedowns to overwhelm Lawler’s boxing-centric attack. That being said, the bout remained competitive so a rematch between the two can’t be far down the road.
WINNER
Myles Jury – Jury remained undefeated with a stellar performance against the always tough Diego Sanchez, utilizing combinations from the outside and a power double leg takedown to his advantage.
The 25-year-old prospect is 5-0 under the UFC banner: time to give the young fighter a true test against a top 10 opponent.
WINNER
Hector Lombard – “Lightning” battered and threw Jake Shields around for the better part of three rounds, though cardio issues kept him from putting the ex-Strikeforce champ away.
While it wasn’t the violent finish fans were clamoring for, Lombard is clearly a true title contender at 170 pounds.
WINNER
Tyron Woodley – While a possible ACL tear took Carlos Condit out of the fight early, Woodley was outstriking him and landing takedowns at will before the injury TKO.
Like Lombard, Woodley has won three of his past four fights and can end anyone’s night at 170 pounds in brutal fashion. A typical eliminator between the two all but guarantees fireworks.
BIGGEST LOSER
Diego Sanchez – While he’s attributing a listless performance to food poisoning, the fighter once affectionately referred to as “The Nightmare” is not longer a legitimate threat at welterweight or lightweight.
Sanchez was easily outstruck by Myles Jury and had no answer for the youngster’s power double leg, either.
At this point, the 32-year-old isn’t going to beat anyone who won’t get into a wild brawl with him. Sanchez is just 3-5 in his past eight fights so he should seriously give retirement some thought at this point.
LOSER
Carlos Condit – Don’t look now, but the former WEC/UFC interim welterweight titleholder has now lost three of his past four fights.
While “The Natural Born Killer” is probably still an elite talent at 170 pounds, and he can’t possibly be blamed for suffering a serious knee injury during his fight with Tyron Woodley, his days as a serious title threat appear to be behind him.
LOSER
Jake Shields – The Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu fighter met his match in former Bellator champ Hector Lombard, putting forth basically no offense outside of a Hail Mary guillotine choke with seconds remaining in the fight.
Shields’ striking was never going to get him very far, but when he can’t grapple his way out of tough spots anymore, he faces a serious problem. If he’s willing to wait, a rematch with Carlos Condit would be intriguing.
LOSER
Robbie Lawler – “The Ruthless” one pushed Johny Hendricks to the brink and was probably one defended takedown away from winning the vacant welterweight strap.
His one-dimensional approach, only throwing punches for the most part, and starting slow in the early rounds cost him. Luckily, Lawler is still a top 5 talent at welterweight so he is probably no more than two wins away from a rematch with Hendricks.