UFC 214 results from last night: Cris Cyborg vs Tonya Evinger fight recap
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Featherweight athletes Cris Cyborg and Tonya Evinger squared off last night (July 29, 2017) at UFC 214 inside Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
After literal years of disrespect from the UFC and Dana White, Cyborg finally had her true moment to shine. Opposite a reasonably worthy challenger, Cyborg looked to defend her status as the most dominant woman in MMA and pick up a UFC strap all at once. Evinger may not be all that well-known among casual fans, but the longtime women’s MMA pioneer had recently picked up the Invicta FC Bantamweight strap and defended it twice. This was a huge step up in competition, but Evinger had a chance to make history.
Cyborg dropped his opponent with the first punch she threw, a left hook counter to a low kick. The Brazilian remained patient as Evinger jabbed and kicked, cracking her again with a right hand and walking away when her foe pulled guard. Back on the feet, Evinger hung in there and threw punches, which allowed her to get deep into a shot and briefly finish a couple takedowns.
Cyborg got back up quickly, but it was a good sign for “Triple Threat.”
Back on her feet, Cyborg began to break down her opponent’s legs with inside and outside kicks. However, Evinger did do a nice job of grabbing the clinch whenever her opponent opened up too much with hooks. Nevertheless, Cyborg seemed to figure her foe’s defense out a bit in the final 30 seconds, ripping her up with hard kicks and some clean crosses.
Evinger had a few better moments than expected, but she was still taking a beating.
Cyborg kept ripping the lead leg right when the second round began. Those kicks were taking an effect, as Evinger could not really use her weight when punching or shooting. That meant Cyborg defended the shots without any issue and got the better of pretty much every exchange. There’s no doubt that Evinger was tough, but she wasn’t able to hang onto the clinch anymore.
Basically, Cyborg was winning every exchange at her chosen pace, which meant she was unlikely to tire.
Cyborg kept up the pressure to start the third round, and her overhand began to connect consistently. The overhand and right high kick served as a nasty double threat, and the combination soon dropped her opponent to the mat. Evinger popped back and tried to hang tough, but it wasn’t long before Cyborg assaulted her opponent with knees from the clinch.
This was a pretty standard Cyborg performance. She utterly dominated an opponent who just couldn’t match her physicality, manhandling her opponent in the clinch and battering them at range.
It was violent and dominant.
Cyborg did a very nice job of pacing herself in this match. Evinger was tough and looking for opportunities, but Cyborg gave her very few. Ultimately, she just kept working behind the jab and low kicks, looking for openings to land true power shots. When she finally did let loose in the third round, her opponent was too worn down to really threaten with a takedown or counter shot.
Cyborg is your new Featherweight champion of the world, and there’s a fair chance that’s not going to change any time soon.
Evinger deserves everyone’s respect for stepping up a weight class on short-notice. She also fought with some real intelligence, trying to drag Cyborg into a clinch-heavy wrestling match. She even found some success with brief takedowns, but Cyborg was just too strong to hold down.
Over time, Evinger kept trying to win, but her body was broken down.
Last night at UFC 214, Cris Cyborg battered her opponent en route to a third-round stoppage victory. Will the UFC be able to find anyone willing to fight her?
For complete UFC 214: “Jones vs Cormier 2” results and play-by-play, click HERE!
