PITTSBURGH -- Joe Stevenson lost in a unanimous decision over Javier Vazquez on Sunday night, with the judges seeing it 30-27, 29-28, 30-27.
Early in the first round, Vazquez ducked under a Stevenson punch to get a takedown, but Stevenson used it to grab his arm and pull it into an arm bar. Stevenson couldn't finish it, and Vazquez took over top position. After neither fighter was able to do much on the ground, they were stood up. Again, Vazquez took the fight to the ground, and again, not much was accomplished there.
Stevenson appeared in trouble in the second round when Vazquez jumped on for the guillotine. He could not finish, and the fight returned to stand-up. Stevenson looked sluggish for much of the bout. Vazquez never really took control, but managed to take advantage of Stevenson's lethargy by landing several straight shots.
For Stevenson, this was his fourth loss in a row, but his first fight at featherweight. He hasn't won a bout since 2009, and the wear of a career with 45 bouts appeared to show.
Griffin takes tight decision over Gamburyan
Tyson Griffin took the final decision of the UFC on Versus 4 undercard over Manny Gamburyan, 29-28, 29-28, 29-29.
Gamburyan started strong with a takedown early, and then used that to transition into a standing guillotine. When he couldn't finish that, he tossed Griffin to the ground, and took his back as Griffin stood up. Gamburyan then moved off his back, and finished the round clinching against the fence.
The two got into several violent tangles in the second round, exchanging several big strikes. In one of those dust-ups, Stevenson threw an inadvertent shot to Gamburyan's crotch, pausing the fight for a moment as Stevenson recovered. It happened again near the end of the round, and this time, Griffin seemed upset by the stoppage.
Griffin knocked Gamburyan down early in the third, but Gamburyan quickly returned to his feet. Gamburyan threw Griffin, but couldn't maintain control. Griffin ducked behind and landed several big strikes before Gamburyan maneuvered out. Griffin also used low leg kicks to tenderize Gamburyan's leg throughout the bout, giving him an edge in the bout.
This was Griffin's first bout at featherweight after spending years as a lightweight. He seemed well suited to the move down, staying strong throughout the three rounds.
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