Dos Santos puts beating on Carwin at UFC 131
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Junior dos Santos bloodied Shane Carwin to win a dominant decision at UFC 131 on Saturday night, earning a shot at heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez.
Twenty-two of their 26 combined fights had ended in the first round, so no one was expecting a marathon. Dos Santos (13-1) almost finished Carwin in the first, with a barrage of unanswered blows.
But Carwin (12-2) stayed up, and the Brazilian made him pay, using his superior striking to batter Carwin’s face.
The judges scored the fight 30-27, 30-27, 30-26 for dos Santos, who already is looking forward to his next fight.
“I think my biggest challenge is coming. … (Velasquez) has proven he is very good, but I will be ready for him,” dos Santos said.
“I’m excited,” said Velasquez, who entered the cage after the fight.
Kenny Florian (16-5) won his debut at featherweight with a 29-28, 29-28, 30-27 decision over highly touted Brazilian Diego Nunes in the co-main event at Rogers Arena. Florian fought a smart fight, using his size and versatility to frustrate the flashy Nunes.
Florian “more than likely” will get the next shot at champion Jose Aldo, Ultimate Fighting Championship president Dana White said.
Florian, a Boston native, was clearly the villain of the night, stemming from his Bruins jersey at the weigh-in. Vancouver faces Boston in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Monday, and the crowd chanted “Go Canucks Go” and jeered Florian during the fight.
“Despite the boos, I love you, Vancouver,” said Florian, who became the first UFC fighter to compete in four weight classes.
Dos Santos stuffed two Carwin takedown attempts in the first and began to find his striking range as the round neared a close. He put Carwin down with a right-left-right combo, then threw more than 40 punches at his downed opponent. But Carwin continued.
Dos Santos used kicks in the second round, looking to set up his crisp punches. Carwin caught him with a left, but dos Santos ignored it, moving away to set up his next attack.
Carwin managed an early takedown in the third, but dos Santos got right back up and started punching again.
“I threw a lot of jabs tonight because it was a little bit more safe for me to throw jabs and stay a safe distance from him,” dos Santos said. “He hits hard, and I had to respect that.”
Canadians went 3-1 on the undercard, including lightweight Sam Stout’s knockout of veteran Yves Edwards.
Stout connected with a left hook in the first round and Edwards toppled backward. Stout (15-4-1) went to follow up but held back when he saw Edwards was motionless.
Edwards (40-17-1) eventually got up on a stool to the applause of the crowd but needed a helping hand as he was led away.
“That is one of the nastiest KO’s I have EVER seen!!!!” White posted on Twitter.
The 27-year-old Stout, from London, Ontario, celebrated with a backflip in the cage.
In other fights, Mark Munoz had to work hard for a 29-28, 29-28, 30-27 decision over Demian Maia in a back-and-forth middleweight fight. Krzysztof Soszynski earned a 30-27, 30-26, 30-27 decision against Mike Massenzio, and Calgary middleweight Nick Ring stopped James Head in the third round.
