UFC on FX 8: Belfort vs. Rockhold Preliminary Card Play-By-Play

The UFC on FX 8 prelims start tonight at 6 p.m. ET and 3 p.m. PT on FUEL TV all leading up to the main event between former UFC light-heavyweight champion, Vitor Belfort and former Strikeforce middleweight champion, Luke Rockhold.

For those who can not watch the live broadcast of tonight’s FUEL TV preliminary broadcast, we have live play-by-play results right here on BJPENN.com.

Refresh the page often to catch up to the minute news and results and check out our preliminary recap for brief results and fight details.

Hacran Dias vs. Nik Lentz

Round 1: Lentz opened up first with a hard straight punch that landed on Dias. Lentz then looked to wrestle, driving Dias to the cage. Lentz let go of the position though after failing to take Dias down. Lentz remained active though, mixing striking with takedowns to keep Dias on his toes. Lentz’ hands looked smooth as he never threw just one punch at a time and used foot movement to create space and angles. Lentz resorted to wrestling not out of necessity but instead by choice, looking to earn points by dragging Dias to the mat. Dias showed his grappling defense and used a whizzer to remain on his feet.

Dias actually got the first takedown but was immediately reversed and held by a set of underhooks from Lentz. The round ended with Lentz in control against the cage.

Round 2: Both fighters came out swinging in the second with Lentz landing a solid knee that dropped Dias. Lentz jumped on Dias and got back control where he started to grind Dias out. Lentz smothered Dias with big elbows and submission attempts as he showed off his control and cardio in his third fight at featherweight.

Dias showed off his heart and was able to get back to his feet. Lentz stayed put, though, and ung on to Dias while attempting trips. The next takedown came from a Lentz trip, with Lentz landing in half-guard. Lentz stood up for a moment but came right back down to continue to draw the life out of Dias. Lentz achieved full mount and remained there until the end of the round, landing shots continuously.

Round 3: Dias came out with a tremendous sense of urgency in the third, as he was clearly down two rounds already. Dias threw wild haymakers and defended takedowns without slowing for the entire first minute. Dias then threatened with takedown and got one with a big slam. Lentz countered the slam with a guillotine that he held for quite some time. Dias was able to slip out and looked to hold Lentz down. Dias sunk in a very tight arm-triangle on Lentz and it seemed like the fight was over. Lentz remained patient and calm and eventually was able to escape but remained on the bottom.

Dias was content to stay on the mat, controlling Lentz until Lentz kicked him off. Once back on the feet, Dias started swinging to finish the fight once more and landed several hard shots. Lentz looked to secure a win and shot in for a takedown which, though defended, helped him escape an attacking Dias.

Official Decision: Nik Lentz defeats Hacran Dias via Unanimous Decision (28-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Francisco Trinaldo vs. Mike Rio

Round 1: Trinaldo looked to continue the Brazilian winning streak that had been established. Trinaldo landed the first big shot as Rio shot in. Rio was still able to get the takedown. Rio held on to an odd position and threatened with an unsuccessful guillotine that helped Trinaldo get back to his feet and attain a clinch.

The two exchanged big knees to the body until Trinaldo picked Rio up and threw him down to his back. Once on the mat, Trinaldo locked in an arm-triangle choke from half-guard almost instantly, forcing Rio to tap.

Official Decision: Francisco Trinaldo defeats Mike Rio via Submission (arm-triangle choke) at 3:08 of Round 1

Gleison Tibau vs. John Cholish

Round 1: Tibau came out extremely agile for this fight, running towards Cholish. Tibau landed a nice body shot that made Cholish wince. Tibau had continued success, landing two shots to the head shortly before taking Cholish down. Cholish scooted back to the cage and was able to stand up and was hit with a hard Tibau left hand right before escaping the clinch. Tibau showed good accuracy with wide hooks, none of which rocked Cholish.

Tibau caught a leg kick and held on to it, forcing Cholish to get creative, escaping with a somersault and resuming the striking game. Tibau looked to time the kicks of Cholish and countered another kick with a big punch. Tibau used his established timing to get another takedown on Cholish, but wasn’t able to hold him down.

Tibau shot in for the last time in the round, getting stuffed against the cage, unable to attain the takedown. The round ended in a clinch with Tibau in control.

Round 2: Again, Tibau came out strong, landing a flying-knee early. Tibau seemed to maintain energy as he often slows in the later rounds. Cholish began to back Tibau down halfway through the round, but didn’t throw for a long time. When he eventually did, Tibau countered perfectly, landing a huge counter that rocked Cholish. Tibau moved forward sinking his arms under the neck of Cholish and locking in a deep guillotine on Cholish, forcing him to tap.

Official Decision: Gleison Tibau defeats John Cholish via Submission (guillotine choke) at 2:34 of Round 2

Paulo Thiago vs. Michel Prazeres

Round 1: Longtime UFC veteran Paulo Thiago looked to rebound from two straight losses. Prazeres was the first to land, however with a big right hand over the top, after catching a big body kick. Prazeres was able to take Thiago down but Thiago stayed busy, scrambling back up each time, but not being able to get space.

Mario Yamasaki broke the two and the continued to look for timing. Thiago landed a right hand of his own, yet nothing significant had landed thus far. Prazeres looked to weaken the legs of Thiago, landing several kicks that landed flush. Thiago looked a little loose when he threw his hooks, winging shots out wide. Thiago seemed to be the weaker of the two in the clinch and was held their until the end of round 1.

Round 2: Prazeres took control in round 2, landing those leg kicks at will and backing up when Thiago threw punches. Thiago did land in this round, staggering Prazeres. Thiago attacked, trying to lock in several submissions and controlling the ground exchanges. He was unable to, though and was eventually taken down. Momentum once again shifted as Thiago gained underhooks in a standing clinch.

They separated with just under two minutes left. Prazeres threw and landed a big left hand on Thiago, showing that he still has a chin. Prazeres dominated from there. Thiago stayed calm and make a beautiful reversal to gain top control of Prazeres. Thiago even worked his way into a mounted crucifix and dropped some shots to try to steal the round late.

Round 3: Thiago came out with single strikes in this round, failing to set up combinations which would help him close distance. Prazeres stayed active and countered well. Prazeres landed a nice series of strikes followed by a timely takedown attempt. After a brief clinch they were broken up, leading to a short brawl that saw both fighters land.

Thiago now seemed to be the fresher fighter, walking forward the whole time and avoiding trouble from Prazeres. The two engaged in a clinch and landed shots, with Thiago landing a much-needed takedown with 30-seconds left in the fight. Thiago took advantage of a good position and threw as the ten-second mark came. He landed one shot in particular that seemed to knock Prazeres out, if only for a minute, then ended the fight in a mounted crucifix as Thiago worked for a keylock.

Official Decision: Paulo Thiago defeats Michel Prazeres via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Yuri Alcantara vs. Iliarde Santos

Round 1: Alcantara showed off his diverse striking early, landing several knees as Santos shot in. Once they broke, Alcantara became violent, rushing in with fight finishing shots, rocking Santos more than once. Alcantara defended a takedown and took a quick break to regain his breath.

The action resumed as Alcantara landed a devastating counter left hand on Santos that dropped him straight  backwards. Alcantara gave Santos no room to recover, pouncing immediately and finishing the fight early in the first with powerful shots from the top on a badly hurt Santos.

Official Decision: Yuri Alcantara defeats Iliarde Santos via TKO at 2:31 of Round 1

Fabio Maldonado vs. Roger Hollett

Round 1: The two strikers came out immediately looking to strike with both setting a high pace. The first strike that landed was a hard leg kick by Hollett. After some more feeling out, Hollett threw a spinning back kick that was aimed for the body, but landed right to the groin. Maldonado took several minutes to recover.

When the fight resumed, Maldonado became the aggressor, lunging in on Hollett and backing him up substantially. Hollett answered a taunt from Maldonado with the fight’s first takedown, getting half-guard instantly and holding him there with little offense being generated.

Referee Leon Roberts eventually was forced to stand the two up. Hollett went right back to grappling, holding Maldonado up against the cage, again with virtually no strikes from the position. Roberts was again forced to separate the two, leading to another Hollett takedown. Hollett maintained half-guard until the time in round 1 expired.

Round 2: Hollett sought to counter in the second and kept his hands down, while backing up, to bait Maldonado in. Maldonado stayed patient and worked on closing the distance, walking in to a stiff cross from Hollett. Maldonado gained a clinch of his own, pinning Hollett to the cage and working his body with punches and his head with elbows. Hollett was able to turn Maldonado around and separated.

Maldonado started to land once they broke and became very aggressive. Maldonado did catch a knee while in the clinch but continued to throw in hard body shots to Hollett. Maldonado continued to taunt Hollett, punching his own face and stimulating the crowd. Maldonado avoided a single-leg and reversed the takedown attempt in to a clinch. Maldonado landed more body shots which seemingly bothered Hollett, who was able to spin out of danger. The round ended with Maldonado walking Hollett down.

Round 3: The final round saw an immediate takedown by Hollet which Maldonado was able to spring up from immediately. Maldonado went back to his gameplan of high volume shots to slow Hollett down. Hollett lost his grappling advantage with the fatigue that Maldonado administered.

Maldonado turned up his pace about two-minutes in to the fight, landing everything he threw, never backing down. As each punch landed, Maldonado added some power, turning quick combinations into deadly and accurate haymakers. An exhausted Hollett looked for any success but found little, catching jabs and counters. Hollett was able to gain another clinch position with Maldonado’s back up against the cage.

Roberts once again broke them up in the final 30-seconds, with Maldonado gaining a well-timed takedown. He peppered Hollett with a few more shots to end the round.

Decision: Fabio Maldonado Defeats Roger Hollett via Unanimous Decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-27)

Quick Results:

(Preliminary Card on FUEL TV, 6 p.m. ET, 3 p.m. PT)

Nik Lentz defeats Hacran Dias via Unanimous Decision (28-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Francisco Trinaldo defeats Mike Rio via Submission (arm-triangle choke) at 3:08 of Round 1.

Gleison Tibau defeats John Cholish via Submission (guillotine choke) at 2:34 of Round 2.

Paulo Thiago defeats Michel Prazeres via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Yuri Alcantara defeats Iliarde Santos via TKO at 2:31 of Round 1.

Fabio Maldonado defeats Roger Hollett via Unanimous Decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-27)

(Preliminary card on Facebook, 4:30 p.m. ET, 1:30 p.m. PT)

John Lineker defeats Azamat Gashimov via TKO (body punch and punches) at 1:07 of Round 2.

Jussier Formiga defeats Chris Cariaso via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Lucas Martins defeats Jeremy Larson via knockout (punch) at :13 of Round 3.