LAS VEGAS — Middleweight champion Chris Weidman needed to dig deep to dispose of former light-heavyweight title-holder Lyoto (The Dragon) Machida via a 49-45, 48-47, 49-46 decision in the main event.
“He’s as good as I thought,” Weidman said of Machida.
Asked if he was ever hurt in the fight, the champion replied: “Probably. I can’t remember right now.”
In the past, Machida has been accused of being a boring fighter. But the Brazilian gave Weidman everything he could handle and aggressively went for the finish late after falling behind early.
He was rewarded with loud cheers after the fight.
“He’s a true champion,” Machida (21-5) said of Weidman.
The battered Brazilian smiled and held his fist up as he walked out of the cage. Weidman left wrapped in a U.S. flag.
Weidman, who came in as a 2-1 favourite, looked much bigger in the cage than Machida and stalked him in the first round. The elusive Machida dodged blows and looked to counter-attack but Weidman kept coming.
Weidman (12-0) scored a takedown late in the second round, smothering Machida while doing damage at the fence. When the Brazilian got up, he ate a knee.
Machida went down again in the third, to cheers from the pro-U.S. element of the crowd. Weidman cut him with a punch late in the round and took him down again before bodyslamming him to the canvas.
Machida, to his credit, kept getting up.
The Brazilian nailed Weidman with a body kick in the fourth round, only to have the champion make a “Bring it on” gesture. Machida, knowing he needed something big, started coming forward and connecting.
Both men showed damage from an electric, bruising round that had the crowd chanting “Machida.” Weidman’s rib cage looked like Machida had taken a baseball bat to it.
The fifth round was equally brutal. Machida survived a head kick and the two tired fighters kept punching. A Weidman takedown was followed by a wild Machida flurry as the fight ended.
It was Weidman’s first outing since back-to-back wins over Anderson Silva.
Weidman’s basic purse was listed at US$225,000 with a matching win bonus, according to the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Machida was on a basic $200,000 purse.
