Round three - Volk to the clinch again, Aldo needs a finish to win this one - or some sketchy local judging. Clear 30-27 in my books. Round two - Volk having a lot of success with the leg kicks, giving Aldo a test of his own medicine. Another round for the Aussie. Round one - Enormous cheers for Aldo during the intros, and they continue into the opening stanza, breaking into song. Also claims the centre of the Octagon, not letting Volk apply the pressure that has become his calling card. Instead it's Aldo with the pressure, going to the body with some stinging shots. The Aussie replies using kicks, then clinches. More inside leg kicks. That's probably his round. 3:20pm - 'The General' makes his entrance to the Game of Thrones theme, followed by Aldo to his trademark 'Run this town' by Jay-Z and RiRi. 3:19pm - Volkanvovski typically spends a large chunk of his training camp at Auckland's City Kickboxing. NZ's Israel Adesanya pops up in the pre-fight package, admitting not even he enjoys the pressure that Volk brings on the mat. 3:18pm - Mouth-watering matchup on its way here. Can Aldo - one of the greatest featherweights in the sport's history - give the Rio crowd something to cheer about against the Aussie? Laureano Staropoli v Thiago Alves - Staropoli wins via unanimous decision Round three - For a man whose gas tank was consistently questioned, the 35-year-old version of Alves still looks surprisingly spry. Staropoli coming forward for the first time in the bout, puts some body shots on the money. Alves searching for that trademark left hook. Big knee from Alves, now he smells blood. Pressing forward with kicks, Staropoli responds. Great third round. Round two - Alves immediately more aggressive, picking his shots wisely. Staropoli catches Silva on the counter, Silva loses balance and goes to the mat. Staropoli swoops but Silva works his way back to his feet smartly. They exchange left hooks on the break. Staropoli to the body with good effect, plenty of energy both ways as a tight round draws to a close. Round one - Tentative start from both fighters, Staropoli clearly wary of Silva's power. Now he gets busy with his kicks, mixing his target between Silva's body and thigh. Alves searching for an opening to throw some power, none really presents itself. 2:50pm - Looking forward to seeing the Argentinian Staropoli back in action, always brings the heat. I like him to make it seven straight with a win over the card's second Brazilian 'Pitbull', a true veteran who once fought GSP for the welterweight title. Irene Aldana v Bethe Correia - Aldana wins via third-round submission<doc-sep>Join us today on Bloody Elbow for live results, discussion, round scoring, and play-by-play as UFC 237 goes down in Rio. The main event will see Rose Namajunas attempting to defend her women’s strawweight title for the second time when she meets rugged Brazilian challenger Jessica Andrade. The main card will also feature Brazilian stars like Anderson Silva, who meets Jared Cannonier; and Jose Aldo, who faces off with Alexander Volkanovski. This post will cover the main PPV card. The show kicks off on Fight Pass at approximately 6:30pm ET with three fights. The card then moves to ESPN at 8pm ET for four more bouts, then onto the main PPV card. Remember that you can only order UFC PPVs now through ESPN+, so you have to sign up for that service beforehand if you haven’t already. The full lineup and schedule follows. The preliminary card will be covered in a separate post. Check out this week’s MMA Vivisection for predictions, analysis and betting odds on the each matchup. Rose Namajunas vs. Jessica Andrade Round 1 - Namajunas jabbing and moving. Nice right from Namajunas. Again. Andrade charges in but eats a counter left. Her eye is already damaged. Leg kick from Andrade. Hard 1-2 from Rose! She follows it up with two more shots. Andrade gets clipped with a counter left. Andrade grabs an arm, scoops her up and slams her but Namajunas immediately locks up an armbar! Andrade backs out. Namajunas looks for a takedown but can’t get it. Andrade’s face is a bloody mess. Namajunas with nice jabs. Low kick from Andrade. Left from Namajunas. Namajunas with a big knee in the clinch that drops Andrade! She jumps on her with hammerfists and looks for a front choke as Andrade gets up. Great action to start. Leg kick from Andrade. Counter left hook from Namajunas. Andrade with a leg kick and and right. Side kick from Namajunas. 10-8 Namajunas. Round 2 - Leg kick from Andrade. Jab from Rose. They trade shots. Andrade with a combo and she’s chasing. Namajunas is running backwards with her hands down, looking to counter. Dangerous. Two lefts from Namajunas. Straight left. Andrade misses twice. Namajunas can’t get a takedown. Leg kick from Andrade. Andrade with a leg kick. Two counter lefts from Thug Rose. Andrade presses and lands a knee. Andrade picks Rose up and slams her on the mat. She is out cold! Andrade is the new champ! Jessica Andrade defeated Rose Namajunas via KO (slam), 2:58 of round 2 Jared Cannonier vs. Anderson Silva Round 1 - Slow start, which is par for the course for Anderson. Leg kick from Cannonier. Another. He misses with two right hooks. Another leg kick. Silva hadn’t thrown a thing until two minutes in when he lands a body kick. Cannonier walks Anderson down and lands a eg kick. Silva responds with his own, then his a jumping switch kick. Right hook from Cannonier, and again. Silva with an elbow but he can’t lock up the Thai clinch. Silva with a front kick to the body. Cannonier with an inside leg kick. Cannonier with a slapping right hook. He goes to the body. Jab. Silva whiffs on a head kick and spins thatrically. Cannonier lands a hard kick to the knee and Silva goes down injured. It’s over just like that. Jared Cannonier defeated Anderson Silva via TKO (leg kick), 4:47 of round 1 Jose Aldo vs. Alexander Volkanovski Round 1 - Inside leg kick from Volkanovski. Aldo taking his time. Body kick from Volkanovski, and a low kick. A steady stream of light kicks from the Australian. Aldo is walking him down. Left hook counter from Aldo. Two inside leg kicks from Volkanovski. Aldo clubs the body. Leg kick from Aldo. Jab from Volkanovski. Aldo fires back. Aldo steps to the side with a hard right hook. Low kick as well. Volkanovski goes to the body and ties Aldo up against the fence. Aldo with a left. Knee and a right from Aldo. Counter left. 10-9 Volkanovski. Round 2 - Steady stream of kicks from Volkanovski again to start. Big overhand right scores for Volkanovski. Aldo with a straight right. Jab from Volkanovski. Aldo with a solid left jab. Volkanovski nodded at that. Knee from Aldo in close. Lead left hook from Aldo. Volkanovski with a long jab. Elbow from Volkanovski. Apparently Aldo got poked in the eye during it. He gets a hard warning from Marc Goddard. Aldo starts back up with a leg kick. Volkanovski with a lead left hook but eats a counter. Volkanovski ties Aldo up against th efence. He lands a bevy of knees to Aldo’s leg. Aldo gets a body lock reverses position. Volkanovski reverses right back. Aldo spins away. Volkanovski with a lead left. 10-9 Volkanovski. Round 3 - Volkanovski with a leg kick. Aldo fights out of a clinch. Volkanovski with a counter left. They trade rights. Volkanovski bulies Aldo over to the fence. Volkanovski just leaning on him and throwing knees. Aldo’s running out of time. He gets separation. Body kick from Volkanovski. Knee up the middle from Aldo. Volkanovski with a combo. Volkanovski gets him against the fence again. Killing some time there. He steps back and lands a couple of punches. Aldo didn’t even really show up. 10-9 and 30-27 Volkanovski. Alexander Volkanovski defeated Jose Aldo via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) Thiago Alves vs. Laureano Staropoli Round 1 - Tepid start. Alves hasn’t thrown anything a minute in. Staropoli has thrown a couple of body kicks. That’s it. Alves finally wades in with a combo that comes up short. Staropoli kicks the legs. Leg kick from Alves but he eats a right. Nice combo from Staropoli. Staropoli spins but misses. Alves with a left. Staropoli goes to the body. Leg kick from Alves but he takes a right in the grill again. Alves with a right. Spinning back kick from Staropoli. Inside leg kick from Alves. Now to the outside. Staropoli misses with a flying knee. Body kick from Alves. Alves with a big right over the top. 10-9 Staropoli. Round 2 - Alves immediately pressing. Staropoli not nearly as flashy as he was in round one. He caught Alves off balance though and jumps on his back. Alves up quickly. Spinning elbow from Staropoli. Body kick from Alves. They trade right hooks. Alves with the low kick. Staropoli jabbing. Big combo from Staropoli. Alves back to the low kick. Big flurry from Alves. Staropoli digs to the body. Left hook from Staropoli. Counter right from Alves. Good combo from Alves. 10-9 Staropoli. Round 3 - They brawl to start. Staropoli with a combo. Alves with a knee and a takedown. Staropoli up quick though. Big body shot from Staropoli. Alves with an outside leg kick. Staropoli lands to the body, but Alves cracks him with a right hook. They trade. Alves ducks under for a takedown. Staropoli fights him off. Body shot from Staropoli. Halfway through the final stanza. Leg kick from Alves. Body kick from Staropoli. Spinning back fist from Staropoli. Side elbow. Body-head. Alves with a nice left shovel hook. Staropoli responds. Body kick from Alves. Knees from Alves and Staropoli retreats. Alves pressing with a body kick. Staropoli with a left hook. Good action late! Big combo from Alves! 10-9 Alves, but 29-28 Staropoli. Laureano Staropoli defeated Thiago Alves via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) Irene Aldana vs. Bethe Correia Round 1 - Slow start. Low kick from Aldana gets caught. She’s jabbing from the outside. Correia hasn’t been able to find her range so far. Left from Aldana. Aldana with a counter right. Le kick from Correia, but Aldana counters. Aldana with a left. Body shot from Correia. Not a lot happening here. Correira wit ha right and she finally presses. Leg kick from Irene. Nice, hard right from Aldana. Correia with a right. Three rights over the top in a row from Aldana. 10-9 Aldana. Round 2 - Leg kick from Correia, as her corner asked for. Jab from Aldana. Body shot from Aldana. Correia connects with a right, her best punch of the fight. Another leg kick.<doc-sep>RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — Rose Namajunas was a huge underdog the night she shocked the world and knocked out Joanna Jedrzejczyk to win the UFC strawweight belt. She was an underdog in the rematch as well. And now, at UFC 237, Namajunas once again finds herself the betting underdog against Jessica Andrade. But if you ask her opponent, “Thug Rose” is the favorite to win at tonight's main event. ”I always consider myself to be the underdog,” Andrade said. “Rose is the champion, she beat Joanna twice and I couldn’t. I believe I’ve evolved a lot since that fight with Joanna. ”I’m going there as the underdog. Deep inside I know I’m the underdog, and I fight better like that. I have to give my best in there, and that’s why I like being the underdog. Rose is the favorite, and I’m going there to do my job.” Namajunas and Andrade are both riding three-fight winning streaks since their last decision defeats. Andrade earned a shot at the strawweight championship after beating Claudia Gadelha, Tecia Torres, and Karolina Kowalkiewicz following her first attempt to capture the title, a decision loss to Jedrzejczyk in 2017. Namajunas, meanwhile, finished Michelle Waterson before twice beating Jedrzejczyk. ”People say my game is better than hers, but I disagree,” Andrade said. “Everybody is good at something. The only difference is that I’m stronger. I have a good ground game too, my striking is also very aggressive, but Rose has been showing a big evolution in her last fights. I believe it will be a moment to test ourselves inside the Octagon.” UFC 237 will take place at the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and air live on pay-per-view on ESPN+.<doc-sep>
Jessica Andrade is the new women's strawweight champion after knocking out Rose Namajunas at UFC 237. (Getty Images) Rose Namajunas dominated Jessica Andrade in the first round of their strawweight world title UFC 237 main event Saturday in Brazil with elusive footwork and precise punching. In the second round, however, Andrade pressed forward, undeterred, and scored a dramatic come-from-behind victory. Wading in through Rose’s sharp punches, the Brazilian pressed Namajunas against the cage fence before lifting her up into the air as the American held onto a double wrist lock, and then slamming “Thug Rose” onto the back of her head. The impact knocked the defending champion out on contact. Referee Marc Goddard astutely recognized that Namajunas was limp and leapt into the fray, stopping it at 2:58 of the second round. The win improves Andrade’s record to 20-6, as Namajunas’ mark dips to 8-4. After the first round, UFC color commentator and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier said from cageside that Namajunas may very well be better than ever. Indeed, the 26-year-old looked too quick, sharp and skilled for Andrade up until nearly the moment the bout ended. Namajunas used deft lateral footwork from the start, as well as feints and long, snapping jabs with jarring right cross punches immediately following. For her part, Andrade rushed in aggressively, attempting to close the distance on her taller opponent, but only to get touched up with counter punches and be left with a serious cut around her left eye just a minute in to the bout. Namajunas countered Andrade’s multiple early leg kick attempts with counter punches before landing a thudding hook-cross punch combination that snapped the challenger’s head back. Story continues Relentless, even in the face of dominant offense, Andrade charged in once more, scoring a takedown. Namajunas secured a double wrist lock as she was being taken down, however, and was able to seamlessly threaten with a shoulder lock once things hit the mat. With Namajunas still attached to her own arm, Andrade got to her feet and scored another slam, only to have Namajunas skillfully transition to a straight armlock attempt off of her back. Andrade escaped the hold, stood up and gained separation from the dangerous submission artist. Once back up on her own two feet, and perhaps sensing vulnerability to submission holds on the mat, Namajunas shot in and hit her own double leg takedown, though Andrade quickly got back up. Namajunas next connected with a check left hook to the head, before using the Thai plum clinch to score a knee strike that caused Andrade to stumble backward, and then fall to the floor. Namajunas once again lunged in to finish, attempting strikes and guard passes before Andrade worked up and escaped a front headlock. Andrade ended the first round with destabilizing leg kicks, a right hand to the head, and then by working for another takedown against the fence. Andrade picked up her low kick offensive at the start of the second round, as Namajunas landed more jabs and check left hooks. Andrade, still bleeding and absorbing more punishment than she could yet deliver, nonetheless marched forward with looping punches as Namajunas countered with her own crisp shots and circled away from danger. Soon, however, Namajunas began to back straight up, mouth open, hands down, as Andrade charged in over and again. Left hooks to the body and head from Andrade began to clip Namajunas, who briefly landed a hip toss before Andrade popped back up. Andrade’s leg kicks began shifting lower, to the calf of the champion, before she moved in for a final time, effectively closing the distance and pressing Namajunas against the cage. From there, Namajunas once again grabbed the far-side double wrist lock which had helped her in the first round when Andrade worked for slams against the cage. This time, however, the insistence on maintaining the hold appeared to place Namajunas in a dangerous spot as Andrade stepped in, got her hips underneath those of Namajunas and lifted the champ high into the head before turning her so that the champ’s head went over her legs, and then spiked her onto the ground with authority. After suddenly losing her strawweight UFC world title, Saturday in Rio, Rose Namajunas admitted to feeling as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. (Getty Images) Namajunas went out, Andrade landed a couple punches for good measure and a new Queen at 115 pounds was suddenly crowned.