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Wrap: What a great fight - wish it had been five rounds. Israel and Anderson put on a clinic in the main event. Kiwis go 3-0 on the night - post card wrap not to far away. Thanks for watching with me.
UFC 234 main card:
Main Event: Middleweight - Israel Adesanya vs Anderson Silva
Result: Israel Adesanya defeats Anderson Silva by unanimous decision.
Round 1: Not much from either guy to begin - both working out the range. Silva explodes but Adesanya lands an overhand and a head kick but Silva is fine. Silva lands a nice punch to the temple but Izzy is fine. Izzy lands a nice combo, right and left but Silva is still there - Izzy show boating and Silva shows him some back. This is fun - Izzy lands a clean leg kick, right hand to finish the round.
Newshub score: Israel Adesanya 10-9
Round 2: Izzy growing in confidence but Silva still dangerous. Izzy lands a slick one-two but Silva is fine. Silva lands a big right but Izzy shakes it off. This is a striking masterclass from both guys. Silva landing with counters - Izzy landing leg kicks and jabs - super close fight. Silva on the charge has Izzy on is heels - looking for a big right and lands in the clinch to end the round. Close.
Newshub score: Silva 10-9
Round 3: Silva on the charge with a flying knee but Izzy avoids and is now on the front foot. Silva against the fence with Izzy throwing feints. Izzy calls Silva to the centre of the cage - Izzy lands two nice leg kicks. Silva has a closed right eye - Izzy on the front foot throwing jabs and leg kicks. Body punch from Izzy followed by a head kick - Silva throws a head kick but doesn't land. Izzy stalks but can't land anything heavy as the round and fight closes.
Newshub score: Adesanya 10-9 and the fight 29-28.
Lightweight: Lando Vanatta vs Marcos Rosa Mariano
Result: Lando Vanatta defeats Marcos Mariano by submission Round 1.
Round 1: This fight was promoted from the feature fight on the Fight Pass prelims to the co-main event after Robert Whittaker's medical issues pulled him from the card. Too very skilled strikers on display here - Vanatta pushing early - he secures a body lock and suplexes Mariano to the canvas and side control. Vanatta working nicely from the top - Mariano doesn't have much defence from the bottom. Vanatta lands huge right from the top - Mariano didn't like that - Vanatta goes for the kimura and Mariano taps with just a few seconds on the clock.
Bantamweight: Rani Yahya vs Ricky Simon
Result: Ricky Simon defeats Rani Yahya by unanaimous decision.
Round 1: Both guys swinging to start - Simon has one of the worst haircuts I have seen - anyway back to the fight - Simon looks to be the heavier puncher with Yahya looking for the takedown. Simon drops Yahya with a huge left - he calls Yahya back to the feet and drops him again, then again - brutal standup. Simon stalking, Yahya desperate for the takedown but it's not there in any way. Simon is having his way here.
Newshub score: Simon 10-8
Round 2: Simon drops Yahya again but the Brazilian is back up and he lands a nice right hand that cuts Simon over the right eye. Yahya lands a big punch and Simon is hurt and backing up - Yahya lands again but as he goes on the attack, Simon knocks himn down with a rugby league type shoulder tackle. Close round.
Newshub score: Yahya 10-9
Round 3: Yahya pulls guard to open the round but Simon breaks free and we are back standing. Simon lands a big right but Yahya's chin is holding up - Yahya shoots but Simon's sprawl is outstanding and the fight is back to the feet. Simon scores a takedown for fun but Yahya pulls him back into guard with 20 seconds on the clock. Simon working from the top as the fight comes to an end.
Newshub score: Simon 10-9 and the fight 29-27.
Women's flyweight: Montana De La Rosa vs Nadia Kassem
Result: Montana De La Rosa defeats Nadia Kassem via submission Round 2.
Round 1: De La Rosa throws a few heavy shots out of the gate that land - Kassem on her heels and De La Rosa gets a takedown. De La Rosa controllinng from the top but having to fight off submission attempts from the Aussie - not much to like here. De La Rosa finally into side control and is working for an armbar as the round comes to a close.
Newshub score: De La Rosa 10-8
Round 2: Same as the first round - De La Rosa fires off a few hard rights and goes underneath to score the takedown and side control. De La Rosa has a triangle from the top and is nailing Kassem with some heavy hands - Armbar now as Kassem rolls but it's still tight - Kassem is out but straight back to the armbar and Kassem finally verbally submits and it's all over. Great showing from the 14th ranked flyweight.
Light heavyweight: Sam Alvey vs Jim Crute
Result: Jimmy Crute defeats Sam Alvey bt TKO Round 1.
Round 1: Crute the local boy stalking Alvey to open but nothing landing. Crute cautious of Alvey's power - Crute lands a big right hand and Alvey is down but up fairly quickly - he's down again though and Crute is on him.....referee steps in and stops the fight - Alvey is not happy with the stoppage and he looks okay but the fight is done quickly.
UFC 234 prelims:
Lightweight: Devonte Smith vs Dong Hyun Ma
Result: Devonte Smith by TKO Round 1.
Round 1: Searching range fight so far - neither guy willing to engage at this point. Smith stalking but not landing - Ma has hardly thrown a feint let alone a punch through the first four minutes. Leg kick from Ma but Smith lands a maddive straight right and Ma is down - Smith follows up with some heavy strikes on the grouind and the fight is over.
Featherweight: Shane Young vs Austin Arnett
Result: Shane Young defeats Austin Arnett by unanimous decision.
Round 1: Young really busy to start - throwing that jab out and landing. Young continues to press and lands a lovely left hook - Arnett replies with a straight right - using his reach advantage well the American. Arnett connecting with counters as Young presses. Arnett edging this so far with his counter striking. Young finishes well though .... lands a nice right-left combo and followed up with a knee as the round ends.
Newshub score: Arnett 10-9
Round 2: Young pushing again - lands an overhand and a hook - Arnett replies with his superb jab. Much of the same this round - the Kiwi on the charge but is being thwarted by the counter attack from Arnett. Nice period for Arnett - picks apart the Kiwi with straights - Young lands a big right and follows with kicks and punches that has Arnett on his wheels - another big right from Young and another to end the round. Close.
Newshub score: Young 10-9
Round 3: Arnett lands a nice straight right to start but Young remains on the front foot. Young cracks Arnett with a big right and Arnett is backing up --- Young on the prow but can't land that truly fight stopping blow. Left hook then uppercut from Young, follows it with another couple heavy strikes. The Kiwi doing a nice job to close this out. 15 seconds to go and they fighters swing for the fences - both landing big shiots - Young drops Arnett with a massive left hook as the bell sounds. Whew! Great fight.
Newshub score: Young 10-9 and the fight 29-28.
Flyweight: Kai Kara-France vs Raulain Paiva
Result: Kai Kara-France defeats Raulain Paiva by split decision.
Round 1: Paiva is 18-1 with 12 straight wins - Kai is riding a six fight win streak himself and has won 10 of his last 11. Kai drops him with a big right-left combo but Paiva is straight back up. Overhand from Kai lands. Paiva shoots but Kai sprawls and we are back standing.Kai lands a big left but Paiva's chin holding up so far. Kai's movement has been superb - staying out of range but landing the odd counter against an aggressive Paiva.
Newshub score: Kara-France 10-9.
Round 2: Paiva gets an early takedown - Kai back to his feet but Paiva has him against the fence - Kai seperates and we are back standing. Paiva lands a nice leg kick and then scores a second takedown - he hammers at Kai from the top but Kai lands an up-kick and gets back up, Kai with a huge right but Paiva eats it and lands a nice uppercut in reply. Kai lands another hard right but Paiva lands a big punch himself - Paiva jumps for the choke to end the round. Close round.
Newshub score: Paiva 10-9.
Round 3: Kai lands an overhand - Paiva replies with a couple straight rights and a left hook. Kai goes low with a kick - caught by Paiva, Kai seperates but cops a low kick in the cup...Ouch! Kai has five-minutes to recover if he needs it. We are back underway - Paiva pressing and Kai shoots and gets the top position - Paiva back to his feet straight away. Nice right hand from Kai lands on a aggressive Paiva - Paiva landing jabs though - this is close. Kai lands a left hook but Paiva eats it. Kai shoots to end the round and scores the takedown. Super close.
Newshub score: Kara-France 10-9 and the fight 29-28 but it could go either way.
Bantamweight: Teruto Ishihara Kyung Ho Kang
Result: Kyung Ho Kang defeats Teruto Ishihara by submission Round 1.
Round 1: Ishihara gets cracked with a willd punch from Kang but he fires back with one himself to drop Kang. Another big left from Kang lands. Wild fight so far. Kang and Ishihara just throwing crazy punches - it's like a video game - Kang scores the takedown and works for position - he earns the back and sinks in a rear naked choke - it's deep and Ishihara is out. Great fight and a great result for Mr Perfect Kyung Ho Kang.
UFC 234: Fight Pass prelims:
Lightweight: Callan Potter vs Jalin Turner
Result: Jalin Turner defeats Callan Potter by TKO Round 1
Round 1: Potter aggressive early - straight punches from Turner, who cracks Potter with a right hook, then follows with a combination of punches – right hook, body kick, right hook – that send the Australian to the mat. With more left hands, Potter is clearly out, and the referee steps in to save him.
Bantamweight: Jonathan Martinez vs Wuliji Buren
Result: Martinez by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28).
Round 1: Buren, a well decorated wrestler out of China, gets the early takedown. Martinez is up and slams Buren to the mat but Buren has the guillotine locked - Martinez is out. Fighters scramble on the ground with Martinez on top. Fighters back up - Martinez attempts a high kick but Buren sweeps the leg and ends the round on top.
Newshub score: 10-9 Martinez.
Round 2: Martinez lands a nice straight left out of the gate to open the second frame. Buren shoots and completes his second takedown of the fight - earns half guard and will work from there. Martinez sweeps nicely to get position but Buren replies with a butterfly sweep himself - great show of quality grappling. Fighters back up now with Martinez pressing Buren up against the fence. Round ends with Marftinez in control.
Newshub score: 10-9 Martinez.
Round 3: Buren needs a finish - scores an early takedown and now jumps for an armbar - that is super deep but Martinez somehow escapes and now has Buren's back. Big moment. Martinez working nicely in a dominant position but Buren is no joke on the ground and scrambles nicely back to guard and position. Buren now looking for an annaconda choke but it's not there. Martinez back in top position now - working nicely from guard looking for a finish and almost gets the stoppage as the bell rings to end the fight.
Newshub score: 10-9 Martinez and the fight 30-27.
12:49 - Here is the full story of the Robert Whittaker injury
12:31am - If you haven't checked out the Fight Club Podcast yet you should - it's awesome! Here is the episode from a few weeks back when the City Kickboxing trio stopped by to say hello.
11:54am - UPDATE: Coverage now starts from 1pm with the prelims losing one fight to the main card.
11:25am - Here is your updated fight card for the afternoon.
11:09am - You have to love Chael Sonnen - Make the fight Dana!
10:59am: UPDATE - Adesanya vs Silva will remain a three-round fight despite the main event upgrade. Landa Vannata vs Marcos Rosa Mariano promoted from the Fight Pass prelims to the co-main event.
10:52am: Still trying to get my head around the news this morning. Absolutley gutted for Whittaker who is a real top and humble bloke. Also gotta feel for the Aussie fans who sold the arena out inside 10 minutes to watch their countryman defend his title.
But the show must go on as they say and this is now an even bigger stage for Adesanya to announce himself to the combat sports world.
10:04am: Massive letdown for Whittaker. 'Bobby Knuckles' kinda shocked the world with his rise to the top of the UFC's 185-pound division. This was his coming out party as a UFC superstar but now he has to watch from a hospital bed.
The card was very top heavy to begin with so Adesanya vs Silva was the clear choice for the new main event. Spare a thought for Kelvin Gastelum who has had his title shot pulled from under him at the 11th hour.
9:33am: BREAKING NEWS: Robert Whittaker has withdrawn from his title defence with a hernia in his abdomen. Adesanya vs Silva now a five-round mian event.
Hello all and welcome to live coverage of UFC 234 from Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne.
This afternoon's card is headlined by a middleweight title fight featuring Australian Rob Whittaker, who was born art Middlemore hospital in Auckland, against Mexican-American fighter Kelvin Gastelum.
But it's the co-main event that has the interest of most Kiwi combat sports fans with the great Anderson Silva returning from a two-year layoff to take on 'The Last Stylebender' Israel Adesanya.
- Listen to the Fight Club Podcast: City Kickboxing takeover
The stakes are high for the City Kickboxing middleweight prospect - the winner earns the right to fight for the middleweight championship later in 2019.
But two of Adesanya's 'CKB' teammates are also in action today. Flyweight Kai Kara-France fights for the second time under the bright lights of the UFC when he steps inside the Octagon. The newly ranked 125-pound dynamo will square off against Brazilian Raulian Paiva,
Fellow Kiwi Shane Young will follow Kara-France taking on American featherweight Austin Arnett. Young is looking to win his second straight UFC fight after he disposed of Rolando Dy in 2018.
We will bring you play-by-play of all the action from the fights featuring the Kiwis as well as extensive coverage of the main event.
Stay tuned throughout the day for results as they happen on one of the biggest days in New Zealand combat sports history.
- Kai Kara-France in his happy place inside the Octagon
- Kiwi UFC fighter Shane Young overcomes personal struggles
Pre-fight chat: City Kickboxing coach Eugene Bareman talks Halbergs, Melbourne and New Zealand MMA
As far as unsung heroes go, they don’t come much more reluctant than City Kickboxing 'sensei' Eugene Bareman.
Overshadowed in the intrigue and excitement surrounding New Zealand's Shane Young, Kai Kara-France and Israel Adesanya's upcoming performances at UFC 234 in Melbourne have been the efforts of the humble coaching mastermind, who's been the architect behind the new wave of Kiwi talent sweeping the promotion.
Bareman's unassuming converted garage, tucked away among generic office blocks and motorway overpasses - which he originally founded with the intention of catering solely to general fitness - was officially the third-most successful UFC gym in the world last year, with an overall record of 8-1.
Add lightweight Dan Hooker to the mix and City Kickboxing is home to four of the five currently contracted Kiwi fighters on MMA's biggest stage, along with Aussie featherweight star-in-waiting Alexander Volkanovski, and rising heavyweight boxers Junior Fa and Hemi Ahio.
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Bareman will be in Adesanya's corner in Melbourne on Sunday. Credits: Image - Getty; Video - Newshub.
As far as unsung heroes go, they don’t come much more reluctant than City Kickboxing 'sensei' Eugene Bareman.
Overshadowed in the intrigue and excitement surrounding New Zealand's Shane Young, Kai Kara-France and Israel Adesanya's upcoming performances at UFC 234 in Melbourne have been the efforts of the humble coaching mastermind, who's been the architect behind the new wave of Kiwi talent sweeping the promotion.
Bareman's unassuming converted garage, tucked away among generic office blocks and motorway overpasses - which he originally founded with the intention of catering solely to general fitness - was officially the third-most successful UFC gym in the world last year, with an overall record of 8-1.
Add lightweight Dan Hooker to the mix and City Kickboxing is home to four of the five currently contracted Kiwi fighters on MMA's biggest stage, along with Aussie featherweight star-in-waiting Alexander Volkanovski, and rising heavyweight boxers Junior Fa and Hemi Ahio.
- Kiwi UFC fighter Shane Young overcomes personal struggles
- UFC is home for Kiwi flyweight Kara-France
That earned Bareman a spot on the shortlist for Coach of the Year at the Halberg Awards, recognition that, after a hasty bit of googling, he's been predictably quick to deflect.
"I'll be honest, I needed to do a little bit of research about just what the award was about," Bareman told Newshub.
"I've had a lot of people help me get to this point and I've had a lot of input from other people. I've learnt off a lot of people and a lot of great coaches, so I was definitely apprehensive about being at the pinnacle of this and taking that limelight, when it should be shared among all of us.
"In saying that, what I did think was pretty cool was that our little small sport, which I care so much about, was mentioned in some way among all those big mainstream sports."
With three of his fighters featured on Sunday's pay-per-view card, the self-confessed gym "hermit" believes the event represents a milestone, not only for Bareman's gym, but for New Zealand mixed martial arts in a broader sense.
"It's a landmark time for the gym, landmark time, I hope, for the country.
"I lock myself in these four walls, so I don’t know too much about what's going on outside of here in terms of the interest, but I hope the country is really recognising what this means and getting behind it."
One of the primary tenets of Bareman's training ethos has been his all-inclusive approach to gym work. Drop by a packed training session any given evening of the week, and you'll find the likes of Adesanya and Hooker sweating it out alongside a host of amateur hopefuls, the belief being that the rising tide will lift all the boats.
That's never been truer than through the past six weeks, where the dynamic created by conducting three fighters in simultaneous training camps for the same UFC card has been uniquely inspiring.
"The vibe in the gym is absolutely amazing. It's pumping at the moment, because we have a very close-knit team and that team recognises when someone else is fighting, so they all rally behind that person - whether they're fighting in the UFC or a smaller promotion.
"All the other boys that are an integral part of preparing them have really rallied together and are getting in behind them, and giving them that massive push that they want.
"If those boys are successful like I know they will be, it'll be because of all those other people rallying behind them."
As a former Muay Thai professional, Bareman is all too familiar with the plight of a fighter, and his pupils will tell you that while he demands plenty from his fighters, he sets equally high expectations for himself.
"Eugene breaks down guys like nobody else," Adesanya said. "He breaks down film for hours, just collecting data."
"He makes you question do you really want to do this," adds Kara-France. "Because if you want to do it, you really have to put 100 percent into it.
"It's not just like a nine-to-five job, Monday to Friday. If you want to really get to that next level of elite fighting, you need to eat, breathe and sleep combat sports.
"That's what he's really big about at our gym. We just take it a lot more serious.
"We train on a Sunday as well, so we don’t really get weekends off - we only really get half days off."
Operating alongside the likes of veteran trainer Doug Viney and ace wrestling tutor Andrei Paulet, Bareman has always had complete confidence that New Zealand's coaching resources were of an elite global standard and set out - in his own unique way - to disprove the tired notion that Kiwi fighters needed to be based abroad to carve themselves a pro career.
"He always knew New Zealand had the better training and technique, but he kind of wanted us to see for ourselves," said Kara-France, referring to his stint at famed Tiger Muay Thai in Phuket. "You had to go over there to realise the grass isn’t greener on the other side.
"I got to train with a lot of different coaches, bodies, different looks and styles, but to come back to NZ, you realise we've had it good this whole time. We don't need to go overseas to get these world-class training camps, we can do it all in our backyard."
Bareman is almost blissfully unaware of the impact he and his coaching staff have had on his beloved sport in Aotearoa.The numbers don’t lie and the ever-increasing number of bodies streaming through his gym on a daily basis speaks for itself.
"I don’t have social media," he admits. "I'm just at the gym every day and then I go home, that’s it.
"But what I do understand is that my gym is absolutely packed. I'm looking for more space.
"People are definitely recognising that it's a sport. It's becoming a mainstream sport.
"It might not be there yet in this country, but it's becoming an option, at least for young people."
Bareman - in his characteristically measured and deliberate manner - stressed the importance of continuing that momentum this year, after a watershed 2018.
"We need to keep learning. That’s been a massive part of this gym, making sure we're staying on top of the learning process and making sure were not getting complacent.
"We're always striving to improve.
"Longer term, it's about getting the next generation ready, which we're already doing with the help of these guys who are being successful now, because they're inspiring a lot of people to come into the gym."
If Adesanya achieves what's widely regarded as inevitable by capturing the UFC middleweight title, both his and Bareman's names should be at the forefront of Halbergs consideration next year.
Regardless, he doesn’t expect any monetary assistance coming from the likes of High Performance Sports New Zealand as a result. On the contrary, he prefers it this way.
"It's been like that forever and maybe part of our success has been that struggle, has been that we've had to use our ingenuity a lot. Up and coming fighters get nothing, they live in my gym on my mats, they live in their car.
"We haven't had the funding, we haven't had the money, we've had to come up with all this intellectual property on our own. We might not do that if you put $100,000 in our back pocket.
"We might get someone else to do it and it might be a little bit different, so I wouldn’t change anything.
"It doesn’t bug me, but maybe one day - hopefully - there will be a little bit more backing from these agencies and stuff, you never know.
"But if it never happens, it doesn't matter. New Zealand combat sports, MMA, kickboxing - we're still going to move on and do our thing."
Newshub.
