MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – Filipino-American fighter John Dodson suffered a split decision loss at the hands of Brazilian combatant John Lineker in the main event of UFC Fight Night 96 on Saturday, October 1 (Sunday, October 2 in Manila) at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon.
Cageside officials Judges Sal D’Amato and Glenn Trowbridge saw the 5-round bantamweight contest in favor of Lineker with 48-47 scores, while third judge Marcos Rosales had it 48-47 for Dodson.
Lineker, who missed the non-title bantamweight limit by half a pound, never stopped stalking his pesky opponent from bell to bell as Dodson utilized circular movement and quick hands to force the extremely-formidable Brazilian to chase him around the Octagon for the better part of the bout.
The 26-year-old native of Parana, Brazil pressed forward and repeatedly walked into Dodson’s dangerous left hand in the opening salvo, but it did not appear to be hurt by it.
Lineker started targeting Dodson’s body with solid punches and stinging kicks in the second frame, but he was unable to slow down his Fil-Am foe’s infuriating lateral movement.
The third canto saw spirited exchanges from both competitors, with Dodson having the majority of the significant strikes by clipping several head kicks and left hooks.
Dodson resorted in a very technical approach in the final two rounds of the contest as at one point of the fourth period, he turned his back and sprinted away from Lineker, which drew the ire from the crowd.
Dodson exerted his best effort to try and get the job done in the fifth round, where he clobbered a series of left hooks on Lineker’s head, converted a takedown attempt, and climbed onto his counterpart’s back for a rear-naked choke.
With the razor-thin defeat to Lineker, Dodson downgrades his professional record to 18-8 and tastes his first setback as a bantamweight in the UFC.
Meanwhile, Lineker extends his winning streak to 6 fights and improves his win-loss late to 29-7. – Rappler.com
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