A bantamweight bout between veteran John Dodson and surging division contender Petr Yan took place at today’s UFC Prague event.
John Dodson (20-10 MMA) was last seen in action at September’s UFC 228 event, where he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Jimmie Rivera.
Prior to the setback, “The Magician” was coming off a split-decision win over Pedro Munhoz at UFC 222.
Meanwhile, Petr Yan (11-1 MMA) has gone 3-0 since joining the UFC ranks in June of 2018. In his most recent performance at December’s UFC 232 event in Los Angeles, Yan defeated Douglas Silva de Andrade via TKO.
Round one begins and John Dodson comes out with a flurry of left hands. Yan circles away and avoids any real damage. Dodson goes to the body with a left hand. Yan counters nicely with a right. “The Magician” circles and then leaps in with another body punch. Yan clinches up and directs Dodson towards the cage. John breaks free. Yan with a leaping right hand. He follows that up with a kick but Dodson catches it and takes the fight to the floor. Dodson is complaining about something to the referee. Yan back to his feet now and he clips Dodson with a pair of right hands. Dodson catches another kick and scores a takedown but once again Yan is right back up to his feet. Petr with a combination now. He leaps in with a flying knee but Dodson avoids and ties him up. Yan breaks free and throws a left hand. Dodson returns fire with a body kick but then eats a pair of shots for his efforts. Yan with another nice combination that ends with a right hand over the top. The fighters clinch and Yan lands a knee. They break and Dodson lands a crisp left. Round one comes to an end.
Round two of this UFC Prague main card fight begins and Dodson lands a body kick to get things started. Yan immediately begins to pressure and forces Dodson to move. John fires off some shots to avoid being backed up into the cage. Dodson with a nice left but Yan counters with a straight right. Dodson shoots in for a single leg takedown but it is not there. Petr with a nice kick to the body. John fires a left that misses. Yan with a big right hand followed by a heavy left hook. Dodson circles and then fires off a low kick. Yan with a right hand but Dodson lunges in with a punch that drops him. Yan scrambles back to his feet and Dodson hits him with a knee. Yan returns fire with a big combination that appears to land flush. The fighters clinch but Yan quickly forces the break. Petr with a good right hand from the pocket. He lands an elbow and then an overhand right. Another hard left hand from Yan and Dodson’s knees buckle. Dodson forces the clinch and Yan fires off some knees from the position. Round two comes to an end.
Round three begins and Petr Yan comes out quickly. He lands a combination and then steps in with a left hook. Dodson responds with a flurry of punches followed by a low kick. Yan with a jab and then another. He comes forward with a big right hand. Yan with a flying knee attempt that just misses. Dodson shoots in for a single leg but it is not there. The fighters clinch along the fence. Yan with some hard knees and the fighters break. Dodson once again attempts to shoot for a takedown but it is not there. Yan takes Dodson’s back and forces him down to the canvas. John appears to use the cage to assist in getting back to his feet but the referee didn’t see it. Yan with a big right hand and then another. He connects with an uppercut. Dodson shoots in for a takedown and then complains to the referee that he was having his hair pulled. Yan takes his back and lands punches to close out the final round.
Official UFC Prague Result: Petr Yan def. John Dodson via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)