Michael Bisping and Tim Kennedy squashed their beef in The Ultimate Fighter Nations finale main event Wednesday evening at the Colisee Pepsi in Quebec City, with Kennedy taking the fight via unanimous decision.
While the two talked a lot of trash and lobbed serious verbal assaults before the matchup, the fight itself ended up being a bit of a stinker, as Kennedy controlled the fight with his superior wrestling and top game.
Such a performance left fans and the UFC brass wanting more, as neither Bisping nor Kennedy earned a post-fight bonus for his efforts.
Instead, the Fight of the Night went to Dustin Poirier and Akira Corassani, who engaged in a back-and-forth, two-round fight that eventually saw Poirier emerge victorious via TKO.
Despite the clear-cut finish for Poirier, Corassani found success in Round 1, catching "The Diamond" with stiff punches and dropping his foe to the canvas. Poirier stormed back, however, and he showed the heart and determination that one would expect from a top-10 UFC fighter, snatching the victory and pocketing an extra $50,000 in Fight of the Night money in the process.
Performance of the Night bonuses went to Ryan Jimmo and K.J. Noons, two fighters who won via first-round knockout at the event.
Fight of the Night: @DustinPoirier v @AkiraCorassani Performance of the night @RyanJimmo and @kjnoons. $50k for these guys!! #UFCFightNight
— UFC (@ufc) April 17, 2014
Jimmo starched his opponent, Sean O'Connell, with a short right hand and some brutal ground-and-pound shots, earning the vicious stoppage on the preliminary portion of the night's card.
After that, Noons obliterated Sam Stout with a right hook and a follow-up left from Hades, sealing a dominant finish and becoming the first fighter to ever stop Stout via strikes. The finish was so nasty that Stout, still rocked, attempted to wrestle the referee for a solid 10 seconds, even looking to lock in a guillotine on one occasion. Ouch.
To recap (all fighters earn $50,000):
Fight of the Night: Dustin Poirier and Akira Corassani
Performance of the Night: Ryan Jimmo, K.J. Noons
