Fabricio Werdum will finally get his shot at the UFC heavyweight title, scoring a decision victory over Travis Browne Saturday night at UFC on FOX 11. Werdum earned the win on all three scorecards by 49-46, 50-45 and 50-45 accounts.
Werdum will challenge UFC champion Cain Velasquez later this year, likely in Mexico. Velasquez is currently recovering from surgery on his shoulder.
For Werdum (18-5-1), the win was his fourth straight. Since returning to the UFC in 2012, he has defeated Roy Nelson, Mike Russow, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and now Browne. The loss snapped Browne’s (16-2-1) three-fight win streak.
In other action, Miesha Tate earned her first win inside the Octagon, scoring a decision over Liz Carmouche. Donald Cerrone choked out Edson Barboza with a first round rear-naked choke, and Yoel Romero picked up a decision over Brad Tavares.
Cerrone and Alex White earned “Performance of the Night” bonuses, while Thiago Alves and Seth Baczynski were the “Fight of the Night.” All four picked up $50,000 from a night that had the largest FOX live gate at $1.65 million with 17,000 in attendance.
Complete results can be found below:
Fabricio Werdum def. Travis Browne via unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45)
Miesha Tate def. Liz Carmouche via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Donald Cerrone def. Edson Barboza via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:15 of Round 1
Yoel Romero def. Brad Tavares via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Khabib Nurmagomedov def. Rafael dos Anjos via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Thiago Alves def. Seth Baczynski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Jorge Masvidal def. Pat Healy via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Alex White def. Estevan Payan via TKO (strikes) at 1:28 of Round 1
Caio Magalhaes def. Luke Zachrich via TKO (strikes) at :44 of Round 1
Jordan Mein def. Hernani Perpetuo via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Dustin Ortiz def. Ray Borg via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28
Mirsad Bektic def. Chas Skelly via majority decision (29-27, 29-27, 28-28)
Derrick Lewis def. Jack May via TKO (strikes) at 4:23 of Round 1
