Alonzo Menifield managed to edge out Iwo Baraniewski by split-decision tonight at UFC 331, despite suffering a badly broken thumb early in the fight.
Round One
Menifield presses forward with a one-two, but doesn’t find the mark. He misses on an overhand too as he looks to dial in his range.
Low kick from Menifield. Front kick to the body from Baraniewski. Exchange of punches and Menifield got the better of that.
Left hand for Menifield. Head kick attempt from Baraniewski comes off the guard. Left hook from Menifield lands, but a few more power punches miss the mark.
Jab for Menifield. Reaching right hand for Baraniewski scores. Jab again for Menifield.
Right hand for Baraniewski and Menifield responds with two hooks. Baraniewski lands again and Menifield definitely felt that one. Baraniewski with a short flurry, but then Menifield is able to clinch up.
They back up but then start firing off big punches. Baraniewski lands harder to hurt his opponent and then is able to bring him down.
Baraniewski briefly into mount and then Menifield is able to get to his knees and stand up. Baraniewski looking for knees. He backs up to striking range.
A couple of solid punches for Baraniewski. Right hand for Menifield just before the horn sounds.
Round Two
Menifield unleashes a barrage of punches at close range and then clinches up against the cage.
Baraniewski reverses the position. They separate with Menifield landing a left hook on the way.
They exchange jabs. Menifield continues to land his and a left hook too. Now it’s Baraniewski who is landing power punches, but Menifield manages to connect on a counter to deter him for now.
Menifield clinches against the cage, but again Baraniewski is able to reverse the position.
Menifield turns into him and Baraniewski lands a knee to the body. Now Menifield lands.
Back to the center of the Octagon now. Solid punch for Baraniewski. Right hand from Baraniewski after Menifield misses. Now it’s Menifield with a right hand.
Menifield starting to get a little bit wilder again, then Baraniewski picks out a couple of cleaner punches.
Body punch for Menifield. Late in the round Menifield presses forward behind a series of left and right hands.
Round Three
Before the fight restarts for the final round the doc has to check on Menifield as his thumb appears to be broken, bloodied and bent up at a grizzly angle. He’s allowed to continue though!
They get right back to it looking for strikes at close range and then jockey for position in the clinch against the cage. Menifield gets control and just looks to grind away from there.
Baraniewski turns into him now. Menifield thinks about a guillotine but doesn’t commit to it. Not much happening and finally the ref separates them.
Menifield fires out a few left hands. Now he shortens up to elbows, but not much landing cleanly. Solid left hand for Menifield.
Baraniewski lands a punch, but then Menifield is back to the clinch. There’s some space and Baraniewski tries for a spinning elbow but misses. Menifield back into the clinch.
A few hooks from Menifield and then attempts a head kick from close range that doesn’t land. He’s the one being more active offensively in the final seconds.
Decision
There wasn’t too much between the two here, but despite a nasty broken thumb that apparently occurred sometime in the first round it’s Menifield who fights his way to a split-decision victory (29-28 x2, 28-29).
