In an enjoyable and hard fought featherweight battle Dustin Poirier emerged the victor against Erik Koch by unanimous decision.
Round One
Leg kicks from Koch to start this one off and Poirier returns fire. Punch and a kick from Poirier as he takes the center of the cage.
Koch suddenly appears to slip on the mat and Poirier tags him with a few punches on the way down. Koch might be hurt, but suddenly he slaps on an arm triangle and it looks tight.
Poirier trying hard to get out of this bad spot. Eventually he rolls out and gets back on top and then takes a breather after that dangerous moment. Koch tries again for a triangle attempt and Poirier decides to reset on the feet.
A clinch battle against the cage ensues and then they sepearate. Poirier connects with a nice left hand, then soon after a right hand drops Koch against the cage.
Poirier on top now trying to rain down more punishment. A few big shots land and Koch’s got blood streaming from his nose.
Koch almost gets up, but Poirier takes him straight back down to the mat again. Poirier hooks in a d’arce choke and it’s a good attempt, but there’s only 10 seconds of the round remaining and Koch’s able to hang in there until the bell.
Round Two
A few punches miss from both men then a brief exchange in close with Koch getting the better of it. The pace settles down again as they size each other up and throw single shots.
Nice left hand down the pipe connects for Poirier. A couple of jabs apiece and then another solid left from Poirier.
Now Poirier lands a good takedown and takes Koch’s back. He looks for a choke, but then switches to full mount instead.
Two short, hard left hands land for Poirier. Koch’s pressed up against the cage and trying to get back to his feet which he eventually manages to do, but he’s still caught in the clinch.
Big left and a right from Poirier as they seperate. Koch trying to get something going in the stand-up, but it’s not quite happening for him and it’s another good round for Poirier.
Round Three
koch working behind the jab to start the final round. He’s being a little busier with his hands now. Poirier clinches up though and hunts for a takedown against the cage. Koch defends though and they trade some knees to the mid-section.
Elbow to the head from Poirier then swoops down for the takedown, but Koch’s defending. Koch does a little trip and ends up on top with three minutes to go.
Koch’s inside Poirier’s guard attempting to pass, but is unable to. A couple of ground and pound strikes land for Koch.
two minutes to go and Koch really needs to get moving here. Poirier tries to spin out and Koch takes his back. Koch fishes for a rear-naked choke, but doesn’t get it in. Poirier starts to get up and tries to shake him off his back.
He’s almost successful, but Koch stays on and gets him down on the mat again. Koch tries for the choke again, but quickly lets go and the final seconds of the fight fizzle out.
Result
So it’s on to the judges scorecards and Dustin Poirier emerges the clear victor by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27 x2).
