SEATTLE (AP) — Demetrious Johnson used an armbar on John Moraga late in the fifth round and successfully defended his UFC flyweight championship with a submission victory Saturday night before a partisan hometown crowd.
Johnson, making the second defense of the flyweight crown, controlled most of the fight, then ended it at 3:43 of the fifth round, bending Moraga’s right arm to the point referee Herb Dean stopped the fight. Johnson (18-2-1) leaped to his feet with four spinning kicks in the center of the ring to celebrate his title defense.
The co-main event saw young Canadian star Rory MacDonald (15-1) take a unanimous decision over Jake Ellenberger (29-7) in a welterweight fight that left the crowd cascading boos after the much-anticipated matchup failed to live up to its billing. But MacDonald’s strategy of avoiding Ellenberger’s big punches worked and ran his winning streak to five.
In other fights on the main card, Robbie Lawler used a huge kick to floor Bobby Voelker in a second-round knockout. Liz Carmouche also had a second-round victory, stopping Brazil’s Jessica Andrade in her UFC debut.
