UFC Fight Night 159 Results: Eye Poke Ends Yair Rodriguez-Jeremy Stephens

There was no drama in the main event at UFC Fight Night 159 Saturday night, and the Mexican fans let their displeasure be known.

Yair Rodriguez caught Jeremy Stephens with an accidental eye poke and the featherweight headline bout was called off at 15 seconds of the first round.

Fans hurled items at Stephens as he left the Octagon, and Rodriguez expressed his disappointment during the post-fight interview with Michael Bisping.

Yair Rodriguez Post-Fight Interview

In the co-main event of the night, Carla Esparza got the better of Alexa Grasso via majority decision. Esparza, the first-ever UFC strawweight champion and first-ever Invicta FC strawweight champion, has now won back-to-back fights for the first time since 2017.

Carla Esparza Post-Fight Interview

Flyweights Brandon Moreno and Askar Askarov battled to a split draw, as one judge ruled it 28-28, another gave it to Askarov, 29-28, and the third had it in favor of Moreno, 30-27.

Irene Aldana downed Vanessa Melo via decision and Steven Peterson highlighted the night with a second round knockout over Martin Bravo via spinning back-fist.

Melo came in heavy in her promotional debut as a replacement for Marion Reneau, forfeiting 30 percent of her fight purse to Aldana.

On the prelims, Jose Alberto Quinonez capped that portion of the card with a decision victory over Carlos Huachin, with Kyle Nelson and Angela Hill earning finishes vs. Polo Reyes and Ariane Carnelossi. Paul Craig picked up a submission, locking in a rear-naked choke on Vinicius Moreira in the first.

Sergio Pettis claimed a decision over Tyson Nam, Bethe Correia topped Sijara Eubanks and Claudio Puelles bested Marcos Rosa Mariano.

Nam, a champion on the regional circuit, was making his Octagon debut. Pettis snapped a two-fight losing skid with a win.

UFC Fight Night 159 Results

Yair Rodriguez vs. Jeremy Stephens declared a no-contest (accidental eye poke) at :15 of Round 1

Carla Esparza def. Alexa Grasso via majority decision (28-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Brandon Moreno vs. Askar Askarov declared a split draw (28-28, 28-29, 30-27)

Irene Aldana def. Vanessa Melo via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)

Steven Peterson def. Martin Bravo via KO (spinning back-fist) at 1:31 of Round 2

Jose Alberto Quinonez def. Carlos Huachin via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Kyle Nelson def. Polo Reyes via TKO (strikes) at 1:36 of Round 1

Angela Hill def. Ariane Carnelossi via TKO (doctor stoppage) at 1:56 of Round 3

Sergio Pettis def. Tyson Nam via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Paul Craig def. Vinicius Moreira via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:19 of Round 1

Bethe Correia def. Sijara Eubanks via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Claudio Puelles def. Marcos Rosa Mariano via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-25)

Dana Becker

The world of MMA is one of the few sports that brings together people from all walks of life. I try my best to tell those stories and also present breaking news to the masses.