UFC on FUEL TV 7 Results: Barao Submits McDonald In Main Event

Cub Swanson vs. Dustin Poirier

Quick results for UFC on FUEL TV 7

The Ultimate Fighting Championship travels back to England's Wembley Arena this weekend for UFC on FUEL TV 7.

Due to the card's location, fans are in for an early start time as action begins with a preliminary card at 12:15 p.m. ET on Facebook.com and YouTube, followed by a main card of FUEL TV at 3 p.m. ET.

The event features an interim bantamweight title fight between interim champ Renan Barao and Michael McDonald, as well as a co-main event between featherweight contenders Cub Swanson and Dustin Poirier.

Join FightDay this afternoon for all the action from England.

Preliminary Card

Ulysses Gomez vs. Phil Harris -- The opening bout of UFC on FUEL TV 7 was a close one, just not the good type of close contest. Harris looked to punch and catch kicks throughout the majority of the bout, while Gomez just looked for kicks and flying knees. After 15 minutes, it seemed a split-decision was on the way. That outcome, however, would not come to fruition.

Official Decision: Harris def. Gomez via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Vaughan Lee vs. Motonobu Tezuka -- UFC on FUEL TV 7's pace did not increase in the second bout of the card following a first bout that did little to impress. Apart from an exciting scramble in the second round, the contest featured Tezuka's takedown attempt and Lee's ability to stop them almost exclusively. Lee walked away with the nod after essentially rendering Tezuka's wrestling useless.

Official Decision: Lee def. Tezuka via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Tom Watson vs. Stanislav Nedkov --  After two poor fights to kick off the card, the fans in Wembley were treated to one of the better fights you'll see this year. In an absolute back-and-forth war, Tom Watson battled through adversity, nearly getting knocked out several times in the opening round and struggling in the first half of the second, to secure a comeback win against Stanislav Nedkov. The pair of middleweights are early frontrunners to take home Fight of the Night honors.

Official Decision: Watson def. Nedkov via technical knockout at 4:42 of Round 2

Josh Grispi vs. Andy Ogle -- My, how far Josh Grispi has fallen. The former featherweight top prospect headed to England on a three-fight losing streak, winless in the UFC after going undefeated in the WEC. Ironically nicknamed "The Fluke," Grispi started strong against Andy Ogle, nearly stopping the fight early with a triangle choke. But the Brit battled through the attempt for four of the five first minutes and took control of the fight once out. In the second and third, Ogle utilized his grappling and fast-paced style to completely rob any remaining momentum from Grispi, who likely finds himself on the way out of the UFC.

Official Decision: Ogle def. Grispi via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Danny Castillo vs. Paul Sass -- Paul Sass is known for his triangle choke, and Danny Castillo did his research. Sass threatened early with a triangle choke attempt, but Castillo slammed his way through it, while then escaping several leg lock submissions. After a demoralizing first round, Sass just never truly threatened Castillo again. "Last Call" took control in the second and third rounds with his strong wrestling base, while also landing his fair share of ground and pound.

Official Decision: Castillo def. Sass via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Terry Etim vs. Renee Forte -- In the final preliminary card bout of UFC on FUEL TV 7, Terry Etim battled Renee Forte for all three rounds en route to a unanimous decision outcome. Etim was confident early, smiling at the efforts of his opponent. However, Forte's striking eventually caught up with him, and Etim was almost finished. He survived, but could not survive the judges' decision, which rewarded Forte for his efficiency and overall activity.

Official Decision: Forte def. Etim via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Main Card

Matthew Riddle vs. Che Mills

A welterweight contest between Riddle and Mills kicked off the main card, and even though the former looked to use a safer style of fighting in this fight, as opposed to his usually careless style, Riddle somehow came one judge's scorecard away from a loss instead of a split-decision win.

Of course, the judge who scored the fight 29-28 for Mills was dead wrong in his decision.

Riddle focused on the utilization of his wrestling game throughout the contest, always threatening Mills with taking the fight to the floor. Though Mills had some bright spots in the striking game, especially in the early going of the final round of three, he spent far too much time off his back to warrant a victory, even if one judge gave him the nod. The other two judges were far more reasonable with one awarding two of the three rounds to Riddle, while the other saw fit to give him a 30-27 score.

Official Decision: Riddle def. Mills via split-decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)

James Te Huna vs. Ryan Jimmo

Another fight down, another interesting scorecard out of England.

In a light heavyweight tilt that many in the media had scored a draw -- though many also realized it probably wouldn't end up with that as a decision -- Jimmo and Te Huna met in what ended up becoming a contender for Fight of the Night, right alongside Tom Watson vs. Stanislav Nedkov.

Jimmo got off to a terrific start, blasting Te Huna with a headkick right out of the gate. Te Huna spent the rest of the first round just holding on, attempting to survive the onslaught. Jimmo continued to pour on the pressure, but Te Huna survived what seemed to be an almost certain 10-8 round for the Canadian.

The fact that no judges scored it a 10-8 round proved the difference in the end.

In the second frame, Te Huna came out with a new level of intensity, working the fight to the ground early. With the impressive turnaround, Te Huna began scoring points and putting himself back in the fight with ground strikes. A wearing Jimmo made it out of the second with a good amount of damage, but not the type of damage which he dealt in the first.

The third and final round, like the second, was all Te Huna's as he once again controlled a worn-down Jimmo with his strength and wrestling. Heading to the judges' scorecards, considering the first should have gone 10-8 for Jimmo in the opinion of many, a 28-28 draw seemed appropriate. However, the scorecards instead read 29-27, 29-28, and 29-28 for Te Huna, meaning that he, not Jimmo, received a 10-8 round from one judge.

The decision going Te Huna's way is certainly not robbery, and if the fight was not going to be scored a draw, a 29-28 for Te Huna is hardly a surprising score. A 29-27? That's baffling.

Official Decision: Te Huna def. Jimmo via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Gunnar Nelson vs. Jorge Santiago

Gunnar Nelson perhaps didn't show it, but the welterweight prospect walked away from UFC on FUEL TV 7 with the biggest win in his professional career after three rounds against veteran Jorge Santiago.

Santiago returned to the UFC on the main card of the event in England, marking the start of his third stint with the promotion. Unfortunately, his new beginning at welterweight did not lead to a victory, and his UFC record is now 1-5 overall.

In his second UFC contest, Nelson was content to strike with Santiago. He thought takedown early in the fight, but just briefly. The second round was a different story as Nelson managed to take the fight down and have his way with Santiago.

After a strong second round, Nelson finished off with a good third frame, landing the better strikes as his opponent faded, though Santiago did leave everything he had left in the cage in the final moments of the contest.

The effort was good enough for Nelson to take home a unanimous decision nod from the judges, improving his UFC record to 2-0, while Santiago continues to struggle in the UFC.

Official Decision: Nelson def. Santiago via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Jimi Manuwa vs. Cyrille Diabate

Jimi Manuwa and Cyrille Diabate's light heavyweight contest was one of the, if not the, most highly-anticipated on UFC on FUEL TV 7, but it ended in disappointing fashion.

After clinching early in the contest, Manuwa avoided the standing strikes of Diabate by scoring a takedown. Diabate worked back up, but Manuwa simply took him back down, controlling the fight.

The opening round was hardly the most entertaining in either fighter's career, but things turned interesting when the fight was called off. Little was known as to what specifically happened, but Diabate suffered a leg injury at some point in the round and was unable to continue.

Manuwa is now 2-0 in the UFC with both wins coming by way of technical knockout.

Official Decision: Manuwa def. Diabate via technical knockout (injury) at 5:00 of Round 1

Dustin Poirier vs. Cub Swanson

Cub Swanson knew this fight was an opportunity for him to finally be recognized as a featherweight contender, and he took full advantage.

Swanson met Dustin Poirier in the co-main event of UFC on FUEL TV 7 after a heated staredown at weigh-ins on Friday. The two went right to it immediately following the opening bell, but it was Swanson who got off to the better start.

The longtime WEC veteran landed a powerful shot to stagger Poirier. While "Diamond" earned a takedown immediately following, Swanson dealt the worse damage and finished the round striking his way back to the feet.

After a strong, yet close first round, Swanson found himself against an opponent willing to adjust, as Poirier made changes to his striking game. Swanson took a rough shot to the body at one point in the round and was taken down, and Poirier proved he was still very much in the fight.

However, in the third round, Poirier was unable to find the same success he'd found in the previous round. He attempted to take Swanson down, but Swanson was the one to earn the takedown and managed to out-grapple Poirier. The ground advantage of Swanson likely earned him the round.

Heading to the judges' scorecards, Swanson hoped to improve his winning streak to four fights. He did just that and likely finds himself very close to a title shot and rematch with Jose Aldo.

Official Decision: Swanson def. Poirier via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Renan Barao vs. Michael McDonald

UFC interim bantamweight champion Renan Barao retained his title against Michael McDonald at UFC on FUEL TV 7 Saturday night in England.

The victory, which came by way of arm triangle choke submission, was one of two stoppages at Wembley and it was the lone tap out.

McDonald, just 22-years-old, was a strong challenge early in the fight, landing heavy on Barao in the opening round of the contest. His striking was likely enough to earn him a round as Barao's takedowns did little in terms of his offense.

But in the second round, Barao started to regain momentum, displaying his veteran advantage. He found more success on the feet, while avoiding damage from the young challenger. The Brazilian champion also managed to do that in a close third round, keeping McDonald at bay, while landing the better strikes, including a spinning back kick as the round was closing.

By the fourth round, Barao appeared to have completely found his stride. After eating a knee, McDonald's nose began to pour blood. Barao, remaining calm, waited for his opportunity to strike, which he found when the two fell in a clinch.

The Brazilian tackled his opponent to his knees and swept his body around to McDonald's back. With another beautiful transition, he grabbed hold of a arm triangle choke, ultimately forcing McDonald to tap out.

Barao now has won 30 consecutive fights and hopes for champion Dominick Cruz to return soon.

Official Decision: Barao def. McDonald via submission (arm triangle choke) at 3:57 of Round 4