UFC returns to Vegas; Burns gets big victory

LAS VEGAS » Gilbert Burns dominated former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley to win a unanimous decision on Saturday night in the mixed martial arts promotion’s return to Las Vegas.

Brazilian heavyweight Augusto Sakai employed some unpunished gamesmanship to eke out a splitdecision victory over Bulgaria’s Blagoy Ivanov in the penultimate bout of the UFC’s first show in its hometown since the coronavirus pandemic began.

The event was held without fans at the UFC Apex, a small gym with broadcast facilities on the promotion’s corporate campus. The UFC used minimal personnel to stage the fight, and the promotion said everyone involved was subject to strict health and safety protocols.

The 33-year-old Burns (19-3) dominated on his feet and on the ground, finishing his first main-event bout with likely the biggest win of his career and his sixth consecutive victory since July 2018, including four straight since moving back up to welterweight.

From a first-round knockdown to a strong finish, the Florida-based Brazilian soundly defeated one of the most accomplished welterweights in UFC history and made his case for a shot at champion

This Date in Baseball

1923: The New York Giants scored in every inning to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 22-8at the Baker Bowl.

1925: Lou Gehrig batted for Pee Wee Wanninger in the eighth and replaced Wally Pipp at first base to start his streak of 2,130 consecutive games. The Washington Senators beat the New York Yankees 5-3. 1937: Bill Dietrich of the Chicago White Sox pitched a no-hitter against the St. Louis Browns in an 8-0 win.

1975: Nolan Ryan of the California Angels pitched his fourth no-hitter, striking out nine. Ryan tied Sandy Koufax’s record by beating the Baltimore Orioles 1-0. It was Ryan’s 100th major league victory. 1977: Seattle’s Ruppert Jones homered off Cleveland’s Dennis Eckersley in the fifth inning to end Eckersley’s no-hit string of 22 1-3innings, just two outs short of Cy Young’s major league record. The Indians went on to win, 7-1.

1987: Cleveland’s Phil Niekro pitched the Indians to a 9-6victory, his 314th, over the Detroit Tigers. The win gave himself and his brother, Joe, a major league record 530 combined victories, surpassing Gaylord and Jim Perry.

2000: Pawtucket’s Tomo Ohka became the third pitcher in the 117-year history of the International League to throw a nine-inning perfect game when he beat the Charlotte Knights 2-0.

2011: Cincinnati’s Francisco Cordero got his 300th career save, securing the Reds’ 4-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. Cordero pitched a perfect ninth, becoming the 22nd reliever to achieve 300saves, tying Bruce Sutter at the mark. 2012: Johan Santana pitched the first no-hitter in New York Mets’ history. Santana was helped by an umpire’s missed call and an outstanding catch in left field in an 8-0victory over St. Louis Cardinals. Carlos Beltran, back at Citi Field for the first time since the Mets traded him last July, Kamaru Usman, who happens to be his training partner.

“I trained so hard for this fight, and I knew I could do it,” said Burns, who entered the bout ranked sixth in the crowded 170-pound division. “I was calling these guys out for a reason. I’m coming to stay. That was a former champion right there. You saw a dominant performance against a former champion. I’m ready. I feel so good right now.”

The judges all gave all five rounds to Burns, scoring it 50-45, 50-44 and 5044. Burns called out Usman in his post-fight interview.

“I love the champ, my training partner,” Burns said. “But come on, give me a shot. A lot of respect, a lot of love for you, but I think I’m next . ... If they want to make a fight in July, come on. I don’t have a scratch.”

Burns came out with furious energy against Woodley, dropping the ex-champ in the opening seconds and gaining full mount. A gaping cut opened in Woodley’s left eyebrow in the opening minutes, and Burns again overcame Woodley’s famously strong takedown defense to drop Woodley again in the second round.

Woodley (19-5-1) hadn’t fought since losing his title in a one-sided thrashing from Usman in March.

hit a line drive over third base in the sixth inning that hit the foul line and should have been called fair. But third base umpire Adrian Johnson ruled it foul and the no-hitter was intact. Mike Baxter made a tremendous catch in left field to rob Yadier Molina of extra bases in the seventh, getting injured in the process.

2012: Jonathan Crawford threw the seventh nohitter in NCAA Tournament history, shutting down Bethune-Cookman in a 4-0victory in the opener of the Gainesville Regional. Crawford, a sophomore, was nearly perfect and faced the minimum 27 batters. The only player to reach base was BethuneCookman’s Jake Welch on a walk in the third inning, and Florida catcher Mike Zunino threw him out trying to steal.

2012: Alex Miklos hit a go-ahead RBI triple in the 21st inning as Kent State outlasted Kentucky 7-6in the second-longest game in NCAA Tournament history. The Golden Flashes held the lead in the ninth and 18th innings, but the Wildcats answered both times to extend the game. It was the longest game in the NCAA Tournament since Texas beat Boston College 3-2 in 25 innings on May 30, 2009.

2015: Zander Wiel, Rhett Wiseman and Bryan Reynolds homered to lead Vanderbilt’s 20-hit attack and the Commodores won the Nashville Regional with a 21-0 rout of Radford. Vanderbilt tied an NCAA baseball tournament record for largest shutout margin with LSU, a 21-0 winner over Louisiana-Monroe in 2000.

2015: Maryland knocked top-seeded UCLA out of the NCAA baseball tournament with a 2-1victory in the championship game of the UCLA regional. Only two other No. 1national seeds (Vanderbilt 2007and Oregon State 2014) had failed to get out of regionals since the tournament went to its current format in 1999.