Winnipeg’s own UFC superstar Roland Delorme gave it everything he had, but Japan’s Michinori Tanaka had just a little bit more.
Tanaka (10-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) combined a dominant top game with a consistent series of quick, sharp strikes to slowly, but surely grind down the bloodied Delorme (9-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) en route to a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) in the second bout of the night at UFC 174.
Delorme, 30, has now lost two straight in the UFC while Tanaka, 23, remains undefeated in his pro career. Tanaka had won five bouts in Shooto and then four in Pacific Xtreme Combat.
The bantamweight bout was Tanaka’s debut in UFC and he was impressive. Delorme is a scrapper and he did not back down, but Tanaka did just a little bit more for a little bit longer. The fight streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FX and a main card on pay-per-view.
Round 1: Delorme was all business. He didn’t even touch gloves at the start of the fight. Tanaka bobs and weaves, trying to avoid contact with Delorme until he lands an outside kick. Tanaka stays away again and tries to land another kick but Delorme catches it and takes Tanaka down. However, Tanaka reversed him and landed a right. Delorme delivered an elbow from the bottom, but Tanaka continued to pound Delorme with short shots to the body and head. All three judges scored the round 10-9 Tanaka.
Round 2: Tanaka started the round with a right, but Delorme returned with a jab. Tanaka countered with an overhand right and then moved away from Delorme again. He desperately wanted to get the fight to the ground and succeeded. Tanaka landed a few lefts and then stepped over into the mount position. Delorme escaped but Tanaka landed a couple of elbows and cut his opponent. The round ended with Tanaka landing a series of elbows. All three judges scored the round 10-9 for Tanaka.
Round 3: Delorme opened the round by trying to cut off the Octagon. He was doing everything he could to limit Tanaka’s lateral movement. However, Tanaka landed a combo, took Delorme to the canvas and gained side control. After a scramble, Delorme gained top position and advanced to the mount, but Tanaka reversed him, landed a couple of elbows and really opened the cut under Delorme’s eye. The final round ended with Tanaka in control. All three judges scored the round 10-9 for Tanaka.
“I felt great all week and I had a wonderful camp,” Tanaka told the UFC announcers after the fight. “I didn’t have nerves coming into my UFC debut, which surprised me because I expected it to play a factor. If I had to grade my performance tonight, I’d give myself a 20 out of 100. I don’t think I was aggressive enough. I should have definitely attacked more, but I will work on those things and be back much better.”
Delorme, who made it to the UFC after a brilliant performance at The Ultimate Fighter 14 in 2011, last won a bout way back at UFC 161 at Winnipeg’s MTS Centre in June 15, 2013. Delorme beat Edwin Figueroa that night and Saturday afternoon’s bout was one day short of a year since he was last victorious.
However, he was scheduled to face Davey Grant in London, England on March 8, but Grant pulled the plug on the bout right after the weigh-ins, claiming he had a torn meniscus. Delorme got into tremendous condition for that fight and was excited to fight overseas. He got all the way over to London, only to have the Octagon pulled out from under him.
He’s now 3-2 as a member of the UFC and, officially, went to UFC 174 coming off a loss — a split decision that could have gone either way. He lost to Alex Caceres, way back at UFC 165 in September of 2013. Fighting out of Curtis Brigham’s Winnipeg Academy of Mixed Martial Arts (WAMMA), Delorme went into the fight with Caceres with a 3-0 record with one no contest (failed drug test by Francisco Rivera).
Interestingly, Delorme’s only loss at The Ultimate Fighter 14 was to T.J. Dillishaw, who recently beat Renan Barao in a monster upset for the UFC Bantamweight title.