UFC Fight Night 120 results: Poirier leaves Pettis in bloody mess

Virginia, November 12: The UFC celebrated Veterans Day in Virginia as Ted Constant Convocation Center on the Old Dominion University campus in Norfolk played hosts to UFC Fight Night: Poirier Vs Pettis on Saturday (November 11).

In the UFC Norfolk main event, lightweights Dustin Poirier and Anthony Pettis locked horns where the pair delivered on the expectations, engaging in a wildly entertaining fight that saw "The Diamond" take home a third-round TKO in a blood-soaked affair.

After an insane fight, Anthony Pettis taps out and Dustin Poirier earns the biggest win of his career! #UFCNorfolk https://t.co/ITDZtPavf2

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) November 12, 2017

With question marks over his retirement, Welterweight Matt Brown was almost finished but came back to score a first-round knockout of Diego Sanchez in the co-main event of the night.

WHAT AN ELBOW! Matt Brown KO's Diego Sanchez for the finish at #UFCNorfolk! https://t.co/i7MIUI1rXE

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) November 12, 2017

A battle of two lightweight veterans opened up the main card where Clay Guida turned in one of the best performances of his career when he battered Joe Lauzon to earn a 67-second stoppage.

Clay Guida gets it started QUICK with the TKO win over Joe Lauzon! https://t.co/5Qmcq21Lkx

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) November 12, 2017

Often criticized for slugish fights, Raphael Assuncao battered Matthew Lopez in the opening two rounds of their matchup before he knocked him out cold in the third to silence those doubters in a bantamweight showdown.

WATCH FOR THE HOOK! Raphael Assunção makes a statement with the KO vs. Matthew Lopez! #UFCNorfolk https://t.co/42IJIRIFNL

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) November 12, 2017

What followed it was a middleweight slug fest, a back-and-forth battle where Nate Marquardt ended in fine fashion, but Cezar Ferreira ultimately took home a split-decision win.

Andrei Arlovski knew the importance of his bout with Junior Albini after five successive losses and outworked the Brazilian prospect to claim a decision win.

To kick off UFC Norfolk, undefeated middleweight prospect Karl Roberson kept his perfect career record intact on his debut in the UFC with a first-round submission win over Darren Stewart.

In a lightweight bout that soon followed on the preliminary card, two fighters were looking to rebound from recent decision losses and it was Jake Collier who was successful against Marcel Fortuna.

Next up, it was confusion in calculation but Sean Strickland was rightly judged victor in the end against Court McGee in a very close welterweight clash. The judges error in calculation initially ended the bout as a majority draw but after a review the result was overturned in Strickland's favour.

A women's strawweight bout was up next, after her struggles to start a UFC career, Nina Ansaroff now is on a two-fight winning streak after the decision victory over a tough Angela Hill.

Later, we witnessed a winning return for Sage Northcutt who looked sharp in his return to lightweight, cruising to a decision win over Michel Quinones.

While, in another strawweight bout, Sixteen months after winning "The Ultimate Fighter 23″ crown, Tatiana Suarez looked like she hadn't missed a beat when she absolutely dominated a previously undefeated Viviane Pereira.

To conclude the prelims, Marlon Moraes recovered from a disappointing UFC debut, standing toe-to-toe with John Dodson and walked away with an oddly scored decision win in a bantamweight bout.

Here are the final results of UFC Fight Night 120:

Main Card

1. Lightweight bout: Dustin Poirier defeated Anthony Pettis by TKO (injury) - Round 3, 2:08

2. Welterweight bout: Matt Brown defeated Diego Sanchez by KO (elbow) - Round 1, 3:44

3. Heavyweight bout: Andrei Arlovski defeated Junior Albini by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

4. Middleweight bout: Cezar Ferreira defeated Nate Marquardt by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)

5. Bantamweight bout: Raphael Assuncao defeated Matthew Lopez by KO (punch) - Round 3, 1:50

6. Lightweight bout: Clay Guida defeated Joe Lauzon by TKO (strikes) - Round 1, 1:07

Preliminary Card

1. Bantamweight bout: Marlon Moraes defeated John Dodson by split decision 30-27, 27-30, 30-27)

2. Women's Strawweight bout: Tatiana Suarez defeated Viviane Pereira by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

3. Lightweight bout: Sage Northcutt defeated Michel Quinones by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

4. Women's Strawweight bout: Nina Ansaroff defeated Angela Hill by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

5. Welterweight bout: Sean Strickland defeated Court McGee by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

6. Light Heavyweight bout: Jake Collier defeated Marcel Fortuna by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

7. Middleweight bout: Karl Roberson defeated Darren Steward by submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 1, 3:41