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    Mark Palmer •

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    Dillashaw, Lawlor among ex-wrestler winners at UFC on FOX 16

    It was something of a college wrestlerapooza at UFC on FOX 16 at United Center in Chicago Saturday night, with at least nine former collegiate matmen -- including a number from now-defunct programs -- stepping into the Octagon, with mixed results.

    At the top of the card was T.J. Dillashaw, who wrestled at Cal State Fullerton, which no longer has an intercollegiate mat program -- who scored a TKO victory at 35 seconds in the fourth round over Renan Barao in their bantamweight bout.

    T.J. Dillashaw
    "Dillashaw schooled Barao to retain the title he took from Barao back at UFC 173 on Memorial Day weekend last year," reported MMAFighting.com. Sherdog.com added, "The Team Alpha Male standout ran circles around Barao with his footwork and movement, blasted him with nifty combinations and generally steered clear of danger. The challenger's movements became more and more labored as the fight dragged on, and Dillashaw showed him no mercy. He staggered Barao with a clean left hook early in the fourth round and uncorked a hellacious volley of lefts and rights that gave referee Herb Dean no choice but to step in to save the Nova Uniao rep from further punishment."

    With the win, Dillashaw keeps the title, and is now 12-2 overall in his mixed martial arts career (and 8-2 in UFC fights), while Barao falls to 33-3 overall, and 8-2 in UFC.

    The four preliminary card matches shown on FOX each had at least one contestant who stepped onto a college wrestling mat prior to entering the Octagon.

    In a light-heavyweight match-up of two former collegians, Tom Lawlor knocked out Gian Villante 27 seconds into the second round. Lawlor, who wrestled at University of Central Florida, scored the KO on Gillante, a former Hofstra University wrestler. Immediately before that match, in another bout featuring two ex-college matmen, Jim Miller -- who wrestled for one year at Virginia Tech -- scored a split decision over Danny Castillo, an NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) All-American at Menlo College of California. Judges scored the three-round lightweight bout 28-29, 29-28, and 30-27 for Miller.

    The other two prelims broadcast on FOX had mixed results for one-time collegians. Kenny Robertson, a three-time NCAA Division I qualifier at Eastern Illinois University, was on the losing end of a split decision to Ben Saunders. Judges scored the welterweight fight 29-28, 28-29, and 29-28 for Saunders. On a brighter note, Bryan Caraway, an alum of the now-defunct intercollegiate wrestling program at Central Washington, earned a unanimous decision over Eddie Wineland, 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27, in a three-round bantamweight bout.

    The early-evening prelims shown exclusively on UFC Fight Pass were not devoid of one-time college wrestlers. In one lightweight match, former Utah Valley University wrestler Ramsey Nijem came out on the losing end of a split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) to Andrew Holbrook ... while, in another bout in the same weight class, Daron Cruickshank, an NCAA Division III qualifier for Olivet College, was the victim of a rear-naked choke submission at 1:27 of the first round in his match with James Krause.

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