UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine

UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine (also known as UFC Fight Night 54) was a mixed martial arts event held at the Scotiabank Centre in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on October 4, 2014.[2]

UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine
The poster for UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine.
Information
PromotionUltimate Fighting Championship
DateOctober 4, 2014 (2014-10-04)
VenueScotiabank Centre
CityHalifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
Attendance10,782[1]
Total gate$926,000[1]
Event chronology
UFC Fight Night: Nelson vs. Story UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes 2

Background

This event was the first event the UFC hosted in Halifax and the third event in Canada in 2014, following The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale: Bisping vs. Kennedy and UFC 174.[3]

The main event featured a welterweight bout between Rory MacDonald and Tarec Saffiedine.[2]

A bout between Paige VanZant and Kailin Curran was briefly linked to this event, but delayed a month and rescheduled for UFC Fight Night 57, after VanZant suffered a minor injury.[4]

Aljamain Sterling was expected to face Mitch Gagnon at this event. However, Sterling was forced to withdraw due to an injury and was replaced by Rob Font.[5] Subsequently, Font pulled out of the fight the week of the event and was replaced by promotional newcomer Roman Salazar.[6]

Louis Gaudinot was expected to face Paddy Holohan at the event. However, Gaudinot pulled out of the fight in the week leading up to the event and was replaced by promotional newcomer Chris Kelades.[7]

The main card was slated to air on Fox Sports 1, but due to the length of game 2 of the 2014 National League Division Series between the San Francisco Giants and Washington Nationals, which went well into extra innings, the event was broadcast on FX instead.[8]

A few months after the event, it was revealed that Pedro Munhoz tested positive for elevated levels of testosterone after his win against Jerrod Sanders. Munhoz's camp requested testing documentation and didn't receive it until three months later. He said a review of the results by anti-doping specialist Paul Scott determined that his testosterone was not, in fact, elevated, coming in at 850 ng/mL, or on the high end of the normal range for men his age. He admitted to using two supplements allowed by the UFC that may have elevated his testosterone, but not outside the legal limit.[9] On November 4, 2015, Munhoz was suspended for one year retroactive to his fight and his win was changed to a no-contest.[10]

Results
Main Card (FX)
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Welterweight Rory MacDonald def. Tarec Saffiedine TKO (punches) 3 1:28
Bantamweight Raphael Assunção def. Bryan Caraway Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) 3 5:00
Lightweight Chad Laprise def. Yosdenis Cedeno Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) 3 5:00
Middleweight Elias Theodorou def. Bruno Santos Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) 3 5:00
Welterweight Nordine Taleb def. Li Jingliang Decision (split) (28–29, 29–28, 30–27) 3 5:00
Bantamweight Mitch Gagnon def. Roman Salazar Submission (rear-naked choke) 1 2:06
Preliminary card (Fox Sports 2)
Lightweight Daron Cruickshank def. Anthony Njokuani Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) 3 5:00
Lightweight Olivier Aubin-Mercier def. Jake Lindsey Submission (inverted triangle kimura) 2 3:22
Lightweight Paul Felder def. Jason Saggo Decision (split) (29–28, 28–29, 29–28) 3 5:00
Flyweight Chris Kelades def. Paddy Holohan Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) 3 5:00
Preliminary card (UFC Fight Pass)
Welterweight Albert Tumenov def. Matt Dwyer TKO (head kick and punch) 1 1:03
Bantamweight Pedro Munhoz vs. Jerrod Sanders No Contest (overturned) 1 0:39 [lower-alpha 1]
  1. Originally a submission (guillotine choke) win for Munhoz; Overturned after he tested positive for exogenous origin of testosterone metabolites.

[11]

Bonus awards

The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses:[8]

  • Fight of the Night: Patrick Holohan vs. Chris Kelades
  • Performance of the Night: Rory MacDonald and Olivier Aubin-Mercier

See also

References
  1. "UFC Fight Night 54 draws reported 10,782 attendance for $926,000 live gate". MMAjunkie.com. October 5, 2014.
  2. Matt Erickson (2014-07-31). "Rory MacDonald vs. Tarec Saffiedine headlines UFC Fight Night 54 in Halifax". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
  3. Monty Mosher (2014-01-29). "UFC adds Halifax stop". thechronicleherald.ca. Retrieved 2014-01-29.
  4. Thomas Gerbasi (2014-08-26). "VanZant-Curran heads to Austin". ufc.com. Retrieved 2014-08-26.
  5. Staff (2014-09-08). "Rob Font replaces Aljamain Sterling, faces Mitch Gagnon at UFC Fight Night in Halifax". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2014-09-08.
  6. Staff (2014-09-29). "Rob Font out, Roman Salazar meets Mitch Gagnon at UFC Fight Night 54". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2014-09-29.
  7. MMAFighting Newswire (2014-09-29). "Patrick Holohan will now face Chris Kelades at UFC Fight Night 54". MMAFighting.com. Retrieved 2014-09-29.
  8. Staff (2014-10-05). "UFC Fight Night 54 bonuses: MacDonald, Aubin-Mercier, Kelades, Holohan win $50,000". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2014-10-05.
  9. Steven Marrocco (2015-08-20). "Settlement imminent between Pedro Munhoz and Nova Scotia athletic commission". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
  10. Steven Marrocco (2015-11-03). "After talk of settlement, UFC's Pedro Munhoz gets one-year suspension, no-contest". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
  11. Staff. "UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine". ufc.com. Retrieved 2014-07-31.
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