Giga Chikadze vs. Irwin Rivera

Round 1
Over at featherweight, Georgia’s Chikadze (9-2, 2-0 UFC) will take on incredibly short-notice replacement and former Titan FC champ Rivera (9-4, 0-0 UFC). The nonsense level in the cage just plummeted to zero, as referee Keith Peterson is third man in the cage. There is no touch of gloves, as Rivera is more interested in flying in the air with a superman punch to start things out. Chikadze evades it and racks a heavy leg kick that nearly knocks the leg out from his opponent. Chikadze misses with a high kick, forcing Rivera to clinch up and try to throw a left hand over the top, but there is nothing doing. As he takes a leg kick on the way in, Rivera is trying to swarm his way in. Chikadze tries to stop his advancement with a leg kick, and “The Beast” jumps over it to land a left hand and surprise his opponent. Both men connect with front kicks, and Chikadze sticks him with a jab as Rivera races in to try to close the distance. Rivera jumps forward with a knee, Chikadze blocks it, and it is a curious question as to how long Rivera can keep up this pace. Rivera runs at his opponent with such recklessness that when Chikadze evades him, Rivera stumbles across the cage and into the fence. Chikadze goes after another leg kick, and Rivera once more hops over it. A stiff body kick from Chikadze lands, and Rivera winces, recovers, and throws his own. Rivera lands a jab coming in, but Chikadze connects with a knee as the Georgian fighter tries to close in now. The pace from Rivera has waned significantly, allowing Chikadze to throw a question mark kick and surprise Rivera. Rivera keeps charging in wildly, and Chikadze stays patient, tries to counter with a body kick or a knee, and gets out of the way. Chikadze whiffs on a big spinning wheel kick, and both men are throwing high-risk, high-reward, high-energy strikes that do not land effectively. The round concludes with Chikadze jumping in the air to fake a flying knee.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze

Round 2
Chikadze starts the round out with a high kick, and he gets caught with a superman punch that sends Chikadze falling back against the fence. Chikadze commits to a few more kicks, and Rivera keeps his foot on the gas by rushing in to combinations. Chikadze clips him up top, and Rivera takes it flush, shakes it off and shoots low for a takedown. Chikadze stuffs it and sneaks in a kick, while following that with a stiff uppercut. Rivera absorbs kick right to his face, and the nose of the newcomer has started to bleed. The damage is starting to mount on Rivera’s face, as Chikadze is teeing off on him from a distance while also timing Rivera’s blitzes on the way in. A few blistering leg kicks bust up the face of the newcomer, but Rivera is still firing back at him. When Rivera rushes in, he takes a knee, lands a left hand, and gets countered all in one rapid exchange. Chikadze whips a high kick with his left leg, and chains that into a side kick to the body that puts Rivera on one knee briefly. Getting loose, Chikadze starts scoring more kicks from the outside and working Rivera from a distance until the round ends. Rivera exhales deeply.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze

Round 3
The round opens with Chikadze blasting Rivera on the chin with a nasty knee, sending the new UFC combatant to the ground. Chikadze dives after him to do some damage on top, but Rivera shakes out the cobwebs, kicks off and miraculously returns to his feet. The same knee from Chikadze scores once again, and Rivera absorbs it while trying to swing with huge looping hooks. Chikadze tags him with one more during a similar exchange, and Rivera is not quite able to get in on his longer, lankier opponent, but it is not for a lack of trying. Chikadze stings him with a high kick, but Rivera partially blocks it and walks forward. A potentially fatiguing Rivera stops engaging for almost a minute, allowing Chikadze to practice and miss an axe kick in the process. The two continue to stare at one another from a distance, and Chikadze fires up a high kick that gets blocked, and body kick that lands with a thud. Rivera comes up short with a body kick, but he does manage to get in a leg kick. Chikadze throws one right back, and it nearly turns Rivera around but the debutant is not remotely concerned. Rivera is walking forward, and though his offense has waned, when he does throw, he is swinging with home-run shots. He takes another knee while trying to close distance, and doubles over while trying to turn away. Chikadze chases him down to try to punish him, but Rivera turtles up. With precious seconds ticking off the clock, Rivera leaps at him with wild punches but he cannot catch his retreating foe. A few short shots from Chikadze land, and Rivera dives down to pull guard and set up a Hail Mary heel hook. Time expires before he has anything secured, and the fight is over.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze (30-27 Chikadze)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze (30-27 Chikadze)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Chikadze (30-27 Chikadze)

The Official Result
Giga Chikadze def. Irwin Rivera via Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)