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VIDEO: Vicente Luque Earns Hard-Fought Win Over Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Vegas 78

The two Brazilians both got to show off their skills in a competitive welterweight matchup.

Drew Beaupré

VIDEO: Vicente Luque Earns Hard-Fought Win Over Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Vegas 78
VIDEO: Vicente Luque Earns Hard-Fought Win Over Rafael dos Anjos at UFC Vegas 78 /

Vicente Luque put on a well-rounded performance to best his fellow countryman Rafael dos Anjos in the main event of UFC Vegas 78. 

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"The Silent Assassin" entered the night as a slight underdog for the first time in his UFC career, and it was clear from the opening round that the two Brazilians matched up incredibly well.

Efforts from dos Anjos to bring things to the mat frequently resulted in Luque reversing the position to land his own takedowns, and the 31-year-old's grappling success seemed to help open up his striking as the fight went on. 

"RDA" showed absolutely no quit and continued making Luque work hard for every position, but the former lightweight champion found himself on the canvas or against the fence for long portions of the bout. 

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A huge flurry late in the final round saw dos Anjos land big punches and end the fight in top position, but it wasn't enough to keep all three judges from scoring the bout in favor of Luque.

Luque was coming off the first back-to-back losses of his career, and after rebounding against dos Anjos the UFC's #10-ranked welterweight will likely be looking to take on another big name for his next outing. 

"The Silent Assassin" may not have been able to get a stoppage in the main event, but UFC Vegas 78 did see every prelim fight end inside the distance and the card also tied a promotional record for first-round finishes.

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