HOUSTON - Sarah Kaufman fought valiantly in her UFC debut but ultimately came up short and suffered a razor-thin split-decision loss to fellow promotional newcomer Jessica Eye. Fernando Manchester City Jersey . The womens bantamweight fight took place on the preliminary card of Saturdays "UFC 166: Velasquez vs. dos Santos III" event, at Houstons Toyota Center. "Im a little disappointed because I thought the fight went my way," Kaufman said post fight. "The first round was close, but I felt I started to pull away in the second and tried to finish her in the third when I could see I had wobbled her. We put on a great fight for the fans, and I see this as a small bump in the road on my goal to hopefully become the UFC champion." Kaufman engaged with the smaller Eye from the opening bell, working both at range and in the clinch with heavy punches and the occasional knee to the belly. To her credit, Eye moved laterally and laced a stiff jab, working hard to stay away from her opponent and avoid eating counterstrikes. The strategy worked early on, and her punches battered and bruised Kaufmans right eye, which began to close in the second frame. Kaufman seemed to settle into her rhythm as the fight wore on, and she found her opponents chin more frequently. After a close second round, Kaufman did her best work in the third, and a stiff right hand wobbled Eye and saw her left eye instantly swell. Eye hung on until the final bell, and both women instantly raised their arms in celebration. "I think I did great the first two rounds. I think I stopped and let her get the third round. I dropped my hands and let her get that round," said Eye. "I hate it. I knew better than that and will do better next time, but I feel great." As it turned out, only Eye (11-1) had the right to enjoy the moment, as she was awarded a split-decision win that drew boos from crowd, he seemed to feel Kaufman (16-3) had done enough to take home the victory. Despite Kaufman winning the striking battle, 87-65 according to a FightMetric report, Eye earned the win with scores of 29-28, 28-29 and 29-28. "I feel unbelievable," Eye said after the win. "People say that its an amazing feeling. I cant even describe how I feel right now." Kaufman, a native of Victoria, B.C., is a former Strikeforce womens bantamweight champion who fought eight time for the now-shuttered promotion. She earned the title with a February 2010 win over Takayo Hashi and defended it once before ceding the belt to Marloes Coenen in October 2010. Kaufman also owns Strikeforce wins over onetime UFC title challenger Liz Carmouche and current "The Ultimate Fighter 18" coach Miesha Tate. Kaufman had ben expected to make her UFC debut in August, when she was scheduled to face Sara McMann at "UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann 2." However, McMann was forced to withdraw from the card one week before the event, and a replacement opponent could not be secured in time. Ben Amos Manchester United . Actons goal midway through the third period was the winner as the Toronto Marlies pulled away for a 5-2 victory over the Abbotsford Heat on Saturday. Federico Marchetti Lazio Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla. NASHVILLE -- Mike Munchak believes the Tennessee Titans arent far off from becoming a playoff team, and hell argue that he should keep coaching them in 2014 in the next few days. Texans owner Bob McNair could hire a new coach before Houston decides who will be the No. 1 draft selection in May. Chris Johnson ran for 127 yards and a touchdown in what might be his last game with the Titans, who beat the Houston Texans 16-10 Sunday for a win that might help Munchaks argument to stay on the job. "I think I have a good feel for what needs to be done," said Munchak, now 22-26 in three seasons. "Thats what well talk about the next few days, and well find out how they want to go forward." With their 14th straight loss, the Texans (2-14) at least made sure whoever their next coach is will have the top draft pick. Interim coach Wade Phillips declined to answer whether hes interested in staying with the Texans if hes not picked to take over. "We got in a whirlwind, and it never ended," Phillips said of the skid. The Titans (7-9) scored 16 straight points in snapping a five-game home skid that was their longest since leaving Houston for Tennessee in 1997. They also won a second straight game for the first time since September, when they started 3-1. "We always talk about finishing, and we did that," Titans tight end Delanie Walker said. Rob Bironas kicked three field goals, including a season-best 55-yarder. Linebacker Akeem Ayers intercepted a pass and forced a fumble as the Titans got four turnovers they turned into 10 points. The Texans had one last chance with the ball and 66 seconds left, but Michael Griffin intercepted an overthrown pass by Matt Schaub. That was the third turnover by the Texans quarterback. Johnson became the sixth man in NFL history to run for at least 1,000 yards in each of his first six seasons with a 23-yard run in the second quarter, joining Barry Sanders, Curtis Martin, LaDanian Tomlinson, Eric Dickerson and Corey Dillon. But Johnson, who ran for 2,006 yards in 2009, is due $8 million in 2014, with $29 million left on his contract. That might be too much to pay for someone who postedd only his second 100-yard rushing game of the season Sunday. Gabriel Paletta Italy Jersey. . The running back said he thought about whether this might be his last game in Tennessee when he ran through the tunnel before turning his attention to getting the win. "Only thing I could control was the game today," Johnson said. The Texans now can focus on 2014 after a miserable season that saw Jonathan Grimes, signed Dec. 18, become the fifth running back to start this season. Defensive end J.J. Watt called it his most frustrating season personally. "Im sure a lot of guys, just like me, are ready to move on and get to work in the off-season and never let this happen again," Watt said. McNair already has been interviewing possible replacements for Gary Kubiak, fired Dec. 6, with Phillips hoping his performance as defensive co-ordinator earns him the job. Tennessee outgained Houston 311-288 in total offence, with 165 coming on the ground thanks to Johnson. The Texans were up 7-6 at halftime thanks to an opening drive where they looked like the two-time AFC South champs they came into the season as. The banged-up team even got good production from Grimes, who capped the drive with his first NFL TD on a 3-yard carry and ripped through the Titans early. Houston didnt score again until Randy Bullock kicked a 19-yard field goal with 2:53 left when Phillips decided not to go for a touchdown on fourth-and-goal at the Titans 1. Tennessee finally got took its first lead late in the third quarter. Ayers intercepted a ball that clanked off the face mask of Titans safety Bernard Pollard on Schaubs pass a little behind Texans tight end Ryan Griffin. Johnsons 11-yard TD put them ahead to stay 13-7. NOTES: Kendall Wright finished with 94 catches, becoming the first Titans receiver with 90 or more in a season since Derrick Mason had 96 in 2004. ... Walker finished with a career-high 60 catches, becoming the only tight end other than Frank Wycheck to reach that mark with this franchise. ... Pro Bowl receiver Andre Johnson finished with six catches for 49 yards for Houston. ... The Titans snapped a three-game skid to Houston in this series. wholesale nfl jerseyscheap jerseys from china ' ' '
