From MMAJUNKIE.COM
Icon Sport middleweight champion and former UFC contender Robbie Lawler added another label to his resurrected career: Elite Xtreme Combat middleweight champion.
Lawler, who (with teammate Jacob Hey) became one of the first fighters to compete under the new Team Matt Hughes affiliation, scored a third-round TKO of Murilo “Ninja” Rua at tonight’s main event of the “EliteXC: Uprising” show.
The event aired on Showtime and took place at the Neal S. Blaisdale Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Additionally, controversial (though popular) fighter and former UFC competitor Nick Diaz made a successful return to action after a six-month absence stemming from a PRIDE 33 drug suspension. After defeating PRIDE lightweight champ Takanori Gomi (in a non-title fight) via gogoplata, Diaz was told by the Nevada State Athletic Commission announced that he had tested positive for marijuana.
Looking a little rusty, Diaz eventually scored a close split-decision victory over B.J. Penn student Mike Aina.
Also on the main card, prominent women’s fighter Gina Carano bounced back from reported difficulty cutting weight to earn a first-round submission victory over Tonya Evinger. The win pushed the former Muay Thai fighter’s MMA record to a perfect 5-0.
The full results from the 12-card event are below.
Main Card (aired on Showtime)
* Robbie Lawler def. Murilo Rua via TKO (strikes) — Round 3 (2:04)
* Nick Diaz def. Mike Aina via split decision
* Gina Carano def. Tonya Evinger via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 1 (2:53)
* Joey Villasenor def. Riki Fukuda via split decision
* Jake Shields def. Renato Verissimo via TKO (Strikes) — Round 1, (4:00)
Undercard (aired on ProElite.com)
* Brandon Wolfe def. Klingensmith via unanimous decision
* Mark Oshiro def. Nui Wheeler via submission (rear naked choke) — Round 1 (1:19)
* Mark Kurano def. Jose Diaz via submission (rear naked choke) — Round 1 (1:13)
* Kala Kolohe Hose def. Jeff Cox via TKO (strikes) — Round 1 (0:20)
* Tyson Nam def. Albert Manners via unanimous decision
Preliminary (un-aired)
* Justin Buchholz def. Ikaika Choy-Fu via TKO (strikes) — Round 1 (1:35)
* Elias Delos Reyes def. Chico Cantiberos via submission (armbar) — Round 1 (0:52)
