UFC 128: Gleison Tibau stops Kurt Pellegrino

NEWARK - This was a classic example of doing what needs to be done to win the third and final round and the fight.

Gleison Tibau, tied at one round apiece with Kurt Pellegrino in their lightweight bout in UFC 128 at the Prudential Center, outstruck Pellegrino. He got him to the ground, then outworked him there. Tibau won the split decision, with two judges scoring it 29-28 in his favor. A third judge gave the fight to Pellegrino, 29-28.

Pellegrino (21-6), the hometown hero from Point Pleasant, did very little in the first round against Tibau (32-7). The Brazilian had the better of the striking and got a takedown.

The second round was slightly different. He connected with two big punches to Tibau's face and dropped the Brazilian to his knees midway through the round. Pellegrino quickly followed it up with a takedown and maintained ground control until about 25 seconds were left in the round.

Watch UFC 128 live stream of post-fight press conference at 1 a.m.