UFC on FOX 13 results recap: Jamie Varner retires after loss, Brunson vs Herman scratched in bizarre 'Prelims'

After an enthralling Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 20 Finale last night in Las Vegas (see results here), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) makes its first ever trip to Phoenix, Arizona for the final FOX event of the year tonight (Sat., Dec. 13, 2014) live from the U.S. Airways Center. Prior to the main card on FOX, the event was kicked off with a strange set of "Prelims" that saw injuries, late scratches, and finishes on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) and UFC Fight Pass.

Full results and play-by-play here.

The undercard featured a number of intriguing bouts, including the former Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler Henry Cejudo making his highly anticipated Octagon debut. After failing to make it to the scales for his scheduled debut at UFC 177 that was ultimately scratched, Cejudo rebounded with a big win in his debut this evening.

In the "Prelims" main event, Joanna Jedrzejczyk won the biggest fight of her life, defeating former No. 1 Invicta FC strawweight contender Claudia Gadelha by split decision. With the victory, Jedrzejczyk improved her undefeated record to 8-0 and may have earned the right to fight for UFC gold against newly minted champion Carla Esparza.

Check out the prelims recap below:

Claudia Gadelha vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk

These ladies came out swinging. After an early takedown from Claudia, the Brazilian jiu-jitsu champion immediately attacked with an arm-triangle, but Joanna escaped and got back to her feet. Claudia was tenacious, however, clinching Joanna on the fence and landing some short shots. Joanna reversed Claudia, and landed some brutal elbows before breaking free. With just 30 seconds left in the round, Joanna landed a brutal uppercut that nearly knocked out Claudia, but the bell at the end of the round saved her.

Huge takedown from Claudia to start the second round, but Joanna made her way to her feet on the fence once again. Claudia's pace had slowed significantly in this round, and Joanna was opening up on the feet. The Polish Muay Thai champion was using all eight weapons she could to try and finish Claudia, but the Brazilian showed her mettle firing back in bad situations. Claudia hit a big takedown late in the round in order to change the complexion of the fight.

The third round started with an inadvertent headbutt that opened up a bad cut on Claudia. After the doctor looked at the cut, Claudia came out firing on the restart, cracking Joanna with big hooks before hitting two powerful takedowns in quick succession. As Joanna attempted to get to her feet, Claudia punished her with powerful shots in the clinch. The rest of the round was contested in the clinch as Claudia controlled Joanna for nearly the entire five minutes other than the last twenty seconds of the fight.

After the bell rung, Claudia blatantly punched Joanna, but the Polish Muay Thai champion left with the split decision.

Willie Gates vs. John Moraga

Willie Gates was composed in his UFC debut, but John Moraga showed him what it is like to fight the elite flyweights in the world.

The fight was nearly finished controversially in the first round. As Gates and Moraga exchanged on the feet, Gates seemingly hit Moraga below the belt, but the referee did not see it and told the fighters to continue fighting. As Moraga turned his back in pause from the low blow, Gates tagged with a hard right shot that dropped Moraga. Gates pounced on Moraga and nearly finished him via rear-naked choke, but Moraga broke free.

Moraga was a lot more aggressive in round two, with a ton of clinch work followed up by powerful strikes on the feet. Gates was forced to fight defensively as Moraga really pushed the pace. Jason Herzog stepped in to separate them after meager action at one point, and Gates tried to get off on his feet, but Moraga was able to get the clinch on the fence again before the round ended.

The third round was all John Moraga. The former No. 1 contender pushed Gates right back to the fence, and used a calculated output to frustrate and dominate Gates in the clinch. Moraga got a takedown midway through the round, and used his grappling expertise to punish Gates on the mat before finishing him late with a rear-naked choke.

Joe Riggs vs. Ben Saunders

Well this was a strange fight.

Saunders came out dynamic on his feet as usual, but Riggs looked to counter with a big slam takedown. As Riggs and Saunders landed on the mat, Riggs hurt his neck landing on his opponents body. As Saunders worked into mission control, Riggs was tapping due to the pain in his neck.

The decision was ultimately a submission victory for Saunders via injury.

Drew Dober vs. Jamie Varner

UFC veteran and former WEC champion Jamie Varner needed a win badly tonight in his home state of Arizona, but was unable to pull out the victory against Drew Dober.

After an exchange early, Dober got double underhooks as he looked for a takedown. Varner attempted to reverse Dober with a lateral drop, but instead found himself stuck on the cage with Dober on top. In a matter of seconds Dober transitioned into back mount, and finished Varner with a rear-naked choke.

After the fight, Jamie Varner retired from MMA. Thank you for the great memories Jamie!

Bryan Barberena vs. Joe Ellenberger

Bryan Barberena may not have started off hot in his UFC debut, but he certainly finished strong.

The first round was tough for Barberena, as Ellenberger used forward pressure to frustrate the MMA Lab product. After a short stint on the mat following a takedown, Ellenberger nearly finished Barberena with a powerful right hand. Barberena was winging his shots, missing on nearly everything he threw Ellenberger's way.

After an inspirational message from his couch John Crouch, Barberena came out on with major pressure early trying to finish Ellenberger with flurries. Ellenberger fired back, but Barberena was finally able to land some shots of his own. As Ellenburger slowed down, Barberena picked up his pace, landing some impressive shots on the exhausted Ellenberger.

In the third round, Ellenberger quickly took Barberena down, but he was too tired to keep him on the mat. As Barberena got to his feet, he badly hurt Ellenberger, and nearly finished him moments later. Barberena tried to get the finish after his initial onslaught, but it took him another minute or so to finally get Herb Dean to call an end to the fight.

David Michaud vs. Garett Whiteley

"Bulldawg" is an apt nickname for David Michaud.

This fight was fought at Michaud's pace, as Garett Whiteley struggled against his opponent's pressure. Michaud used crisp boxing and forward pressure to frustrate Whiteley throughout the first round. When Whiteley did have his opportunities on the feet, Michaud countered nicely and hit a big takedown.

In the second round, Michaud went right back to his bread and butter as he took down Whiteley after a wild exchange in the clinch. After ragdolling Whiteley, Michaud got opened up badly with hard elbows from the bottom. Although Michaud was on top, Whiteley was landing plenty of shots from the bottom. Unfortunately for Whiteley, he was unable to get up off his back before the round ended.

The third round was fought at a much more labored pace, as Whiteley tried to open up on the feet, but he could not hurt Michaud with even his best punch. Midway through the round, Michaud took Whiteley down to close out the show.

Henry Cejudo vs. Dustin Kimura

The UFC bantamweight division may have a new contender ladies and gentleman, and he just so happens to be a former Olympic gold medalist.

Henry Cejudo completely dominated Dustin Kimura for their entire 15 minute affair, but not in the way you would expect. Instead of controlling Kimura on the mat with his elite caliber wrestling, Cejudo showed off his sensational striking technique for nearly the entire fight.

After a hot start from Cejudo, the Olympic gold medalist rocked Kimura with a big right hand and nearly finished him with ground and pound. Once Kimura started to regain his wits, Cejudo stood him back up and once again lit Kimura up on the feet. By the second round, Kimura was fighting in a defensive shell battered and bloodied, and he had nothing to show offensively the rest of the fight.

Although Cejudo could not garner the finish, it is clear that he will be a force to be reckoned with in the future.

Anthony Birchak vs. Ian Entwistle

In his second UFC fight, Ian Entwistle showed off why he is notorious for heel hooks.

After a solid opening from Birchak on the feet, the native Arizonan made a crucial mistake by taking Entwistle down. Moments after the fight hit the mat, Entwistle latched onto a deep heel hook and it was just a matter of time before Birchak tapped.

Check out the full UFC on FOX 13 "Prelims" quick results below:

Joanna Jedrzejczyk def. Claudia Gadelha by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
John Moraga def. Willie Gates by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:06 of Round Three
Ben Saunders def. Joe Riggs by submission (injury) at 0:57 of Round One
Drew Dober def. Jamie Varner by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:52 of Round One
Derek Brunson vs. Ed Herman (Brunson forced out due to food poisoning)
Bryan Barberena vs. Joe Ellenberger by TKO (punches and elbows) at 3:24 of Round Three
David Michaud def. Garett Whiteley by unanimous decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)
Henry Cejudo def. Dustin Kimura by unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Ian Entwistle def. Anthony Birchak by submission (heel hook) at 1:04 of Round One

For main card results and play-by-play click here.