Kelly spoils Evans' middleweight debut with split-decision win

Dan Kelly made sure Rashad Evans' new life got off to a rocky start.

The 39-year-old Australian judoka used his unorthodox striking to defeat Evans by split decision in a middleweight bout at UFC 209 on Saturday in Las Vegas.

A former light heavyweight champion, Evans was competing at 185 pounds for the first time in his 13-year career. He hasn't won a fight since defeating Chael Sonnen in November 2013.

The outcome was in doubt throughout the three-round duel, as neither man was able to assert themselves. But Kelly used his unpredictable movement to find space and consistently land his left hand.

Evans had more success in Round 2, connecting with kicks to Kelly's body and going in for takedowns. However, even when Kelly was brought down to the mat, he managed to escape without suffering any damage.

After three rounds of uneven action, Evans and Kelly threw caution to the wind in the closing seconds, which did little to improve Evans' fortunes.

Kelly joined the UFC in 2014 with four Olympic appearances under his belt, and he can now add a victory over a former UFC champion to those accomplishments. With a 6-1 record in the Octagon and wins in his past four fights, he has emerged as a sleeper contender at middleweight.