
The UFC Austin main card kept up the same energy as the fire prelims, as four of the first-five fights ended early, with the one decision being a really close back and forth battle.
The only submission of the main card happened when Travis Lutter black belt, Kevin Holland, hurt Tim Means with a right hand, and then defended the takedown by locking up a D’arce to get the tap. Holland did a descent job of stopping the takedown, and springing right up the few times he did hit the mat. Moving back down to welterweight seems like a winning move for Kevin, who now enjoys back to back wins, and back to back finishes.
Joaquin Buckley picked up another finish tonight, taking out Albert Duraev by way of a third round doctor stoppage. Buckley dropped Duraev on a few occasions with his left hand, and caused Albert’s eye to swell up badly. AT the beginning of round three, the doctor took a look at the eye and deemed Albert unfit to continue. Joaquin has now won five of his last six, with four of them ending inside of the distance.
The UFC Austin main card got a highly competitive majority decision when Damir Ismagulov defeated Guram Kutateladze in what a high level matchup. They were going blow for blow for the entire duration of the match, but two judges saw it for Ismagulov, while the third official scored it even at 28-28. Damir extends his impressive unbeaten streak to 19, with five of those occurring under the UFC banner.
Gregory Rodrigues had a stellar performance tonight and knocked out Julian Marquez in the first-round. “Robocop” hurt Marquez with his boxing combinations, scoring a couple of knockdowns, and never let him off the hook until he was unconscious. They must stop calling this guy a grappler, because he is truly a heavy-handed knockout artist. Rodrigues has won three out of his four UFC fights.
Kicking off the main card, Texas’ own Adrian Yanez put hands on Tony Kelley, pulling out the first round TKO in front of a home crowd. Yanez took the center of the cage and picked his shots wisely, and once he had his opponent hurt, he didn’t let up until the referee physically pushed him away. Adrian has won all five of his UFC fights, four of which came by way of strikes, so you might want to make it a point to never miss one of his matches.
**See complete results below
Main card:
Kevin Holland def. Tim Means by submission at 1:28 of round 2: Welterweight
The welterweights met in the middle and began trading punches in the pocket. Means was the one pushing the pace, and mixing in takedown attempts. Holland did a good job of defending the shot, and when he did hit the deck, he was able to spring right back up. When the flurries from Kevin started flowing, Means would clinch up and threaten with the takedowns. In open space, Holland was landing the better punches, stinging means in a few instances.
Holland continued to land the better boxing combos in the second act. He stuck Means with a crisp right hand that hurt Means, forcing a desperation takedown. Holland sprawled and locked up a D’arce, and then Means respectfully tapped out.
HOLLAND BY SUBMISSION, WE REPEAT, HOLLAND BY SUBMISSION #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/zbFsUEvOdE
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 19, 2022
Joaquin Buckley def. Albert Duraev by TKO at :10 of round 3: Middleweight
Buckley uncorked a head kick that landed within the first-minute of the match that wobbled Duraev. Albert recovered right away, and unsuccessfully tried to get the fight to the floor. Duraev then had his turn to land a head kick, causing a cut around the left eye of Buckley. Then, Buckley landed a left cross as Duraev closed the distance, seeming to stagger him. Buckley was missing a lot, but he did hurt Duraev on a few occasions.
Buckley landed another stiff left as Duraev closed the distance, which appeared to be damaging and also thwarted the takedown. Another head kick landed for Buckley as Duraev went for a takedown, but he somehow wore it well. Duraev was able to get himself a takedown, but Buckley quickly scrambled back to his feet. Once Duraev stood up, there was a massive mouse on his left eye. A big left hand scored for Buckley, briefly dropping Albert, that prompted Duraev to return to his wrestling. He got Buckley to the mat, but was unable to do anything productive before Joaquin got back up. Within the final ten seconds of the round, Buckley dropped Duraev again. The doctor came in to check on the badly swollen eye of Duraev before the start of the third round, and deemed him unfit to continue.
By TKO, @NewMansa94 secured another win to add to this #UFCAustin madness! pic.twitter.com/wgyzQEI4Qd
— UFC (@ufc) June 19, 2022
Buckley sits him down and sends him to his corner #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/sCDP9BvE4R
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 19, 2022
Increíble la patada de Duraev a la cabeza #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/640ZrKzocm
— UFC Español (@UFCEspanol) June 19, 2022
Damir Ismagulov def. Guram Kutateladze by majority decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-28): Lightweight
The fighters got to work right away, exchanging leg kicks back and forth. The straight strikes of Ismagulov opened up the bridge of Kutateladze’s nose, but it didn’t seem to bother him much. Ismagulov was wincing with his right eye, but it was unclear what from. Both men went for takedowns, but Kutateladze was the only one able to convert… albeit briefly. In the clinch, Kutateladze landed some savage knees and a few crafty elbows. Guram was throwing the more potent strikes, but Ismagulov was keeping it close.
Ismagulov came out a bit more aggressive in the second act, pressing forward and throwing more strikes from the start of the bell. Kutateladze shot in for a takedown, but Ismagulov was able to avoid it and return to open space. Guram tried to get the fight to the floor again, but ate a knee to the face for his troubles. Ismagulov began pumping his jab, while Kutateladze was launching a variety of head kicks.
Ismagulov was landing some clean boxing combos at the beginning of the final round, while moving his head to avoid the returning fire. He then shot in for a takedown, but Kutateladze was hip to it and remained vertical. Kutateladze was doing his best work with his kicks, attacking the legs and the body, while Ismagulov was focused more eon his boxing. Ismagulov went back to the takedown, but Kutateladze stuffed it, and then got called for an illegal knee to a grounded opponent. Kutateladze lost the position for the infraction, with little time left on the clock.
Usando el pateo eficientemente en este segundo round @guram_dze #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/svXs4tV69b
— UFC Español (@UFCEspanol) June 19, 2022
Gregory Rodrigues def. Julian Marquez by KO at 3:18 of round 1: Middleweight
Rodrigues was showing off his power early here, connecting with hefty punches that were registering. Within 90-seconds, Rodrigues dropped Marquez with a right hand, and then hopped on the back as Julian stood up. Marquez got free, but was sat down again with a right hand. As soon as Marquez stood up, another right hand sent him back down. The referee was close to stopping it as Robocop swarmed, but Julian began swinging back. Despite the effort, Rodrigues landed another set of right hands that put Marquez down for good. WOW!
WHAT IS IN THE WATER IN TEXAS?! #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/Fl1qvGZNa2
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 18, 2022
Adrian Yanez def. Tony Kelley by TKO 3:49 of round 1: Bantamweight
Yanez took the center here with Kelley probing from the outside. Kelley was getting ahead on the strike count with volume, but Yanez was clearly landing the harder strikes. Yanez rocked Kelley on a few times, but Tony kept throwing back. Then, Yanez unleashed a flurry to the face that dropped Kelley. He then landed a series of unblocked punches to a downed Kelley to finish him off with an exclamation point. Adrian then proceeded to flip the bird to his opponent as an added cherry on top.
A STATEMENT IN HIS HOME STATE @yanezmma was determined to get the finish at #UFCAustin pic.twitter.com/XZOB45HOqi
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 18, 2022
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