Chris
Duncan’s commitment to a never-say-died creed paid massive
dividends when it mattered most.
The Scotsman was one of five competitors to book their spots in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship on Week 2 of Dana White’s Contender
Series, as he battled back from the brink of defeat to knock out
Charlie
Campbell on Tuesday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Duncan (9-1)
brought their marquee matchup to a shocking conclusion 1:43 into
Round 1.
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Campbell (6-2) had “The Problem” on rubbery legs with a series of
ringing right uppercuts and seemed to be ticketed for a finish of
his own. However,
Duncan rose from his knees and connected with a devastating counter
right hand. Campbell’s legs folded beneath him as he collapsed
backward onto the canvas, his revitalized adversary in hot pursuit.
Duncan then separated the Ray Longo disciple from his senses with
two brutal follow-up shots on the ground.
Four other winners will join Duncan on the updated UFC roster:
Vinicius de Almeida Salvador, Billy Goff,
Waldo
Cortes-Acosta and Francis
Marshall.
Salvador buried former Eternal MMA champion Shannon
Ross with punches in the second round of their flyweight
firefight. Ross (12-6) put up considerable resistance before bowing
out 4:22 into Round 2, suffering his first knockout loss in more
than a decade.
The 26-year-old Salvador (14-4) decked the Aussie twice in the
first round, a sweeping left hook and a counter right hand his
weapons of choice. Ross withstood his follow-up attacks and managed
to force the Brazilian onto his back foot on more than one
occasion. He stepped up his efforts and seized the reins for much
of the middle stanza, where he cut loose with body-head
combinations and even staggered the Marcelo Ribas protégé with a
right hand.
However, Salvador walked him into a counter right that had the
Platinum Boxing Club export out on his feet. He followed up with
punches, drove the dazed Ross to the canvas and prompted the
stoppage.
Salvador has finished all 14 of his professional victories, 13 of
them by knockout or technical knockout.
Meanwhile, Goff put away Shimon
Smotritsky with punches in the first round of their
welterweight pairing. Goff (8-2) brought it to a close 3:37 into
Round 1, as the 27-year-old two-division CES MMA champion extended
his winning streak to six bouts.
Smotritsky (8-2) floored the Mississippi native with a head kick
inside the first 20 seconds and swarmed with ground-and-pound for a
potential finish. It never materialized. Goff stayed composed,
worked back to his feet and set out to turn the tide in his favor.
He uncorked a beautiful three-punch combination to the head, pushed
his counterpart to the fence and teed off with both hands until
Smotritsky collapsed at his feet.
It was Goff’s third first-round finish as a professional.
Elsewhere, Cortes-Acosta kept his perfect professional record
intact, as the Legacy Fighting Alliance titleholder disposed of
Danilo
Suzart with punches in the first round of their heavyweight
affair. Suzart (9-2) met his end 3:40 into Round 1, closing the
book on his run of three consecutive victories.
The 30-year-old Cortes-Acosta (7-0) buckled the Brazilian with a
straight right hand, gave chase with follow-up punches and enjoyed
a brief rest in the clinch.
The heavy-handed Dominican moved back into open space, sat down
Suzart with a right hook the temple and pursued him to the canvas,
where he sealed the deal with a burst of unanswered
punches.
Cortes-Acosta has stopped his last three opponents.
Finally, Marshall remained undefeated with a clear-cut unanimous
decision over Connor
Matthews in a three-round featherweight tilt. All three members
of the cageside judiciary scored it for the 23-year-old Marshall
(6-0): 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26.
Matthews (5-1) struggled with the speed and skill deficit with
which he was presented, and successes were sparse for the United
States Air Force veteran. Marshall dazed him on multiple occasions,
connected with blistering multi-punch combinations, mixed in
takedowns when the situation called for it and applied his
ground-and-pound. By the time it was over, Matthews was bleeding
from multiple cuts.