UFC 271 ‘Adesanya vs. Whittaker 2’ Play-by-Play, Results & Round

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Round 1

For the second time this year, the UFC is asking American fans to
shell out $75 in order to purchase the pay-per-view, and fans will
get five fights plus nine prelims to hopefully whet their voracious
appetites. We begin the UFC 271 festivities in Houston with an
unexpected heavyweight contest, as late replacement Knight (11-2,
3-1 UFC) tried and failed to cut 36 pounds in two weeks before
facing ex-heavyweight Grishin (31-9-2, 1-2 UFC). Missing the mark
by 12 pounds and receiving a startling 40% fine for his efforts,
Knight will try to revert to his knockout-centric ways and will
have some extra weight in his favor. Drawing the first assignment
of the night is referee Herb Dean, who will look to keep things on
the up-and-up. Even though both men were punished as this fight was
shifted to the card opener slot, and despite the massive weight
difference, Grishin offers to touch gloves to start things off. The
two men keep distance by prodding out leg kicks, and the Russian
lands the first strike of the day with a front kick to the body.
Knight returns fire with a body kick turning his hip over, with the
alternating stances in his favor to target the liver. The men are
tentative to engage, with little more than leg kicks, and the crowd
starts booing one single minute into the fight. Grishin does not
hear them and pokes out leg kicks on the inside and outside of
Knight’s leg, and he flips his leg up high for one to the face.
Knight ignores it and targets the body with a jab and a kick, and
Grishin suddenly goes up high with a huge head kick that nearly
knocks Knight’s block off. Knight wobbles, shakes his head and high
fives Grishin for his effort, and Grishin does not capitalize on
it. Instead, they return to a very slow, methodical pace of single,
unthreatening strikes. Knight spins and misses with a kick, and
Grishin is slowly pushing forward with stabbing front kicks to the
body with his toes outstretched. The Russian boots Knight in the
head again, but it is not as clean of a land as before, and Knight
shrugs it off. “Knightmare” comes forward with a punch and a kick,
and Grishin swats it away and goes back for another push kick to
the gut. Knight tries and fails to score a head kick, and Grishin
fakes a level change to keep Knight guessing. “Maximus” goes after
a few more low kicks, and Knight begins to preemptively lift his
leg, suggesting they may be having some sort of effect. Without
setting himself in the danger zone, the leg kicks keep scoring for
Grishin, and Knight turns things up with seconds to spare, but
nothing of note connects. The active crowd does not love the action
of the first round.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Grishin
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Grishin
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Grishin

Round 2

The fighters touch gloves, and Grishin fakes that he will break
protocol and strike, but he pulls back and offers a legitimate hand
touch. Knight does not seem thrilled, and he lets loose with a
spinning wheel kick and another kick using the momentum, but
neither are anywhere close to landing. Grishin stays composed on
the outside, picking and poking at Knight’s legs and body with
single strikes. Knight hits nothing but air when he tries looping
counters, as the Russian maintains a very wide berth and still
works on the lead leg. One kick makes Knight spin around, so Knight
gives him one back and puts some torque into it. The commentary
devolves into a conversation about turkey legs, with play-by-play
guy Jon Anik joined by Michael Bisping and Daniel Cormier for a
discussion about past dinners. As they are off in some distant
conversation, Grishin steps in with a crisp right hand that gets
Knight’s attention. The Connecticut native crashes forward in
pursuit of a takedown, and Grishin maintains solid takedown defense
as he stays upright. Using the strength from his gargantuan frame,
Knight simply lifts Grishin up in the air and flips him over his
back. As soon as Grishin hits the ground, he scrambles, and manages
to toss Knight over and slam him to the mat. Grishin begins to belt
Knight with elbows, forcing Knight to suddenly defend himself as
these strikes doing damage. Knight holds on to mitigate any harm,
and locks Grishin down until he can push off to get some space.
When he tries to stand, Grishin greets him with a knee to the body
and a clean right hand. Knight wings a big kick, and Grishin ducks
back and snaps out a jab and a low kick. Knight replies with a
counter left hook, but it is one-and-done as Grishin stabs out
another front kick. The round ends as Knight pops Grishin with a
long left hand, and Dean has to jump in between them lets something
go awry.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Grishin
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Grishin
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Grishin

Round 3

The gloves get touched to start off the final round, and Knight
comes out firing knowing he is down on the scorecards. Knight
pressures his foe, walking him down, but not uncorking anything as
Grishin slams his shin into Knight’s calf. As Knight turns around
from the kick, he turns his movement into a spinning back fist, and
he whacks Grishin in the side of the head. From there, Knight
shoots for a low takedown, and he puts Grishin on his backside for
a moment. The Russian springs back up, but he cannot gain space as
Knight grapples him tightly to the fence. Grishin pushes off,
eating a left hand but nevertheless jabbing out to make Knight back
off. Grishin jabs and pokes at Knight from a safe distance, until
Knight has had enough, and the American plows forward into the
clinch after a straight right hand. Grishin frames off, rips the
body with a kick, and has his leg caught midair. With Knight
holding his foe’s leg under his armpit, he trips the other one out
beneath Grishin, and he sets “Maximus” down on the canvas. Grishin
tries to keep a closed guard, and as soon as Knight passes to half
guard, Grishin deftly slips out the back door and scrambles back to
his feet. Jammed up against the fence after the ground exchange,
they trade knees before Grishin stomps on the toes. The two stall
out, grinding up against the fence, until Knight unexpectedly leaps
in the air with a close proximity flying knee. Knight wildly
pursues a takedown, and he clubs Grishin with a powerful right
hand. Grishin smoothly gets back up, and he blasts Knight with a
low kick and a few powerful jabs. Grishin cracks Knight with a
right hand, sending “Knightmare” spinning and falling to the
ground, and “Maximus” jumps straight into mount. A few hammerfists
punctuate the performance, but time expires before he can pull a
stoppage out of the mayhem. When the fight comes to close, Grishin
goes over and pokes his defeated foe in the belly to add insult to
injury.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Grishin (30-27 Grishin)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Grishin (30-27
Grishin)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Grishin (30-27 Grishin)

The Official Result

Maxim Grishin def. William Knight via Unanimous Decision (30-27,
30-27, 30-27)

Round 1

No matter what the broadcast displays, the debuting fighter out of
City Kickboxing’s name is Mike Mathetha (3-0, 0-0 UFC), and not
“Blood Diamond.” That is just his nickname. In his first Octagon
appearance with just three pro MMA fights on his belt and an
unknown number of kickboxing contests in the past, he will take on
the surging powerhouse Wells (9-2-1, 1-0 UFC) at welterweight.
Keeping his head on a swivel will be referee Jacob Montalvo, and
Wells decides against touching gloves and instead sprints around
the edge of the cage to possibly gain momentum and fly out with a
strike, but he trips and nearly blows out his ankle. Mathetha
crashes in while loading up on a right hand, and he misses it and
they clinch up, with Wells trying to take the fight down. The
action stalls out with Wells in pursuit of a body lock, but he
cannot get the right leverage and cannot trip Mathetha down. Wells
opts to lift Mathetha in the air, and he slams him to the mat and
immediately lands in mount. “Blood Diamond” turns over, and he
gives up his back while Wells hunts for a quick rear-naked choke.
Wells flattens Mathetha out as Mathetha turns to his side, and
Wells slugs away at him before latching on to another rear-naked
choke. The City Kickboxing fighter turns into the choke with his
chin tucked, stifling the submission, and Wells postures up to
blast Mathetha with high elbows and punches. Mathetha gets to his
knees, only to get wrenched back down, all while Wells works him
over with punches. Wells pounds on Mathetha with right hands, and a
strike or two hits the back of the head without any protest. Wells
goes for another rear-naked choke, and bails on it to find a better
angle as Mathetha sits up. “Blood Diamond” makes a grave mistake by trying to
stand without fighting off the choke, and he falls down to the mat
when Wells sinks in the choke once and for all. Without any hooks
in, the Philadelphia native squeezes with all his might, and “Blood
Diamond” goes out on his shield and falls unconscious instead of
tapping out. Wells lets Montalvo know Wells is sleeping,
Montalvo checks Mathetha’s arm, and it is limp. Montalvo intervenes
quickly, and Mathetha comes to soon enough with no harm done.

The Official Result

Jeremiah Wells def. Mike Mathetha R1 4:38 via Technical Submission
(Rear-Naked Choke)

Round 1

Up next, bantamweights will take center stage when inconsistently
consistent Silva de Andrade (27-4, 1 NC; 5-4 UFC) faces off against
Morozov (17-5, 1-1 UFC) in a classic battle of Brazil vs.
Kazakhstan. The 135ers will see officiating from referee Kerry
Hatley as they enter the Octagon, and they decide to touch gloves
to seal the cage around them. Morozov takes the center of the cage,
and Silva de Andrade is tense and coiled up like a snake ready to
strike with a right hand chambered. Morozov does not fall into any
traps, instead sticking out a few jabs and forcing the Brazilian to
do the same. Silva de Andrade attacks with a low kick that draws a
reaction out of his opponent, and he goes to the outside of the leg
with another as he puts his hips into those strikes. “D’Silva” goes
up high with a kick, and it slaps off the guard and the sheer
impact budges Morozov. Silva de Andrade just misses with his right
hook, but Morozov does not miss when he counters. Morozov clips
Silva de Andrade with a right hand, sending Silva de Andrade
staggering back. Morozov does not let his damaged opponent off the
hook, catching him with a few more shots until a crisp uppercut
drops Silva de Andrade down to his knees. Morozov bowls him over
and climbs into the Brazilian’s open guard, where he begins to work
on “D’Silva” with punches to the head and body. The Kazakh sits up
and slashes down with an elbow, and it slices Silva de Andrade’s
face wide open as blood sprays down the downed fighter’s face.
Silva de Andrade powers his way back to his feet as blood leaks
into his eyes, and he gets tossed right back down. Although he
springs back up a second time, Morozov greets him with a knee right
on the button. Silva de Andrade’s chin is granite, as he backs off
and shakes his head, while blood continues to flow out of the cut
on the side of Silva de Andrade’s eye. Morozov targets it with
jabs, stepping in to follow one with a knee to the body, and he
ducks back when a counter aims at him. Silva de Andrade fires back
with a right hand and a thudding leg kick, and he rips the body
with a left hand as he does not appear wobbly or compromised from
the cut. Morozov turns with a full rotation, spins through and
belts Silva de Andrade in the body with a liver kick, and Silva de
Andrade appears stunned just long enough for Morozov to wrench him
off his feet and set him down. A few ground-and-pound strikes score
before the round comes to a close. The doctors check on the cut as
he goes to his corner, and it is wide but not in a fight-ending
place.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-8 Morozov
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-8 Morozov
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-8 Morozov

Round 2

The fighters high five to start off the second round, and Silva de
Andrade’s corner could not stop the bleeding of the inch-long cut
between rounds. Morozov jabs out to that spot, and Silva de Andrade
suddenly unleashes a fury of a right hand, a spinning kick and a
big punch to the body that sends Morozov falling back to the wall.
Silva de Andrade gives chase and knocks him down, and Morozov
powers back up and gets nailed with a few punches on the way back
up. Silva de Andrade backs off, avoids a spinning back fist, and
steps in with a standing back fist before blasting the body with
punches. Morozov backs his foe away with an inside leg kick, and he
pushes off and a thumb jams straight into the Brazilian’s eye.
Hatley gives him time to recover, and Silva de Andrade shrugs it
off after 30 seconds before getting back to business. An immediate
bull-rush from the Brazilian with a punch and a powerful knee to
the chest knocks Morozov over, and the Kazakh eats a right hand on
the way down but still manages to scramble back to his feet. Like a
berserker, Silva de Andrade attacks with powerful strikes. The
Brazilian lets loose with a vicious knee to the face, and a nasty
short elbow puts Morozov on rubber legs. With sheer power,
“D’Silva” drags Morozov down to the mat to take his back. Silva de Andrade instantly locks up a body triangle
and goes after a rear-naked choke, but Morozov turns his head and
saves himself from the choke. Morozov turns to his side to try to
get out, but in the process, he turns into the choke. Knowing he
has Morozov in all sorts of danger, Silva de Andrade latches on to
his choke grip and strangles Morozov with all his remaining energy.
Morozov fights the hands, trying to break up the choke, but he goes
out before he can even tap out. The lights are on, but no one’s
home, as Morozov is off to dreamland after that ruthless assault
ending in a choke. That’s two technical submissions in a row,
bringing Houston fans to their feet after a wild nine-ish minutes
of action.

The Official Result

Douglas Silva de Andrade def. Sergey Morozov R2 3:34 via Technical
Submission (Rear-Naked Choke)

Round 1

Training partners of fan-favorite ex-UFC champs will come to blows
in this middleweight encounter, as Strong Style Fight Team’s Dobson
(6-0, 1 NC; 0-0 UFC) – home of Stipe Miocic – meets PMA Super
Martial Arts prospect Malkoun (5-1, 1-1 UFC), a teammate of
headliner Robert Whittaker. The third man in the cage for what
could be a quick one is referee Herb Dean, who is ready for
whatever comes his way as he bears witness to a touch of gloves.
Dobson quickly fires off a right hand, and he slips back to sling a
right hand as Malkoun just dodges in time. Dobson cracks his foe
with a right hand, forcing the Aussie to shoot for a desperation
takedown. Dobson gets lifted up in the air, but he slithers his
legs down to the mat so that he can keep his balance and not get
taken down, in an impressive display of balance. “Mamba” grinds
Dobson against the fence until Dobson breaks off, and he loose a
quick one-two that connects cleanly on the beard of Malkoun. Dobson
tries to time a right hand low when Malkoun attacks for a takedown,
and Dobson once more keeps his balance when Malkoun elevates him.
The newcomer manages to break the grip, pushes off and returns to
his preferred boxing range. Malkoun lets go with a few punches, but
Dobson grabs him to knee him in the body a few times. Malkoun
flicks out a jab, but Dobson ignores them and answers with some of
his own. A quick chain of punches come out as Malkoun retreats, and
he connects with a solid leg kick at the end of a combination.
Dobson snaps the head back with a punch and goes up high with a
kick, and every strike that lands seems to draw a reaction out of
his opponent. Malkoun sits down on a right hand, but Dobson does
not even budge when it smacks into his cheek. Dobson stands firm,
delivering a couple more one-twos and a body kick. When Malkoun
lifts his man’s leg up in pursuit of a takedown, Dobson hops back
and bounces off the cage wall to get free. Dobson gives chase when
he lands a few punches, and Malkoun is rocked from an accumulation
of damage. Dobson takes the center of the cage and swats at his
shaky man, clipping him with a left hook and a one-two that bounces
off the side of the head. Malkoun drops down low for a single,
lifting Dobson’s leg up in the air and finally securing a takedown.
He can only maintain top position for a few seconds before the
round ends.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Dobson
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Dobson
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Dobson

Round 2

They clap hands to start of the second round, and Dobson, brimming
with confidence, strides out with a few jabs. He gets off a right
hand, and closes the distance to slam a knee into the Aussie’s
midsection. As he lands a few more strikes, he draws out another
takedown entry from “Mamba,” but that too fails as Dobson turns him
around and knees him in the body. They jockey for position against
the fence, and Malkoun stays doggedly in pursuit of a takedown but
nothing presents itself. Dobson is able to get Malkoun to back off
when he sets up a Thai clinch, and he misses a knee by an inch.
Malkoun resets, crashes forward and secures a takedown. The
American gets to his knees without much issue, stands back up, and
gets wrenched back down with a mat return. Malkoun begins to smash
Dobson in the side of the head with his fists, and Dobson is hurt
and in trouble as cornerman Mark Coleman bellows for Dobson to get
up. Malkoun does not let him up, raining down left hands as he
keeps Dobson stuck on a knee. The strikes turn from damaging ones
to more frustrating shots, but Malkoun is able to step over and sit
down on Dobson’s thigh to ground him. Dobson thinks to explode, but
Malkoun continues to grind and slug Dobson in the face with
powerful left hands. Malkoun pursues a guillotine choke when
working Dobson over, and he fails on that but does not let Dobson
off the hook. Dobson bursts back to his feet with 10 seconds to go,
and he pops Malkoun with a pair of punches before the bell.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Malkoun
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-8 Malkoun
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Malkoun

Round 3

The middleweights greet in the center of the cage, and Dobson
appears energized when back upright again. He flicks out a jab that
makes Malkoun blink it out a few times, and he catches Malkoun
coming in with a right hand. The Aussie changes levels for a
takedown, and the defense does not hold up for Dobson this time, as
he gets pulled down to the mat. Dobson remains on his knees before
jumping back up, and he succumbs to a mat return when Malkoun
powers him back down. “Mamba” holds on from behind, landing
sporadic right hands until the unbeaten fighter stands up. Malkoun
continues his assault of takedown tries, and he sucks Dobson’s legs
out beneath him and lands in half guard. Dobson wriggles himself to
the corner between the floor and the wall, and Coleman’s
encouragement is still somehow louder than all the boos raining
down in the building combined. Malkoun does not register the
crowd’s disappointment with his “embrace the grind” tactics, as he
thumps down on Dobson with right hands. The fighters start talking
to each other, with Dobson admitting his foe is stronger than he
thought, and they continue to converse as Malkoun is pounding on
him. Dobson tries to get into a slugfest from his back, with
punches from his back, but Malkoun’s are considerably harder.
Malkoun switches from punches to elbows as he staves off a standup
from Dean, and precious seconds tick off the clock while Malkoun
grinds him out. With just a few seconds left in the fight, Dobson
somersaults backwards to get out of the position, stands up and
wings a high kick, but it comes up short of the mark right before
the fight ends.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Malkoun (29-28 Malkoun)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Malkoun (29-27
Malkoun)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Malkoun (29-28 Malkoun)

The Official Result

Jacob Malkoun def. A.J. Dobson via Unanimous Decision (29-28,
29-28, 29-28)

Round 1

The first Texan of the night enters the cage in this bantamweight
fight that closes out the early preliminary card, when Metro Fight
Club’s Martinez (9-2, 1-0 UFC) tries to make good on his second UFC
outing. He will take on fellow sophomore UFC competitor Lawrence
(7-1, 1-0 UFC) with the crowd loudly at his back. Amidst the
raucous audience cheering for Houston’s own Martinez, referee Jacob
Montalvo clocks the fighters in and observes a glove touch.
Martinez takes the center of the cage, swatting away a leg kick and
missing with one of his own. Lawrence attacks with a head kick that
misses, and a low kick that does not, as Lawrence stays light on
his feet from afar. Lawrence goes after another slapping leg kick,
and he keeps Martinez at bay with these kicks. Martinez moves his
hands about a lot, but is not throwing them to any appreciable
degree. “The Heat” blazes forward, lifts Martinez up in the air
with a single-leg entry and slams him down to the mat. Martinez
kicks off, and an upkick smacks into Lawrence’s face and rocks him
momentarily. Martinez uses this opportunity to scoot his way to the
fence, and he gets dragged right back down when standing. “Manaboi”
goes back to a knee as Lawrence grinds him out, and he stands up
and turns his way to the fence and breaks away. The fighters kick
at the same time, clashing legs, and Martinez comes out the better
of the exchanges as he marches forward. The Houston native sinks in
a heavy leg kick, and the commentary drifts off into a disgusting
conversation about buying NFTs. While they prattle on about buying
this or that, Din Thomas chimes in to discuss wrestling and the
fight itself. As soon as he does, “The Heat” smashes Martinez in
the face with a right hand, sending Martinez crashing down to the
mat. Lawrence dives on top as the commentators are suddenly snapped
back into the fight, and he looks to advance position but falls
back when Martinez hunts for a leglock from his back. Martinez
forces Lawrence to defend it, but he cannot make Lawrence back off,
and instead closes up his guard and takes a few punches on the jaw
until the horn sounds.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Lawrence
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Lawrence
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Lawrence

Round 2

A glove touch precedes the action in Round 2, and Martinez catches
an oncoming front kick and zings a left hand that just skims off
the beard of his opponent. Martinez leads the dance this round,
throwing punches and kicks as he comes in instead of feinting and
staring. Lawrence stutter-steps to break up a spinning kick
attempt, and with a burst of speed, “The Heat” connects with a
right to the body and a left to the head that drops Martinez.
Lawrence hops on top in the blink of an eye, where he holds on from
above in a half guard-like position as he hunts for a submission of
some sort. “Manaboi” draws him back into his closed guard, and he
opens it when he gets popped with a few punches and turns to his
knees. Martinez tries to scramble and crawl his way to the wall,
and he fights his way back up to his feet and out. With another
speedy combination ending in a crisp right hand, Lawrence lashes
out and knocks Martinez off of his feet again, and Martinez hits
the ground hard. Lawrence tries to finish the job with
ground-and-pound, but he lets Martinez give up his back so he can
secure back control. “The Heat” cooks his man with a body triangle,
squeezing it tight. In a display of grit and toughness, Martinez
turns Lawrence over and springs back to his feet. Not five seconds
elapse before Lawrence charges at him like a bull, where he
proceeds to lift “Manaboi” up and slam him down to the floor with
emphasis. Martinez returns to a knee, and Lawrence scoops him up
and successfully hits a high-amplitude slam. The round ends with
Lawrence on top.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-8 Lawrence
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-8 Lawrence
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-8 Lawrence

Round 3

Martinez is fired up coming into the final round, and he swings
wildly and connects with a body shot. They both land at the same
time, and Martinez knocks Lawrence off his feet when Lawrence tries
to kick him. Martinez eats a head kick so that he can sling a right
hand, and he takes another kick to the same target as soon as he
backs off. Lawrence comfortably kicks Martinez in the face with his
foot, and Martinez is no worse for wear and is throwing with bad
intentions. “Manaboi” scores a heavy body kick that reverberates
around the arena, and Lawrence shakes it off and circles away on
the outside. Martinez gives chase, trying to cut Lawrence off and
throw bombs, but Lawrence is quicker and more able to get away in
time of damaging blows. Lawrence leaps in the air with a knee, and
he changes levels for a double but gets stuffed in the center of
the cage. When Lawrence gets back upright, he pushes a right hand
straight through the guard that snaps Martinez’ head back. Martinez
Digs a right to the body and a left to the head, and Lawrence is
hurt badly! Lawrence attacks for a takedown, and “Manaboi” stuffs
it and nails Lawrence with powerful shots. Lawrence is in the
danger zone, barely surviving when getting dropped again, although
he gets up and places his hands on the mat, taking shots. “The
Heat” heats up, instinctively securing a takedown that plants
Martinez on his back. As soon as he does, Martinez throws his legs
up for a triangle that turns into a leg scissor choke, and Lawrence
pushes out of both tries. Martinez turns the triangle setup into an
armbar, and Lawrence miraculously twists out of it and climbs on
top. A wild scramble ensues, and Martinez works his way back up to
his feet. With 10 seconds to go, Martinez tries to give it
everything he has left, but Lawrence smartly snags a double that
grounds Martinez for the remainder of the match. The crowd pelts
Lawrence with boos for this strategy, and the wild third round
comes to an end.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Martinez (29-27 Lawrence)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Martinez (29-27
Lawrence)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Martinez (29-27 Lawrence)

The Official Result

Ronnie Lawrence def. Leomana Martinez via Unanimous Decision
(29-27, 29-27, 29-28)

Round 1

A pair of light heavyweights aiming to secure their first UFC win
in dominant fashion are up now, when Ulberg (3-1, 0-1 UFC) will try
to get on the board for City Kickboxing tonight at the expense of
New England’s Cherant (7-3, 0-2 UFC). Knowing this fight may end in
the blink of an eye, referee Dan Miragliotta is ready for anything,
even as there is no touch of gloves before a potential flurry of
fist and feet follow. Ulberg bullies his opponent up against the
wall early, landing several leg kicks while Cherant throws at
nothing but air. Cherant comes over the top with a left hand that
misses by an inch, and he eats a low kick in response. Ulberg
calmly walks his foe down, kicking his way in with low kicks and
little else. The crowd begins chanting something about commentator
Joe Rogan, who is not in the building, as the action lulls. Ulberg
pokes away with jabs until he connects with a heavy inside leg kick
that makes Cherant walk away. “Black Jag” counters Cherant on the
way in with a right hand, and he lets loose a body kick that
collides with the cup. Ulberg does not think it landed, so he
chases Cherant down and boots him in the midsection, but it did hit
the cup. After about 30 seconds, Cherant is ready to continue, and
he is enraged. “The Water Buffalo” charges, slinging several
punches before powering his way into a clinch in pursuit of a
takedown. Ulberg turns the tables, tripping Cherant’s legs out
beneath him and putting him down to the ground. Cherant scrambles,
fighting his way back up to his feet without eating more than a
single strike, and Ulberg turns to block a punch with his shoulder.
Ulberg sweeps the leg as Cherant attempts to blitz forward again,
only to let Cherant up without bothering to climb into his guard.
Ulberg sticks out a few jabs, and he strides forward with his hands
at his waist. Out of nowhere, the Kiwi whips a spinning wheel kick
that slams into Cherant’s guard, and Cherant shakes his head but
the impact clearly knocked him into the fence and may have hurt him
a little. Ulberg follows with a head kick, and Cherant shakes it
off and drills his foe with a left hand that knocks Ulberg off his
feet. Ulberg scampers back upright as the round ends.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Ulberg
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Ulberg
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Ulberg