Mike
Davis re-introduced himself to the
Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight division after a
17-month layoff, and the statement he made could not have been much
more profound.
The impressive Fusion X-Cel standout showcased his all-terrain
skills before he subdued Natan Levy
with an arm-triangle choke in the second round of their featured
UFC Fight Night 239 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las
Vegas.
Levy (8-2, 2-2 UFC), who missed weight for the bout by one pound,
conceded defeat 1:43 into Round 2.
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Davis decked the Syndicate MMA product with a right hand—the impact
appeared to break Levy’s nose—inside the first 30 seconds, moved to
the back and controlled position for most of the opening stanza.
The narrative did not shift much in the second round. There, Davis
tripped the Israeli to the floor, set off a scramble and again
transitioned to the back. He then floated to full mount, framed the
arm-triangle and let his squeeze do the rest.
The 31-year-old Davis will enter his next assignment on the
strength of a four-fight winning streak.
Meanwhile, onetime Shooto Brazil champion Jafel Filho
took care of Ode
Osbourne with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their
flyweight confrontation.
Osbourne (12-7, 4-5 UFC) raised the white flag of surrender 4:27
into Round 1.
Filho (16-3, 2-1 UFC) secured an early takedown, got busy with
ground-and-pound and transitioned to the back. He threatened with a
face crank, then floated to full mount and unleashed his hands yet
again. Osbourne turned over in a last-ditch attempt to shake the
Brazilian, to no avail. Filho forced him to expose his neck, snaked
his arms in place and closed the deal.
The 30-year-old Filho has rattled off seven victories in eight
appearances.
Further down the undercard, Dana White’s Contender Series graduate
Danny
Silva planted his flag at 145 pounds with a split decision over
former Hex Fight Series titleholder Joshua
Culibao in a competitive three-round featherweight scrap. All
three cageside judges scored it 29-28, two of them for Silva.
Silva (9-1, 1-0 UFC)—who missed weight for the match by two and a
half pounds—dazed the Aussie with a right uppercut and made a pass
at a guillotine in the first round, setting the stage for a
back-and-forth battle between two promising young martial artists.
Culibao called upon lateral movement, deft footwork and multi-punch
bursts in his retort, often doubling and tripling up on his jab. It
was not enough. Silva backed relentless pressure with volleys of
his own, lured his opponent into repeated clinches, completed four
takedowns and racked up more than five minutes of control time.
Culibao has suffered back-to-back losses for the first time as a
pro.
Elsewhere, ex-Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Jaqueline
Amorim disposed of Cory
McKenna with an armbar in the first round of their women’s
strawweight affair.
Amorim (8-1, 2-1 UFC) brought it to a close 1:38 into Round
1.
McKenna (8-3, 3-2 UFC) caught a kick from the Brazilian, dumped her
to the canvas and immediately wandered into danger. Amorim trapped
her in a triangle, transitioned to an armbar and appeared to
complete the submission with a verbale cue from referee Mike
Beltran despite the lack of a visible tapout. Recognizing his
mistake, Beltran beckoned the combatants to continue. Amorim picked
up where she left off, isolated the Team Alpha Male export’s right
arm and hyperextended the elbow for the finish.
Amorim, 28, has secured six of her eight career victories by
submission.
Finally, American Top Team’s Thiago
Moises rebounded from his Sept. 2 technical knockout loss to
Benoit St.
Denis and put away promotional newcomer Mitch
Ramirez with leg kicks in the third round of their lightweight
clash. A late-notice substitution for Brad
Riddell, Ramirez (8-2, 0-1 UFC) bowed out 15 seconds into Round
3.
Moises (18-7, 7-5 UFC) was measured and methodical. The former
Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion nearly finished it in the
first round, where he executed a takedown, scrambled to Ramirez’s
back and threatened with rear-naked chokes and face cranks. Ramirez
withstood those advances but had no answer for the Brazilian’s
attack on the feet. Moises battered his counterpart’s lower lead
leg with a sustained barrage of accurate kicks, a grotesque
discoloration and swelling on the Syndicate MMA rep’s shin
providing visible evidence of his work.
He dropped Ramirez with one final kick at the start of the third
round, moved in for the kill and prompted the
stoppage.
The 28-year-old Moises has won three of his past four bouts.
In other action, Chelsea
Chandler (6-2, 2-1 UFC) overcame a one-pound weight miss and
laid claim to a unanimous decision over Josiane
Nunes in a three-round women’s bantamweight scrap, sweeping the
scorecards with 29-28 marks across the board; and Chad
Anheliger (13-7, 2-2 UFC) stepped in as a short-notice
replacement for Toshiomi
Kazama and took a unanimous decision from Charalampos
Grigoriou (8-4, 0-1 UFC) in a three-round bantamweight tilt,
drawing 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27 scores from the judges.