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Chikadze sent a clear message to the rest of the
Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight division: Time to
pay attention. The
Kings MMA export disposed of former Ring of
Combat champion Edson
Barboza with punches in the third round of their
UFC on ESPN 30 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las
Vegas. Barboza (22-10, 16-10 UFC) bowed out 1:44 into Round 3, his
modest two-fight winning streak at an end.
Chikadze (14-2, 7-0 UFC) was quicker on the draw. He routinely beat
Barboza to the punch, withstood the Brazilian’s sustained attack on
his body and hit the accelerator as soon as the situation called
for it. He followed a knee to Barboza’s chest with a clubbing right
hand to the head and gave chase early in the third round. Chikadze
staggered the American Top Team ace with a straight right, dove
into top position and transitioned between anaconda and brabo
chokes. Barboza escaped, but as he stood, the Georgian unleashed
his devastating hands once more, sent him careening into the fence
and elicited the stoppage.
The 33-year-old Chikadze has pieced together nine straight
victories, emerging as a major player at 145 pounds.
Battle Throttles Urbina, Wins Middleweight Tournament
Bryan
Battle submitted Combate
Americas veteran Gilbert
Urbina with a rear-naked choke in the second round of “The
Ultimate Fighter” Season 29 middleweight final. Anchored at a
Hayastan MMA affiliate in Charlotte, North Carolina, Battle
(6-1, 1-0 UFC) drew the curtain 2:15 into Round 2.
A short-notice replacement for the injured Tresean
Gore, Urbina (6-2, 0-1 UFC) did his best work in the first
round. There, he punctuated a multi-punch volley with an overhand
right, dumped Battle to the mat and briefly achieved full mount.
Then it all went downhill for Urbina. Visibly fatigued as the
battle spilled into a second round, he opened a significant cut
next to Battle’s right eye with a series of elbow strikes from the
clinch but left himself exposed and surrendered a takedown. Battle
transitioned to the back, cinched the choke and prompted the tapout.
Battle has rattled off five consecutive wins, all of them finishes
inside two rounds.
Turcios Outlasts Hiestand in Bantamweight Final
Former
Fury Fighting Championship titleholder Ricky
Turcios outstruck and outscrambled Sikjitsu
rep Brady
Hiestand to a split decision in “The Ultimate Fighter 29”
bantamweight final. All three cageside judges scored it 29-28:
Derek Cleary for Hiestand, Michael Bell and Tony Weeks for
Turcios.
Hiestand (5-2, 0-1 UFC) completed six takedowns and piled up more
than five minutes of control time, but those efforts were not
enough to propel him to the finish line. Turcios (11-2, 1-0 UFC)
answered with relentless pace and high output, throwing punches
voraciously with both hands while integrating the occasional knee
or elbow strike in close quarters. He sat down Hiestand with a
two-punch combination in the third round and made a late push with
a burst of punches in the waning seconds.
Turcios, 28, has won three of his last four fights.
Replacement Rodriguez Upends Lee
Syndicate MMA’s Daniel
Rodriguez leaned on an effective sprawl and superior standup,
as he laid claim to a unanimous decision over Kevin Lee in a
three-round welterweight showcase. A short-notice replacement for
Sean
Brady, Rodriguez (16-2, 6-1 UFC) carried all three scorecards
by 29-28 margins.
Lee (18-7, 11-7 UFC) held his own on the feet in the first round
and secured a takedown with roughly two minutes left in the period,
consolidating his efforts with top control and ground-and-pound.
However, he ran into more and more resistance as the bout
progressed. Rodriguez either negated his takedowns or cut them off
completely, all while piling up points with jabs, leg kicks and
right hooks. An overhand left connected and set Lee on rubbery legs
late in Round 2, and the shift in momentum proved permanent.
Rodriguez neutralized the
Tristar Gym rep’s wrestling in the third and continued to
pepper him with jabs, low kicks and the occasional power shot
upstairs.
Rodriguez, 34, will ride a three-fight winning streak into his next
assignment.
Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC,
PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer,
phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app.
Favored Petroski Swamps Gillmore
“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 29 semifinalist Andre
Petroski put away Micheal
Gillmore with punches and elbows in the third round of their
middleweight feature. Gillmore (5-4, 0-1 UFC) bowed out 3:12 into
Round 3, his three-fight winning streak having run its course.
Petroski (6-1, 1-0 UFC) set the tone with a dominant first round,
where he thumped his counterpart with a right hand and executed a
slam takedown inside 90 seconds. He remained in top position for
the majority of the period, applied his ground-and-pound and
ultimately transitioned to the back before threatening with a neck
crank. After some give and take in Round 2, Petroski returned to
the path of least resistance. He struck for a takedown early in the
third round, climbed to full mount and giftwrapped Gillmore’s arm.
From there, Petroski dropped unanswered punches and elbows until the job
was done.
A onetime
Legacy Fighting Alliance headliner, Petroski has secured all
six of his professional victories by knockout, technical knockout
or submission.
Meerschaert Choke Submits Muradov
Former
Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion Gerald
Meerschaert submitted the heavily favored Makhmud
Muradov with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their
middleweight attraction. Muradov (25-7, 3-1 UFC), who entered the
cage on a 14-fight winning streak, conceded defeat 1:49 into Round
2. It was his first setback since Dec. 18, 2016.
Meerschaert (33-14, 8-6 UFC) trudged through considerable
difficulty early in the first round, where the Uzbekistani striker
appeared to have him reeling with accurate punches on more than one
occasion. Slowly but surely the tide turned in the
Roufusport mainstay’s favor. He backed up Muradov with a series
of left hands in the middle stanza, dragged him to the floor and
moved to the back. Soon after, Meerschaert threaded his arms in place for the choke and let
his squeeze do the rest.
The 33-year-old Meerschaert has delivered back-to-back submission
victories since his 17-second knockout loss to Khamzat
Chimaev in September.
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UFC on ESPN 30 Prelims: Jacoby Buries Replacement Stewart
