Renato
Carneiro sent a warning to the rest of the
Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight division: Do not
forget about him.
The
American Top Team-trained Brazilian submitted Brad
Riddell with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their
featured UFC
281 prelim on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Carneiro (17-5-1, 9-5 UFC) finished it 3:20 into Round 1, as he
rebounded from his March 5 defeat to Rafael dos
Anjos.
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Riddell (10-4, 4-3 UFC) was a non-factor. Carneiro bludgeoned him
with punches, drawing blood under his right eye. He scrambled onto
the
City Kickboxing rep’s back after an attempted takedown, went to
work on the choke and eventually snaked his arms in place. Riddell
had no choice but to tap.
Spann Devastates Reeling Reyes
Former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Ryan Spann
punched out Dominick
Reyes in the first round of their light heavyweight encounter.
The physically imposing 6-foot-5 Spann (21-7, 7-2 UFC)—who missed
weight for the match by 0.6 pounds—closed the deal 1:20 into Round
1. The 32-year-old Reyes (12-4, 6-4 UFC) had no answer for the heavy
artillery being lobbed in his direction. Spann knocked the Teixeira
MMA export off-balance, threatened with a guillotine choke and
drifted back into open space.
He caught Reyes moving forward with a crushing short left hook that
folded Stony Brook University graduate where he stood. Reyes then
took aim on his fallen opponent with a driving downward punch
before the stoppage was called.
On a four-fight losing streak, Reyes has not visited victory lane
since Oct. 18, 2019.
Blanchfield Kimura Dismisses McCann
Erin
Blanchfield disposed of former Cage Warriors Fighting
Championship titleholder Molly
McCann with a kimura in the first round of their women’s
flyweight confrontation. McCann (13-5, 6-4 UFC) conceded defeat
3:37 into Round 1, her three-fight winning streak having run its
course.
Blanchfield (10-1, 4-0 UFC) was flawless. She executed a takedown
inside the first minute, moved to side control and progressed to
the mounted crucifix. Elbows and punches flowed unabated into
McCann’s face, the scene growing more uncomfortable by the moment.
From there, Blanchfield framed a kimura, cranked on the arm and
repositioned herself once it was clear she lacked the leverage she
needed.
The onetime Eddie Bravo Invitational champion attacked McCann’s
left arm yet again, bit down on the kimura and forced the
tap.
The 23-year-old Blanchfield has won seven fights in a row.
Relentless Petroski Smothers Turman
Repeated takedowns, suffocating positional control and the
ever-present threat of a submission carried “The Ultimate Fighter”
Season 29 semifinalist Andre
Petroski to a unanimous decision over Wellington
Turman in a three-round middleweight battle. Scores were 30-27,
30-27 and 29-28—all for Petroski (9-1, 4-0 UFC).
Turman (18-6, 3-4 UFC) had his moments, particularly in the first
round. There, he attacked the lower extremities with kicks and
zeroed in on the Petroski midsection with hooks from both hands and
the occasional knee strike. It was not enough to keep the Daniel
Gracie protégé at bay. Petroski overwhelmed the young Brazilian
for much of the final 10 minutes. He snatched a tight guillotine
choke in the third round, achieved full mount on multiple
occasions, forced Turman to carry his weight and generally made
life miserable for the Teixeira MMA product.
Petroski, 31, has now pieced together four consecutive
victories.
Frevola Waylays Unbeaten Azaitar
Serra-Longo Fight Team’s Matt
Frevola cut down onetime Brave Combat Federation champion
Ottman
Azaitar with punches in the first round of their lightweight
scrap. The previously undefeated Azaitar (13-1, 2-1 UFC) crashed
and burned 2:30 into Round 1.
Frevola (10-3-1, 4-3-1 UFC) walked through considerable fire,
absorbed a few front kicks to the body and lured the Jupps Fight
Team representative into range. Azaitar pressed the 2017 Dana
White’s Contender Series graduate to the fence but wandered to
close to the fire while doing so.
Frevola followed two short right hands with a devastating left hook
that sent the “Bulldozer” crashing to the canvas, then delivered
two more shots to the head before referee Dan Miragliotta could
arrive on the scene.
It was the fifth first-round finish of Frevola’s career.
Resurgent Kowalkiewicz Downs Juarez
Former KSW champion Karolina
Kowalkiewicz posted her second win in as many appearances with
a unanimous decision over Silvana
Gomez Juarez in a three-round women’s strawweight clash.
Kowalkiewicz (14-7, 7-7 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28 marks
from all three members of the cageside judiciary.
A strong first round fed Kowalkiewicz’s confidence. She drove
Juarez to the floor behind a right hand, moved to the back, secured
position with a body triangle and worked toward a rear-naked choke,
all while bleeding valuable time off the clock. From there, she
relied almost entirely on her standup. Kowalkiewicz pushed the
Entram Gym export backward, piled up points with her jab and even
mixed in a few knees from the clinch. Juarez (11-5, 1-3 UFC) fired
back on occasion—she appeared to stagger her American Top
Team-trained counterpart more than once with powerful right
hands—but missed out on opportunities to change the direction of
the fight.
Juarez has lost three of her past four bouts.
Trizano Counter Zaps Choi
“The Ultimate Fighter” Season 27 winner Michael
Trizano wiped out Seung Woo
Choi with punches in the first round of their featherweight
tilt. Trizano (10-3, 4-3 UFC)—who missed weight for the match by
1.6 pounds—drew the curtain 4:51 into Round 1.
Left hooks from both men resulted in a rare double knockdown inside
the first 30 seconds and set the stage for an utterly wild
encounter. Choi (10-6, 3-5 UFC) staggered the Team Tiger Schulmann
standout twice with left hooks but could not drive home the final
nail. Trizano leaned on his jab and clean one-twos, slowly but
surely chipping away at the Korean brute’s defenses. Late in the
first round,
he connected with an exquisite counter left hook. Choi collapsed to
the canvas, covered his head to avoid further punishment and
succumbed to follow-up punches.
The victory snapped a two-fight losing streak for Trizano.
Favored Jackson Handles Arce
Montel
Jackson overcame a slow start to outstrike and outmaneuver
former two-division Ring of Combat titleholder Julio Arce to
a unanimous decision in a three-round bantamweight affair. All
three cageside judges scored it for Jackson (12-2, 6-2 UFC): 30-27,
30-27 and 29-28.
Arce (18-6, 5-4 UFC) completed a takedown inside the opening stanza
but was otherwise ineffective. After a relatively competitive first
10 minutes, Jackson dropped him with a stiff jab in Round 3,
swooped into top position behind heavy ground-and-pound and dodged
an attempted triangle from the Team Tiger Schulmann rep. Once Arce
finally cleared the cobwebs and managed to return to his feet, he
failed to turn the tide with the time he had left.
Jackson, 30, will carry a three-fight winning streak into his next
assignment.
Impressive Ulberg Thumps Negumereanu
City Kickboxing export Carlos
Ulberg put away onetime Real Xtreme Fighting champion Nicolae
Negumereanu with
punches in the first round of their light heavyweight
pairing. Negumereanu (13-2, 4-2 UFC) checked out 3:44
into Round 1, suffering his first setback since March 16, 2019.
Ulberg (6-2, 2-2 UFC) softened the Romanian with kicks to the body
and leg, probed for openings and cut loose with a chopping overhand
left. Negumereanu hit the deck in a dazed state and absorbed two
clubbing right hands to the head, the follow-up shots prompting
referee Kevin
MacDonald to act.
The 31-year-old Ulberg has rattled off three straight victories,
two of them finishes.