Manchester Top Team export Abraham
Bably landed a
Professional Fighters League contract during
Week 3 of the PFL Challenger Series, as he brutalized,
embarrassed and ultimately put away Hassan
Graham with
punches in the first round of their heavyweight
showcase on Friday at Universal Studios in Orlando.
Graham (1-1, 0-1 PFL) succumbed to blows 3:56 into Round 1.
The unbeaten Bably (3-0, 2-0 PFL) seized the reins at the start and
never let go. He delivered a takedown with an inside trip,
progressed to the back and eventually climbed to full mount. From
there, Bably cut loose with punches, increasing the ferocity and
frequency of his shots with each passing moment. Graham turned away
from contact and surrendered his back in one final defensive move
but found no refuge there.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, Louie
Sutherland cut down Dana White’s Contender Series alum Alton
Meeks with
a knee strike and follow-up punches in the second round of their
heavyweight affair. The 29-year-old Sutherland (5-1,
1-1 PFL) brought it to a close 85 seconds into Round 2.
Meeks (4-2, 0-1 PFL) struck for multiple takedowns inside the first
round, applying modest control and intermittent ground-and-pound.
However, Sutherland had turned the tide by the end of the period,
as he connected with a series of knees and winging hooks. Meeks
emerged for the middle stanza a diminished force, fatigue having
taken hold. Sutherland cracked him with a knee to the face, gave
chase when he retreated to the mat and finished it with a burst of
hammerfists.
Elsewhere, Kings MMA’s Danilo
Marques put Ras Hylton
to sleep with
a rear-naked choke in the second round of their heavyweight
clash. Hylton (9-7, 0-1 PFL) lost his grip on reality
2:33 into Round 2, his three-fight winning streak having run its
course.
Marques (13-4, 1-0 PFL) kept his 6-foot-6 counterpart at bay with
single-leg takedowns, body kicks and overhand rights. A surge saw
the Brazilian nearly slam the door with punches at the end of the
first round. Hylton was docked a point at the start of the middle
stanza due to an accidental groin strike, and his situation only
deteriorated from there. Marques secured another single-leg
takedown, climbed to the back and snuck his arms into place for the
choke.
Finally, promising promotional newcomer Isaiah
Pinson crowded and outstruck the heavily favored Vitor
Resende, as he laid claim to a unanimous decision over the
6-foot-9 American Top Team rep in their three-round heavyweight
encounter. All three members of the cageside judiciary struck
scorecards for Pinson (2-0, 1-0 PFL): 29-28, 30-27 and 29-28.
Resende (4-1, 0-1 PFL) failed to manage distance properly. Pinson,
who earned All-America honors as an offensive lineman for The
Citadel before he transitioned to mixed martial arts, pressed
forward with no regard for the Brazilian’s standup skills and
attacked him with flurries to the body and head. Outside of a body
kick late in the second round and a takedown early in the third,
Resende was ineffective. Pinson steered clear of any real danger,
continuing to let the punches and kicks flow until the final bell.