Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on
your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the
ESPN app. Anthony
Smith agreed to five rounds on short notice. He needed less
than one. “Lionheart” returned to the winner’s circle for the first time in
more than a year and retained his place in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship’s light heavyweight pecking
order, as he submitted Devin Clark
with a triangle choke in the first round of their makeshift
UFC on ESPN 18 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las
Vegas. Clark (12-5, 6-5 UFC) tapped 2:34 into Round 1.
A replacement for Shamil
Gamzatov, Smith (34-16, 9-6 UFC) wrapped the former
Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion in a body lock, secured a
takedown and then drew him to the center of the cage and away from
the relative safety of the fence. Clark sprang a reversal after
being threatened with a twister but uncovered an opponent who was
no less dangerous from his back. Smith cinched the triangle choke
from the bottom, repositioned himself for maximum effect and
constricted the neck for the tapout.
Smith and Clark were unexpectedly positioned atop the card on
Friday when the original Curtis Blaydes-Derrick Lewis main event
was scrapped due to a positive COVID-19 test.
Baeza Choke Submits Sato
MMA Masters rep Miguel
Baeza kept his perfect professional record intact and did so in
style, as he submitted Takashi
Sato with an arm-triangle choke in the second round of their
welterweight co-main event. Sato (16-4, 2-2 UFC) conceded defeat
4:28 into Round 2.
Baeza (10-0, 3-0 UFC), his star on the rise, handled his business
like a seasoned pro. He hacked away at Sato with kicks to the legs,
body and head, stayed composed and rang the Sanford MMA product’s
bell with a knee strike and a surgical right hand in the first
round. Baeza delivered an unexpected takedown late in the second,
floated to the back, flattened out Sato and framed the
arm-triangle. Once the choke was in place, there was no escape.
The submission was the first of Baeza’s career.
Porter Outlasts Gassed Parisian
A merciless pace, a stout chin and a willingness to adapt to his
surroundings spurred regional mainstay Parker
Porter to a unanimous decision over Josh
Parisian in a three-round heavyweight war of attrition. All
three judges sided with Porter (10-6, 1-1 UFC): 30-26, 30-27 and
29-28.
Parisian (13-4, 0-1 UFC) fought well in spurts but could not match
the CES MMA veteran’s output, and by the second round, he was
running on fumes. Parker knocked down the Dana White’s Contender
Series graduate with a leg kick and managed to bite down briefly on
a guillotine choke before the two behemoths returned to their feet.
He then executed a takedown, advanced to half guard and made a pass
at a keylock, filling the spaces in between with hammerfists and
elbows. Parisian survived to see a third round, but his situation
did not improve there. Porter assaulted him with crisp one-twos and
mixed in a few close-range knees to the body for good measure.
The setback snapped Parisian’s six-fight winning streak.
Algeo Handles Cardio-Challenged Carlyle
Former Ring of Combat and Cage Fury Fighting Championships
titleholder Bill Algeo
won for the sixth time in eight outings, as he laid claim to a
unanimous decision over Spike
Carlyle in a featured featherweight clash. Algeo (14-5, 1-1
UFC) swept the scorecards with 30-27 marks across the board.
Carlyle (9-3, 1-2 UFC) brought five minutes of gas to a 15-minute
fight, and it was not enough to get the job done. He made a brief
pass at a bulldog choke in the first round, but his aggression
failed to yield the desired dividends. Instead, fatigue took hold
and allowed Algeo to seize control. He steered clear of Carlyle’s
all-or-nothing punches and countered his increasingly desperate
takedown attempts with an effective sprawl and knees to the
head.
The 27-year-old Carlyle has lost back-to-back bout since he made
his promotional debut with a sensational knockout of Aalon Cruz
in February.
Viana Overwhelms Tentative Evans-Smith
A surprising takedown, superiority in the scrambles and clean
combination punching carried Jungle Fight veteran Norma
Dumont Viana to a one-sided unanimous decision over Ashlee
Evans-Smith in a three-round women’s bantamweight showcase. All
three cageside judges scored it 30-26 for Viana (5-1, 1-1 UFC), who
rebounded from her Feb. 29 knockout loss to former Invicta Fighting
Championships titleholder Megan
Anderson.
Evans-Smith (6-5, 3-5 UFC) looked like a fighter with a body-mind
disconnect and struggled to pull the trigger across a majority of
the 15-minute battle. Viana, who missed weight for the match by 3.5
pounds, capitalized on her gun-shy opponent’s inaction. The
Brazilian countered beautifully with both hands and pushed
Evans-Smith backward with speed and power. Viana secured a trip
takedown in the first round, achieved full mount in the second and
nearly finished it in the third. There, she dropped Evans-Smith to
her knees with a right uppercut and swarmed for a potential
stoppage along the fence before settling for the decision.
The 33-year-old Evans-Smith has lost four of her last five
fights.
Pearce Batters Replacement Kamaka
Fight Ready rep Jonathan
Pearce disposed of Kai Kamaka III
with sustained ground-and-pound in the second round of their
action-packed featherweight feature. A short-notice substitution
for Sean
Woodson, Kamaka (8-3, 1-1 UFC) succumbed to unanswered punches
4:28 into Round 2 and saw his six-fight winning streak grind to a
halt.
After a competitive first five minutes, Pearce (10-4, 1-1 UFC) hit
his stride. He executed multiple takedowns, progressed to dominant
positions, hunted chokes and scored with punches, elbows and
hammerfists. Pearce eventually moved to the back, flattened out the Hawaiian and slammed sweeping
punches from both hands into his head until referee Dan
Miragliotta had seen enough.
Pearce, 28, has rattled off six wins across his last seven
appearances.
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UFC on ESPN 18 Prelims: Anderson dos Santos Drops Guillotine,
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