Unbeaten Xtreme Couture representative Brahyan
Zurcher locked down a Professional Fighters League contract
during Week 6 of the PFL Challenger Series, as he took care of
David
Evans with
a neck crank in the second round of their featherweight
showcase on Friday at Universal Studios in Orlando,
Florida. Evans (5-2, 0-1 PFL) bowed out 1:37 into Round 2,
suffering the first submission defeat of his career.
Zurcher (5-0, 3-0 PFL) tore into his counterpart’s body and lead
leg with kicks, flurried with power punches and struck for a
takedown late in the first round. He transitioned from half guard
to side control and eventually advanced to the back, securing his
position with a body triangle just as time expired. Zurcher landed
another takedown early in the middle stanza, climbed to the back
and snaked his arms into position for the fight-ending crank.
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The 26-year-old Zurcher has finished three of his five opponents by
submission.
Meanwhile, SBG Ireland export Nathan
Kelly disposed of Zachary
Hicks with
an arm-triangle choke in the first round of their featherweight
confrontation. Kelly (7-2, 2-0 PFL) drew the curtain
2:30 into Round 1 of what was a virtually flawless performance. Hicks (8-5, 0-1 PFL) never factored into the equation. Kelly
delivered a takedown from the clinch a little more than 90 seconds
into the match and progressed to full mount soon after. From there,
he wasted no time in his pursuit of the finish. Kelly bit down on
the arm-triangle, tightened his squeeze and forced the tapout.
Kelly, 25, has rattled off seven consecutive victories.
Elsewhere, former Ring of Combat and Cage Fury Fighting
Championships titleholder James
Gonzalez put away Vikas
Singh Ruhil with
punches in the first round of their featherweight
tilt. Ruhil (12-7, 0-1 PFL) succumbed to blows 4:20
into Round 1, his three-fight winning streak having run its
course.
Gonzalez (10-5, 1-0 PFL) established his foothold with a series of
kicks to the body and legs. Ruhil pressed him to the fence late in
the first round and cut loose with punches, only to leave himself
open for a counterattack. Gonzalez floored him with a clubbing
right hand, jumped into full mount and tuned up the
ground-and-pound until referee Josh Rutgers had seen enough.
The 33-year-old Gonzalez has won four of his past five bouts.
Finally, undefeated Tropa Thai prospect Gabriel
Braga kept his perfect professional record intact with a
unanimous decision over Ago Huskic
in their three-round featherweight affair. All three judges sided
with Braga (9-0, 1-0 PFL): 30-25, 30-27 and 29-28.
The 28-year-old Huskic (8-6, 0-1 PFL) was game but outmatched.
Braga executed takedowns in all three rounds, climbed to full mount
on multiple occasions and piled up points with ground-and-pound. He
did his best work in Round 1, where he advanced to the back,
secured his position with a body triangle and nearly cinched a
rear-naked choke. While a finish failed to materialize, Braga had
set the tone for what was to come.
Huskic now finds himself on a four-fight losing streak.