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ESPN app. Alistair
Overeem blocked the path of another young lion in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship’s heavyweight division. The former Dream,
Strikeforce
and K-1 World Grand Prix champion put away Augusto
Sakai with destructive ground-and-pound in the fifth round of
their
UFC Fight Night 176 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in
Las Vegas. Overeem (47-18, 12-7 UFC) drew it to a close 26 seconds
into Round 5, authoring the 42nd stoppage of his remarkable
career.
Sakai jumped out to an early lead with bursts of punches, knees and
elbows at close range, at times appearing to befuddle “The
Demolition Man” in their stop-and-start exchanges on the feet.
Overeem shifted momentum in the third round, where he took down the
Brazilian and opened a vertical cut on his eyebrow with a
well-placed hammerfist. Sakai drew blood with a short standing
elbow in the fourth but again conceded a takedown and found himself
pinned beneath the hulking Dutchman. Overeem plowed ahead with more
ground-and-pound—including a karate chop to the face—and closed in
on a finish. He secured another takedown at the start of Round 5
and hacked away with elbows and punches until
referee Herb Dean had
seen enough.
The loss was Sakai’s first in more than three years and halted his
run of consecutive victories at six.
St. Preux Counter KOs Menifield
Ovince St.
Preux knocked out Fortis
MMA’s Alonzo
Menifield with a beautiful counter left hook in the second
round of their light heavyweight co-main event. Menifield (9-2, 2-2
UFC) kissed the canvas 4:07 into Round 2, as he lost for the second
time in as many outings.
St. Preux (25-14, 13-9 UFC) utilized his height and reach
advantages, picked his spots from the outside and employed a
kick-heavy approach. He withstood a late punching burst from
Menifield at the end of the first round, then hunted the finish
with patience and purpose. Menifield’s output dropped to alarming
levels in Round 2, where he continued to absorb leg and body kicks
while circling haplessly on the perimeter. He pressed forward with
roughly a minute to go, led with his chin and walked into the left
hook. The impact froze him instantly, as he faceplanted
at St. Preux’s feet.
The 37-year-old has won two of his last three fights.
Pereira Choke Vanquishes Imadaev
Scorpion Fighting System stalwart Michel
Pereira submitted Zelim
Imadaev with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their
welterweight showcase. Referee Chris Tognoni rescued a battered and
bloodied Imadaev 4:39 into Round 3, though no obvious tap was
visible.
Pereira (24-11, 2-2 UFC) dominated virtually every second of the
bout. The Brazilian hit Imadaev (8-3, 0-3 UFC) with both
traditional and more exotic techniques, including a Showtime Kick
and a springing Superman punch off the cage. Pereira stunned his
counterpart with a flying knee in the first round, staggered him
with a right hand in the second and tied the bow on a stellar
performance in the third. There, in the final minute of the fight,
he executed a belly-to-back suplex, jumped
immediately to the back and cinched the no-hooks choke for the
finish.
The win closed the book on Pereira’s two-fight skid.
Muniz Armbar Submits Fabinski
Tata Fight Team’s Andre Muniz
submitted Bartosz
Fabinski with an armbar in the first round of their brief
middleweight encounter. Fabinski (15-4, 3-2 UFC) bowed out 2:42
into Round 1, as he lost for the second time in three
appearances.
Muniz (20-4, 2-0 UFC) remained calm under duress. Fabinski drew him
into the clinch, attacked with a few knees and struck for a
takedown, the Polish judoka’s game plan playing out as he had
hoped. However, Muniz countered with a guillotine, bailed on the
choke and transitioned to a triangle before shifting his legs into position for the
armbar.
The 30-year-old Muniz will carry a six-fight winning streak into
his next assignment.
Kelleher Guillotine Dismisses Rodriguez
Former Ring of
Combat champion Brian
Kelleher submitted Ray
Rodriguez with a guillotine choke in the first round of their
impromptu pairing at 145 pounds. A short-notice substitution for
Kevin
Natividad, Rodriguez (16-7, 0-1 UFC) conceded defeat 39 seconds
into Round 1. It was the second-fastest submission—tied with
Thiago
Tavares’ guillotine against Clay Guida on
Nov. 7, 2015 and Danny
Henry’s guillotine against Hakeem
Dawodu on March 17, 2018—in the history of the UFC
featherweight division.
After a brief standup exchange, Rodriguez shot for an ill-advised
takedown and wandered into a trap from which there was no escape.
Kelleher (22-11, 6-4) snatched the guillotine, wrapped him in full guard
and cut off any exits that remained. Rodriguez tapped soon
after.
The submission was the 10th of Kelleher’s career and the seventh
via guillotine choke.
Araujo Batters De La Rosa to Decision
A devastating jab, punishing kicks to the lower leg and thudding
overhand rights carried former Pancrase
champion Viviane
Araujo to a unanimous decision over Montana
De La Rosa in a three-round women’s flyweight battle. A
replacement for Maryna
Moroz, Araujo (9-2, 3-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 30-27,
30-27 and 29-28 marks from the judges.
De La Rosa (11-6, 4-2 UFC) elected to stand and trade with the
Brazilian muay Thai stylist, and she paid a significant cosmetic
price for her efforts. By the start of the second round, the
Elevation Fight Team rep was bleeding heavily from the nose and
mouth and dealing with multiple facial cuts and abrasions. Araujo
maintained a steady pace throughout Round 3, where she scored with
the jab, connected with a powerful overhand right and defended a
takedown with little trouble.
Araujo, 33, has won six of her last seven fights.
Smith Rebounds, Outpoints Azure
Fight Ready export Hunter
Azure bounced back from a May 13 knockout loss to Brian
Kelleher with a unanimous decision over Cole Smith
in a three-round bantamweight affair. All three cageside judges
scored it the same: 29-28 for Azure (9-1, 2-1 UFC).
Smith (7-2, 1-2 UFC) spent much of the fight on his heels. Azure
floored him with a left hook-right cross combination in the first
round, secured multiple takedowns and grinded on the former
Battlefield Fight League champion in the clinch. He withstood a
late rally from Smith in the third round, where the Canadian
advanced to his back, secured his position with a body triangle and
fished for chokes and neck cranks. However, the finish never
materialized.
The 31-year-old Smith has suffered back-to-back defeats.