Lingo with the late knockdown!
[
#UFCVegas34 | Prelims are LIVE on ESPN2 & @ESPNPlus] pic.twitter.com/5gagHlPMA5— UFC (@ufc)
August 22, 2021
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PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer,
phone, tablet or streaming device via the ESPN app. Weaponized cardio made all the difference for
Austin
Lingo.
The Fortis
MMA prospect overcame a difficult start, bit down on his
proverbial mouthpiece and took a unanimous decision from Luis
Saldana in the featured
UFC on ESPN 29 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Lingo (9-1, 2-1 UFC) was awarded 29-28 marks by all three cageside
judges.
Saldana (15-7, 1-1 UFC) opened a cut near the onetime Legacy
Fighting Alliance headliner’s right eye and doubled him over with a
body kick in a productive first round. However, his output dipped
in the middle stanza, where Lingo applied maximum pressure, went
headhunting with both hands and nearly knocked his adversary out of
the air when he countered a flying knee with a right hook. Saldana
further deteriorated in the third. Lingo stalked his prey around
the cage, dropped him with a brutal right hand to the gut and
assumed top position before he closed the round by advancing to the
back and securing himself with a body triangle.
The loss was Saldana’s first in more than four years and slammed
the door on his career-best five-fight winning streak.
Kelleher Routs Overmatched Pilarte
Well-timed takedowns, suffocating top control and steady
ground-and-pound carried former Ring of
Combat champion Brian
Kelleher to a unanimous decision over Domingo
Pilarte in a three-round bantamweight scrap. All three cageside
judges scored it 30-27 for Kelleher (23-12, 7-5 UFC), who has won
four of his past six bouts.
Pilarte (8-3, 0-2 UFC) was essentially a non-factor. Kelleher
executed takedowns in all three rounds, piled up more than 12
minutes of control time and added to his lead with punches, elbows
and hammerfists from inside the guard. He threatened with a pair of
guillotine chokes in the second round but otherwise seemed content
to humiliate Pilarte with a death-by-a-thousand-cuts approach.
Operating out of
Revolution Dojo, Pilarte has not posted a win since July 17,
2018.
Newcomer Nunes Fells Malecki
Striker’s House standout Josiane
Nunes brought down the previously unbeaten Bea Malecki
with a devastating overhand left in the first round of their
women’s bantamweight affair. Malecki (4-1, 2-1 UFC) crashed and
burned 4:54 into Round 1.
Nunes (8-1, 1-0 UFC) successfully navigated a visible height and
reach disparity. Malecki pointed kicks at the Brazilian’s body,
head and legs but failed to keep her at bay. Nunes wore down the
Swede with merciless pressure and punching bursts, ultimately
forcing her to wilt near the end of the first round. Malecki
disengaged from a close-range exchange and circled off the fence,
only to be met by the fight-ending blow. No
follow-up shots were necessary.
The 27-year-old Nunes has rattled off seven consecutive
victories.
Menacing Knight Waylays Cherant
Thornton Martial Arts export William
Knight buried former
Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Fabio
Cherant with punches in the first round of their light
heavyweight tilt. Cherant (7-3, 0-2 UFC) faceplanted 3:58 into
Round 1.
Knight (10-2, 2-1 UFC) set the tone with a series of brutal inside
leg kicks and managed to weather the return fire. Cherant backed
him to the fence with power punches at one point but led with his
chin and paid the price. Knight leveled him with a compact left hook on the
counter, trailed him to the canvas and sealed the deal with
follow-up punches.
Cherant has not survived the first round in either of his UFC
appearances.
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PFL and “The Ultimate Fighter” live on your smart TV, computer,
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Spectacular Bahamondes Kick KOs Roberts
VFS Academy product Ignacio
Bahamondes threw himself into “Knockout of the Year”
contention, as he wiped out Roosevelt
Roberts with a wheel kick in the third round of their
lightweight tilt. Roberts (10-3, 4-3 UFC) hit the deck 4:55 into
Round 3 and remains winless since May 30, 2020.
Clean combination punching, stinging leg kicks and airtight
takedown defense buoyed Bahamondes’ attack. The 23-year-old Dana
White’s Contender Series alum did not leave the cage unscathed, as
Roberts carved out several cuts with a damaging jab. Still, the
high output from Bahamondes (12-4, 1-1 UFC) ultimately overwhelmed
the
Adrenaline Martial Arts rep. Roberts disengaged from the clinch
late in the third round, absorbed a close-range elbow strike and
then at the spectacular fight-ending kick with five seconds
left in the match.
Bahamondes has won three of his last four fights.
Brahimaj Choke Sleeps Palatnikov
Fortis
MMA’s Ramiz
Brahimaj put Sasha
Palatnikov to sleep with a rear-naked choke in the first round
of their welterweight pairing. Palatnikov (6-4, 1-2 UFC) raised the
white flag 2:33 into Round 1, as he suffered his second straight
setback at 170 pounds.
Brahimaj (9-3, 1-1 UFC) executed a takedown inside the first
minute, threatened with an arm-triangle choke and climbed to full
mount. The Bronx, New York, native then transitioned to the back and cinched the choke.
Palatnikov fought to free himself but lost consciousness in the
clutches of his determined counterpart.
The 28-year-old Brahimaj has delivered all nine of his victories by
submission. 
