UFC FIGHT NIGHT 78
NOVEMBER 21, 2015
LIVE FROM MONTERREY, MEXICO
The UFC’s third trip to Mexico is also their first outside of Mexico City, with 13 fights slated to take place tonight from Monterrey. We’ll have live round by round coverage on tonight’s main card as it kicks off at 10PM ET, and we’ll also have quick results and commentary on the prelims as they kick off on UFC Fight Pass at 6:30PM ET. Follow along with us right here throughout the night!
=====UFC Fight Pass Prelims Quick Results=====
-Michel Prazeres def. Valmir Lazaro via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
NOTE: Competitive but largely forgettable fight. It seemed like Lazaro should have gotten the nod with some better grappling during the fight, but it was close.
-Polo Reyes def. Cezar Arzamendia via KO at 3:42 of the first round
NOTE: Brutal one punch KO off a clinch, as Reyes connected on a left hook that floored Arzamendia. He got in a few more hammerfists from there, but that was it. Nice finish to a sloppy fight.
-Alvaro Herrera def. Vernon Ramos via TKO at :30 of the first round
NOTE: Real quick early combination from Herrera brought the end of this one. He rocked Ramos initially with the first two, then kept the combination going with a right hand to behind the ear that dropped Ramos to the ground. The face plant brought the ref in right away.
-There’s a 20-minute break until the FS1 prelims.
=====Fox Sports 1 Prelims Quick Results=====
-Andre Fili def. Gabriel Benitez via KO at 3:13 of the first round
NOTE: Legitimately excellent performance from Fili. That’s a performance that lives up to the promise shown in his debut win over Jeremy Larsen. He’s been a bit inconsistent since then, but this was an encouraging fight. Fili was landing combinations on Benitez early, scored a well timed takedown at one point off a big exchange, and finished things off with a sequence he began with the second head kick he landed. He teed off on a stunned Benitez from there on the cage and put him down and out. Really great win for Fili.
-Alejandro Perez def. Scott Jorgensen via TKO (injury) at 4:26 of the second round
NOTE: Jorgensen messed up his left leg at the end of the first round, either an ankle or foot injury, and it seriously hampered him in the second. The fight should have been stopped much, much earlier, but was finally ended when Jorgensen collapsed trying to step off the leg for a kick. He was in serious pain and the entire second round was extremely hard to watch.
-Bartosz Fabinski def. Hector Urbina via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
NOTE: Takedown, top control, stand them up, repeat. Not much more than that in this one. Urbina couldn’t keep the fight standing, and though Fabinski continued to get takedowns, he didn’t do the most offensively. Still more than enough to give him the clear win.
-Erik Perez def. Taylor Lapilus via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
NOTE: Emotional win for Perez, returning from an injury layoff in front of a hometown crowd and getting the job done. He out-worked Lapilus on the ground after a competitive opening round, and the continuous takedowns and ground work gave him the edge.
=====Fox Sports 1 Main Card=====
-After a break down on the card from Jon Anik and Brian Stann, it’s on to our first main card bout of the night.
MAIN CARD FIGHT ONE: EFRAIN ESDUDERO VS. LEANDRO SILVA (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Escudero took the center early. He tried to press Silva down, while Silva tried to block and fire back. Neither really engaged much in the first half of the round. They eventually clinched with Silva pressing Escudero to the cage. Escudero got separation. They traded kicks. Escudero closed distance and shot in, but Silva held his balance and stayed up. Silva landed a left. They traded kicks, and Silva held off a brief rush. Escudero landed a right hand and shot in. Things stalled out in the clinch. Silva finally broke free late and landed a couple nice punch and kick combinations.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Silva. Landed the more effective strikes, ended the round strong.
ROUND TWO: Escudero pressed early, but it was Silva getting the better of early exchanges. Escudero got himself free and scored a takedown. He didn’t do much there and Silva exploded to his feet. Escudero caught a kick and brought it back to the ground. Escudero scored a bit offensively on the ground, but Silva nearly escaped. Escudero passed to half guard and landed a couple punches. Silva tried to fight from the bottom, but Escudero found openings to land strikes. Silva eventually scooted his back to the cage, but he got held down. Silva finally got free and landed a strike late.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Escudero. He was more effective with the takedowns that round to even things up.
ROUND THREE: Silva threw out several kicks early, connecting to the body on most of them. He threw out some solid combinations as Escudero tried to walk him oown. Escudero shot in by got stuffed. Silva clinched briefly, then backed out and scored with a few strikes. Escudero shot in to no avail. Silva landed a hard left hand and clinched. Escudero shot in, Silva sprawled, and then transitioned to Escudero’s back. Escudero landed a good elbow behind him. He tried to turn into Silva, but was stuck a bit. Silva initially tried to set up a twister, but lost it, then again tried to lock down on Escudero’s back with one hook. He continued to hold position, and ended the round on Escudero’s back.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Silva. He finished out with a strong round, and should get the decision here.
WINNER: Silva via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (*) Painfully dull fight for much of it. Little urgency, little in the way of entertaining action, and it was just not fun to watch. Another bad loss for Escudero in a fight he could have won.
MAIN CARD FIGHT TWO: ENRIQUE BARZOLA VS. HORACIO GUTIERREZ (TUF: LATIN AMERICA 2 LIGHTWEIGHT FINALS)
ROUND ONE: Gutierrez was the aggressor early, trying to walk Barzola down, but neither scored more than leg kicks early on. Barzola then exploded through with a takedown. Gutierrez got up briefly, but got taken back down again with Barzola in half guard. Barzola looked to posture up for strikes but missed and got locked down. He postured up again and landed a couple of body strikes. Gutierrez swept and escaped to his feet, but he got tripped right back to the ground from there. Barzola got in an elbow, then postured up again and landed a couple punches. He was content to work in that position to the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Barzola. The takedowns were the edge, with very little else in the way of offense than Barzola’s ground work.
ROUND TWO: Gutierrez came back ahead again in to start the round. Barzola timed a shot well and scored a takedown 35 seconds in. Barzola landed a few punches and hammerfists as he tried to set up for further offense. He got in some elbows and continued to work effectively. He stood up and dropped a hard right hand down to get back into guard. Gutierrez tried to sweep to get free, but Barzola held position. He dropped down with a couple more strikes. Gutierrez got cut open from an elbow. Barzola continued to stay active enough in Gutierrez’s guard to avoid a stand up. Barzola postured up again and landed a few hard strikes. Gutierrez landed an elbow off his back. Barzola stood and ate a couple head kicks before dropping back down. This time Barzola passed to half guard and continued his attack. Barzola attacked for an arm late, then gave it up to land a few more strikes.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Barzola, strong round. Close to a 10-8. He’s connecting on a lot and Gutierrez can’t keep his back foo the ground.
ROUND THREE: Barzola circled on the outside as Gutierrez tried to walk him down. He popped in with a few short strikes. Gutierrez missed a strike and Barzola shot in, but Gutierrez stuffed it. He landed a couple strikes and tried to walk Barzola down. Barzola shot in again, and Gutierrez couldn’t keep himself up. Barzola scored a few more strikes. He continued to hold top position, not giving Gutierre any space. Gutierrez was essentially just stuck. He nearly escaped, only to get planted on his back again, and Barzola should take this.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9. Another close to 10- round, though there was too much stalling to bump it up.
WINNER: Barzola via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
STAR RATING: (*) Lots of takedown. Repeat, take down, Repeat. Not much to this one.
MAIN CARD FIGHT THREE: ERICK MONTANO VS. ENRIQUE MARIN (TUF: LATIN AMERICA 2 WELTERWEIGHT FINALS)
ROUND ONE: Marin came forward and they exchanged strikes. They clinched up and Montano turned Marin around on the cage. They separated, and Montano scored an overhand right. He landed a two-punch combo. Marin landed a leg kick. Montano got in with a hard body kick. They traded strikes in close. Montano used a few side kicks to the lead leg. He landed a hard left hand. He connected again with two more punches. Marin fired back and scored a couple strikes. Montano shot in, but got stuffed at the cage. Marin turned him around and went for his own single leg attempt. That got stopped. Montano then rushed through with a takedown and got Marin to the ground, only to get swept immediately. He managed to escape back to his feet in short order. Montano landed a left. They traded strikes, with Marin landing an uppercut but eating a hard right hook. Montano shot in and got stuffed. Montano landed a left. He ate a couple leg kicks. Marin fired off a few strikes and missed, then Montano got in one more at the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Montano. Could be Marin’s round as well. Close on the feet, even on the ground, Montano seemed to get the better of many of those exchanges, but again, it’s a close one.
ROUND TWO: Montano fired off the glove touch, missed, and ate a counter. Montano landed a hard right hand in combination that nearly stunned Marin, who then shot in and scored a takedown. Montano had his back on the cage as Marin tried to drag him back down. Montano worked the switch nicely and went for the takedown himself, planting Marin on his back. Montano grabbed the fence and kicked Marin in the head on the ground, with the ref ignoring the latter issue, and Marin scrambled to get on top on Montano. Montano worked to a knee. Marin landed an elbow, and Montano scored a strike to back him off. Montano looked a bit exhausted. He threw a slow, telegraphed spin kick that missed. Marin landed an inside leg kick. Montano fired off a few kicks in a row. He landed hard to the body. He barely missed another spin kick, then fired off a strike. He landed another body kick with a jab behind it. Marin closed in and shot for a takedown, but got stuffed. Montano backed him out to separate. Marin came in with a right hand. Montano threw out a couple kicks. Montano landed a few side kicks. He got in a nice right hand, then a head kick. Marin landed a leg kick at the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Montano. Another close round, but again I think Montano had a bit more offense on the feet, and everything else was a wash. Could still go either way, so it’s either tied up or 2-0 for one of them into this third round.
ROUND THREE: They did the center-cage hug before starting out, then Montano got in a few early blows. Marin tried to walk him down, and landed a solid uppercut. Montano threw a side kick to the head. Montano got in a body kick as Marin tried to walk him down. Marin clinched, but Montano turned him around and pressed him to the cage. Montano dropped for a takedown attempt to no avail. Neither did anything in the clinch, and Montano landed a right as Marin circled out. Montano landed another punch, then got in a kick to the body as he circled out. Montano ducked in but Marin shrugged him aside. Marin shot in but got stuffed. They separated again. Marin got in a leg kick as he moved in. Montano landed a hard body kick. Montano got the better of another exchange, then landed a side kick to the body. Marin landed a hard body kick, Montano fired back. Montano again went high with a kick that was partially blocked. Montano scored a late takedown. Well-timed on that one. Marin locked him down, and he didn’t do much from the top to the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Montano. The second and third seemed much clearer for Montano, and the first could have been his as well. Not really a good fight, but decently competitive at the least.
WINNER: Montano via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (*) It was just there. Close, not all that exciting, but competitive. Montano seemed to have the edge in the latter half, but the first two were close enough that the 29-28 in Marin’s favor is understandable.
MAIN CARD FIGHT FOUR: HENRY CEJUDO VS. JUSSIER FORMIGA (FLYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Cejudo circled around the outside early, tossing out a solid front kick for his first attack. Cejudo stepped in with a solid two punch combo that was partially blocked. He landed a nice outside leg kick. Formiga popped in with a couple strikes of his own. Cejudo landed a nice uppercut and backed out. Cejudo landed a hard leg kick. Nice two-punch combo from Cejudo connected. Formiga pressed in with a right hand. Formiga landed a solid counter-left. Formiga again scored in close, but ate a knee to the body. They clinched in the center and Cejudo got separation with a knee to the body. They both missed strikes and reset. Cejudo landed a knee and Formiga held the clinch. They traded knees before separating. Back to another center cage clinch. Cejudo landed some solid knees. Cejudo got in a short right hand as Formiga stepped in. Cejudo rocked Formiga with a strike but Formiga clinched and stayed up. They traded knees. Formiga landed a nice knee to the body before the break. Cejudo connected on a couple strikes. He shot in late and scored a takedown as the round wound down to seal it.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Cejudo. Good opening round. Both landed some decent strikes, but Cejudo was more effective and landed more overall to go along with the late takedown. Good start.
ROUND TWO: Formiga threw a few strikes first. Cejudo landed an uppercut to the body. Cejudo landed a nice right hand. Formiga missed a couple strikes. They clinched in the center once again, trading knees to the body. Both were missing strikes as they engaged. Cejudo landed a hard right hand and avoided the counter. Another center clinch, with Cejudo scoring a few knees before separating. Formiga connected on a couple of hard strikes in an exchange. Cejudo landed a hard kick to the body. He landed two punches in a nice flurry. Formiga connected on a left hand. Cejudo got in an elbow and they traded knees in another clinch. Cejudo missed a right hand and it was back to the clinch. Cejudo landed a solid left elbow. He landed an uppercut and got in another knee in the clinch. Cejudo landed another hard knee in there, and they traded knees from there. Cejudo landed a body kick. Formiga landed a nice double jab late. Cejudo got in a body kick, then Formiga landed a right hand just before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Cejudo. He’s slightly more effective right now, though that round was certainly closer than the first.
ROUND THREE: Immediate clinch, and they both landed knees. Cejudo landed a decent uppercut. Cejudo landed a right hand as Formiga stepped in, then they traded knees to the body in the clinch. Cejudo landed a good kick to the body. Formiga got in a short right hand, then back to the center clinch. More knees from both before separating. Cejudo landed a right hand and it was back to the clinch. He drove Formiga to the cage, picked him up, and slammed him down. Formiga immediately scrambled up and got free. Cejudo got in another knee to the body as they clinched again. Cejudo got in a hard elbow and a hard knee to the body before breaking out. Another clinch, and Cejudo drove Formiga to the cage. Both seem to be sitting back waiting for the other to throw first. Cejudo went for the single leg, but Formiga held it off and circled out. He came right back in and it was another center clinch. They traded knees. Way too much of this with little effect in the fight. Cejudo landed a hard elbow. Formiga landed a right on the break. Cejudo to the body and then another driving clinch. Formiga got in a knee late. Some in the crowd booed the bout at the horn. A little harsh, but it wasn’t the most thrilling fight with a lot of clinch work.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Cejudo. Strong overall performance. Not his most impressive, but a better performance than he had against Chico Camus, and against a better fighter.
WINNER: Cejudo via split decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (**-) First round was good, didn’t really leave that first level of intensity. Don’t agree with a 29-28 Formiga card at all, but I suppose the first two rounds were close enough to possibly justify it.
MAIN CARD FIGHT FIVE: RICARDO LAMAS VS. DIEGO SANCHEZ (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Lamas threw out a high kick right off the bat that was blocked. He went high again, then landed a leg kick. Sanchez tried to counter but was blocked after Lamas landed an inside leg kick. Lamas threw a front kick to the face. Lamas got in an uppercut to the body. Lamas landed a nice jab. Sanchez got in a body kick. Lamas landed a nice straight right. They traded punches in close. Lamas went for a jumping knee, but he got countered. Sancehz landed a solid right hand. Lamas came back with a spinning back kick to the face. Sanchez seemed hurt and Lamas followed up with a few strikes. He backed off to avoid the return fire. Lamas landed a nice left. Sanchez landed a body kick. Lamas went for the wheel kick again but missed. Lamas landed a jab, then a side kick to the body. Lamas shot in and scored a takedown. Sanchez got to his feet but Lamas had his back standing and tried to drag him down. He got a hook in and landed some strikes. Sanchez stood up again, but Lamas landed a few knees to the thigh. Lamas dragged him down briefly, but Sanchez continued to fight off the takedown attempt. Sanchez tried to escape, but almost got caught. He finally scrambled out and went for his own takedown. Lamas got to his feet and held him off in the clinch late. They traded strikes at the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Lamas. Strong opening for him, some good offense overall.
ROUND TWO: Lamas landed an inside leg kick. Sanchez scored a hard left hand. Lamas shot in for a takedown, but Sanchez held it off at his knees and stood up. Lamas stayed on him, but ate a couple knees. Sanchez opened a cut on Lamas with some elbows as he stuffed the attempt. Lamas stayed on the takedown attempt, but Sanchez continued to defend well. Sanchez landed a couple hard knees to the body, then finally circled out to separate. Lamas hurt Sanchez’s leg badly with a kick. He rocked him on the cage and landed another hard leg kick. He lit him up with combinations, then kept him off with the leg kicks. He landed a hard right hand. Sanchez was trying to go for a brawl to no avail, as Lamas picked his spots. Lamas then scored a takedown, though Sanchez again got to his feet. Sanchez pulled off a switch and tried to take top position. Lamas popped to his feet, though, and snuck behind him again standing. Lamas landed a bunch more knees to the thighs. Sanchez pulled off another switch to take top position on the ground. Lamas grabbed his leg, though, and went for his own takedown again. Lamas wound up transitioning out and taking Sanchez’s back late, but Sanchez escaped to his feet. Lamas landed the inside leg kick again and Sanchez winced. Sanchez got in a kick late.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Lamas. He had Sanchez hurt badly there up against the cage, then gave it up to grapple. Not sure that was the best strategy.
ROUND THREE: Lamas landed a jab early. He went high with a kick that was blocked. Lamas connected on a left hand. Sanchez scored with a right hand. Lamas landed another left hand and Sanchez scored with a body kick. Lamas missed a spinning kick. Sanchez threw a half-hearted jumping kick of his own. Lamas dropped Sanchez with the leg kick and Sanchez hopped back to the cage. He tried to goad Lamas into firing, and Lamas instead clinched. Lamas continues to slow things down and grapple when he’s got Sanchez in a really bad spot on the feet. Lamas separated with a spinning back elbow. He missed the spinning elbow and fell, but got right back up. Sanchez was cut open badly. Lamas landed a couple hard jabs. Sanchez tried to rush late but his strikes were blocked. Lamas got in high with a kick. He barely missed an uppercut. Lamas landed another jab as Sanchez tried to make a late push. Lamas went for a flying knee. He missed a spinning kick again Sanchez was hobbling on the leg and got clinched as he came in at the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Lamas. Should be a clean sweep. Then again, we’ve seen judges go different directions in Sanchez fights time and again.
WINNER: Lamas via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (**+) Much like the Scott Jorgensen fight earlier in the night, that should have been stopped by the referee. Sanchez took a ton more damage than was necessary once it was clear that leg was badly injured. Lamas’ decision to keep clinching and slowing things down when Sanchez could barely stand was nonsensical as well.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT SIX: NEIL MAGNY VS. KELVIN GASTELUM (WELTERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Magny tossed out a couple kicks and punches early. Gastelum stepped in with a hard leg kick. He landed a hard left hand. Gastelum got back inside with the leg kick. He kept distance and blocked some pawed out strikes from Magny. Magny landed a couple jabs as Gastelum tried to walk him down. Gastelum rushed Magny, didn’t find a home for most of his strikes, and then got taken down with Magny nearly taking his back immediately. Gastelum got to his feet and hit a switch to spin around to be the grappling aggressor. He went for a throw, but got swept. Gastelum scrambled and went for the leg again. Great grappling exchanges between the two here. Magny used a front headlock to drive Gastelum back and he mounted him Gastelum gave up his back and Magny went for a choke. He lost it, but moved in to mount as Gastelum tried to escape. He tried to trap an arm but again lost the position. He wound up in Gastelum’s half guard, and attacked an arm. Gastelum escaped, and finally got to his feet. Gastelum moved forward and tried to get in some late offense, but wasn’t able to get any strikes off before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Magny. Somewhat surprisingly strong opening round on the ground for Magny. Competitive stuff here to begin.
ROUND TWO: Gastelum wasted no time closing distance, but Magny landed a jab to keep him at bay. He continued to land from the outside as Gastelum tried to close in. Gastelum went high with a kick that was blocked. Magny got in some push kicks. They clinched, and Magny landed a knee to the body. Gastelum dropped down but got stuffed. They jockeyed for position a bit. Gastelum finally backed out, but moved straight back in with a right hand. He missed a couple strikes. Magny kept peppering him with jabs. Gastelum landed a hard kick to the body. Magny rushed him with a nice three punch combination. Gastelum scored with an inside leg kick. Gastelum backed him up and unloaded, but Magny covered up for much of the flurry. Magny fired off a few strikes. Magny shot in but got stuffed and turned around. Magny then snuck behind him standing and scored a takedown. Gastelum nearly swept, but Magny kept position. Gastelum got back to his feet. Magny scored another takedown but couldn’t keep him there. Gastelum finally got turned into him. Magny again took Gastelum down and snuck around to take his back. He tried to go for a twister but Gastelum scrambled out and to his feet.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Magny. Gastelum’s in trouble here. He’s getting outworked everywhere, and isn’t finding much success getting inside to land strikes.
ROUND THREE: Gastelum came out swinging. Magny did a solid job avoiding him. They clinched, and Gastelum got out. Magny popped his head back with a few jabs and shot, but got stuffed. Magny landed another right hand and tried to clinch. Gastelum tried to get off the cage, but Magny was relentless and dragged him down. Gastelum got up, and ate a right hand as he finally separated. Gastelum landed a solid right hand. He connected on a left hand, but then clinched. Magny landed a few strikes before breaking. Gastelum landed a left hand. Magny clinched and drove Gastelum to the cage. He shot, but got stuffed. They separated again and Gastelum tried to walk Magny down. He landed a hard inside leg kick to the thigh. Gastelum connected on a jab, but again got clinched. Magny tripped Gastelum up again out of the clinch, but Gastelum got up and separated. Magny landed a push kick. He clinched again, shot in, but Gastelum then snuck around and took Magny’s back. He lost that. Magny landed a couple of knees to the body, shot in, and scored another takedown, albeit brief. Gastelum reversed with a roll through, and wound up on top to end the round.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Magny. He’s fighting such a smart fight right now, and is managing to score with strikes and continue to keep Gastelum fighting at his pace.
ROUND FOUR: Gastelum walked forward again, but it was Magny landing the first punches. They traded leg kicks. After some minor work, Gastelum rocked Magny with a huge right hand. He followed Magny to the ground and tried to connect on the ground. Magny tried to slow it down as Gastelum got to side control. He trapped an arm but Magny tried to escape. Gastelum held top control in half guard. He landed a hard elbow from the top. He passed again to side control and went for the crucifix, but Magny used that to escape out. Gastelum had his back standing but backed out. He landed a left hook that dropped Magny again! Gastelum got back down into side control. Magny tried for a triangle but Gastelum passed easily. Magny got to his feet and Gastelum took his back standing. Magny attacked for an arm, but Gastelum separated He tried to walk Magny down. He landed a right hand. Magny shot in for a takedown and briefly got Gastelum down. They separated again. Gastelum walked him down and landed an inside leg kick before the horn.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-8 Gastelum. Probably won’t get that from the judges, but with multiple knockdowns and having Magny hurt badly it deserves consideration. Gastelum still needs to finish this here, but he could also be fighting for the draw after dropping the first three rounds.
ROUND FIVE: Gastelum tried to pursue, looking for the KO blow. He backed Magny to the cage and missed. Magny caught a kick and rushed in, landing a strike before Gastelum landed a hard right. Gastelum then shot in and scored a big slam into side control. Magny pulled him to guard. Gastelum tried to posture up to land punches and elbows. Gastelum landed some hard left hand strikes. Magny went for a triangle and again got passed, but Magny got to his feet. He attacked for a kimura, but Gastelum got out. Magny landed several hard strikes, then shot in. Gastelum stuffed it and separated. He came back ahead and landed a left. He scored at the tail end of a combiation. Gastelum landed a couple leg kicks. He landed a hard combination on the cage and rocked Magny again. He fired off a few more strikes. Gastelum landed a hard body kick. Magny landed a hard right hand and they clinched. Magny landed a left and separated. Gastelum walked him down and they clinched in the center. Magny snuck around to his back again. He briefly dragged Gastelum down. He kept it up and did it again, but this time Gastelum scrambled into his guard. Magny landed an elbow. He passed to half guard. He finished strong with ground and pound to end the round.
Penick’s Scorecard: 10-9 Gastelum. Might have been too little too late, but give Gastelum credit for a strong final ten minutes after seemingly losing the first three. Scorecards could be interesting here.
WINNER: Magny via split decision (48-47, 47-48, 48-47)
STAR RATING: (***+) Hell of a fight. Not entirely surprised to see no 10-8s in that fourth round. Magny did some great work in the first 15 minutes; his grappling was impressive, and his striking was solid as he kept Gastelum at bay early on. It was an impressive performance, until Gastelum came back. Sucks for Gastelum that he scored two knockdowns in the fourth only to come away with the loss, but it’s a 25-minute fight, and he didn’t do enough in the first 15.
Thanks for joining us tonight! We’ll have more on these results throughout the week as we move forward to next week’s early morning event from Seoul on UFC Fight Pass!
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