Mario
Bautista slammed the door on Vinicius
Oliveira’s ascent in the bantamweight division.
The MMA Lab product rebounded from a loss to Umar
Nurmagomedov this past October, as he submitted Oliveira (23-4,
4-1 UFC) with a rear-naked choke in the
UFC Vegas 113 headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on
Saturday night. Bautista (17-3, 11-3 UFC) elicited a tap from his
Brazilian foe at the 4:46 mark of Round 2, ending Oliverira’s
six-fight professional winning streak in the process. Bautista has
been victorious in nine of his last 10 promotional appeances.
The finishing sequence was a thing of beauty. Bautista swept into
top position following an Oliveira takedown attempt and quickly
trapped his foe in a crucifix, where he dropped a series of elbows
on his flailing adversary. From there, Bautista briefly threatened
with a kimura before transitioning to a rear-naked choke. The
fight-ending maneuver was secured so quickly that it was only a
matter of seconds before “Lok Dog” called it quits.
The bout started slowly, but it was clear that Bautista was a level
above his less experienced foe. The Arizona-based fighter grounded
Oliveira in the opening stanza, and from that point, the Brazilian
appeared content to remain on the canvas. When the second round
began, Oliveira already looked winded, and it wasn’t long before
Bautista was able to put the rising talent away.
Horiguchi Confounds Albazi
More than 10 years after he first challenged for UFC flyweight
gold, Kyoji
Horiguchi appears to be creeping closer to another title
shot.
Horiguchi (36-5, 1 NC, 9-1 UFC) outmaneuvered and outstruck
Amir
Albazi for the better part of 15 minutes in the UFC Vegas 113
co-main event, capturing an impressive unanimous decision triumph
against a Top 10 opponent. The 35-year-old “Karate Kid” received
scorecards of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 from the cageside judges,
improving to 2-0 in the UFC since returning to the Las Vegas-based
promotion last November. Horiguchi went 7-1 during an initial
Octagon stint from 2013 to 2016.
Albazi had a brief glimmer of hope in the opening frame, when he
made his Japanese opponent stumble to the canvas from a punch late
in the round. However, that blow wasn’t scored a knockdown by
UFCStats.com, and Albazi would author few moments of note from that
point forward.
For the most part, the contest was defined by Horiguchi’s superior
speed, in-and-out movement and accurate punching combinations. The
former Rizin champion landed nearly at will, wobbling his foe with
punches in both the second and third rounds. Though a finish didn’t
arrive, Albazi’s face wore the damage after 15 minutes. The larger
Iraqi fighter tried to initiate grappling on multiple occasions,
but he was denied on all seven takedown attempts.
Kuniev Outpoints Almeida
Clinch work and control time propelled Rizvan
Kuniev to a relatively uneventful unanimous decision triumph
over Jailton
Almeida in a heavyweight clash. All three judges saw the fight
for the Dagestani: 30-27, 30-27, 29-28. Almeida has dropped
back-to-back outings after winning eight of his first nine UFC
appearances.
Kuniev (13-3-1, 1 NC, 1-1 UFC) did his best work when he was able
to initiate the clinch and attack with body punches, knees and
elbows in close quarters. All too often, Almeida (22-5, 8-3 UFC)
was willling to concede the position, though referee Dan
Miragliotta separated the combatants for inactivity on more than
one occasion. Almeida let his hands go a little bit more in Round
3, but it wasn’t nearly enough to make up for the early deficit on
the scorecards.
Oleksiejczuk Wins Slugfest
Michal
Oleksiejczuk and Marc-Andre
Barriault traded blows for 15 minutes, but one final push
ultimately made the difference for the Pole in a featured
middleweight slugfest. All three judges submitted 29-28 tallies in
favor of Oleksiejczuk (22-9, 10-7, 1 NC UFC), who has won three
straight contests.
Early on, it appeared as though Oleksiejczuk would cruise to
victory, as he stalked Barriault (17-11, 6-10, 1 NC UFC) and
consistently found a home for left hands to the head and body. To
his credit, Barriault turned it into a dogfight down the stretch,
pressuring his foe with right hands at range while also enjoying
success with his dirty boxing and knees in close quarters.
Oleksiejczuk was able to find his footing in Round 3, however, and
a surge in the waning moments of the frame proved to be the
difference in a back-and-forth affair.
Basharat Stays Perfect
Farid
Basharat held off a hard-charging Jean
Matsumoto, earning a split-decision triumph to maintain his
undefeated professional record. Two judges scored the bout 29-28
for Basharat (15-0, 6-0 UFC), while another saw it 29-28 in favor
of Matsumoto (17-2, 3-2 UFC). Both of Matsumoto’s defeats in the
Octagon have come via split decision.
Basharat did some of his best work at range, landing straight
punches, step-in elbows and spinning attacks. Matsumoto, meanwhile,
enjoyed his most success when making things ugly by initiating the
clinch and attacking with power punches and knees at close range.
Ultimately, Basharat was able to blend defensive enough wrestling
with his striking to edge his Brazilian adversary on the
scorecards.
Jacoby Thumps Walker
Dustin
Jacoby shook off a slow start to earn an emphatic victory over
onetime training partner Julius
Walker in a featured light heavyweight encounter. The former
Glory Kickboxing talent brought the show to a close via technical
knockout 1:42 into Round 2, eaning his third consecutive UFC finish
in the process. Jacoby’s seven KO/TKO victories are tied for third
all-time in UFC light heavyweight history.
Walker started well, executing multiple high-amplitude slams on his
striking-minded opponent in the opening stanza. Jacoby turned it up
a notch in Round 2, as he put Walker on wobbly legs with a 1-2
before dropping him with another straight right. “The Hanyak”
initially thought the fight was over, but when referee Dan
Miragliotta didn’t intervene, Jacoby continued to pour on the
punishment. The 37-year-old Factory X product rocked his foe with
elbows to the side of the head while defending a desperation shot,
and then attacked with more punches along the fence. When Walker
stumbled to the floor, Miragliotta stepped in to save the reeling
fighter from further damage.
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UFC Vegas 113 Prelims: Daniil Donchenko Batters Alex Morono, Earns
Decision Win
