Andre Soukhamthath saw off plucky challenger Jonathan Martinez by unanimous decision tonight at UFC Fight Night 138.
Round One:
Martinez with a solid leg kick. High kick from him now. Front kick to the body from Martinez and soon after another body kick.
Back to the body kick again from the newcomer as he starts brightly. Soukhamthath fires off a high kick that’s blocked. Martinez with a leg kick.
Body kick for Martinez. Double jab for Soukhamthath. Huge right hand for Soukhamthath and it floors Martinez. Soukhamthath goes to the mat with him and looks to cinch up a potential choke attempt. THis is giving Martinez time to recover though and then he drive sup to his feet and presses Soukhamthath against the Octagon cage.
Soukhamthath reverses position against the cage and then there’s a timeout called for an illegal knee strike to the groin.
Both fighters trade kicks at the same time to restart. Big body punches for Soukhamthath and then pressures Martinez against the cage.
He lands a few knees while in the clinch. Martinez finally escapes the clinch, but Soukhamthath starts to get aggressive again at striking range and then moves into the clinch for some hard knees.
Punch for Martinez but Harder offense from Soukhamthath in return and some big elbows. Final seconds of the round and Soukhamthath floors Martinez with another big punch but can’t finish him before the round’s conclusion.
Round Two:
Soukhamthath pressuring Martinez hard at the start of the second round, closing the distance offensively and working into the clinch.
Martinez gets away, but Soukhamthath follows and starts hammering away at his body and head with punches and knees. Soukhamthath is all over Martinez here, but he’s saved momentarily by the ref who stops the action to warn about low blows, then quickly restarts.
Soukhamthath quickly back into the clinch against the cage. Martinez manages to reverse position. He has a body lock and lands a crucial takedown, getting to half-guard.
Martinez landing a few elbows. He looks to pass into side control. Another big elbow lands. Soukhamthath gets to his knees and Martinez tries to take his back as he attempts to stand. Martinez dropping elbows down on his opponents shoulder.
Soukhamthath upright now and Martinez in the clinch and then opts to back up. Body kick for Martinez. Missed head kick attempt from Martinez.
Flying knee to the boy for Martinez. Soukhamthath with a few hard body shots. Body kick for Martinez.
Round Three:
LEg kick for Soukhamthath. Head kick attempt from Martinez. Clinch battle and Martinez ends up pressing Soukhamthath against the cage.
Soukhamthath gets free and lands big body shots. Now hard elbows connect. Martinez lands a big elbow of his own. Now knee strikes. Martinez swings Soukhamthath back over against the cage.
Foot stomps for Martinez. Soukhamthath reverses position against the cage. Knees from Martinez, but Soukhamthath lands a takedown. However, Martinez scrambles and gets back up, pushing Soukhamthath up to the fence.
Soukhamthath reverses position again. However, Marintez returns the favor. The battle for position against the cage continues. Single-leg for Soukhamthath and takes down Martinez with 90 seconds to go.
Side control for Soukhamthath. MArtinez looks to use the cage to scramble and Soukhamthath tries for a triangle submission and fails, leaving Martinez on top.
Soukhamthath scrambling back to his feet and they are back to battling for control in the clinch. Martinez down to his knees, but not for long, moving back up. Soukhamthath going for a standing arm triangle as the round ends.
Decision:
Good fight here, but despite Martinez acquitting himself well in his short-notice debut it’s Soukhamthath who emerges with a unanimous decision victory (30-26, 29-28 x2).
