Luis Gurule was able to outwrestle Bilal Hasan in the 2nd and 3rd rounds tonight in the UFC 334 main card opener to emerge with a split-decision victory.
Round One
Calf kick for Hasan to start. Now a fast high kick that’s blocked. Spinning kick to the body. Now an inside calf kick.
Head kick from Hasan seemed to get through, but Gurule is ok. Another leg kick for Hasan. Gurule struggling to even get into range to hit the fast, mobile Hasan.
Push kick from Hasan. Punch finally lands for Gurule. Hasan closes distance and lands a knee to the body.
Spinning kicks from Hasan. Gurule tries for a head kick, but Hasan moves his head out of range.
Short flurry of punches from Hasan. Now a front kick to the body. Jumping switch kick from Hasan.
Right hand from Gurule drops Hasan! He gets back up immediately though and is back to work with a combination.
Gurule trying to land that punch again. Inside leg kick for him. Sneaky high kick from Hasan misses the target.
Body kick for Hasan. Inside leg kick from Gurule. Another low kick for him.
Round Two
Front kick to the body from Hasan and then a leg kick. High kick comes off the guard. Missed punches from Gurule.
Inside leg kick for Gurule. Three quick knees from Hasan in close, but then Gurule clinches and presses him to the mat. Gurule trying for a takedown, but Hasan moves away nicely.
Hasan threatens with a knee upstairs in close. Spinning kick to the body from Hasan. Now a spinning kick upstairs that comes off the guard.
Solid body punch for Hasan. Front kick to the midsection. Another head kick off the guard. He goes for the front kick to the body again and Gurule catches that one, but can’t do anything with it.
Gurule firing off with the right hand. Knee upstairs attempted by Hasan. Now a low kick. Spinning backfist now, but Gurule gets his guard up just in time.
Gurule goes for a takedown and lands it. 90 seconds of the round remaining. Hasan trying to use the cage to stand, but Gurule prevents that for now.
Elbow strike for Gurule. Now a punch lands too. Body work now and then an elbow upstairs. He lands that again before the horn sounds.
Round Three
Front kick to the body from Hasan. He lands a right hand. Now back to that front kick, but Hasan catches it.
Right hand from Gurule and then lands a solid takedown, but not before eating an elbow that opens up a nasty cut to Gurule’s forehead.
Gurule in half-guard leaking blood all over the canvas, but now controlling Hasan on the mat and landing some light ground-and-pound.
Half the round remaining now and Hasan doesn’t look like finding a way back to the feet here. Light body-head work from Gurule.
A minute to go and Gurule is still staying active enough to keep this fight on the mat. Gurule stands over Hasan now and lands a few late strikes down at him late in the round.
Decision
Hasan largely got the better of the first round with his dynamic striking, but he was briefly dropped late in the round. Gurule was then able to get his wrestling game going to stifle the tricky striker in the next two rounds and emerge with a split-decision victory (29-28 x2, 28-29)
