Stay tuned to https://mmainsight.com this evening for all the results live as they happen from UFC Fight Night 44 in Texas.
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Main Card:
Cub Swanson defeats Jeremy Stephens by unanimous decision (49-46 x2, 48-47)
Kelvin Gastelum defeats Nicholas Musoke by unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Cezar Ferreira defeats Andrew Craig by unanimous decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)
Ricardo Lamas defeats Hacran Dias by decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)
Clint Hester defeats Antonio Braga Neto by split decision (29-28 x2, 28-29)
Hester came out swinging hard in the opening minute of the first, but Neto was able to mostly steer clear of that and then get him to the mat where he controlled the action for the rest of the round on top. In the second Neto looked tired though and Hester realized it, keeping his distance and just picking his shots well. However, mid-way through the round Hester made a mistake, opting to take Neto down which he did so nicely, only to then be swept by Neto who’s clearly the far superior grappler. From their Neto was again in complete control and threatened with a kimura attempt in the final minute. Hester threw caution to the wind early in the third, winging big shots in and Neto didn’t like it at all, desperately grabbing a leg and hunting for a takedown. Hester fended him off and went back to striking aggressively, landing hard shots to the body. He was being a little reckless though and slipped which allowed Neto to again get on top and take full mount. Three minutes to go and Hester managed to sit up and reverse so that he was now on top in his opponents guard. Surprisingly he opted to stay there and landed some ground and pound, but nothing that would finish the fight. Less than a minute to go and Hester finally opted to stand and started unleashing big blows again which forced Neto to charge in for another takedown which he did eventually get in the final 10 seconds. Close fight and two of the three judges apparently had their eye caught by Hester’s aggressive striking and so he gets the split decision win.
Joe Ellenberger defeats James Moontasri by split decision (29-28 x2, 28-29)
Ellenberger was dropped in the first round by a big uppercut from Moontasri, but he had the presence of mind to defend and still threaten with submission attempts to buy himself some time to recover. Moontasri landed some good ground and pound though, bloodying his opponents nose and when the ref eventually stood them up Ellenberger still seemed very weak and wobbly on his feet. Despite finding himself back on the mat soon after Ellenberger made it to the end of the round though – perhaps a mistake on Moontasri’s part not to keep the fight standing when his opponent seemed unsteady. Ellenberger’s right eye was shut over by the start of the second, but he started to mount a comeback, using his wrestling, the occasionally submission attempt and at time just sheer guts and determination to claw his way back into the contest. He still looked vulnerable on the feet, but didn’t give Moontasri much time to capitalize on it. The third round was very close, with both men enjoying a period of control on top, leaving the judges with a challenge to pick the winner, and they were split on who won, but in the end it’s Ellenberger who emerges with his hand raised.
Prelims:
Carlos Diego Ferreira defeats Colton Smith by submission (rear-naked choke) at 0.38mins of Rd1
Impressive stuff for Ferreira in his debut, almost immediately landing a judo throw to get Smith to the mat, then as Smith got to his knees he sunk in the fight ending rear-naked choke.
Cody Gibson defeats Johhny Bedford by TKO at 0.38mins of Rd1
Controversial stoppage here. Bedford looked to have Gibson hurt in the opening 30 seconds of the fight with some hard body punches and then knees. Under fire, Gibson then bit down on his gumshield and pressed forward, landing a big right hand that stiffened Bedford’s legs and sent him toppling to the mat. Gibson followed him with another punch and Bedford looked a little stiff as if he might be out. The referee seemed like he was going to stop the fight, then paused for a brief moment. Whether he had been out momentarily or not, Bedford snapped back to life almost instantly, but the ref had already decided he was going to go with his first instinct and stop the bout, leading to an angry reaction from Bedford and the fans.
Marcelo Guimaraes defeats Andy Enz by split decision (27-30, 29-28 x2)
Enz used his major reach advantage well in the opening round, keeping Guimaraes at bay for the majority of the round except for a brief takedown and peppered him with punches. Guimaraes regrouped in-between rounds though and came back stronger from then on, with hard leg kicks in particular being his most effective weapon, while he also scored a few more takedowns into the bargain, though continued to struggle to keep Enz down for anything other than a few seconds at a time. Enz couldn’t find another gear to switch up to in order to counteract what his opponent was doing and lost the decision as a result of that.
Ray Borg defeats Shane Howell by submission (Rear-naked choke) at 2.17mins of Rd1
Early takedown from Borg and he was then able to quickly spin around to Howell’s back and begin a series of rear-naked choke attempts, eventually sinking it in deep and rendering him momentarily unconscious.
Oleksiy Oliynyk defeats Anthony Hamilton by submission (neck crank) at 2.18mins of Rd1
A double leg takedown early in the fight lead Oliynk to latch on a neck crank from side control which brought about a quick end to this fight.
