Bryan Battle had to survive some early adversity before going on to submit Gilbert Urbina in the second round tonight at UFC On ESPN 30 in the middleweight final of TUF 29.
Round One:
Battle with an inside leg kick and Urbina responds with a couple of punches. Urbina throws again. Quick exchanges of punches early. In close Urbina catches Battle cleanly twice, and then while he might be dazed he works for a takedown and lands it.
In half-guard Urbina starts to land ground-and-pound. Battle looking to stand, but Urbina works for the guillotine. Battle almost gives up his back, but then things against it.
Battle does well to steadily work to his feet after that early storm he’s weathering. Now Battle attempts to get back into the fight by feeding Urbina a steady diet of kicks and the occasional punch.
Unfortunately Battle doesn’t have his mouthpiece which came out some time earlier and the ref doesn’t realize. Urbina punches his way into the clinch and gets him up against the cage.
Urbina trying to work around to the back but Battle does well to defend that and then turns into Urbina to give him a taste of his own medicine against the cage.
Battle still fighting without his mouthpiece. He backs up and lands a right hand, then into the clinch again. Before the bell sounds he lands another punch.
Round Two:
Urbina with an inside leg kick. Battle with a head kick attempt. Now more kicks targeted lower. Urbina comes forward with a punch and then straight into the clinch against the cage.
Urbina continually looking to get to the back. He works around to it and Urbina tries to hop onto Battle’s back.
Battle fends him off. Exchange of strikes in close and then a spinning elbow from Urbina connects.
However, now it’s Battle who gets a takedown and has Urbina’s back. Battle has a significant cut above his right eye, but he’s not concerned with that right now as he looks for a rear-naked choke on the visibly tiring Urbina, and not long after he sinks it in his opponent taps out at 2.15mins of the second round.
So, not an easy win for Urbina by any stretch of the imagination, but he showed his heart to tough it out and eventually get the better of his opponent to become the next TUF winner.
