Check out the results of the Fight Pass preliminary bouts on the UFC 197 card.
The first three fights from the UFC 197 card are in the books, and we were treated to a little bit of everything. One fight was finished with vicious ground-and-pound, another by submission, and the first went to an entertaining decision. Here’s how it all went down.
Walt Harris defeated Cody East by TKO (strikes), 4:18 of round 1
The two big heavyweights threw down, as expected. Both landed some big kicks early and got into a bit of a hockey fight halfway through the round, but it was Harris that landed the first deadly shot, a left that sent East to the mat. He followed up with some extended GnP that could have easily tired him out, but he managed to get the finish with a couple of final big shots on the ground.
Marcos Rogerio de Lima defeated Clint Hester by submission (arm-triangle choke), 4:35, round 1
This was total and complete domination. De Lima dropped Hester early with an awkward combo, then methodically pounded him out on the ground over four-odd minutes. He was able to advance to mount a couple of times, but Hester managed to retain guard. It didn’t matter though – De Lima was landing huge shots that wore Hester down, to the point that the arm-triangle was basically gifted to him. Hester looked badly hurt as the fight ended.
Kevin Lee defeated Efrain Escudero by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Both men put forth good efforts here. The first round was close, with Lee arguably landing more but getting hurt at the end of the round by an Escudero punch. Escudero was more accurate than Lee on the feet in the second, but couldn’t get a solid takedown and ate some big shots. Lee took over in the third, getting an emphatic takedown and controlling position for the majority of the rest of the fight. In the end, the judges sided with the young prospect.