Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC
Casey Kenney looked better than ever earlier tonight (Sat., May 30, 2020) live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC APEX facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, when he stopped veteran Louis Smolka via first-round submission (guillotine choke).
Despite multiple body shots by Smolka, Kenney was able to control the action from the opening bell and pushed the pace well. From combinations inside to whipping leg kicks from range, Kenney started to rack up the damage. Smolka kept coming forward until Kenney tagged him with a counter right hand. Smolka was forced to try to shoot and gave Kenney the chance to secure the choke.
Check out the finish above courtesy of UFC/ESPN.
With this performance, Kenney rebounds in a memorable way after losing a decision to Merab Dvalishvili back in February. The 29-year-old bantamweight looked considerably stronger tonight and could be in for a nice run at 135 pounds. UFC may even opt to give him a ranked opponent his next time out.
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