Andrew Sanchez (8-2) won the Light Heavyweight final in dominant fashion at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 23 Finale last night (Fri., July 8, 2016), defeating Khalil Rountree (4-1) via unanimous decision inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Two judges scored the bout 30-25, with the third scoring it 30-26.
Sanchez, 28, put on a grappling clinic and absolutely dominated Rountree in every possible way. He landed timely takedowns and when he had Rountree on the ground he smothered him and didn’t allow him back up.
Sanchez landed a takedown early on in the opening round, but Rountree got back up to his feet. The Team Claudia member was relentless and got his second takedown of the fight only moments later and stayed on top of Rountree for the majority of the round, landing a few short punches while maintaining control. When Rountree made it back to his feet in the closing seconds, Sanchez took him down once more, this time with a double-leg takedown after missing a high kick.
In the second round, Sanchez wasted no time going in on another takedown attempt. Rountree defended nicely at first, but Sanchez kept working until he eventually got it. The Missouri native kept heavy pressure on the Team Joanna member along the fence and landed short right hands repeatedly for the remainder of the round.
Sanchez went in on another takedown and scored it with an inside trip to get Rountree down to the mat yet again. “El Dirte” sat in Rountree’s open guard and then moved to his back in search of a rear-naked choke. Rountree looked disheartened as he had no answer for the pressure and control of Sanchez. The former RFA middleweight champion rode out the round just as he did in the second by landing right hands on a continual basis.
It was a total woodshedding by Sanchez, who looked dominant for all 15 minutes of the fight and put on as good an Octagon debut as any fighter could possibly hope for. Indeed, a fighter getting two 30-25 scorecards is rarified air in this sport, but that’s how dominant the judges thought he was. Meanwhile, it was a brutal loss for Rountree, who had no answer for Sanchez and no offense either. He loses for the first time in his career.
For complete TUF 23 Finale: ‘Jedrzejczyk vs. Gadelha 2’ results, including play-by-play updates, click here.