UFC best betting sites and the best MMA odds and gambling news
UFC on FOX 22 results: Craig submits da Silva, Smith spoils Aldana’s debut
Check out the results of the six FS1 preliminary card bouts that happened at UFC on FOX 22 in Sacramento, California.
If you like decisions, this UFC on FOX 22 televised preliminary card was filled with them. Only one fight ended with a finish, but it sure was a nice one. Some were very entertaining, others not so much. Perhaps the best fight on the card (and potential Fight of the Night winner) was a women’s bantamweight throwdown between Leslie Smith and Irene Aldana, which saw Smith win in impressive fashion. Here’s how the six FS1 prelim bouts played out.
Paul Craig def. Luis Henrique da Silva by submission (armbar) at 1:59 of round 2 – Light Heavyweights
Scotland’s Craig was spamming uppercuts in the clinch and finding success on the inside. He took da Silva down, and shook off the Brazilian’s weak kimura attempt. Craig later obtained side control before da Silva got back to his feet. The big danger for da Silva came when Craig dropped for a guillotine choke, but “Frankenstein” escaped. The Brazilian was bleeding profusely as the round ended.
Craig came forward throwing big shots, with da Silva firing back but looking fatigued. Craig pulled guard, and da Silva was willing to go into the guard with a dangerous submission specialist, and it was a bad move. “BearJew” set up a triangle-armbar and after not getting the arm extended the first time, he had it locked in the second time and forced da Silva to tap. A successful debut for Paul Craig, who remains unbeaten whilst simultaneously handing da Silva his first pro loss.
Miller knocked Hirota down with a right hand, but when Cole went in for a choke, Hirota reversed position and threw some ground-and-pound on top. After the first 2 minutes or so, Hirota took firm control of the round and beat Miller up with heavy ground-and-pound after taking “Magrinho” down (more so tossing him to the mat). Hirota again took Miller down but Miller used a leg lock sweep to get on top. He would later lose that position and Hirota would assume control on the mat, not letting Miller outgrapple him. There wasn’t much offense on display. Hirota dominated Miller on the mat again in round 3, clinching a unanimous decision victory, and his first win inside the Octagon. Miller’s winless run extends to 4 after tonight’s performance.
Covington controlled round 1. While Barberena made Colby work for his takedowns, Colby completed 5 of them, and also showed off improved striking. This style of fighting took its toll on Barberena, who just couldn’t cope with the former collegiate wrestling standout. Covington did get tagged by Barberena’s left hands, but Covington was able to blend his striking with his wrestling very well on his way to a 20-18 start through two rounds.
Round 3 was just a repeat of rounds 1 and 2. Barberena wasn’t being pinned down, but he was repeatedly taken down, and could not muster up enough power to hurt Covington in any prolonged striking exchanges. A very dominant win for Covington, who definitely made strides as a striker compared to previous outings.
Moontasri’s taekwondo background was evident in round 1, as he kicked Morono repeatedly and marked up his body throughout the first 5 minutes. Morono struggled to find his timing, as Moontasri’s left switch kick and spinning back kicks kept finding a home. He also cracked Morono with short punches on the counter. A hard right hand by Morono midway through the 2nd was the best strike he’d landed up to that point. Morono turned up the heat and tagged Moontasri with multiple power punches to the head. Alex ducked under for a takedown but couldn’t complete it. He swung for the fences trying to win. Morono cut Moontasri open with inside elbows, and then rocked Moontasri with a spinning backfist to end the 2nd.
Morono cocked that right hand in the 3rd and just teed off on Moontasri. He was very clearly dazed and Morono threw a series of punches that rocked Moontasri in a big way. Moontasri survived the onslaught but was generating no offense. Elbows, right hands, and left hooks had Moontasri wobbling. Moontasri threw body kicks, but Morono was drilling him with elbows again. Even when Moontasri connected on some power punches, the steam was gone. Moontasri finished the fight with a body kick that sent Morono off balance and down, but it was far too late.
The Sacramento crowd was fully behind Emmett, who’s the hometown fighter. Holtzman displayed confident, powerful striking early on, as well as good balance on his takedown defense. Holtzman kicked Emmett in the groin, but Emmett then poked Holtzman in the eye. After the fouling was done, Holtzman was twice taken down by Emmett, but did very well to get back to his feet and not be controlled on the ground. “Hot Sauce” took Emmett down and controlled him for a decent amount of time, getting in some ground-and-pound before Emmett returned to his feet. It was a very fast-paced round with both men throwing big, powerful strikes, particularly the knees in the clinch.
Emmett struggled to keep hold of Holtzman on a takedown off a caught kick, but lit Holtzman up with a bevy of punches after Holtzman was reckless on a failed spinning backfist. Again, Emmett had Holtzman on the mat, and this time he had one hook in, but couldn’t get the 2nd one and complete the rear-naked choke. It was a back-and-forth round, and after Holtzman took Emmett down, Emmett used a heel-hook sweep to get on top, then take Holtzman’s back, but lost position and Holtzman reversed him. Holtzman threw big knees in the clinch, while Emmett tagged Holtzman with right hands.
Holtzman was rocked with a right hand and knocked down briefly. Emmett pounced with a jumping knee and was going for the stoppage. Holtzman recovered well and took Emmett down momentarily. Emmett lifted the right leg of Holtzman and put him on his backside, but immediately came back up. It was evident that the grueling pace took a toll on the bodies of both fighters, and the movements were slower than in rounds 1 and 2.
Leslie Smith def. Irene Aldana via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) – Bantamweights
It was an aggressive opening minute for both women, but Aldana’s punches were more technical and landing cleaner. Smith had a nice head kick on the Mexican prospect. A big right hand dropped Aldana and she was hurt badly. Smith swarmed for the finish but was unable to get it, and Aldana started firing back. “The Peacemaker” attacked with a flurry of punches and elbows, and Aldana was still very much in danger. Smith threw a lovely spinning elbow that cracked Aldana, and she varied up her attack much more than Aldana did. Aldana used her jab to try and work her way back into the fight. Smith closed the 1st round strongly with big combinations against the fence.
The hellacious pace continued in round 2, and Smith was the aggressor who kept Aldana fighting on the backfoot and on the counter. There were some great counterpunches landed by Aldana, whereas Smith attacked in swarms. Big combinations and great hand speed by Aldana had Smith buzzed. A truly entertaining fight and a much better round 2 for Irene than round 1.
A punch and kick combo rocked Aldana once again, and Leslie started the 3rd round with the upper hand. Smith cracked Aldana with big punches against the fence. Aldana threw a terrific jab and uppercut combo, but Smith took those punches well. Takedowns were not required for this all stand-up war, which was definitely in Smith’s favor. Smith threw everything with intentions of a knockout. Aldana did take Smith down but she wanted to continue striking, but the horn sounded just seconds later. Smith returned to the win column following a quick TKO to Cris Cyborg, while Aldana suffers a loss in her UFC debut.
Check out the results of the six FS1 preliminary card bouts that happened at UFC on FOX 22 in Sacramento, California.
If you like decisions, this UFC on FOX 22 televised preliminary card was filled with them. Only one fight ended with a finish, but it sure was a nice one. Some were very entertaining, others not so much. Perhaps the best fight on the card (and potential Fight of the Night winner) was a women’s bantamweight throwdown between Leslie Smith and Irene Aldana, which saw Smith win in impressive fashion. Here’s how the six FS1 prelim bouts played out.
Paul Craig def. Luis Henrique da Silva by submission (armbar) at 1:59 of round 2 – Light Heavyweights
Scotland’s Craig was spamming uppercuts in the clinch and finding success on the inside. He took da Silva down, and shook off the Brazilian’s weak kimura attempt. Craig later obtained side control before da Silva got back to his feet. The big danger for da Silva came when Craig dropped for a guillotine choke, but “Frankenstein” escaped. The Brazilian was bleeding profusely as the round ended.
Craig came forward throwing big shots, with da Silva firing back but looking fatigued. Craig pulled guard, and da Silva was willing to go into the guard with a dangerous submission specialist, and it was a bad move. “BearJew” set up a triangle-armbar and after not getting the arm extended the first time, he had it locked in the second time and forced da Silva to tap. A successful debut for Paul Craig, who remains unbeaten whilst simultaneously handing da Silva his first pro loss.
Miller knocked Hirota down with a right hand, but when Cole went in for a choke, Hirota reversed position and threw some ground-and-pound on top. After the first 2 minutes or so, Hirota took firm control of the round and beat Miller up with heavy ground-and-pound after taking “Magrinho” down (more so tossing him to the mat). Hirota again took Miller down but Miller used a leg lock sweep to get on top. He would later lose that position and Hirota would assume control on the mat, not letting Miller outgrapple him. There wasn’t much offense on display. Hirota dominated Miller on the mat again in round 3, clinching a unanimous decision victory, and his first win inside the Octagon. Miller’s winless run extends to 4 after tonight’s performance.
Covington controlled round 1. While Barberena made Colby work for his takedowns, Colby completed 5 of them, and also showed off improved striking. This style of fighting took its toll on Barberena, who just couldn’t cope with the former collegiate wrestling standout. Covington did get tagged by Barberena’s left hands, but Covington was able to blend his striking with his wrestling very well on his way to a 20-18 start through two rounds.
Round 3 was just a repeat of rounds 1 and 2. Barberena wasn’t being pinned down, but he was repeatedly taken down, and could not muster up enough power to hurt Covington in any prolonged striking exchanges. A very dominant win for Covington, who definitely made strides as a striker compared to previous outings.
Moontasri’s taekwondo background was evident in round 1, as he kicked Morono repeatedly and marked up his body throughout the first 5 minutes. Morono struggled to find his timing, as Moontasri’s left switch kick and spinning back kicks kept finding a home. He also cracked Morono with short punches on the counter. A hard right hand by Morono midway through the 2nd was the best strike he’d landed up to that point. Morono turned up the heat and tagged Moontasri with multiple power punches to the head. Alex ducked under for a takedown but couldn’t complete it. He swung for the fences trying to win. Morono cut Moontasri open with inside elbows, and then rocked Moontasri with a spinning backfist to end the 2nd.
Morono cocked that right hand in the 3rd and just teed off on Moontasri. He was very clearly dazed and Morono threw a series of punches that rocked Moontasri in a big way. Moontasri survived the onslaught but was generating no offense. Elbows, right hands, and left hooks had Moontasri wobbling. Moontasri threw body kicks, but Morono was drilling him with elbows again. Even when Moontasri connected on some power punches, the steam was gone. Moontasri finished the fight with a body kick that sent Morono off balance and down, but it was far too late.
The Sacramento crowd was fully behind Emmett, who’s the hometown fighter. Holtzman displayed confident, powerful striking early on, as well as good balance on his takedown defense. Holtzman kicked Emmett in the groin, but Emmett then poked Holtzman in the eye. After the fouling was done, Holtzman was twice taken down by Emmett, but did very well to get back to his feet and not be controlled on the ground. “Hot Sauce” took Emmett down and controlled him for a decent amount of time, getting in some ground-and-pound before Emmett returned to his feet. It was a very fast-paced round with both men throwing big, powerful strikes, particularly the knees in the clinch.
Emmett struggled to keep hold of Holtzman on a takedown off a caught kick, but lit Holtzman up with a bevy of punches after Holtzman was reckless on a failed spinning backfist. Again, Emmett had Holtzman on the mat, and this time he had one hook in, but couldn’t get the 2nd one and complete the rear-naked choke. It was a back-and-forth round, and after Holtzman took Emmett down, Emmett used a heel-hook sweep to get on top, then take Holtzman’s back, but lost position and Holtzman reversed him. Holtzman threw big knees in the clinch, while Emmett tagged Holtzman with right hands.
Holtzman was rocked with a right hand and knocked down briefly. Emmett pounced with a jumping knee and was going for the stoppage. Holtzman recovered well and took Emmett down momentarily. Emmett lifted the right leg of Holtzman and put him on his backside, but immediately came back up. It was evident that the grueling pace took a toll on the bodies of both fighters, and the movements were slower than in rounds 1 and 2.
Leslie Smith def. Irene Aldana via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) – Bantamweights
It was an aggressive opening minute for both women, but Aldana’s punches were more technical and landing cleaner. Smith had a nice head kick on the Mexican prospect. A big right hand dropped Aldana and she was hurt badly. Smith swarmed for the finish but was unable to get it, and Aldana started firing back. “The Peacemaker” attacked with a flurry of punches and elbows, and Aldana was still very much in danger. Smith threw a lovely spinning elbow that cracked Aldana, and she varied up her attack much more than Aldana did. Aldana used her jab to try and work her way back into the fight. Smith closed the 1st round strongly with big combinations against the fence.
The hellacious pace continued in round 2, and Smith was the aggressor who kept Aldana fighting on the backfoot and on the counter. There were some great counterpunches landed by Aldana, whereas Smith attacked in swarms. Big combinations and great hand speed by Aldana had Smith buzzed. A truly entertaining fight and a much better round 2 for Irene than round 1.
A punch and kick combo rocked Aldana once again, and Leslie started the 3rd round with the upper hand. Smith cracked Aldana with big punches against the fence. Aldana threw a terrific jab and uppercut combo, but Smith took those punches well. Takedowns were not required for this all stand-up war, which was definitely in Smith’s favor. Smith threw everything with intentions of a knockout. Aldana did take Smith down but she wanted to continue striking, but the horn sounded just seconds later. Smith returned to the win column following a quick TKO to Cris Cyborg, while Aldana suffers a loss in her UFC debut.
