Kelvin Gastelum vs Rick “The Horror” Story
Round 1:
Story closed the distance and landed punches to the body and head right away, but Gastelum cut him below the left eye with a counter right hook. Gastelum jabbed and Story scored with an uppercut. The fighters traded hooks and Gastelum badly rocked Story with a head kick. Story fell on his face, but he managed to roll over and get back to butterfly guard. Gastelum tried for a rear-naked choke and a guillotine choke, but Story escaped to his feet. Gastelum landed a hard right hook and a knee to the body. He followed with a one-two in the final 30 seconds. 10-9 Gastelum. Close to a 10-8.
Round 2:
Both southpaws threw overhand lefts in the opening minute of round two and Gastelum mixed in leg kicks. He wobbled Story with a left hook and avoided a counter combination. Story targeted the body with two hooks and a kick. He followed with a left hook over the top. Both men landed left and right hooks and Gastelum backed Story up with combinations. Stiff jabs and one-twos scored for Gastelum, but Story rocked him with a left hand. Gastelum regained his footing and the fighters teed off in a huge exchange. Story dropped Gastelum and tried unsuccessfully to finish him with punches on the ground before the bell. 10-9 Story.
Round 3:
Story threw single left hooks and leg kicks in the final round. Gastelum snapped his head back with a stiff jab and he stuffed a takedown. Gastelum reversed the clinch and rocked Story with a left hook. He took Story down and tried for a rear-naked choke. Story shook him off and wound up on top. He took Gastelum’s back and tried to set up a rear-naked choke of his own. Gastelum escaped to his feet and landed jabs. Story countered with a body kick and the fight ended with both men throwing haymakers. Excellent fight. 10-9 Gastelum, barely.
Winner: Kelvin Gastelum by Split Decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 8-0-0.
Jéssica “Bate Estaca” Andrade vs Raquel “Rocky” Pennington
Round 1:
The fight began with an exchange of punches and Andrade clinched in search of a takedown. Pennington landed short punches and a knee and looked to set up a standing guillotine choke. Andrade punched her way free and threw Pennington to the mat. Pennington used the cage to scramble up and Andrade threw her down again. Andrade stood over Pennington and landed punches, but Pennington locked on an armbar from the bottom. Andrade escaped into side control and she tried for a guillotine choke. The fight returned to the feet and Andrade threw Pennington on her face. 10-9 Andrade.
Round 2:
Andrade backed Pennington up with punches in the second round, but Pennington clinched and countered with knees. A nice one-two scored for Pennington, but Andrade took her down. She tried to slam Pennington, but Pennington used the opportunity to return to her feet. She landed a three-punch combo and Andrade pressed forward with a leg kick. Andrade flurried with punches and Pennington countered with more knees in the clinch.
Pennington threw a chopping leg kick and Andrade fired back with punches to the body and head. She swarmed on Pennington with punches against the cage and both women landed hard shots, with Andrade getting the better of the exchange. Andrade clinched and Pennington landed a knee. Pennington jabbed and picked her shots while Andrade rushed forward with hard punches. Pennington locked on a tight standing guillotine choke and Andrade narrowly escaped with ten seconds to go. Close round. 10-9 Pennington.
Round 3:
Andrade remained the aggressor early in the final round and she landed looping hooks. Pennington secured a Thai clinch and landed knees in close. Andrade punched free and kicked to the body, but Pennington landed a nice right hand. Both women landed punches and Andrade connected with a lengthy flurry against the cage. She continued to attack Pennington with punches, but Pennington answered back with knees to the body. Andrade landed big punches in close and Pennington dragged her to the mat. She landed punches and slammed Andrade down again. Andrade stood and Pennington flurried with punches until the bell. 10-9 Pennington due to the late rally.
Winner: Jéssica Andrade by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. She improves to 11-3-0.
Dennis “The Menace” Bermudez vs Jimy “The Kid” Hettes
Round 1:
Bermudez landed a right hook in the opening seconds and countered a right hand from Hettes by clinching against the cage. Bermudez briefly got Hettes down on three occasions and he landed punches after the fight returned to the feet. Hettes scored with a right hook and a knee. Bermudez took him down two more times and mixed up his strikes with leg kicks and uppercuts. The fighters traded hooks over the top and Bermudez secured a takedown into side control. He struck from the top until Hettes escaped to his feet. Bermudez locked on a guillotine choke in a scramble before time expired. 10-9 Bermudez.
Round 2:
Bermudez pinned Hettes against the fence and scored a brief takedown in round two. Hettes reversed on the feet and landed a knee. Bermudez fought off a takedown and landed a knee of his own. He dropped Hettes with punches and followed with hammerfists on the mat. The fighters stood and time was called to replace Hettes’s mouthpiece. Hettes reversed a takedown after the restart and took Bermudez’s back. He punched from back control until the bell. 10-9 Bermudez.
Round 3:
Bermudez closed the distance with punches in round three and he dropped Hettes again with a right hand. He struck from the top until Hettes worked back to his feet. Hettes appeared to be gassed and he flopped to his back on two occasions. Bermudez landed a knee and an exhausted Hettes fell to the mat, forcing referee Kerry Hatley to stop the fight.
Winner: Dennis Bermudez by TKO (Knee) at 2:57 of round three. He improves to 13-3-0.
Alex “The Dominican Nightmare” Garcia vs Sean “Black Magic” Spencer
Round 1:
Garcia landed short uppercuts early on and shot in for a takedown. Spencer used the cage to get back to his feet and he ducked under a looping hook. The fighters traded leg kicks and Garcia landed a head kick. He took Spencer down against the cage, but Spencer quickly stood and more kicks were exchanged. Both men landed left hooks in the final seconds and Spencer attempted a flying switch knee. 10-9 Garcia.
Round 2:
Spencer connected with lead left hooks in the second round, but Garcia backed him up with one in return. Garcia took Spencer down momentarily, but Spencer returned to his feet and rocked Garcia with a right hook and a head kick. Garcia recovered and hurt Spencer with a right hand. He dropped him with a second punch. Spencer stood and the fighters traded huge shots.
Garcia took Spencer down, but Spencer reversed and the fight returned to the feet. Spencer landed an overhand right and ate an uppercut. Garcia backed him up with another right hook and he followed with an uppercut in close. Garcia scored a takedown into half-guard and Spencer scrambled free. He wobbled Garcia again with punches before time expired. Crazy round. 10-9 Garcia, barely.
Round 3:
The pace remained high in the final round and both men landed lead hooks early on. Spencer kicked to the body and appeared to hurt his leg while throwing a leg kick. Garcia scored with overhand rights and an uppercut. He slammed Spencer to the mat Garcia struck from the top, but Spencer scrambled up and landed punches and a leg kick. Garcia took him back down and mounted him against the fence. Spencer powered out and landed a knee. A left hook landed for Garcia and Spencer answered with a right. 10-9 Garcia.
Winner: Alex Garcia by Split Decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 12-1-0.
Francisco “Sitkayan” Trevino vs Renee Forte
Round 1:
After an early exchange of right hands, Forte took Trevino down and quickly secured back control. Trevino eventually escaped and worked back to his feet. Forte took Trevino back down and fought off an inverted armbar attempt. Trevino scrambled up and threw kicks to the leg and body. Forte landed a combination in the final seconds. 10-9 Forte.
Round 2:
The second round began with an exchange of kicks and Forte caught one. He worked for a takedown, but Trevino stayed up. He walked Forte down with body kicks and lead right hooks. Trevino began to taunt and he landed a series of body kicks. Forte took him down, but Trevino stood back up. He tripped Forte and landed knees on the way up. Trevino tried for a guillotine choke before time expired. 10-9 Trevino.
Round 3:
Trevino landed a body kick and lead right hooks in the final round. Forte fell after throwing a kick and Trevino took his back on the feet. Forte turned into the clinch and tried for a guillotine choke. Trevino escaped and landed a spinning back elbow. Forte took him down and Trevino quickly returned to his feet. Trevino took Forte’s back and landed knees to the thigh. He followed with a nice combination. Trevino landed two hard right hands, but Forte answered back with one of his own and scored a takedown. He took Trevino’s back, but Trevino stood and scored with knees. 10-9 Trevino.
Winner: Francisco Trevino by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 12-0-0.
Justin “Tank” Scoggins vs Will Campuzano
Round 1:
Scoggins switched stances repeatedly in the opening seconds and landed a leg kick. He took Campuzano down twice and landed punches on the way up. Scoggins scored with a knee and a spinning back kick to the body. He took Campuzano back down and landed more punches as Campuzano stood. Both men landed right hands and Scoggins threw more spinning kicks. He took Campuzano down and landed a standing elbow in the final seconds. 10-9 Scoggins.
Round 2:
Scoggins landed a variety of kicks in the second round including a front hook kick to the jaw. He took Campuzano down, but Campuzano locked on a guillotine choke. Scoggins remained calm and pulled his head free. The fighters exchanged elbows on the ground and Scoggins took Campuzano’s back in a scramble against the fence. Campuzano escaped out the back and stood up, but Scoggins cracked him with a three-punch combo just before the bell. 10-9 Scoggins.
Round 3:
Campuzano rocked Scoggins early in the final round, but Scoggins scored a takedown and landed some hard shots from the top. Campuzano gave up his back and Scoggins landed a series of punches. Campuzano stood and Scoggins tripped him again. He pinned Campuzano’s arm behind his back and landed punches with his free hand. Scoggins landed a nice knee to the body and slammed Campuzano down. He finished the round strong with punches and elbows from the top. 10-9 Scoggins.
Winner: Justin Scoggins by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) after three rounds. He improves to 9-0-0.
Sean “Tarzan” Strickland vs Bubba “The Menace” McDaniel
Round 1:
Strickland countered a body kick with a hard right hand early on and he kept McDaniel on the defensive. A nice combination scored for Strickland, but McDaniel took him down. Strickland stood and secured a takedown of his own against the cage. He postured up with a right hand and landed short elbows from half-guard. Strickland postured up again and rained down punches. He took McDaniel’s back in a scramble and locked on a lightning-fast rear-naked choke for the tapout win.
Winner: Sean Strickland by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 4:33 of round one. He improves to 14-0-0.
Robert “The Hammer” Whiteford vs Daniel “The Pit” Pineda
Round 1:
Whiteford opened the action with leg kicks and Pineda fired back with a right hook and a body kick. The fighters clinched against the cage and Whiteford tripped Pineda down into back control. Pineda stood and Whiteford slammed him down again. Pineda worked back to his feet and the fighters were separated. Whiteford landed uppercuts and Pineda scored with another body kick. He attempted a flying knee late in the round. 10-9 Whiteford.
Round 2:
Whiteford secured a takedown early in the second round and struck from the top, but Pineda defended well and got back to his feet. He took Whiteford down very briefly and the fighters stood and traded leg kicks. Whiteford hurt Pineda with a head kick that opened a cut on his cheek. Pineda regained his footing and stuffed a takedown, but he ate another head kick seconds later. Pineda rolled into a kneebar attempt and switched to an Achilles lock, but Whiteford escaped into top position. 10-9 Whiteford.
Round 3:
Whiteford took Pineda down into half-guard in round three and Pineda countered with hammerfists and elbows from his back. The fighters were stood up and Pineda pulled Whiteford to the mat with a tight kneebar. Whiteford escaped and secured a takedown soon after. Pineda tried for a triangle choke and Whiteford fought free into side control. Pineda regained full guard and the fighters were stood up. An exhausted Whiteford pulled guard and fought off a kimura attempt before the bell. 10-9 Pineda.
Winner: Robert Whiteford by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 11-2-0.