The Ultimate Fighting Championship returned to UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada today for UFC Fight Night 193: “Santos vs Walker.” The event was headlined by a light heavyweight battle between Thiago “Marreta” Santos, who looked to halt a three-fight losing streak, and striker Johnny Walker.
In the middleweight co-main event, Kevin “Trailblazer” Holland squared off against Kyle Daukaus. Elsewhere on the main card, Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira took on Niko “The Hybrid” Price in a featured matchup at welterweight. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the UFC Fight Night 193 card.
Thiago “Marreta” Santos vs Johnny Walker
Round 1:
Walker struck first with an inside leg kick and he blocked a Santos head kick attempt. Walker avoided a spinning wheel kick from Santos and he landed two front kicks to the body. Walker continued to score with kicks to the inside of Santos’s left leg. Both fighters were cautious with their kicks for the next minute until Walker landed a front kick to Santos’s ribs. 10-9 Walker.
Round 2:
Santos attempted a takedown in the second round and Walker stuffed it. He landed a knee to Santos’s chest and that set off a brief exchange of power punches. Walker landed a leg kick and Santos switched stances momentarily. Little transpired for more than a minute until Santos landed a hard body kick. He followed with another one and a two-punch combo. Santos blocked a switch kick and he landed a leg kick. 10-9 Santos.
Round 3:
The third round began with an exchange of leg kicks throughout the opening minute and Santos partially landed a head kick. He followed with a right hook and Walker landed one of his own. Santos snapped Walker’s head back with a straight left and he chopped away at his left leg with kicks. A spinning wheel kick attempt from Santos came up short, but Walker offered nothing in return. 10-9 Santos.
Round 4:
Both fighters blocked head kick attempts from the other in round four and Walker attempted a jumping knee to the body. He landed a combination and Santos responded with a leg kick. He caught a body kick, but Walker balanced on one leg and landed two right hands before Santos let go of his leg. As Walker moved forward, Santos clipped him with two counter hooks. He landed a body kick late in the close round. 10-9 Walker.
Round 5:
Punches were exchanged in the final round, but nothing damaging landed until Santos connected with a massive overhand left. Santos took a step backward, but he recovered right away and the fighters resumed throwing single kicks and punches. Santos landed another counter left as Walker pursued him around the cage. Santos grazed with a head kick and Walker missed with flashy spinning kick attempts. 10-9 Santos due to damage.
Winner: Thiago Santos by Unanimous Decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) after five rounds. He improves to 22-9-0.
Kevin “Trailblazer” Holland vs Kyle Daukaus
Round 1:
Daukaus clinched and landed a knee to the body before trying to take Holland down. He got him down to one knee, but Holland stood and he reversed the clinch. Daukaus tied Holland up and the fighters were eventually separated. As Holland took a step forward, the fighters clashed heads and Holland was briefly knocked out. He fell to the mat and woke back up as Daukaus landed punches from the top. Holland rolled to his stomach and weathered the storm as Daukaus landed more punches. As Holland stood up, Daukaus jumped into a standing rear-naked choke. Holland, still hurt, tapped out to the choke. A discussion then ensued as the officials reviewed the replay footage due to the clash of heads.
Result: No Contest (Accidental Clash of Heads) at 3:43 of round one. Holland moves to 21-7-0, 1 NC, while Daukaus is now 10-2-0, 1 NC.
Niko “The Hybrid” Price vs Alex “Cowboy” Oliveira
Round 1:
Price mixed up his strikes with leg kicks and jabs while Oliveira stuck to throwing overhand rights. He landed three of them, but Price initiated a clinch against the cage. Oliveira used a body lock to take Price down, but Price reversed position and he worked from the top with elbows and punches. From Oliveira’s half-guard, Price landed more short elbows and he prevented Oliveira from getting to his feet against the cage. 10-9 Price.
Round 2:
Oliveira was backed up by a counter left hook from Price early in the second round. He lunged forward with a lead left hook and followed with an overhand right. Oliveira ducked under a head kick from Price and then tripped Price after catching a leg kick. Oliveira moved to side control and Price attempted a keylock from the bottom. Price gave up his back and Oliveira landed two hard right hands to his face. Price rolled back over and Oliveira struck from the top in Price’s half-guard until the bell. 10-9 Oliveira.
Round 3:
Oliveira kept his distance and landed jabs and right hands in the final round. Price landed an overhand right, but Oliveira cracked him with a hard one-two. Seconds later, Price backed Oliveira up with two right hooks. After an exchange of punches, Price backed Oliveira up again with another right hook. He was unable to take Oliveira down and the fighters separated. Price threw kicks to Oliveira’s upper body and a fatigued Oliveira retreated. As Price closed in, Oliveira scored with two power hooks. Price’s left eye immediately swelled up and Oliveira took his back. Price shook him off and Oliveira fell to the mat. Price trapped Oliveira’s right arm and landed punches to his face until the end of the fight. 10-9 Price.
Winner: Niko Price by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 15-5-0, 2 NC.
Krzysztof Jotko vs Misha Cirkunov
Round 1:
Cirkunov clinched early in the fight, but Jotko was able to circle away and he landed a leg kick. Cirkunov tripped him very briefly and he held Jotko against the fence after Jotko stood back up. Both men threw knees to the other’s thighs and Jotko broke free again. Jotko landed two leg kicks and Cirkunov answered with a lead right hook. Jotko flurried with punches in close and he avoided a Cirkunov clinch attempt. Jotko landed a right hook and just missed with a head kick. He landed a hard leg kick late in the round and stuffed a takedown. Close round. 10-9 Jotko.
Round 2:
Jotko landed a counter right hook early in the second round and Cirkunov tried to take him down against the cage. Jotko grabbed the fence and he was warned for the infraction. Time was called seconds later when Jotko was kneed in the groin. The fight resumed in a clinch and Jotko quickly circled away to his left. As Cirkunov closed the distance, Jotko landed four quick punches and Cirkunov backed off. Jotko countered a leg kick from Cirkunov with an overhand left. As the round entered its final 90 seconds, Jotko landed a jab-cross combo. Cirkunov clinched with him very briefly, but Jotko landed a left hand over the top and broke free. The round ended with an exchange of kicks. 10-9 Jotko.
Round 3:
Cirkunov finally got Jotko down to begin the final round and he took Jotko’s back as Jotko kneeled against the cage. He stood up and Cirkunov threw knees to Jotko’s right thigh. Jotko was able to scramble up to his feet and Cirkunov dumped him to the mat. Jotko stood and the fighters separated. Jotko tried for a takedown of his own and the fighters separated again. Jotko jumped forward with a flying knee attempt, but he poked Cirkunov in the eye in the process. Jotko yelled at Cirkunov during the timeout and action resumed after a minute. Jotko landed a nice combination and a stiff jab. He took Cirkunov down shortly before the bell and landed punches from the top. Another close round. 29-28 Cirkunov by a slim margin.
Winner: Krzysztof Jotko by Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29) after three rounds. He improves to 23-5-0.
Alexander “The Great” Hernandez vs Mike “Money” Breeden
Round 1:
Breeden landed a quick right hand to begin the fight and he stuffed a takedown attempt from Hernandez, who shot in for a second takedown soon after. Breeden stayed up, but Hernandez rocked him with a one-two. Breeden retreated to the cage and Hernandez swarmed on him with more punches. One of them sent Breeden’s mouthpiece flying, but Breeden fired back with punches while keeping his back against the cage. A massive right hand from Hernandez sent Breeden crashing to the canvas, however, and ended the fight in emphatic fashion.
Winner: Alexander Hernandez by KO (Punch) at 1:20 of round one. He improves to 13-4-0.
(Undercard results and play-by-play on Page Two.)