Round two went off on the UFC‘s Fight Island this evening. The main event of the evening featured a featherweight contest between Calvin Kattar (22-4) and Dan Ige (14-3). The second card on Fight Island didn’t disappoint.
Kattar out strikes Ige over five rounds
The main event of the evening featured two top ten UFC featherweights going to war in Kattar and Ige. A win for either man in this contest would likely mean a crack at someone inside the top five.
Both men started out the fight just feeling the other out, not throwing a ton. Ige rushed in a couple of times with shots, but Kattar evaded the shots easily. Kattar seemed really patient right out of the gate while Ige seemed more aggressive.
About two minutes in, Kattar started to press forward throwing his jab. After Ige landed a decent body shot, Kattar ripped a right hook and left uppercut. Kattar landed a couple of good shots before Ige shot for a takedown.
Kattar defended the takedown well and both men returned to their feet. Ige was throwing hard, but Kattar just seemed a little smoother on the feet. Ige had his moments in round one, but the first goes to Kattar.
Both men started slow in round two not throwing much in the opening minute. Ige got the action started with a good body shot, but as soon as it landed, Kattar started moving forward. Kattar did a fantastic job early of catching Ige.
About halfway through the round, Ige landed a massive shot to Kattar’s nose which got the blood flowing. Kattar had his nose broken in his previous fight and it clearly started bothering him.
Ige really started to get comfortable and confident in the latter half of the second round. With about thirty seconds left in the round, Kattar got more aggressive throwing some combinations. Good bounce back round for Ige who takes this one evening up the fight 1-1.
Ige started round three moving forward right away. Kattar seemed a bit more aggressive to round three throwing a bit more early. Ige did a pretty good job of landing calf kicks early in the third.
Kattar was pushing forward a lot more in round three, but Ige was doing a really good job of exploding forward landing shots. With about two minutes left in the round, Kattar landed some clean shots that caused Ige to shoot for a takedown.
To me, it was evident that Kattar had the better hands, but he was just waiting too much. With about a minute left, Kattar got a bit more aggressive which allowed him to land some good shots. Close round, but I go with Kattar in round three.
Kattar opened the main event rounds trying to work off the job. Ige shot in for a deep takedown, but he was not able to get Kattar down. Kattar backed Ige back towards the fence and started throwing some heat.
Ige tried for another takedown, but again was not able to get Kattar down. Kattar seemed to be upping the pressure to start the fourth. Ige would shoot forward with shots, but they were coming a little slower than they were in previous rounds.
Kattar started landing more and more leg kicks in the fourth which caused constant stance switches for Ige. Ige was still game, but he just didn’t seem as fresh as Kattar. Good fourth round for Kattar who’s up 3-1 on my scorecard.
Entering the final round, Kattar looked very confident on his feet. Every time that Ige rushed in early, Kattar would land a smooth counter shot. Kattar did a really good job through the first half of the round of fighting from a distance.
Both men exchanged with big shots about halfway through the round. Ige tried again for a takedown, but Kattar again defended. Ige was officially 0-7 on takedowns at this point. With ten seconds left, Kattar threw some massive shots which forced another Ige takedown attempt. Kattar reversed and landed some bombs as the fight ended.
Entertaining fight, and I give the final round as well as the fight to Calvin Kattar 49-46. The judges agreed giving the fight to Kattar on all scorecards (49-46, 49-46, 48-47).
Tim Elliott edges Ryan Benoit in an entertaining scrap
The co-main event of the evening featured a flyweight contest between former UFC title challenger, Tim Elliott (16-11-1) and the powerful, Ryan Benoit (10-7). Elliot came into tonight with his back against a wall after going 1-4 in his last five fights.
Elliott immediately came out looking to put pressure on Benoit. Both men appeared to just be gauging the range early on. After about two minutes, the two men started opening up and Benoit landed some big shots.
Elliott tried to get the fight to the ground, but Benoit defended nicely. Elliott continued to keep Benoit on his back foot with his awkward movement and pressure. Benoit seemed to be waiting a little too much in the first round.
Elliott tried for a couple of more takedowns but couldn’t land one. Benoit landed a massive body shot which caused Elliott to shoot again. Elliott was able to land two quick takedowns in the last minute. Very close round, but because of the constant forward pressure and late takedowns, I’ll give it to Elliott.
Elliott danced his way in to start round two, but Benoit landed some decent shots to start. Benoit landed another big kick, but Elliott was able to counter with a few good shots of his own. Elliott was doing a really good job at constantly moving forward.
However, about two minutes in, Benoit started to land some really big shots as Elliott was coming in. Elliott’s pressure was forcing the shots and Benoit landed a takedown, but shot right into a guillotine. Elliott had the choke tight, but couldn’t finish it.
After a scramble, Benoit caught Elliott in a deep knee bar that caused Elliott to wince in pain. Somehow, Elliott didn’t tap despite the obvious pain. Both men ended up back on their feet with a minute left.
Benoit landed some really good shots again as Elliott plotted forward. Very entertaining round that I’ll give to Benoit. I had it even going into the final round.
Both men got right back after it to start the third round. Elliott continued moving forward putting pressure on Benoit. After a takedown attempt, Elliott landed some really good knees and elbows.
It appeared early in the third that Benoit looked a little tired. Elliott flashed a really good jab that was touching Benoit. Elliott appeared to have hurt his right hand in one of the grappling exchanges. Despite that, Elliott was getting the better of the striking exchanges.
Elliott continued to pepper Benoit with good jabs late in the round. Benoit threw some massive shots and landed some good ones. Nothing seemed to hurt Elliott significantly. In the last ten seconds, Benoit tried to go all out for a finish, but couldn’t land the big shot.
This was a very entertaining fight in the UFC‘s flyweight division. I gave the third round to Elliott which would give him the fight 29-28 in my opinion. In the end, all three judges agreed giving Elliott the unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Jimmie Rivera decisions Cody Stamann
The third fight of the main card could have honestly been a main event between UFC bantamweights Jimmie Rivera (23-4) and Cody Stamann (19-3-1).
Because the fight came together on short notice, the two bantamweights met at the featherweight limit of 145 pounds.
Both men opened the fight with power shots with Stamann throwing a hook and Rivera a leg kick. After gauging the distance, Rivera landed a massive hook to the body then a hook to the head. After Rivera slipped from a kick, Stamann stormed forward landing some nice shots.
Rivera then caught a leg kick from Stamann and countered with a shot that put Stamann down momentarily. Stamann got back to his feet, but Rivera tried to take him down. Stamann pulled off a nice reversal before taking Rivera down momentarily.
The referee separated the two men despite Stamann having control of Rivera’s back. Once they were back to striking, Rivera was getting the better of the striking exchanges. Close round one, but that separation really hurt Stamann. 10-9 for Rivera after one.
The second round started with Stamann immediately shooting in for a takedown. After briefly being taken down, Rivera popped right back up. After being controlled from the back, Rivera reversed the position and took Stamann down.
Stamann popped right back up following the takedown. The two men broke from grappling with about two minutes left in the round. Rivera pressed forward cutting off the cage from Stamann. Rivera landed some decent shots in the last couple of minutes, but Stamann held his own. Close round, but I lean Rivera again.
Early on in the final round, Stamann shot in for another takedown. Prior to the shot, Rivera did land a couple of clean shots. Rivera defended the takedown nicely before reversing the position.
Rivera landed some nice shots against the cage before the two men separated. Stamann would land shots here and there, but Rivera was consistently landing a little more in the third. With two minutes left, Stamann shot in for another takedown, but again Rivera defended.
Rivera briefly locked in a guillotine, but Stamann defended nicely. The two men separated again with about a minute left. Both men started trading shots in the final minute. An entertaining end to a pretty decent fight.
I gave the third round to Rivera giving him the fight 30-27. The judges agreed giving the fight to Rivera by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28).
Talia Santos dominant over Molly McCann
The second fight on the main card tonight featured a women’s flyweight contest between Molly McCann (10-3) and Talia Santos (16-1).
McCann came into tonight trying to win her fourth consecutive fight while Santos was looking to bounce back from her first career loss.
McCann sprinted across the octagon to start the fight. Santos backed her up with a couple of clean straight shots using her reach advantage. McCann landed some pretty decent hooks as Santos tried to come in. Both women landed some really good shots in the early exchanges.
McCann was hitting Santos with some clean shots which cut the Brazilian. Santos seemed to be kick heavy early landed some nice ones to the body. With about 90 seconds left in the round, Santos landed a big takedown. McCann got back to her feet, but was hit with some nasty knees to the body. Entertaining round one that I gave to Santos.
McCann came right out with urgency in round two. Santos seemed pretty composed trying to fight from distance. McCann pushed Santos against the fence looking for a takedown early in the second.
After a couple of failed attempts, the two ladies separated. Santos landed some nice body kicks before securing another takedown, and immediately transitioned to the mount. Santos came close to securing a choke as McCann tried to work her way back up.
McCann used the cage to get up but Santos dragged her right back to the ground. McCann kept working off of her back to get up, but Santos did a fantastic job of controlling her. Two straight rounds for Santos.
McCann stormed forward again to start the third throwing big shots. However, Santos did a fantastic job at keeping the fight at distance landing some clean shots. McCann was wearing the damage early in the third round.
Clearly no quit in McCann as she continued to storm forward throwing everything, but nothing significant was landing. Two minutes into the final round, Santos secured a takedown after McCann landed a couple of good shots.
The rest of the round consisted of McCann trying to get back to her feet just to have Santos drag her right back down. Santos controlled the round as she did the fight.
I gave the third round and the fight to Santos 30-27. The judges unanimously agreed giving the decision to Talia Santos (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). This was the first win in the UFC.
Lazzez defeats Alhassan in impressive UFC debut
Opening up the main card this evening was the fight I had been looking forward to between UFC welterweights, Abdul Razak Alhassan (10-2) and Mounir Lazzez (10-1).
Many were looking forward to this one due to the fact that the two men had a combined 18 knockouts between 19 wins.
Lazzez stormed right to the center but he was met immediately by Alhassan early in the first. Alhassan backed Lazzez up against the fence early and started landing bombs on Lazzez. For a second Lazzez seemed rocked, but he survived the storm. Alhassan seemed to be very tired after the initial exchanges.
Lazzez started to find his rhythm about halfway through the round. He started landing some nasty leg kicks and knees to the body. The Sniper looked insanely loose near the end of the round landing clean shots. Lazzez also landed a takedown at the end of the round to seal the round for the UFC newcomer.
Alhassan looked extremely tired to start the second round. Lazzez looked fresh coming out for the second landing good kicks and jabs. Alhassan continued to plot forward, but he was getting touched up coming in. Lazzez stormed forward after landing a few really clean shots.
Alhassan appeared rocked against the cage as Lazzez flooded him with shots. Alhassan ripped back with a few hooks, but nothing damaging landed. Lazzez shot in for another takedown halfway through the round taking Alhassan down.
The referee stood up the two men after less than a minute on the ground. Once back on the feet, Lazzez landed some nasty shots against the fence before taking Alhassan down again. After only seconds on the ground, the referee stood up the two men once again in an odd officiating call just before the round ended. Another round for Lazzez.
Both men came out for the third round and exchanged leg kicks. The pace had slowed significantly from both men in the third. Lazzez landed a massive knee on Alhassan as Alhassan shot in for the takedown. Alhassan got two quick takedowns, but Lazzez bounced right back up.
Lazzez reversed position against the cage before taking Alhassan down with about two minutes left in the round. Lazzez landed some massive elbows from side control. With 10 seconds left Alhassan got back up and threw some haymakers before the final bell. I lean Lazzez in that final round and give him the fight 30-27.
The judges agreed giving the fight unanimously to the UFC newcomer Lazzez (30-27, 30-27, 29-28).
Final Takeaways from UFC on ESPN 13
If you wanted to see finished, UFC on ESPN 13’s main card didn’t deliver, but the night was filled with some entertaining fights. The prelims had some great contests as well. A solid night of fights which served as a great appetizer for Saturday’s round three from Fight Island.