Outside Source
Derrick Lewis can still call down the thunder with the best of them.
“The Black Beast” on Saturday unleashed his fury on another victim in the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight division, as he took care of the previously unbeaten Tallison Teixeira with punches in the first round of their UFC on ESPN 70 headliner at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Lewis (29-12, 20-10 UFC) put an end to the festivities 35 seconds into Round 1.
Teixeira (8-1, 1-1 UFC) landed a slashing jab—his thumb appeared to inadvertently scrape across his opponent’s right eye—that had the New Orleans native wincing and forced him to briefly backpedal. Lewis stepped forward with an overhand right, then sent the Brazilian crashing to the canvas with a sweeping left hook. He pounced with follow-up punches, as Teixeira scrambled to all fours, crawled to the cage and grabbed the fence to get back to his feet. Lewis never stopped throwing punches. Teixeira eventually made his way to a standing position with his back turned, but referee Jason Herzog elected to intervene on his behalf.
Meanwhile, former Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Gabriel Bonfim eked out a contentious split decision over the ageless Stephen Thompson in their three-round welterweight co-main event. All three cageside judges turned in 29-28 scorecards: Rick Winter for Thompson, Dave Tirelli and Michael Bell for Bonfim.
Thompson (17-9-1, 12-9-1 UFC) fought through a serious gash on his left shin—the wound was the result of a checked kick in the middle stanza—and landed the two most significant shots of the fight: a head kick that staggered the Brazilian near the end of the second round and another head kick that buckled his knees in the third. Bonfim (18-1, 5-1 UFC) responded through multiple takedowns, occasional counters, a steady diet of leg kicks and a grueling clinch. He drew boos from those in attendance when he pinned Thompson to the fence and landed repeated heel strikes to the exposed cut on the 42-year-old South Carolinian’s leg.
Bonfim, 27, has rattled off three consecutive victories.
Further down the main card, Jackson-Wink MMA export Steve Garcia continued his climb on the 145-pound ladder with a unanimous decision over Calvin Kattar in their three-round featherweight showcase. Garcia (18-5, 7-2 UFC) swept the scorecards with matching 30-27 marks from the cageside judges and now rides a six-fight winning streak.
The 37-year-old Kattar (23-10, 7-8 UFC) never looked comfortable. Garcia pressed the Tristar Gym rep onto the back foot and into an almost constant state of retreat with potent jabs, body kicks, check hooks and overhand lefts. Kattar answered in spurts but had issues dealing with his opponent’s length, pace and output. Garcia dropped him to a knee with a jarring left hand in the third round, tying a bow on another successful performance.
Kattar has suffered five straight defeats.
Elsewhere, former Cage Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder Morgan Charriere wrecked Nate Landwehr with punches in the third round of their featherweight feature. Landwehr (18-7, 5-5 UFC) succumbed to blows 27 seconds into Round 3, as he lost for the second time in as many appearances.
Charriere (21-11-1, 3-2 UFC) tore into the Tennessee native’s lead leg with kicks throughout much of the first round, then seemed to lose his bearings. Landwehr was the far busier competitor in the middle stanza, where he threw his jab in gear, uncorked multi-punch bursts—he fired off a standing hammerfist at one point—and kept the Frenchman moving backward. Momentum shifted again early in Round 3. Charrier dazed the onetime M-1 Global champion with an overhand right, pinned him to the fence with punches, connected with a devastating left hook and did not stop swinging until referee Blake Grice dragged him away from the scene.
The 29-year-old Charriere has won six of his past eight fights.
Deeper into the draw, CM System standout Vitor Petrino disposed of onetime Fury Fighting Championship titleholder Austen Lane with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their heavyweight attraction. Lane (13-7, 1-4 UFC), who had never before been submitted, conceded defeat 4:16 into Round 1.
Petrino (12-2, 5-2 UFC) caught a kick, swept the Floridian to the floor and powered into top position. He climbed to full mount, threatened with an arm-triangle and set off a scramble with heavy ground-and-pound. From there, Petrino moved to the back, laced his arms in place for the choke and prompted the stoppage.
It was the fifth first-round finish of Petrino’s career.
Finally, Kill Cliff Fight Club’s George Tokkos put away Junior Tafa with an arm-triangle choke in the second round of their light heavyweight appetizer. Tokkos (11-5, 1-2 UFC) drew the curtain 4:25 into Round 2, as he rebounded from back-to-back losses to Oumar Sy and Navajo Stirling.
Tafa (6-4, 2-4 UFC) administered plenty of punishment on the feet, but his inability to remain upright led to his undoing. Tokkos executed a takedown inside the first minute of the middle stanza and went to work on the mat. He applied his ground-and-pound with varying degrees of intensity, snatched the arm-triangle, moved to full mount and eventually settled beside Tafa, tightening his squeeze along the way. The Soma Fight Club product resisted briefly, then tapped.
The 28-year-old Tafa has lost three of his past four bouts.
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This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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