Outside Source
It took Jacob Silva just over a year to return and defend his Fury Fighting Championship flyweight title, but once the cage door locked, it took less than half a round for him to finish the job.
In his first appearance since winning the belt in November 2018, Silva engaged challenger Christian Lira in several tense exchanges on the feet, circling away and landing a couple of snappy kicks to the Lira’s lead leg. A little over a minute in, Silva let himself be walked into the fence and as Lira changed levels for a double-leg, Silva met him with a nicely-timed flying knee that rocked him badly. Silva swarmed with hammerfists looking for the finish, and it looked for a moment as if he might get it right then and there, but Lira recovered his wits sufficiently to grab a single-leg and survive. Silva did not let up, though; he stayed glued to Lira through a series of scrambles, eventually ending up on the challenger’s back, where he pounded him out with a series of vicious punches from back mount. The end came at 1:54 of the first round.
Silva’s first title defense leaves him 6-2 overall and extends an impressive streak in which, after losing his first two professional fights, he has won six straight in Fury and Legacy Fighting Alliance, all six by finish and the last five by KO or TKO. The run of finishes clearly has not gone unnoticed, either, as later that same evening, Silva reportedly received a call to appear on Dana White’s Contender Series this summer. With the loss, Lira falls to 4-4.
DWCS Alum Turcios Taps Petereit with Buzzer-Beater
Ricky Turcios could have coasted and banked the round, but instead chose to go for the finish, netting a submission of Kaleb Petereit in the waning seconds of the second round of their 140-pound catchweight match. Turcios, a veteran of Dana White’s Contender Series and Bellator MMA, was a step ahead of Petereit throughout, generally getting the better of the striking as well as grappling. In the final minute of the second round, Turcios had Petereit’s back, and at the 10-second clapper, peeled off for an armbar that forced the San Antonio native to tap out with just six seconds left in the round.
With the win—his first career submission—Team Alpha Male export Turcios goes to 10-2, with the only blemishes on his record a decision loss to UFC bantamweight Boston Salmon in his Contender Series appearance and a knockout at the hands of Fury champ Leomana Martinez. The loss drops Petereit to 4-3.
Echeverry Flattens Ageday
Nico Echeverry put a sudden and emphatic end to a back-and-forth scrap, dropping Derrick Ageday with a left hook and finishing him with a flurry of hammerfists late in the second round of their catchweight matchup. The fight was a close and entertaining affair until the telling blow; the reach, strength and takedown defense of Ageday—a former welterweight who missed the 160-pound catchweight by three pounds—gave Echeverry some trouble early, and both men landed clean left hands on each other in the first round. Late in the second, however, Echeverry slipped a southpaw jab and threw a counter left over the top that leveled the taller man. Echeverry pounced with hammerfists until referee J.J. Ferraro was forced to intervene at 4:24.
The win gets Echeverry (8-3) back on track after his controversial, unsuccessful shot at the vacant Fury lightweight belt last August and with minimal damage taken, leaves his stated goal of fighting three times before the summer a possibility. Meanwhile, Ageday (3-7) sees a promising start to his move in weight class end in disappointment.
Jones Hands TUF Vet Perry His First Loss
Casey Jones stepped up to featherweight and notched one of his most impressive wins to date, handing “The Ultimate Fighter Season 27” veteran Dulani Perry the first official loss of his career. The fight was ultra-competitive throughout, as Jones struggled at times to navigate the reach of the much longer Perry, but landed with authority when he was able to do so. Perry, meanwhile, had Jones on the defensive several times on the ground, as he was able to take him down several times and threaten with strikes and positional advances.
After three rounds of back and forth action, the judges returned a split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29) in favor of Jones, who moves to 7-4. Perry falls to 4-1—his “TUF” quarterfinal fight was technically an exhibition bout—but performed well after two years away from the cage. As the only man who can boast a win over Fury’s current bantamweight champ, there is a built-in grudge match there, and clear avenues forward for “Fightgod” if he elects to stick around.
Melara Grounds, Pounds Armas
Carlos Melara defeated David Armas in a fight in which Armas made a fast start, getting the better of the exchanges on the feet and generally backing Melara up. The second and third frames saw Melara take control, as he scored multiple takedowns, advanced to dominant positions, thumped Armas with ground-and-pound and threatened with submissions. The judges awarded the fight to the Main Street Muay Thai export via unanimous 29-28, 29-28 and 30-27 scorecards.
The win, Melara’s third straight, brings his overall career mark to 4-3 and marks him as a person to watch in the Fury lightweight as well as featherweight division; the loss brings Armas to 9-19.
Turley Blasts Crawford
Rusty Turley needed less than a minute to put away Luke Crawford in their lightweight matchup. In the opening seconds, Crawford was the aggressor, coming forward with kicks and punches as Turley circled out, looking for his spot. The spot came when he countered a lead left by Crawford with a right hand of his own, rocking the W4R Training Center representative. Crawford stood in the pocket and returned fire with uppercuts and knees, only to be tagged by several more clean punches as he went sprawling across the cage. The final shot, a right hook that buckled Crawford’s knees, was enough to get referee Patrick Patlan to jump in for the TKO stoppage. The official time was just 36 seconds.
The win is Turley’s second straight first-round knockout to start his professional career; Crawford, who made his professional debut, is now 0-1.
Obando Throttles Moran
In a battle between two of Fury’s most promising home-grown prospects, Francisco Obando prevailed over Paris Moran. It was not easy going for Obando; Moran sprawled beautifully on Obando’s first takedown attempt, then transitioned to a guillotine and went to guard at the base of the fence. For a moment, the choke looked deep, but Obando patiently extricated himself and when Moran looked to stand, Obando moved smoothly to the back, where he quickly cinched up a rear-naked choke. Moran was forced to ask out of the fight at 2:24 of Round 1.
With the successful pro debut, Metro Fight Club bantamweight Obando (1-0) builds on the promise of his 4-2 amateur slate, while Moran, who won his own professional debut in November, suffers his first loss as a pro or amateur.
Sobnosky Outlasts, Outworks Williams
Shane Sobnosky was happy to spoil the highly anticipated professional debut of Fury Amateur Series middleweight champ Tyson Williams, weathering an early storm to win the final two rounds in clear-cut fashion. The first round was largely Williams’, as he secured a takedown after a series of scrambles, then spent most of the round on top, in guard or on Sobnosky’s back, pelting him with punches whenever the opportunity presented itself. However, with 15 seconds left in the round, Sobnosky spun around effortlessly from back control to end up in Williams’ guard.
It was a harbinger of things to come; over the final two rounds, Sobnosky took over in increasingly dominant fashion, including several instances in which he tossed Williams to the canvas. Williams, though clearly tired, never stopped coming forward or throwing, but Sobnosky was in control. After three rounds, the judges saw it as such, turning in matching 29-28 scorecards for the Furia Training Center export and elevating his professional record to 2-2; Williams goes to 0-1 as a pro after his 5-0 reign of terror over the Fury amateur ranks.
Garza Edges Out Short-Notice Replacement Miller
Paul Garza withstood a spirited early assault from Christopher Miller-Cox—including a cut that briefly threatened to end the fight—to notch a solid win in their 160-pound catchweight affair. Miller, who fought five weeks ago and took this booking on just four days’ notice, came out of the gate hot, attacking Garza with a variety of long kicks, punching combinations and flying knees. It was likely enough to win the first round for “King Millie,” but the quick turnaround ended up telling: By midway through the second round, he was breathing with mouth wide open and Garza began to dictate the action. Miller never stopped throwing back and never stopped trying to finish—he emptied much of his remaining gas tank into an armbar attempt as the second round expired—but by the end, Garza was clearly the fresher man.
The judges saw the fight for Garza by split scorecards of 29-28 (twice) and a baffling 27-30, sending him to 2-1, while Miller, who impressed even in defeat, goes to 1-3.
Davis Buries Robinson
Jonathan Davis continued to raise his profile as one of Fury’s brightest young stars, putting away the debuting Rashaad Robinson with a crushing left hand in their flyweight scrap. Davis (4-1) got slightly the better of a close first round, then stunned Robinson with a straight left off of a feinted level change. Robinson stopped in his tracks, then staggered backward as “The Gentleman” pounced and put him away with punches.
The win, Davis’ third straight, positions him as a person of interest in the flyweight division, where he has fought so far, or the bantamweight division, which he has said may be in his near future.
Prelims: Four Amateur Titles Change Hands
In the feature fight of the all-amateur preliminary card, Michael Aswell (4-1 amateur) defeated Arturo Tanguma (4-1 amateur) via split decision (48-47, 49-46, 46-49) after five rounds of back-and-forth action on the feet as well as in some lengthy grappling exchanges, netting himself the Fury Amateur Series featherweight title; Zach Lowery (2-0 amateur) narrowly beat Taylor Hickman (1-3 amateur) for the Fury amateur lightweight belt via split decision across three grueling rounds characterized by clinches and takedown attempts against the fence; Isaac Moreno (5-0 amateur) needed only 50 seconds to secure his fifth win and the Fury Amateur Series welterweight belt, wiping out Juan Zamudio (1-2 amateur) with punches; and debuting heavyweight Andrew Spencer pounded out Jacob Bradley Williams (2-1 amateur) with third-round bunches to win the Fury Amateur Series belt.
In other preliminary action, Cameron Smotherman pounded out Curry Gaut with ground punches at 1:54 of their bantamweight match; bantamweight up-and-comer Anthony Toro used heavier striking and opportune takedowns to take all three rounds from Adrian Munoz; and in the opening bout of the evening, Cristian Lopez snared Luis Banda in a nifty guillotine from guard at 2:37 of the first round of their featherweight clash.
This article first appeared at Recent News on Sherdog.com
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