The Ultimate Fighter Season 22 prelims just wrapped up. Here are the results from this evening. Stay tuned because there are more fights to follow!
Gabriel Gonzaga Lulls Erokhin for 15 Minutes
It wasn’t anything close to the explosive heavyweight contest this bout promised to be on paper, but UFC veteran Gabriel Gonzaga picked up the much-needed win against Konstantin Erokhin. Throughout the fifteen minutes, both heavyweights were tentative to pull the trigger, and opted to circle and stare at each other instead. Gonzaga made several attempts to take the fight into his world on the mat, but Erokhin defended well. The two times Gonzaga got on top, he was unable to mount much offense. It was not what the crowd in attendance wanted to see, but Gonzaga gets the W.
Ryan LaFlare Outlasts Mike Pierce in Slugfest
In a match that was stylistically between two 170 lb wrestlers, Ryan LaFlare and Mike Pierce engaged in a 15-minute slugfest which featured the improved striking skills of both parties. Pierce, returning from a two-year lay hiatus, had trouble finding his rhythm and timing throughout much of the bout as LaFlare beat him up with quick punch-kick combinations from the outside. LaFlare targetted the body regularly with left front kicks from the southpaw stance, and held a slight speed and technique advantage over his opponent. Pierce was able to catch LaFlare in the second round as well as the end of the third – putting LaFlare in danger, but was unable to fully capitalize. LaFlare captured the unanimous decision and his fifth UFC victory.
Geane Herrera KOs Favorite Joby Sanchez
In the flyweight division, Geane Herrera and Joby Sanchez engaged in an explosive, back-and-forth striking match. Sanchez got off to a good start in the first round as he put together crisp punching combinations behind a stiff jab. Herrera, the shorter stockier of the two, couldn’t quite match the output of Sanchez in the early going. None of that mattered though as Herrera found the chin of Sanchez with a counter left hook in the second round. Herrera smashed Sanchez with follow-up punches and pulled off the second round knockout victory.
“Gritz” Out-duels Lloveras
In the opening bout of the evening, The Ultimate Fighter Season 22 contestants Chris Gruetzemacher and Abner Lloveras went to war for a full 15 minutes. Throughout the bout, Gruetzemacher displayed his hard-nosed style and durability as he consistently pressured Lloveras – backing him up with punching combinations to the head and body. Lloveras sported a badly damaged lead leg as well as Gruetzemacher continually targeted it. Both fighters nailed each other with hard shots in pocket and clinch, putting up a high number of total strikes landed between the two. In the end, Gruetzemacher’s pressure and volume solidified the victory on the scorecards as his name was read unanimously.
