UFC Fight Night Report: Arnold Allen picks up second-round stoppage after Calvin Kattar injures knee
On Saturday evening, the UFC held a Fight Night event at the Apex Facility in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card was headlined by a featherweight bout, as two of the division’s top contenders, Calvin Kattar and Arnold Allen, looked to advance in the featherweight rankings. Allen has compiled a record of 9-0 since making his UFC debut in 2015, most notably knocking Dan Hooker out in the first round in his last fight. Inactivity had slowed Allen’s ascent up the featherweight ladder, but a win over Kattar would move Allen into a top-five position in the rankings, and cement him as one of the division’s top contenders. Kattar was coming off of a closely contested split decision loss to Josh Emmett, so he was looking to get back in the win column against Allen here, and defend his spot in the rankings. The card also featured a notable welterweight bout in the co-main event slot, as Max Griffin faced Tim Means.
Brendan Fitzgerald provided commentary for this card alongside Dominick Cruz and Michael Bisping. Performance of the Night bonuses were awarded to Tresean Gore, Roman Dolidze, Steve Garcia, and Christian Rodriguez.
QUICK RESULTS:
PRELIMINARY CARD:
*Christian Rodriguez def. Joshua Weems by anaconda choke at 4:07 of Round 1
*Cody Durden def. Carlos Mota by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
*Steve Garcia def. Chase Hooper by TKO at 1:31 of Round 1
*Jun Yong Park def. Joseph Holmes by rear naked choke at 3:04 of Round 2
*Marcos Rogerio de Lima def. Andrei Arlovski by rear naked choke at 1:50 of Round 1
*Roman Dolidze def. Phil Hawes by KO at 4:09 of Round 1
MAIN CARD:
*Khalil Rountree def. Dustin Jacoby by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
*Tresean Gore def. Josh Fremd by guillotine choke at 0:49 of Round 2
*Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Jared Vanderaa by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
*Max Griffin def. Tim Means by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29)
*Arnold Allen def. Calvin Kattar by TKO at 0:08 of Round 2
CHRISTIAN RODRIGUEZ (7-1, 136) VS JOSHUA WEEMS (11-2, 139.5) – BATAMWEIGHT
Weems missed weight by 3.5lbs and was fined 30% of his purse.
Rodriguez pressured forward to begin the fight, as Weems attempted to circle the cage. Rodriguez was patient, looking to catch Weems with a heavy right hand, but Weems kept busy with kicks to the body, and he eventually opted to close the distance, wrapping Rodriguez up in the clinch. Weems was able to take Rodriguez down, however, Rodriguez swept his way into an advantageous position, and quickly locked in a fight-ending anaconda choke.
WINNER: Christian Rodriguez by anaconda choke at 4:07 of Round 1
In Rodriguez’s UFC debut, he fought Jonathan Pearce up at featherweight on short notice. Despite the short notice circumstances, Rodriguez gave a good account of his abilities, although he was easily taken down and controlled for significant period of times. He was still taken down rather easily in this bantamweight bout, but this time Rodriguez was able to secure a creative submission, showing that he is far from helpless on the ground. Hopefully, in Rodriguez’s next bout, he’ll be able to showcase a bit more of his ability on the feet, but for now, this was a strong performance to begin his UFC run at bantamweight.
CODY DURDEN (13-4, 126) VS CARLOS MOTA (8-1, 125.5) – FLYWEIGHT
A huge right hand from Durden hurt Mota in the opening minute, sending him to the ground. Durden followed him down, and he began to work from side control with four minutes to work. Mota attempted an armbar at one point, but Durden was able to escape the submission attempt and retained top position. Durden eventually postured up and started to throw down heavy ground and pound strikes, but could not secure a finish before time expired in the round. 10-9 Durden.
Durden chased after a single leg to begin the second round, and after roughly a minute, Durden was successful in bringing Mota back to the ground. Much like the first round, Durden was able to hold Mota down with ease, and he threw down hard ground and pound strikes with enough regularity to keep the referee from standing the fighters back up. This was another one-sided round for Durden. 20-18 Durden.
Mota pressured forward to begin the final round, knowing he was in need of a finish but was quickly taken back to the ground. Durden took Mota’s back, and he controlled him in this position for quite some time, but he attempted to transition into top mount, and this allowed Mota the opportunity he needed to scramble to his feet. Unfortunately for Mota, he could not keep the fight standing, and Durden wasted little time before taking Mota back to the ground, where the fight ultimately went the distance. 30-27 Durden.
WINNER: Cody Durden by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Durden dominated the vast majority of this fight, and Mota did not have many answers for him on the ground. Mota seemed comfortable working from his guard, attempting numerous submissions throughout the bout, however, he spent far too much of this fight on his back, and Durden racked up the control time, landing numerous significant ground and pound strikes in the process. Durden is a fighter who is known for picking up quick finishes, but he showcased a different aspect of his game here and racked up the win as a result. Durden’s UFC record now stands at 3-2-1.
CHASE HOOPER (8-2, 145) VS STEVE GARCIA (12-5, 146) – FEATHERWEIGHT
This was a very one-sided fight for the short period of time in which it lasted. Garcia dropped Hooper about four times in the first ninety seconds of the fight, rocking Hooper nearly every time that Garcia landed these heavy left hooks. It was clear that Hooper was hurt badly, and after the fourth knockdown, Garcia began to throw down ground and pound strikes, and the fight was finally stopped.
WINNER: Steve Garcia by TKO at 1:31 of Round 1
Hooper came out ready to brawl, but Garcia had the clear advantage in terms of power, and Hooper had some clear defensive holes in his game that allowed Garcia to repeatedly connect with these powerful left hands that were hurting Hooper every time that they made contact. At times, Hooper attempted to roll on the ground in an attempt to get Garcia to follow him down, but Garcia did not take the bait and intelligently allowed Hooper to return to his feet until Hooper was rocked badly enough to pursue the finish. It was a dominant performance from Garcia, who actually came into this fight as a significant underdog. Garcia’s UFC record improved to 2-2 following this win, and Hooper has fallen to 3-3 in the promotion.
JOSEPH HOLMES (8-2, 185.5) VS JUN YONG PARK (14-5, 185) – MIDDLEWEIGHT
Holmes was able to utilize his reach advantage early, tagging Park with overhand rights whenever Park attempted to close the distance. Eventually, Park was able to pressure forward and secure a takedown, where he began to partially work from the back of Holmes. Park eventually started hunting for a rear naked choke, but he could not secure the submission, and Holmes escaped the position before time expired.
Park quickly wrapped Holmes up in the clinch before dragging him back to the ground, where he began to work from full mount. Park soon transitioned to the back of Holmes before flattening him out, and Park was eventually able to sink in a rear naked choke, forcing Holmes to submit.
WINNER: Jun Yong Park by rear naked choke at 3:04 of Round 2
Holmes towered over Park but was unable to keep the distance, and Park quickly took the fight to the ground. It soon became clear that Park was the stronger grappler, and he was able to secure the submission victory in the second round. It was a strong performance from Park, who has quietly compiled an impressive UFC record of 5-2 since joining the promotion in 2019. Park should be fighting for a spot in the rankings in the near future, and I wouldn’t mind seeing him face someone on the level of Jimmy Crute or Johnny Walker in his next bout.
ANDREI ARLOVSKI (34-20, 2 NC, 241) VS MARCOS ROGERIO DE LIMA (19-8, 261) – HEAVYWEIGHT
A big left hand from de Lima dropped Arlovski in the opening minute and followed Arlovski to the ground taking top position. Arlovski gave up his back as he attempted to improve his position, and de Lima quickly capitalized, sinking in a rear naked choke. Arlovski tapped out, and de Lima picked up the first-round submission victory.
WINNER: Marcos Rogerio de Lima by rear naked choke at 1:50 of Round 1
Marcos Rogerio de Lima dropped Andrei Arlovski in the first real exchange of the fight, and he gave Arlovski no room to recover, following him to the ground where it did not take long for de Lima to secure the finish. This was de Lima’s biggest win to date, and he did it in quick fashion, against Andrei Arlovski who had won six of his last seven bouts going into this one. Arlovski has been a gatekeeper to the top fifteen for quite some time, so it would not be shocking if this win will set de Lima up for a fight against a ranked opponent in his next bout.
PHIL HAWES (12-3, 185.5) VS ROMAN DOLIDZE (10-1, 186) – MIDDLEWEIGHT
Hawes dodged a pair of head kicks in spectacular fashion in the opening minute of the bout. Hawes ducked under a right hand from Dolidze and he took Dolidze down with three minutes to work. Dolidze threw up some brutal elbows off of his back, which forced Hawes to give up his position. Dolidze rolled for a leg lock, and while he couldn’t secure the submission, he was able to damage Hawes’ leg with the attempt, and Hawes was having trouble putting weight on the leg as the action resumed on the feet. Dolidze walked Hawes down, and he eventually caught Hawes with a combination of punches that knocked Hawes out cold.
WINNER: Roman Dolidze by KO at 4:09 of Round 1
Hawes was able to take Dolidze down early in the fight, and while that should have been an advantageous position for Hawes, Dolidze made the absolute most out of bottom position. He attacked Hawes with vicious elbows before rolling for a leg lock that ultimately compromised Hawes’ leg to the point in which he could no longer defend himself. Personally, I think that the fight should have been stopped at this point, however, referee Dan Miragliotta made the call to allow Hawes to continue, and Hawes was brutally knocked unconscious just moments later. Regardless of my thoughts on the stoppage (or lack thereof), this was a fantastic performance from Dolidze, who is now 5-1 in the UFC, with three first-round finishes.
DUSTIN JACOBY (18-5-1, 204) VS KHALIL ROUNTREE (10-5, 205) – LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT
Rountree caught Jacoby with a heavy hook in the opening minute. Jacoby worked his jab while attacking the lead leg of Rountree, patiently picking away at his opponent, while Rountree was throwing with fight-ending intentions. Rountree started to throw leg kicks of his own as the round progressed, but Jacoby’s output seemed to be creating trouble for Rountree, who was being backed into the cage. It was a close opening round, but I gave the slight edge to Jacoby. 10-9 Jacoby.
The fighters traded jabs to begin the second round. Rountree was still throwing with a ton of power, but Jacoby’s pace was overwhelming Rountree, allowing Jacoby to land more damaging shots than he was in the first round. At one point Jacoby attempted to engage Rountree in the clinch, but Rountree was able to keep Jacoby off of him, and the fighters traded body shots. I thought Rountree started to pull ahead toward the end of this round, but Jacoby’s early work was enough to score this round in his favor. 20-18 Jacoby.
Jacoby was really putting the pace on Rountree early in the third round, but Roundtree fired back, and it was clear that even at this point in the bout, Rountree had the advantage in terms of power. Both fighters were doing damage with leg kicks, but the left hands from Rountree seemed to be a difference maker by the halfway point of the round. Roundtree was also landing knees to the head and body whenever Jacoby got too close, and these knees were doing significant damage whenever they landed. Rountree landed a huge left hand before the end of the round, but Jacoby was able to stay on his feet and fire back, and the fight went the distance. 29-28 Jacoby.
WINNER: Khalil Rountree by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
Jacoby was the far busier fighter throughout the first two rounds, but Rountree was throwing bombs, and damage is weighed above all other factors when scoring a round. Personally, I scored the fight for Jacoby, but the first round was very close, and Rountree clearly took the final round, so I hardly thought this was any sort of “robbery” by the judges. Rountree is an interesting fighter, in the sense that every time he steps into the octagon, he looks like a different fighter. He’s always adding (and removing) techniques to his game, and both his progressions and regressions as a fighter over the years have been very interesting to observe. His UFC record improved to 7-5 (1 NC) following this win, and Rountree has now won three consecutive fights, the longest win streak of his UFC career.
JOSH FREMD (9-3, 185) VS TRESEAN GORE (3-2, 185.5) – MIDDLEWEIGHT
Gore quickly secured a double-leg takedown, and he began to work from top position. Fremd worked his way back to his feet, but Gore took him right back down and took his back in the process. Once again, Fremd escaped, and he got to work on the feet, utilizing his reach advantage to pick away at Gore. Fremd opted to close the distance in search of a takedown, which was a mistake as it evened the playing field with Gore, who defended Fremd’s attempts and connected with a pair of heavy hooks before time expired.
Fremd shot for a single leg in the opening seconds of round two, but Gore caught him with a guillotine choke, and he proceeded to choke Fremd unconscious.
WINNER: Tresean Gore by guillotine choke at 0:49 of Round 2
This was about as brutal of a guillotine choke as you’ll see, and I would suggest going out of your way to watch the finish to this one if you missed it, because of the way in which Fremd’s body was twisted by his attempt at a wall-walk in the choke was nasty. Fremd looked as though he was a weight class bigger than Gore, and on the feet, the fight played out like it. Gore didn’t have many answers for Fremd’s striking and it looked as though he was on the verge of being overwhelmed with strikes, but then Fremd made the call to shoot for a takedown, allowing Gore to secure the finish. Gore was 0-2 in the UFC going into this fight, so this was a much-needed win for Gore, who picked up his second career submission victory here.
WALDO CORTES-ACOSTA (7-0, 260.5) VS JARED VANDERAA (12-9, 259) – HEAVYWEIGHT
Cortes-Acosta was the more active fighter in the first round, throwing numerous left hands as Vanderaa attempted to weaken the lead leg of Cortes-Acosta with leg kicks. Cortes-Acosta connected with a powerful right hand around the halfway point of the round, which was the most significant strike landed by either fighter to that point. The leg kicks from Vanderaa were beginning to add up by the end of the round, and Cortes-Acosta’s movement was seriously affected. 10-9 Vanderaa.
The leg kicks from Vanderaa continued to land in the second round, stopping Cortes-Acosta in his tracks after starting the round off aggressively. Cortes-Acosta had no answers for Vanderaa’s calf kicks, and he started charging forward recklessly as a result, trying to create a wild fight. His pressure seemed to fluster Vanderaa, and Vanderaa was not able to attack the legs of Cortes-Acosta with the same frequency he was earlier. The fighters traded heavy right hands to end the second round. 19-19.
Vanderaa and Cortes-Acosta exchange jabs throughout the opening minute of the final round. Vanderaa was still attacking the lead leg of Cortes-Acosta, occasionally getting some notable reactions from Cortes-Acosta, who had taken over thirty calf kicks by the third round. These final five minutes were a bit slow, and Cortes-Acosta began showboating in the round’s final minutes, trying to get Vanderaa to make a mistake. Vanderaa did not take the bait, and he continued to attack the leg of Cortes-Acosta until time expired. 29-28 Cortes-Acosta.
WINNER: Waldo Cortes-Acosta by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Near the end of the first round, I thought that Vanderaa was on the verge of being stopped by those leg kicks, but he showcased a great deal of toughness by fighting through the pain and winning the next two rounds. Cortes-Acosta was clearly quicker than Vanderaa, and he was able to utilize that advantage whenever he went on the attack, but whenever the fight was slow or even completely stationary, Vanderaa was able to chip away at Cortes-Acosta with those heavy leg kicks. A bit more variety from Vanderaa would have been optimal, but I don’t blame him for focusing his attack on the lead leg of Cortes-Acosta when the attacks were doing so much damage. This fight marked Cortes-Acosta’s UFC debut.
TIM MEANS (32-13-1, 1 NC, 170.5) VS MAX GRIFFIN (18-9, 170.5) – WELTERWEIGHT
Griffin knocked Means down with a heavy combination roughly a minute into the round, and Griffin followed him to the ground, where he attempted to end the fight from side control. Means weathered the storm before escaping to his feet, where Griffin landed numerous hard right hands to the head and body of Means. Means seemed to be having trouble dealing with Griffin’s speed advantage, and he was unable to land many significant shots of his own. Griffin shot for a takedown at the end of the round, but Means was able to defend the attempt. 10-9 Griffin.
Means was finding more success in the second round, countering strongly while cutting off the cage well. Griffin was still active offensively, but his strikes were not as damaging as the shots he was landing with regularity in the previous round, and Means was pulling ahead in terms of activity. This was looking like a clear Means round, but in the round’s final minute, Griffin landed a right hand that sent Means to the ground, and he ended the round in top position. 20-18 Griffin.
Means began the final round with a takedown, but Griffin was able to escape to his feet and quickly secured a takedown of his own. Griffin was able to control Means from top position for the near entirety of the round, and while he wasn’t terribly active from top position, Griffin did enough to keep the referee from standing the fighters up, and while Means was able to escape to his feet in the final minute of the round, he was unable to secure a finish before time expired. 30-27 Griffin.
WINNER: Max Griffin by split decision (30-27, 29-28, 28-29)
Even Tim Means was shocked by the scorecard in his favor. I’m unsure as to how one could find two rounds to score for Tim Means in this fight, but one judge managed to do so here. Still, the right fighter got his arm raised in the end here, overcoming some late adversity from Means to do so. Griffin had the advantages in terms of speed and strength, and he utilized both to great effect in this fight, landing powerful shots and getting out of range before Means had time to respond. Griffin’s UFC record improved to 7-7 following this win.
CALVIN KATTAR (23-6, 146) VS ARNOLD ALLEN (18-1, 145.5) – FEATHERWEIGHT
Kattar landed the first notable strike of the fight, a straight right hand that found its target. Allen connected with a short left hook, and he began to turn on the pressure, backing Kattar up with an extended combination. Allen landed numerous left hands, and Kattar was falling behind in the fight as Allen continued to find his target. Kattar seemed to blow his knee after attempting a jumping attack, and Allen jumped on him, attempting to secure a choke before time expires in the round. Kattar survived the submission attempt, but the status of his right knee remained in question going into round two.
Allen began the second round with a leg kick and Kattar instantly collapsed. The fight was stopped, and Allen picked up the second-round finish.
WINNER: Arnold Allen by TKO at 0:08 of Round 2
This was a very unfortunate ending to what could have been a very interesting fight. Kattar is a very tough fighter, but he could not continue competing after the knee injury, although he tried by coming off of his stole to fight the second round. Prior to the injury, I thought Allen looked quite good, and his movement was giving Kattar trouble, as Kattar just couldn’t find his target with any consistency. In turn, Allen was landing his shots with ease, while occasionally committing to lengthier combinations that were clearly having an effect on Kattar. This marked his tenth consecutive win in the UFC featherweight division, which puts him just behind Max Holloway and Alexander Volkanovski when discussing the longest win streaks in the history of the division. After the fight, Allen called for an interim title shot, and with Volkanovski moving up to face Islam Makhachev, I believe that Allen will likely get that opportunity in his next bout.
