UFC 202: Garbrandt shines and Brazilian loses on preliminary card

Garbrandt (photo) remained undefeated in MMA. Photo: Brandon Magnus/UFC

See too

McGregor is favorite for rematch with Diaz

Five reasons to watch UFC 202 this Saturday

UFC 202: McGregor and Nate Diaz almost fight and have to be separated by police

Considered one of the great promises of the bantamweight division, cody garbrandt was the highlight of the UFC 202 preliminary card, an event held this Saturday night (20), in Las Vegas (USA). The American overcame veteran Takeya Mizugaki and came even closer to challenging Dominick Cruz, champion of the 61 kg division.

The only Brazilian to participate in the first fights of the night, Alberto Uda did not have a good result. The Brazilian, former Muay Thai world champion, ended up submitted by the Italian debutant Marvin vettori still in the first round, which leaves him in a complicated position in the UFC.

PUBLICITY:

The UFC 202 preliminary card also featured a duel between teammates from Conor McGregor e Nate diaz, which served as a warm-up for the main fight of the night. Lorenz Larkin obtained an important victory against Neil Magny to move up to the welterweight division. Check out the main fights on the UFC 202 preliminary card!

Brazilian Uda is submitted by Italian debutant

PUBLICITY:

Uda was finished by the Italian. Photo: Disclosure/UFC

In the first fight of the night, Brazilian Alberto Uda did not see the color of the ball against the young Italian Marvin vettori. The Santa Catarina native was submitted in the first round and found himself in a delicate position within the UFC.

PUBLICITY:

Vettori, 22 years old, waited a few moments after the fight to take Uda, world muay thai champion, to the ground. There, the Italian worked timidly in the ground and pound, waiting for an opening. It came when Uda tried to free himself and turned his back on his rival. Vettori then took the opportunity to land a guillotine choke and make the Brazilian give up.

It was Vettori's UFC debut; Uda suffers his second defeat in two fights in the octagon. In his debut, in May this year, he ended up being knocked out by Jake collier.

Larkin runs over Magny and wins by technical knockout

PUBLICITY:

Larkin didn't give Magny a chance. Photo: Disclosure/UFC

Lorenz Larkin scored an important victory in the third fight of the night. In the last fight of his current contract with the UFC, the North American gave his opponent, the welterweight ranked, a real blow. Neil Magny.

Larkin dictated the actions from start to finish, especially when abusing leg and body kicks. Two frontal blows to Magny's chest knocked his rival down, with other blows to his thigh hindering his movement. When Magny tried to grab his legs and look for a takedown, Larkin threw elbows to his opponent's head, which gave him the victory by technical knockout.

McGrgor's teammate defeats Diaz's teammate

As a warm-up for the main duel of the night, Artem Lobov, a training partner of Conor McGregor, faced Chris Avila, a teammate of Nate diaz. But, for those who expected an explosive fight due to the rivalry between the teams, they were disappointed.

All 15 minutes of the duel saw quite lukewarm action in the Octagon. Lobov took more initiative and attacked Avila, with timid punches and kicks to his rival's thighs. Avila, on the other hand, did little to counterattack: he relied on slow punches, almost all of them into space.

In the end, Lobov won the unanimous decision of the judges, with a triple score of 30 to 27. It was his first victory in three fights in the UFC; Avila debuts in the main MMA organization on the planet with a defeat.

Garbrandt runs over Mizugaki and remains undefeated

C. Garbrandt (photo) challenged Cruz after victory. Photo: Jeff Bottari/UFC

cody garbrandt closed the UFC 202 preliminary card in style. The North American bantamweight prospect didn't give veteran Takeya Mizugaki a chance and settled the bill with less than a minute of activity.

The duel started at an intense pace. Aggressive as usual, Garbrandt attacked Mizugaki, who accepted the frank exchange. Then, “No Love” landed a straight right on the Japanese, knocking his rival down. Garbrandt continued with attacks on Mizugaki's chin until he won by technical knockout.

With the result, Garbrandt maintained his undefeated record in professional MMA. In the post-fight interview, the North American challenged the category champion, Dominick Cruz, who readily accepted the duel.