Ketlen Vieira 'saves' Brazilians in UFC 215 preliminaries

K. Vieira submitted the submission at UFC 215 (Photo: Reproduction Instagram UFC)

The Brazilian Ketlen Scallop was the only Brazilian victorious in the UFC 215 preliminaries this Saturday (9), which also featured Adriano Martins and Luis Henrique KLB. The two were defeated by Kajan Johnson and Arjan Bhullas, respectively, in the first two fights of the night.

The bantamweight from Nova União surprised the Olympic silver medalist Sara McMann and finished the North American with a katagatame in the second round of the duel between the two. Very emotional, Ketlen admitted that she received hard blows in the first round, but maintained her perseverance to turn the fight around.

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“I knew I would be tested like I had never been tested before. I want to thank God and my entire team. Today I was tested more than ever. I took a lot of hard blows, but I didn't despair, because I knew I would be able to catch her. My master Dedé Pederneiras said that even wrestlers fall and katagatame is a very strong position in Nova União”, declared Ketlen.

Number 13 in the ranking, “Fenômeno” began to be dominated by Sara McMann. The American immediately closed the distance and sought the clinch. Despite the Brazilian's resistance, McMann managed to take the duel to the ground and threw hard elbows from the guard. The swelling on Ketlen's face almost slowed her down, but the Brazilian remained patient. Despite being mounted, Vieira didn't despair and turned the tide, attacking with a kneebar and Sara was saved by the bell.

In the second round, Ketlen came back determined not to be taken down again. McMann again sought the clinch, but this time the Brazilian was prepared. Even with her back against the fence, the “Phenomenon” used her judo to surprise her opponent and fell into half guard. From there, she started working to get a katagatame and her extraordinary strength allowed her to finish, even though she was trapped on the other side of the choke.

Brazilian defeats

Manaus's Adriano Martins hadn't fought since last year, but he faced an athlete who had been out of the Octagon for even longer: Kajan Johnson hadn't competed in two years and started very hesitantly, waiting for the Brazilian to attack and moving a lot, with few connected blows. Martins, in turn, hunted the Canadian and surrounded him, but also without causing any damage. That was until the end of the round, when he took advantage of a flying knee attempt and connected with a hard blow to Johnson's chin, who fell, but remained conscious. In the second round, more of the same, but Kajan started to loosen up more and connected even more blows than Adriano.

In the third round came the unexpected and brutal knockout. Perhaps tired of following Johnson, Martins finally fell into his opponent's trap and advanced with his guard down. It was enough space for Kajan to connect with a punch to the temple that put the Brazilian out.

Soon after, it was Luis Henrique KLB's turn to take action. He faced the dangerous Arjan Bhullar, who was making his UFC debut. More patient, KLB used his jab to keep his opponent, a top-notch wrestler, at a distance. He managed to take the duel to the second round, but ended up falling with a hard blow. Even so, the Brazilian heavyweight resisted and took the duel to the final round.

With a greater sense of urgency due to his performance in the first two rounds, KLB came with everything at Bhullar, winning takedowns and delivering hard blows to the Indo-Canadian. Bhullar, however, resisted and won the decision of the side judges.

UFC 215 preliminary results

PRELIMINARY CARD

Bantamweight: Ketlen Scallop won Sara McMann via submission (katagatame) at 4m16s of R2

Bantamweight: Sarah Moras defeated Ashlee Evans-Smith via submission (armbar) at 2:51 of R1

Featherweight: Rick Glenn won Gavin tucker by unanimous decision (30-25, 30-24, 29-27)

Lightweight: Alex White beat Mitch Clarke by TKO at 4:35 of R2

Heavyweight: Arjan Bhullar won Luis Henrique KLB by unanimous decision (3x 29-28)

Lightweight: Kajan Johnson won Adriano Martins by knockout at 49s of R3