Michel Prazeres won his UFC lightweight debut at UFC 165 as he was able to use his ground game to defeat Jesse Ronson by split decision.
In the opening five minutes, they started off my having a kick boxing bout before Prazeres took the fight to the ground. While on the ground, Prazeres looked for various choke holds including an arm triangle choke. Ronson was able to defend the attempts but Prazeres was able to maintain a dominant position.
He would transition to get the back of Ronson and looked for a rear-naked choke. Ronson would be able to defend the submission attempt and make it to the second round.
Prazeres would continue to control the bout in the beginning of the second round as he took the fight to the ground for the first two minutes. Ronson would be able to work his way back to his feet but Prazeres would catch a leg kick and take the fight right back to the ground.
Ronson would use the wall to get back to his feet and landed a head kick that had Prazeres backing up. He would keep the fight on the feet for the remainder of the round and the fight moved into the final round.
As the final round opened, Ronson landed a body kick and followed it up with an uppercut. Ronson used his footwork to keep Prazeres off balance and Prazeres had issues getting the fight down to the ground due to fatigue. Prazeres would land a takedown in the final minute of the fight. Ronson was able to flip the position at the end of the round and landed several punches before the final bell sounded.
For the second straight fight, the judges would be split and two of the three judges scored the fight for Prazeres.
UFC 165 Results:
Michel Prazeres def. Jesse Ronson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Alex Caceres def. Roland Delorme via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Daniel Omielanczuk def. Nandor Guelmino via KO (strikes) – Round 3, 3:18