The preliminary portion of the UFC Fight Night 34 card wrapped up with Max Holloway finishing Will Chope with strikes in the second round of their featherweight fight.
In the first round, Chope used his 6 foot 4 inch frame to pick his shots efficiently in the first half of the period, but Holloway let his hands go late in the period and landed the most significant combinations of the period.
Holloway picked up right where he left off in the second round as he went right back to work with a barrage after barrage of combinations that landed flush on the chin of Chope. Holloway continued to push the pace and control where the fight played, until he was able to finish Chope with a myriad of hooks and a body shot.
Holloway (8-3) improves his UFC record to 4-3 with the victory. The last time he finished an opponent in the second round was against Justin Lawrence at UFC 150. The loss snapped Chope’s (19-6) impressive fourteen fight win streak.
Kikuno starts UFC career off with a win
Japanese lightweight veteran Katsunori Kikuno took advantage of a questionable game-plan by Quinn Mulhern to win a unanimous decision in his first UFC appearance.
Mulhern, who had a serious height and reach advantage against Kikuno, decided to pull guard in each round of the fight, only to do very little from the bottom position. Kikuno was able to earn points by staying on the top position and methodically landing ground and pound.
While Mulhern’s bread and butter is the ground game, it was a bit of a head-scratcher to see such a tall and lanky fighter ignore the advantage he had on the feet.
The victory extends Kikuno’s (22-5-2) win streak to six, and it is his eight decision victory in his career. For the first time in Mulhern’s (18-4) career, he has lost consecutive fights.
Singapore’s Wee is victorious in UFC debut
In what ended up being a lackluster fight to say the least, Royston Wee won all three rounds against Dave Galera in a bantamweight affair.
Wee was content to employ his wrestling in order to land takedowns and not do much else. Dave Galera allowed Wee to score points from the top position as he didn’t offer much of an attack off of his back.
The most eventful moment of the fight was when Galera blatantly landed an illegal up-kick that caused referee John Sharp to take a point away.
This was Wee’s (3-0) third professional fight and his first one since late 2011. In what was the first time Galera (5-1) has fought to a decision, he received the first blemish on his record.
Taisumov debuts with a dominant decision win
Tae Hyun Bang’s cautious game-plan came back to haunt him as Mairbek Taisumov was able to decisively outpoint Bang en route to taking home a unanimous decision.
Taisumov took the first two rounds of the lightweight contest by controlling the fight on the feet by being the more active and accurate striker. The third period played out differently than the first two as Taisumov utilized his wrestling to take down Bang on three separate occasions and control the fight on the ground.
For the first time in his 25 fight career, Taisumov (21-4) won a fight by a decision and Bang (16-8) has now lost in four of his last six outings.
Kimura ends Reyes’s night with an armbar
After weathering an early storm of strikes from Jon Delos Reyes, Dustin Kimura was able to lock on an armbar force his opponent to submit in the first round of their bantamweight bout.
Reyes started the fight with an aggressive output of left-right combinations and was able to hurt Kimura with a pair of hooks. After knocking down Kimura, Reyes followed him to the ground, only to be caught by Kimura’s armbar.
Kimura (11-1) improves his UFC record to 2-1 with the win and now has eight submission victories on his professional record. Reyes (7-3), who made his UFC debut, was riding a four fight win streak heading into this contest.
Doane opens event by submitting Issa
Russell Doane started the event off by beating Brazilian Jiu Jitsu world champion Leandro Issa at Issa’s own game. With a second remaining in the second frame, Doane left his opponent unconscious with a triangle choke.
Doane’s stand-up looked sharp throughout the fight as he was able to consistently counter Issa’s jab with an overhand right. Eventually, he was able to hurt Issa in the second frame with the right.
A dazed Issa was forced to resort to attempt a desperate takedowns, but Doane was able to defend the takedowns successfully by using his hips to get on top of his opponent. Sensing a finish, Doane transitioned to the triangle choke that ended the fight.
This is the third time in Doane’s (13-3) career that he has ended a fight with a triangle choke and the fifth time that he has won a fight with a submission. Issa (11-4), who has 7 submission victories to his name, was submitted for just the second time in his career. The last time Issa lost a fight by submission was in 2008.
UFC Fight Night 34 Preliminary Card Results:
Max Holloway def. Will Chope via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:27
Katsunori Kikuno def. Quinn Mulhern via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Royston Wee def. Dave Galera via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
Mairbek Taisumov def. Tae Hyun Bang via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Dustin Kimura def. Jon Delos Reyes via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 2:13
Russell Doane def. Leandro Issa via technical submission (triangle choke) – Round 2, 4:59