UFC Fight Night 44 took place on Saturday night at the AT&T Center in San Antonio, Texas and was headlined by Cub Swanson winning his sixth straight fight with a decision win over Jeremy Stephens. 
As the opening bell sounded, Stephens took control of the cage but Swanson was the more accurate fighter in the opening minutes. Swanson was able to use level changes throughout the round to score but Stephens landed a counter right hand that took the fight to the mat. Once on the ground, Stephens was unable to mount much offense and the fight moved into the second round.
Stephens began to land more of his strikes at the beginning of the second round and appeared more confident than he did in the opening round. He continued to land his right hand throughout the round and looked to take the fight to the ground in the final 30 seconds of the round. Swanson would defend the attempt and the fight moved into the third round.
The fight would turn in the third round back into Swanson’s favor when he landed a kick to the body of Stephens. It was obvious that Stephens was hurt and Swanson landed a series of punches. Swanson would look for a takedown, but the attempt would be stopped by Swanson.
During the fourth round, they would spend the first half of the round striking before Stephens attempted to get the fight to the ground. They briefly clinched against the fence before breaking away from each other. They would finish the round exchanging strikes and Stephens had a slight edge in the round in total strikes landed.
Swanson would turn up the output in the final round and he threw several different type of strikes, including a cartwheel kick. They would battle until the final bell sounded and all three judges had the fight for Swanson (21-5) and this victory likely secures him a title shot.
Gastelum weathers early story and wins by decision
The co-main event was a catchweight bout of 173 pounds as Ultimate Fighter 17 winner Kelvin Gastelum remained undefeated with a decision win over Nico Musoke.
Musoke came out of a cannon at the start of the fight and pushed the pace. After two minutes of exchanging strikes, Musoke was able to get the fight to the ground and got on the back of Gastelum. He looked for a rear-naked choke but Gastelum defended the submission and escaped the position as the opening round came to an end.
Gastelum got off to a tremendous start in the second round by landing a series of strikes against the fence. Musoke would circle his way out of trouble and the fight moved back to the center of the cage. He would continue to land throughout the round and out-landed Musoke 53-22 in the round.
As the referee started the third round, Musoke closed the distance and began to look for a takedown. He would end up on the back of Gastelum but he would lose the position. Gastelum would continue to land strikes at his range and Musoke would close the distance in attempt to create his offense.
The fight would go to the scorecards and all three judges had it for Gastelum (9-0) and he becomes the first Ultimate Fighter winner since Ryan Bader to start their UFC career with four straight wins.
Ferreira survives late flurry, wins by decision
Ultimate Fighter Brazil 1 winner Cezar Ferreira scored his fourth win in the UFC as he defeated Andrew Craig by unanimous decision.
In the opening 30 seconds, Craig threw a head kick that missed and Ferreira capitalized by going for a guillotine choke on the ground. Craig would defend the submission and get back to his feet. During a striking exchange, Ferreira would accidentally poke Craig in the eye. Craig would be able to continue after taking less than one minute to recover.
After an exchange on the feet, Ferreira would explode with a takedown in the final 30 seconds of the round but Craig would get back to his feet before the round came to an end.
The fighters opened up the second round by exchanging combinations and Ferreira ended up looking for a takedown. He would be unable to finish the takedown. Craig would be able to break away from Ferreira in the final minute of the round and Craig briefly went for a takedown before the round came to an end.
Ferreira opened up the third round by landing a elbow that opened up a cut on the forehead of Craig. He followed up the strike by taking the fight to the ground and would end up on the back of Craig. he began to work for a rear-naked choke as he had the body lock.
Craig would be able to work his way out of the position with 40 seconds left in the fight and rocked Ferreira with a right hand. However, he would not be able to finish Ferreira and the fight went to the scorecards.
All three judges had the fight for Ferreira (8-3) and he has now won four of his five fights in the UFC.
Lamas scores decision over Dias
Former featherweight title challenger Ricardo Lamas returned to the UFC on Saturday night as he scored a decision victory over Hacran Dias.
The fight opened with Lamas as the aggressor but Dias was able to counter the strikes of Lamas. He would also stop two early takedown attempts by Lamas and landed multiple leg kicks. They would continue to have a kickboxing bout before Lamas once again worked for a takedown.
His attempt would be stopped and referee Kerry Hatley would end up separating them with 30 seconds left in the round. They would battle on the feet for the remainder of the round and the fight moved into the second.
Dias would land a right hand at the beginning of the second round and immediately the fighters clinched against the fence. Lamas would get on the back of Dias but he was unable to get the fight to the ground. Dias would break away and would end up landing a combination that rocked Lamas. However, Lamas would score a takedown against the fence. He would not be able to keep it there long as Dias got up and separated.
They would strike until the end of the round at short range and the fight moved into the third. Once again, Lamas would attempt to get the fight to the ground, which he was able to momentarily. Lamas would end up on the back of Dias in the standing position and went for a rear-naked choke. Dias would escape the submission and Dias had top position.
They would end up getting to their feet and they clinched against the fence. Eventually they would get to the ground with Lamas having the better position. Lamas would lose the position and the fight went back to the feet. In the final minute, they once again clinched against the fence and the fight would be decided by the judges.
Lamas (14-3) would win the fight on all the judges scorecards and he has now won five of six since dropping down to the 145 pound division.
Hester wins fourth straight in UFC with split decision over Neto
Ultimate Fighter 17 alum Clint Hester improved to 4-0 in the UFC as he scored a split decision victory over Antonio Brago Neto in a middleweight bout.
Hester was able to land leg kicks as the fight opened, but Neto was able to get the fight to the ground against the cage. Hester would be able to get back to his feet, but Neto would get the fight right back to the ground.
Neto began to land a series of short strikes on the ground and would get the mount position with ten seconds left in the round. Hester would survive the position and make it to the second round.
At the beginning of the second round, Hester was able to open up his striking and had Neto backing up. Around the three minute mark of the round, Neto looked for a takedown but it was Hester that ended up on top position on the mat. However, Neto would reverse the position and ended up in the mount position.
Hester would get Neto out of the mount position, but he still had control on the ground. Neto began to work on a kimura submission in the final moments of the round but he would be unable to get the submission before the round came to an end.
As third round started, Hester came out as the aggressor and landed multiple significant strikes. However, he would lose his footing and Neto took the fight to the ground. Hester would be able to reverse the position and Neto was holding onto him to keep the fight on the ground.
Hester would eventually be able to get out of the guard of Neto in the final minute of the fight but Neto scored a takedown as the fight came to an end. Hester (11-3) would win the fight on two of the three judges scorecards and he has now won seven in a row. The defeat for Neto (9-2) snaps a five fight unbeaten steak and both of his career defeats have come by decision.
Ellenberger wins UFC debut by split decision
The opening bout of the main card was a lightweight bout as Joe Ellenberger defeated James Moontasri by split decision in a battle of UFC newcomers.
Ellenberger opened the fight by looking to take the fight to the ground, but Moontasri would stop the attempt. Moontasri would end up landing a knee but Ellenberger got his hands around Moontasri neck and looked for a guillotine choke. The submission attempt would be unsuccessful and Moontasri would take over the round with his strikes.
He would drop Ellenberger with a cobination and landed a series of punches on the ground that opened up a cut on Ellenberger. After a period of time, the referee would stand the fighters up and Ellenbeger was still clearly rocked. He would be able to make it to the final bell of the opening round.
Before the second round started, the referee had the cage side doctor look at the left eye of Ellenberger and the doctor would allow the fight to continue. As the second round started, Ellenberger began to take control with his grappling and had an early submission attempt. Moontasri would survive the submission and ground strikes of Ellenberger and the fight moved into the third round.
At the beginning of the final round, Moontasri landed a big right hand and the fighters would grapple against the fence. The referee would end up separating the fighters after a lack of action. After they were separated, Ellenberger would score a takedown against the fence. Once again, the referee would separate them after a lack of action.
Ellenberger would attempt to get the fight back to the ground and Moontasri would be able to stop the attempts. Moontasri would end up taking the fight to the ground and went into the guard of Ellenberger. The fight would end in this position and the scorecards would decide the winner.
Two of the three judges scoring the fight gave it to Ellenberger (15-1) and he has now won three in a row. The defeat for Moontasri (7-2) snaps a three fight winning streak.
The complete UFC Fight Night 44 results are below.
Main Card: (Fox Sports 1)
Cub Swanson def. Jeremy Stephens via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)
Kelvin Gastelum def. Nico Musoke via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Cezar Ferreira def. Andrew Craig via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Ricardo Lamas def. Hacran Dias via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Clint Hester def. Antonio Brago Neto via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Joe Ellenberger def. James Moontasri via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Preliminary Card: (Fox Sports 1)
Carlos Diego Ferreira def. Colton Smith via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, :38
Cody Gibson def. Johnny Bedford via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, :38
Marcelo Guimaraes def. Andy Enz via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
Ray Borg def. Shane Howell via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:17
Preliminary Card: (Fight Pass)
Oleksiy Oliynyk def. Anthony Hamilton via submission (neck crank) – Round 1, 2:18