Bo Nickal Rides 52-Second Triangle Choke Submission to UFC Contract on DWCS

Sometimes the substance exceeds the hype. Perhaps that will be the case for Bo Nickal.

The three-time NCAA wrestling champion punched his ticket to the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Week 10 of Dana White’s Contender Series, as he submitted Donovan Beard with first-round triangle choke on Tuesday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Beard (7-2, 0-1 DWCS) bit the dust 52 seconds into Round 1.

Nickal (3-0, 2-0 DWCS) followed an overhand left into a takedown, moved to mount and threatened with a guillotine choke before catching the triangle on the transition. Beard briefly struggled, but pride carried the Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder only so far. He raised the white flag soon after.

Related » DWCS Week 10 Round-by-Round Scoring

Though Nickal was clearly the centerpiece of the DWCS season finale, four other mixed martial artists were signed to UFC contracts: Sam Patterson, Jack Jenkins, Rafael Ramos Estevam and Mateus Mendonca.

Team Crossface’s Patterson disposed of Vinicius Sacchelli Cenci with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their lightweight scrap. Patterson (10-1-1, 1-0 DWCS) drew the curtain 4:18 into Round 2, earning his sixth straight win.

Cenci (7-2, 0-1 DWCS) gave the lanky 6-foot-3 Brit some trouble in the first round with some knees to the body at close range and an overhand left that sent him careening into the cage. Patterson withstood the adversity and slowly but surely imposed his will. He sprawled on an attempted takedown in Round 2, ran Cenci through a series of chokes and eventually progressed to the back. From there, Patterson snuck his arm underneath the Kings MMA product’s chin, tightened his squeeze and elicited the tapout.

The loss was Cenci’s first since Dec. 18, 2016.

An Eternal MMA champion, Jenkins battered and bloodied Freddy Emiliano Linares to a merciful stoppage in the third round of their featherweight clash. Linares (8-2, 0-1 DWCS) succumbed to an accumulation of punishment 4:30 into Round 3.

Jenkins (10-2, 1-0 DWCS) struck for takedowns in all three rounds, applied asphyxiating control and threw his ground-and-pound into a high gear. A short slashing elbow from the Aussie opened a cut above Linares’ right eye in Round 2 and spilled the Ecuadorian’s DNA all over the canvas. Jenkins took down the Bonebreakers Team standout twice in the third round, climbed to full mount and forced him to surrender his back before closing the deal with unanswered punches.

The 28-year-old Jenkins has rattled off seven consecutive victories.

Nova Uniao’s Estevam put away Brazilian Fighting Series titleholder Joao Elias with sustained ground-and-pound in the second round of their flyweight clash. Elias (17-4-1, 0-1 DWCS) checked out 2:25 into Round 2, suffering his first setback in more than a year.

Estevam (11-0, 1-0 DWCS) dodged a number of bullets in the first round, where his ambitious counterpart employed a hyperactive guard and made passes at several submissions. None were successful, and Elias’ efforts cost him valuable energy. Estevam struck for an immediate takedown at the start of the middle stanza and cut loose with elbows, hammerfists and short punches until referee Jason Herzog had seen enough.

The 26-year-old Estevam has now finished seven of his 11 opponents.

Chute Boxe’s Mendonca kept his perfect professional record intact and did so in spectacular fashion, as he punched out CES MMA champion Ashiek Ajim in the first round of their bantamweight pairing. Ajim (6-2, 0-1 DWCS) met his end 48 seconds into Round 1, victim of the 10th-fastest knockout in DWCS history.

Mendonca (10-0, 1-0 DWCS) tested the water with front kicks, then tuned up his hands lightning-quick hands. A right cross clanged off the side of Ajim’s head and sat him down in the center of the cage, his outing having taken a turn for the worse. Mendonca caught him with a left hook on the way back up to his feet, the impact separating the Long Island MMA rep from his senses.

The defeat snapped Ajim’s three-fight winning streak.