Brendan Allen Strangles Paul Craig in One-Sided UFC Fight Night 232 Headliner

Brendan Allen looks like more and more of a problem for the rest of the Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight division.

The Kill Cliff Fight Club representative continued his ascent at 185 pounds, as he dismissed Paul Craig with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 232 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Craig (17-7-1, 9-7-1 UFC) conceded defeat 38 seconds into Round 3, losing via submission for just the second time in his 25-fight career.

Allen (23-5, 11-2 UFC) averted potential disaster in the first round when he escaped a calf slicer from the former British Association of Mixed Martial Arts champion. From there, it was all one-way traffic. Allen dictated the terms in their grappling exchanges, hacked open an ugly cut on the Scotsman’s left eyebrow with an elbow strike and methodically established himself as the better fighter. He ripped into Craig with a two-punch combination at the start of the third round, forced his way into top position, moved to the back and bit down on the choke.

The 27-year-old Allen will ride a six-fight winning streak into his next assignment.

Unbeaten Morales Outpoints Matthews

Stinging leg kicks and a sharp jab carried Entram Gym’s Michael Morales to a unanimous decision over Jake Matthews in the three-round welterweight co-main event. Morales (16-0, 4-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 marks from the cageside judiciary.

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Matthews (19-7, 12-7 UFC) fought well in spurts but could not address all the physical disadvantages with which he was faced. Morales chipped away at “The Ultimate Fighter Nations” graduate from the outside, using his superior length and evasive movement to avoid return fire. Flying knees, collar-tie uppercuts and Superman punches off the cage rounded out the promising Ecuadorian’s attack.

The 29-year-old Matthews has lost three of three of his past five bouts.

Hooper Choke Vanquishes Leavitt

Former Dominate Fighting Championship titleholder Chase Hooper turned away Jordan Leavitt with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their lightweight showcase. Hooper (13-3-1, 5-3 UFC) elicited the tapout 2:58 into Round 1, winning for the seventh time in 10 appearances.

Leavitt (11-3, 4-3 UFC) set off a series of scrambles with a body lock, freed himself from a tight armbar and ultimately called upon an omoplata sweep to move into top position. Once there, the Syndicate MMA product connected with a thudding standing-to-ground right but elected to engage Hooper in the grappling department. The Washington native threatened with a leg lock, transitioned to the back and snaked his arms in place before Leavitt could respond. Hooper’s squeeze did the rest.

Hooper now has six first-round finishes to his credit.

Talbott Throttles Fatigued Aguirre

Reno Academy of Combat prospect Payton Talbott stayed undefeated in a successful promotional debut, as he subdued Nick Aguirre with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their bantamweight attraction. Talbott (7-0, 1-0 UFC) finished it 58 seconds into Round 3.

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Aguirre (7-2, 0-2 UFC) secured a takedown inside the first 30 seconds of the first round and enjoyed an extended period of time in top control. However, his efforts resulted in a depleted gas tank. Talbott got his punching combinations in gear in the middle stanza, mixed in kicks to the body and moved to advantageous positions after being taken down. An elbow strike near the end of the round opened a cut behind Aguirre’s ear and sent him into a tailspin. He offered little resistance at the start of Round 3, where Talbott sprawled on an attempted takedown, powered into full mount and cut loose with hammerfists before advancing to the back and cinching the choke.

It was the first submission victory of Talbott’s career.

Relentless Ribas Torpedoes Pinheiro

Former Jungle Fight champion Amanda Ribas rallied from an inauspicious start to stop Luana Pinheiro with punches in the third round of their women’s strawweight feature. Pinheiro (11-2, 3-1 UFC) succumbed to blows 3:53 into Round 1, suffering her first setback since March 19, 2017.

Ribas (12-4, 7-3 UFC) walked through heavy fire in the first round, where her Brazilian counterpart caused significant facial damage with sweeping power punches. She switched to southpaw in the middle stanza, caught Pinheiro off-guard with a steady stream of leg kicks and slowly but surely turned the tide in her favor. Ribas hit the accelerator in the third round, pushed a merciless pace and eventually broke down the Nova Uniao rep. She connected with a spinning hook kick that forced Pinheiro backward into the fence, felled her with a clean right hand and then sealed the deal with unanswered hammerfists.

The loss snapped Pinheiro’s nine-fight winning streak.

Orolbai Neck Crank Downs Medic

Team Alpha Male prospect Myktybek Orolbai put away Uros Medic with a neck crank in the second round of their welterweight appetizer. A short-notice fill-in for Jonny Parsons, Orolbai (12-1-1, 1-0 UFC) brought it to a decisive close 4:12 into Round 2.

Medic (9-2, 3-2 UFC) connected with some heavy artillery—two knees found their intended mark—in the early stages of the first round but otherwise proved ineffective. Orolbai struck for repeated takedowns and slowly wore down the Kings MMA rep. He put Medic on the mat at the start of the middle stanza, climbed briefly to full mount and later progressed to the back. Orolbai then snuck his arms into place, secured the crank and waited for its effects to take hold.

Orolbai, 25, has put together seven straight wins, six of them finishes. Afterward, he revealed his intention to downshift to 155 pounds.

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