Josh Emmett Outduels Calvin Kattar in UFC on ESPN 37 Headliner

Josh Emmett’s first venture into the championship rounds proved to be a successful one.

In a closely-contested bout that played out primarily as a boxing match, Emmett (18-2, 9-2 UFC) captured a split-decision triumph against Calvin Kattar (23-6, 7-4 UFC) in the UFC on ESPN 37 main event at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, on Saturday night. Judges Sal D’Amato and Chris Lee submitted 48-47 scorecards in favor of Emmett, while Douglas Crosby saw it 48-47 in favor of Kattar. Emmett’s five-bout winning streak is tied for the fourth-longest in the featherweight division.

Emmett’s aggressive forays into the pocket proved to be some of the most decisive moments of the fight. The Team Alpha Male product landed with more impact than Kattar, and several of his heavy right hands moved his opponent backwards momentarily. Kattar, meanwhile, was effective with his jab throughout the 25-minute affair, opening a cut above Emmett’s left eye in Round 1 and gradually deepening the wound as the bout progressed. Kattar’s best moment arguably came late in the fourth, when he briefly made Emmett stumble upon landing a straight right hand.

Emmett never wavered, however, and he did a good job mixing up punches to the head and body along with the occasional uppercut. Kattar appeared to get stronger as the fight progressed, but his lack of threatening power in exchanges could have very well been the difference in the judges’ eyes. Kattar’s last four fights have gone the full 25 minutes; he is 2-2 in those contests.

Holland Wobbles, Submits Means

Kevin Holland took a significant step toward contention at 170 pounds, submitting Tim Means with a brabo choke in the UFC on ESPN 37 co-main event. “Trailblazer,” who begin his promotional tenure at middleweight, elicited a tapout 1:28 into Round 2, ending Means’ three-bout winning streak in the process. It was Holland’s first submission victory since a rear-naked choke triumph over John Phillips in his second Octagon appearance in November 2018.

Holland’s speed advantage was quite evident, as he tagged “The Dirty Bird” with long punches while effectively mixing in kicks, elbows and knees. Perhaps realizing he was outgunned on the feet, Means (32-13-1, 14-10, 1 NC UFC) resorted to wrestling, but Holland (23-7, 10-4, 1 NC UFC) was able to defend against his opponent’s advances in that area. Holland set the stage for the finish when he wobbled Means with a laser straight right to the chin in the second round, and from there he quickly locked in the fight-ending maneuver. Means tapped out in a matter of seconds.

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Buckley Stops Duraev

Joaquin Buckley’s high-impact offense was too much for Albert Duraev, as the Finney’s Hit Squad member earned a doctor stoppage in a featured middleweight affair. A cageside physician waved off the fight 10 seconds into Round 3 due to Duraev’s left eye being swollen shut. The Russian known as “Machete” saw a 10-fight winning streak come to an end in defeat.

Buckley took some time to find his range, but once he did, Duraev (15-4, 1-1 UFC) absorbed a beating. “New Mansa” made Duraev stumble with a head kick early in an opening round that was otherwise characterized more by Buckley’s big misses than his connections. That changed as time progressed, and Buckley (15-4, 5-2 UFC) repeatedly landed powerful left hands when his opponent attempted to shoot, which in turn gradually led to Duraev’s left eye closing. When the Russian did get the fight to the canvas, Buckley was able to explode to his feet and dole out more punishment on his vision-impaired adversary.

Ismagulov Extends Winning Streak to 19

Former M-1 Global champion Damir Ismagulov won his 19th straight professional fight, edging Guram Kutateladze via split decision in a matchup of underrated lightweight contenders. Ismagulov earned tallies of 29-28 and 30-27 from the cageside judges, while a third submitted a 29-28 scorecard in favor of Kutateladze.

In a highly technical matchup, Ismagulov’s jab was arguably the fight’s most significant weapon. The Russian marked up Kutateladze’s face with his lead hand repeatedly while exhibiting outstanding movement to avoid some of his foe’s most damaging offerings. Kutateladze (12-3, 1-1 UFC) did his best work in Round 1, when he briefly had his opponent reeling from a series of elbows and knees in the clinch. Ismagulov (24-1, 5-0) quickly regained his composure and maintained a slight edge down the stretch, landing straight punches to the head while his adversary attacked with strikes to all levels.

‘RoboCop’ Flattens Marquez

Gregory Rodrigues unleashed heavy artillery on Julian Marquez, relentlessly battering his adversary en route to a first-round knockout victory at middleweight. “Robocop” ended Marquez’s night with a right hand 3:18 into Round 1 for his fifth win in his last six professional outings.

Marquez could hold up under fire for only so long. Rodrigues (12-4, 3-1 UFC) dropped Marquez during an initial exchange and threatened to take his foe’s back, but grappling exchanges were limited from that point forward. The Sanford MMA product sent Marquez (9-3, 3-2 UFC) stumbling backward with an uppercut and teed off near the fence, dropping his foe to a knee following another salvo of offense. A desperate Marquez returned to his feet and fired back to the best of his abilities, but Rodrigues was locked in. The 30-year-old Brazilian stayed on the attack and unleashed about four more accurate punches, the last of which put “The Cuban Missile Crisis” flat on his back for the finish.

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Fired Up Yanez Rocks Kelley

An emotionally-charged Adrian Yanez delighted the crowd in his home state with a rousing technical knockout victory over Tony Kelley in a bantamweight bout. The Metro Fight Club product overwhelmed his opponent with a barrage of punches at the 3:49 mark of Round 1. Kelley, who missed weight by 1.5 pounds, had been a controversial figure in recent weeks due to comments he made while cornering Andrea Lee at UFC on ESPN 36.

Once he figured out the range and timing of his opponent, Yanez (16-3, 5-0 UFC) was nearly unstoppable. He buckled Kelley (8-3, 2-2 UFC) on multiple occasions during exchanges, often while countering kicks. One final barrage sent Kelley tumbling to the canvas, and Yanez sealed his victory with several more follow-up blows as the Louisianan attempted to return to his feet.

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