Two-Time Olympian Alfonso Leyva Steamrolls Daniel Reis in LFA 135 Main Event

Alfonso Leyva looks like the real deal.

The two-time Olympic wrestler remained undefeated in his wildly successful Legacy Fighting Alliance debut, as he dispatched Daniel Reis with elbows in the second round of their LFA 135 headliner on Friday at the Arizona Federal Theatre in Phoenix. Reis (8-2, 0-1 LFA) bowed out 1:10 into Round 2, his modest two-fight winning streak having run its course.

Leyva (6-0, 1-0 LFA) was stoic and methodical in his approach. He powered into top position late in the first round, unleashed his ground-and-pound and nearly finished it in the waning seconds. Only the bell saved Reis. The dejected Sombra Team-trained Brazilian emerged for the middle stanza with little left in the tank. Levy moved on top again early in Round 2 and blasted Reis with elbows until the job was done.

Meanwhile, Pitbull Brothers rep Felipe Bunes consolidated multiple takedowns with effective ground-and-pound and suffocating top control, as he picked up a split decision—30-27, 28-29, 30-27—over Wascar Cruz in the three-round flyweight co-main event.

Cruz (12-10, 1-1 LFA) had his moments—he connected with some nasty elbows from bottom position—but struggled to established any kind of continuity from an offensive standpoint. Bunes (12-6, 1-1 LFA) wowed the crowd with a few spinning attacks before he made real gains with his work on the mat. He achieved full mount on multiple occasions, bottled up an increasingly frustrated Cruz with his superior topside grappling and denied the Dominican’s bids to change course.

The 37-year-old Cruz has lost three of his last four fights.

Elsewhere, St. Charles MMA standout Lucas Clay put away Austin Wourms with a volley of knee strikes in the first round of their lightweight feature. Clay (9-2, 4-1 LFA)—who missed weight for the match by four pounds—drew the curtain 2:59 into Round 1, as he won for the fifth time in six outings.

Wourms (5-4, 2-1 LFA) was simply out of his depth on the feet. Clay walked through his punches, drilled him with straight left hands and closed the distance with crisp combinations. The 26-year-old Missourian clipped Wourms with a flying knee as the two men engaged along the fence, followed with a knee to the body and then went upstairs with another knee that resulted in a knockdown and prompted referee Ryan Brueggeman to act.

The setback snapped Wourms’ three-fight winning streak.

Finally, Team Alpha Male prospect Allan Begosso rebounded from his first professional setback and did so in style, as he knocked out Paris Stanford with a flying knee in the first round of their bantamweight showcase. Begosso (7-1-1, 3-1 LFA) brought it to a close 45 seconds into Round 1.

Stanford (5-4, 1-1 LFA) moved to the center of the cage and tried to keep the Brazilian at bay with kicks to the body and lead leg. Those efforts proved unsuccessful. Begosso pushed the Fight Ready export backward, took flight and flipped the switch with a sensational knee strike to the head. Stanford was unconscious before he hit the canvas.

Begosso, 26, has won six of his last seven bouts.

In other action, Jena Bishop (3-0, 3-0 LFA) eked out a split decision—30-27, 28-29, 29-28—over Luana Santos (3-1, 0-1 LFA) in a three-round women’s flyweight clash; Rafael do Nascimento (7-1, 1-0 LFA) submitted Marcus McGhee (4-1, 0-1 LFA) with a rear-naked choke 3:12 into the first round of their bantamweight tilt; Maria Henderson (1-0, 1-0 LFA)—wife of former UFC champion Benson Henderson—submitted Melanie McIntyre (0-1, 0-1, LFA) with a triangle keylock 1:42 into the first round of their women’s strawweight pairing; An Ho (2-0, 2-0 LFA) knocked out Matt Barro (0-2, 0-1 LFA) with a head kick 14 seconds into the first round of their flyweight scrap; Cedric Katambwa (2-0, 2-0 LFA) laid claim to a unanimous decision over James Hay (3-3, 0-1 LFA) in a three-round lightweight affair, drawing 30-26, 30-27 and 30-27 marks from the cageside judges; and Angel Atoigue (1-0, 1-0 LFA) took a unanimous verdict—30-26, 30-26, 30-25—from Nick Alwag (1-3, 0-1 LFA) in a three-round featherweight encounter.