UFC Fight Night 220 Prelims: Unbeaten Trevor Peek Demolishes Erick Gonzalez

KO AT THE BUZZER :exploding_head: #UFCVegas70 pic.twitter.com/Itgpoi5dxS

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 25, 2023

Trevor Peek hits like a truck.

The intriguing but unrefined Agoge Combatives prospect made a successful Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, as he took out Erick Gonzalez with punches in the first round of their featured UFC Fight Night 220 lightweight prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The undefeated Peek (8-0, 1-0 UFC) brought it to an emphatic close 4:59 into Round 1.

Gonzalez (14-8, 0-3 UFC) tried to counter the 2022 Dana White’s Contender Series graduate with takedowns but failed to keep him bottled up for any meaningful period of time. Peek cut loose with sloppy but powerful punches near the end of Round 1—he even mixed in a few standing hammerfists to the head—before he sat down the Combate Global veteran with a clubbing right. Gonzalez ate multiple left hands to the face before referee Kerry Hatley could arrive on the scene to call for the stoppage.

Related » UFC Vegas 70 Round-by-Round Scoring

Meanwhile, Niagara Top Team product Jasmine Jasudavicius leaned on repeated takedowns, positional dominance and damaging ground-and-pound in claiming a one-sided unanimous decision over Gabriella Fernandes in a three-round women’s flyweight scrap. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 30-26 for Jasudavicius (8-2, 2-1 UFC).

A short-notice substitution for Cortney Casey, Fernandes (8-2, 0-1 UFC) was effective for as long as she was upright. However, Jasudavicius delivered takedowns in all three rounds to erase the Brazilian’s minimal gains. She was particularly dominant in Round 2, where she moved to a mounted crucifix and unleashed a sustained burst of unabated elbows to Fernandes’ face.

Jasudavicius has rattled off four victories across her past five assignments.

Elsewhere, Syndicate MMA standout Jordan Leavitt cut down former Fury Fighting Championship titleholder Victor Martinez with a volley of close-range knee strikes and follow-up punches in the first round of their lightweight affair. Martinez (13-5, 0-1 UFC), who entered the cage on a seven-fight winning streak, succumbed to blows 2:33 into Round 1 and suffered his first setback since April 25, 2016.

Leavitt (11-2, 4-2 UFC) closed the distance, trapped the Fortis MMA rep in the Thai clinch and fired three knees through his defenses. Martinez buckled before collapsing at the base of the cage, where he was in no condition to shield himself from the punches that followed.

The 27-year-old Leavitt has won three of his past four bouts.

Finally, Gym-O export Joe Solecki put promotional newcomer Carl Deaton to sleep with a rear-naked choke in the second round of their lightweight encounter. Solecki (13-3, 5-1 UFC) drew the curtain 4:55 into Round 2, as he won for the eighth time in nine outings.

Deaton (17-6, 0-1 UFC) was in peril for much of the match. Solecki executed a double-leg takedown in the first round, climbed to the back and then ran through a series of submission attempts, from rear-naked chokes to neck cranks and face cranks. Deaton survived but only prolonged the inevitable. Solecki struck for another takedown in the middle stanza, progressed to the back yet again, softened the American Top Team rep with ground-and-pound and slipped his arms in place for the fight-ending choke.

The loss snapped Deaton’s modest two-fight winning streak.

In other action, Ode Osbourne (12-5, 4-3 UFC) eked out a split decision—28-29, 29-28, 29-28—over onetime Legacy Fighting Alliance titleholder Charles Johnson (13-4, 2-2 UFC) in their three-round catchweight confrontation at 130 pounds; and Nurullo Aliev (9-0, 1-0 UFC) kept his perfect professional record intact with a majority decision—29-27, 29-27, 28-28—over former Titan Fighting Championship titleholder Rafael Alves (20-12, 1-3 UFC) in their three-round lightweight clash.