UFC Vegas 101 Prelims: Unbeaten Jacobe Smith Zaps Preston Parsons in Octagon Debut

WHAT A DEBUT FOR JACOBE SMITH 👊 #UFCVEGAS101 pic.twitter.com/532TNCoGJQ

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 11, 2025

Jacobe Smith managed to exceed the hype.

The undefeated Fortis MMA prospect filled in for Andreas Gustafsson on short notice and flashed blue-chip talent in his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut, as he punched out Preston Parsons in the first round of their UFC Fight Night 249 welterweight prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Parsons (11-6, 2-4 UFC) checked out 73 seconds into Round 1.

A onetime NCAA All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State University, Smith (10-0, 1-0 UFC) pressed forward behind leg and body kicks, crisp punches and a stepping knee to the body. He lured Parsons into range, set off an exchange in the center of the cage and floored the Floridian with a sweeping left hook. Smith, 28, pounced with a few more punches before referee Mike Beltran could arrive on the scene to wave it off.

Meanwhile, Marco Tulio put away former World Warriors Fighting Championship titleholder Ihor Potieria with punches in the first round of their light heavyweight encounter. Potieria (20-8, 2-6 UFC) succumbed to blows 3:04 into Round 1, as he suffered his third consecutive setback.

Related » UFC Vegas 101 Round-by-Round Scoring

Operating out of the Chute Boxe affiliate fronted by Diego Lima, Tulio (13-1, 1-0 UFC) turned up the heat with accurate punches and kicks while probing for weaknesses. One of his knees strayed below the belt and offered Potieria a brief respite to recover. However, Tulio picked up where he left off upon the restart. He jarred Potieria sideways with a right cross, then dropped him with a right hook. Tulio swarmed with punches and ultimately left the bloodied Ukrainian facedown and semi-conscious, necessitating the stoppage.

Tulio will ride a nine-fight winning streak into his next assignment.

Further down the undercard, onetime Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Felipe Bunes tapped Jose Johnson with an armbar in the first round of their flyweight scrap. Bunes (14-7, 1-1 UFC) drew the curtain 2:04 into Round 1.

The 6-foot Johnson (16-10, 1-3 UFC) used his height and length advantages at the start, scoring with heavy kicks and sharp punching combinations. He countered a takedown from Bunes, rolled into top position and looked to throw his ground-and-pound into gear. In his haste, Johnson left a limb exposed. Bunes caught the armbar, readjusted his grip through a frantic exchange on the ground and finished it along the base of the fence.

It was the 10th first-round finish of Bunes’ career.

Elsewhere, American Top Team mainstay Thiago Moises rebounded from his June 8 defeat to Ludovit Klein with a unanimous decision over Trey Ogden in a three-round lightweight confrontation. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 29-28 for Moises (19-8, 8-6 UFC).

Ogden (18-7, 3-3 UFC) initially called upon a potent jab and repeated kicks to the inside leg but wore down over time. Moises tore into his lower leg with kicks, then attacked his compromised adversary on the ground across the final 10 minutes. The ex-Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion scrambled into top position early in Round 3, hacked open a cut with a slicing elbow strike and kept a frustrated Ogden pinned to the canvas for the duration.

The loss snapped Ogden’s two-fight winning streak.

Finally, former Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder Fatima Kline disposed of Victoria Dudakova with punches and elbows in the second round of their women’s strawweight pairing. Kline (7-1, 1-1 UFC) drew the curtain 4:27 into Round 2.

Dudakova (8-2, 2-2 UFC) leaned almost exclusively on takedowns and scrambles, but all the effort proved ineffective and came at a physical cost. Kline executed a takedown late in the second round, opened a significant cut with an elbow strike and forced her fatigued counterpart to shield herself from further contact. She then postured with unanswered punches and elbows, prompting the stoppage.

The 25-year-old Dudakova has suffered back-to-back defeats.

In other action, Ernesta Kareckaite (6-1-1, 1-1 UFC) eked out a split decision—28-29, 29-28, 29-28 against Nicolle Caliari (8-3, 0-1 UFC) in a three-round women’s strawweight affair; Bruno Lopes (14-1, 1-0 UFC) outgrappled Magomed Gadzhiyasulov (9-1, 1-1 UFC) to a unanimous decision in a three-round light heavyweight tilt; and Nurullo Aliev (10-0, 2-0 UFC) returned from close to a two-year layoff and took a unanimous decision from Joe Solecki (13-6, 5-4 UFC) in a three-round lightweight clash, earning 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 scores from the cageside judges.