UFC Vegas 20 prelims results & video: Moises upsets Hernandez, Lawrence TKO’s Cachero
Moises #Moises
The UFC Vegas 20 preliminary card just wrapped up in the lightweight division with Thiago Moises taking a unanimous decision over Alexander Hernandez. It was the striking of Moises that got him the win here. He was defensively sound throughout, while dishing out enough firepower to prevent Hernandez from wanting to go crazy. This makes four-straight UFC wins for Moises, which is no easy task at 155-pounds.
Before that, longtime MMA veteran Alexis Davis returned to competition to take a unanimous decision over the 23-year-old Sabina Mazo. Mazo started hot, piecing up Davis on the feet, but the savvy vet leaned on her grappling to neutralize and control the young gun. This makes Davis’ first win since December of 2017, and breaks up a three-fight losing skid.
Earlier in the night, UFC newcomer Ronnie Lawrence dominated Vince Cachero before pulling out the third-round TKO. Lawrence had some stiff leg kicks and well-timed blast double legs, but it was the ground and pound that secured the finish. The referee allowed this fight to go on much longer than what was needed, giving Cachero every opportunity imaginable to miraculously get back into the fight. Nonetheless, Lawrence is 1-0 in the UFC.
Opening up the event, Dustin Jacoby took a hard fought unanimous decision over Maxim Grishin. Most of this fight took place on the feet, with Jacoby using his jab to prevent this bout from devolving into a brawl. All-three judges scored the match 29-28 for Dustin, but Maxim seemed to be rather surprised when Bruce Buffer read out the results. Jacoby is now 2-0 in his second stint with the UFC.
**See complete results below
Prelims:
Thiago Moises def. Alexander Hernandez by unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 29-28): Lightweight
Hernandez went right after Moises, backing him up with power combos. Moises responded with a stinging calf kick that got Hernandez’s attention. Hernandez stayed in his opponent’s face, switching stances and giving different looks, but Moises remained defensively sound and held his ground. In the final 10-seconds of the round, Moises blitzed forward behind a flurry, back up Hernandez to the cage.
Hernandez was a bit more trigger shy early in the second act. When he did throw, Moises was staying defensively responsible. Moises started to land, taking without giving anything. He also connected with a big spring heel kick to the face that Hernandez wore rather well. The end of the round saw a heated back and forth exchange, with both men throwing hard single strikes just before the bell.
Moises started strong in the final frame, throwing hard strikes and marching down Hernandez. The fight simmered down, with Moises slightly leading the dance. With about one-minute to go, Moises started to aggressively press the action. He began to yell at Hernandez, egging him on while swinging wildly.
Alexis Davis def. Sabina Mazo by unanimous decision (30-27 x2, 30-26): Bantamweight
Mazo started pumping her jab right out of the gate. Davis was pressing forward and getting pieced up because of it. Then, Davis earned top position and locked it down. She took side control and smothered her opponent, giving Mazo no space to work with. Alexis transitioned to the back and maintained control until the bell. She tried to land a few strikes before time expired, but nothing substantial really connected.
Davis attacked the leg right away in the seocnd round. Mazo responded with a series of jabs and straight right hands, busting up the face of her opponent. Davis stayed with her leg kick attack, despite getting peppered in the face, and the leg of Mazo was becoming compromised. With about 30-seconds left on the clock, Davis hit a takedown to end the round on top. Davis was quick to get a takedown in the final round, putting Mazo right on her back. It wasn’t long before Davis took the back and mazo did not return to her feet the entire round.
Ronnie Lawrence def. Vince Cachero by TKO at 2:38 of round 3: Bantamweight
Lawrence showed up with a bunch of spinning attacks, while Cachero sat back and looked to throw his hands. Then, Lawrence shifted gears and blasted a double leg to take top position. A crazy scrambled ensued before the fight returned to open space. A hard leg kick from Lawrence briefly dropped Cachero, and when he got up, Ronnie hit another double leg. Lawrence was able to remain on top until the bell.
Lawrence went back to his wrestling in the second act. Cachero scrambled well, but whenever he worked back up to his feet, Lawrence would find a way to get the fight back down to the ground. In one of those exchanges, Cachero attacked with a guillotine that gave him top position, but after bailing on the sub attempt for top position, Lawrence scrambled back into top position.
Cachero got his leg kicked out again to start the final round, and Lawrence capitalized on it. He landed a couple of ground strikes before suplexing his foe and re-taking top position. Lawrence started dropping all sorts of punches, with the referee allowing Cachero to absorb an excessive amount of strikes before finally stopping the match.
Dustin Jacoby def. Maxim Grishin by unanimous decision (29-28 x3): Light Heavyweight
Jacoby came out and led the dance right away. He was working his leg kicks, but a jab as he threw a kick knocked him to the ground. Grishin rushed in to take top position, but Jacoby was able to escape into open space. Maxim seemed to be much larger than Dustin out there, which could have something to do with Grishin’s botched weight cut. At the end of the round, Grishin dropped Jacoby with a right hand, but was unable to finish before the bell.
Jacoby didn’t pressure as much in the second round, keeping his distance and picking his shots. Grishin stayed in the center of the cage, but wasn’t throwing a ton of volume and eating quite a few jabs. Jacoby also stayed with his leg kicks. Grishin checked some, but there were several that got through. A strong left hook fro Dustin registered, causing Grishin to back up.
Jacoby went back to his jab in the final round, trying to slow down the aggression Grishin. The tactic worked, and Dustin was able to back up his foe to the cage. Maxim looked to return leg kicks, but Jacoby checked one and caused Grishin to back up again. Dustin instantly connected with a flying knee, but Grishin managed to tie up and recover. The fighters traded down the stretch, in what was a pretty close round.