TJ Brown vs Danny Chavez (W) – Featherweight Bout
We move back to the featherweight division for this next one as TJ Brown welcomes UFC newcomer Danny Chavez to the UFC octagon. Chavez started the round really well, stinging Brown with a nasty right hand down the middle. Chavez started early with the leg kicks, focussing on Brown’s lead left and almost halfway through the round Chavez kicked Brown to the floor with a nasty kick to the leg. Brown came back with some right hands and one really hurt Chavez but it didn’t stop him from going back to them. Chavez kicked Brown to the floor again and I have Chavez up 10-9 after one.
Round 2 started and Chavez instantly went back to the leg kick to Brown’s lead left leg and the one that connected really hurt Brown, to the point was he was limping for a while. Brown started to come back and then Chavez caught him with a counter right that staggered Brown and then Chavez put him down with another right. Chavez went searching for the win but couldn’t find it and the round ended with Chavez enjoying some time in dominant position on the ground. 20-18 Chavez through 2 rounds.
Brown started round 3 really well, coming out and attacking Chavez for the first time in the fight, putting pressure on him and connecting with a fair few 1-2 combos that reminded Chavez that he hadn’t won the fight just yet. Chavez answered back in the latter stages in the round, scoring some nice takedowns and a slam right at the end of the round. 29-28 Chavez for me with Brown getting the final round and the judges agree with me, quality debut by Chavez.
Felice Herrig vs Virna Jandiroba (W) – Women’s Strawweight Bout
We move back to the UFC women’s division, specifically the strawweight division, as the 15th ranked strawweight contender Felice Herrig makes her return against impressive prospect Virna Jandiroba. This fight started and pretty much ended as quickly as the majority of fights. Virna instantly got the takedown and started to slowly work towards a submission, Herrig was doing well to block the attempts and it looked like Virna wanted the back but she sneakily isolated one of Herrig’s arms and locked in an armbar for the submission win. Seriously high-level Jui-Jitsu and Virna is a serious contender in this division.
Jim Miller vs Vinc Pichel (W) – Lightweight Bout
We have reached the featured prelim bout of the night and we move to the lightweight division to see two veterans of the game do battle in Jim Miller and Vinc Pichel. Both guys enjoyed some early spells of success going back and forth with a variety of shots but Miller seemed to be the better counter puncher to VInc’s shots. Miller managed to get the takedown after some cage wall control time and was shooting for a variety of submissions but Vinc did well to block and defend, the round ended with Miller having Vinc in a calf triangle. 10-9 Miller for me.
Round 2 started and Miller built on the late success he had with his wrestling early in the 2nd as he looked for a submission win. Vinc weathered the storm, got back to his feet, gained dominant position from the clinch and scored a takedown of his own, where he controlled Miller for the rest of the fight, laying down some decent ground and pound but nothing too serious. 19-19 heading into the final round.
Round 3 was just back and forth between two veterans of the game. Vinc came out early and scored the takedown, enjoying at least 1 minute of dominant position but Miller flipped that and was looking for a submission finish where he also enjoyed at least 1 minute of ground control. Vinc flipped it around again and managed to enjoy some success on the feet before Miller tried his best to sink a guillotine choke in, it looked like he had it for a minute but Vinc broke out of it. Tough round to call but if I had to favor someone I’d go Vinc and the judges agreed as Vinc Pichel wins via decision.
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Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
