Holloway Edges Garcia on Points
Max Holloway posted his third consecutive victory with a controversial unanimous decision over Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts mainstay Leonard Garcia in a preliminary featherweight duel.
All three cageside judges scored it 29-28, two of them for the 21-year-old Holloway (7-1, 3-1 UFC) — a late replacement for the injured Cody McKenzie.
Garcia (15-10-1, 2-6 UFC) landed with more accuracy and authority, but still fell short on the scorecards.
The 33-year-old Plainview, Texas, native rebounded from a slow start in the first round and had Holloway in an almost perpetual backpedal during the final 10 minutes. With Terminator-like conviction, he aggressively pursued Holloway on the feet, splitting the Sin City air with the wild power punches for which he has become known.
Holloway, who sat down Garcia with a straight left hand 90 seconds into the bout, countered well but fatigued noticeably in rounds two and three. The “Bad Boy” stayed in his face with looping punches and mixed in a pair of takedowns, but he did not do enough in the eyes of the judges to avoid his fourth defeat in as many fights.
Strikeforce Import Brunson Outpoints Leben
Takedowns and a suffocating top game carried Strikeforce import Derek Brunson to a unanimous decision over Chris Leben in a middleweight showcase. All three cageside judges scored it the same: 29-28 for Brunson (10-2, 1-0 UFC) — a late substitution for the injured Karlos Vemola.
Brunson, a three-time NCAA All-American wrestler for the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, struck for takedowns in all three rounds. He did his best work in the first frame, where he grounded Leben, threatened the 32-year-old Portland, Ore., native with an arm-triangle
choke and eventually moved to mount.
Both men slowed considerably over the final 10 minutes, though Brunson managed to battle through fatigue for much-needed takedowns. Leben (22-9, 12-8 UFC) tried but failed to finish the fight late, his lethal left hook left in its holster for much of the match.