The UFC made its first ever stop in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Saturday, bringing with it a dozen promising bouts, with lightweight Devin Powell facing newcomer Jesus Pinedo in early action.
The UFC made its inaugural trip to Argentina on Saturday, touching down in Buenos Aires, and continuing their South American expansion that began with Chile earlier this year. Topping the UFC Argentina (UFC Fight Night 140) card, a welterweight clash that would see either Neil Magny or local hero Santiago Ponzinibbio inch closer to the top five, and title contention.
Earlier in the night, however, a pair of fights in the featherweight and lightweight divisions opened up the affair. On the UFC Fight Pass live stream, England’s Nad Narimani was set to welcome fellow featherweight Anderson dos Santos to the octagon. Devin Powell, meanwhile, was back after a thunderous body kick knockout win at UFC Calgary against Alvaro Herrera. He was taking on newcomer Jesus Pinedo, who was filling in on short notice for Claudio Puelles.
The UFC Fight Pass Prelims for UFC Fight Night 140 kick off at 7PM Eastern time. Check back come fight time for full results and a recap of all the action in Argentina!
Nad Narimani vs. Anderson dos Santos
Narimani opened by backing dos Santos up, connecting with a combination early. A second one followed. dos Santos stood his ground at that point and returned fire, but Narimani got the better of the exchange. He’d continue to stalk the Brazilian until dos Santos finally fired off a counter that got the crowd cheering. Narimani, however, continued to find success with his left hook, which gave him the edge in the round.
In the second, dos Santos went to the body with kicks and got his jab going. He was able to become the aggressor more as the round progressed, even catching Narimani, then pinning him by the fence off a single leg attempt. That gave Narimani time to recover, though, and reversed position. He’d later take the fight down as dos Santos was off-balance, and any momentum the Brazilian had gained earlier was out the window. Narimani would work from the top for the rest of the round.
Early in the third, Narimani again had top position, but dos Santos locked in a guillotine. That was tight enough to force Narimani to give up the dominant position, but he was able to break free. On the feet, Narimani continued to have the edge in power, launching an uppercut, mixing in kicks, and firing off hooks. dos Santos would answer with a superman punch, and land enough that he opened up a cut bu Narimani’s eye. Towards the end of the round Narimani would muscle dos Santos down, finishing on top landing ground n’ pound. When ti came time for the scorecards, there was little doubt as to who would get their hand raised.
Nad Narimani def. Anderson dos Santos by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Devin Powell vs. Jesus Pinedo
Powell and Pinedo opened exchanging kicks to the body, with Powell walking the newcomer down. Pinedo landed a left that sent Powell off-balance to his back; he tried to lure Pinedo into his guard, while getting some recovery time. Pinedo would later catch a kick and dump Powell on his back again, again Powell tried to lure him down. When that didn’t work Powell walked his opponent down, landing punches and knees repeatedly before eating a counter. He’d repeat that later in the round, slowly pulling ahead in terms of striking. Powell would be dumped off a kick again towards the end of the round, firing hammer fists from the bottom as Pinedo landed some from the top.
Powell came out the aggressor in round two, but ate a couple of solid counters early. Powell continued to walk Pinedo down, firing kicks, but Pinedo was doing a better job catching him on the way in. Another caught kick saw Powell on his back shortly after he’d managed to fire off his best combination of the round. Pinedo would neither commit to going to the ground nor let Powell stand back up, but Powell seemed content to stay on his back.
Round three started with the doctor checking Powell’s eye, which was showing some swelling around it. Once they were underway Pinedo got on his heels, showed several stance switches, and forced Powell to go to him. A caught kick again saw Powell on his back, but this time the ref intervened to stand him up when Pinedo wouldn’t commit. Powell would walk him down, landing a decent shot towards the end of the round. Yet needing at least to win the round and possibly a finish, he tried for a single leg late, only to have it stuffed.
Jesus Pinedo def. Devin Powell by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
UFC Argentina Fight Pass Preliminary Results:
Jesus Pinedo def. Devin Powell by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Nad Narimani def. Anderson dos Santos by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
