Dwight Grant ended the UFC Prague prelims with a bang, knocking out Carlo Pedersoli at the very end of the first round.
Dwight Grant is a veteran of both Bellator and Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. The AKA-trained welterweight was 7-1 and coming off a decision win on the Bellator 165 prelims when he got the call to fight on the Contender Series. Grant won by second-round knockout and was scheduled to fight Erik Koch in his promotional debut. After Koch pulled out, Grant faced the difficult Zak Ottow instead, and lost by split decision at UFC Milwaukee.
Carlo Pedersoli is an Italian prospect who is looking to bounce back from a short-notice loss to the very tough Alex Oliveira in his last appearance. Prior to joining the UFC, “Semento” was 10-1 with four submissions, three knockouts, and a notable win over Nicolas Dalby. He successfully defeated Brad Scott in his promotional debut before the loss to Oliveira.
Pedersoli started the fight with a quick punch followed by a head kick. Grant countered with a leg kick. Pedersoli was focused on landing a head kick but it just wasn’t there. He also shot for a takedown but was quickly stuffed by Grant. Grant landed a very solid leg kick that buckled Pedersoli for a moment. Grant countered another head kick attempt with a leg kick and both fighters began exchanging hooks. Pedersoli kept getting hit by Grant’s leg kick counter. A pair of great body kicks landed for Pedersoli, who then shot for a takedown. Grant stuffed the takedown cleanly, but Pedersoli was persistent and secured top position. Grant stood back up and as time was winding down in the first, Pedersoli threw another head kick that was countered perfectly by a Grant right hand. Pedersoli was airborne and fell flat on his face, Grant followed up with ground-and-pound and the fight was called with one second left in the round.
Ka-BOOM! @DwightGrant #UFCPrague pic.twitter.com/muDt2K7qRo
— UFC (@ufc) February 23, 2019
Dwight Grant def. Carlo Pedersoli by TKO (Right Hook and Punches) in Round 1 (4:59)
