Season 1 lightweight champion Natan Schulte was a heavy favorite and performed like one, submitting Bao Yincang in the first round at PFL 2 2019.
Natan Schulte burst onto the scene in the first season of PFL. The Brazilian claimed the top spot in the lightweight bracket with a nine-point regular season, defeating UFC veterans Chris Wade and Jason High. He advanced through the first round of the tournament with a draw against Johnny Case, then took a controversial decision against Wade to reach the finals. “Russo” took another tight decision over another UFC vet in Rashid Magomedov to win the finals and the million-dollar prize. Schulte is 15-3-1 with six submissions and four knockouts.
Bao Yincang is a Chinese lightweight with a less than stellar 13-7 record. He’s lost three of his last four and has stoppages in five of his 13 victories.
Natan Schulte started conservatively with a few leg kicks. Yincang threw out a combination, but Schulte pushed forward, landed a hard right hand, then took Yincang down along the cage. Schulte passed to half guard, then mounted Yincang. The Chinese fighter tried to reverse position, but Schulte kept him pinned down, forcing him to turn over. Schulte took full advantage of his exposed back, sinking in a rear-naked choke and kicking off his season with six points.
The champ is here! 🏆 @NatanSchulte opens 2019 with another win. Schulte earns 6 points with the 1st Round submission #PFL2 #PFLmma pic.twitter.com/56bmJuZIwH
— #PFLmma (@ProFightLeague) May 24, 2019
Natan Schulte def. Bao Yincang by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) in Round 1 (3:03)
Full PFL 2 2019 Results can be found here.
