Chris Gutierrez put on one of his best performances at UFC Vegas, earning a rarely seen leg kick TKO in the process.
Featherweights Chris Gutierrez and Vince Morales were tasked with pulling the curtain on UFC Vegas, the UFC’s return to Nevada after nearly three months in exile. With enhanced safety precautions in place, it was a big night for the UFC, who were looking to show the Nevada Athletic Commission that they could safely pull off an event, sans fans, in the midst of a pandemic.
Hosted at the UFC Apex, the promotion’s own venue/production facility, the event saw Gutierrez enter on a two-fight win streak. The Boston-born American, training with Factory X, was looking to improve on that against Morales. The Oregon based wrestler Morales was 1-2 in the UFC entering the night, with his lone win coming against Aiemann Zahabi last year.
Early on in the opening bout at UFC Vegas, the story was the leg kicks of Chris Gutierrez. He’d land one almost immediately after the opening bell, and followed up with several more within the first minute. That allowed him to sneak in a jab as well, keeping Morales on his toes. The end result was Morales with his back to the fence far too much, desperately trying to catch a leg kick. Which created openings for Gutierrez to work with. Morale’s movement was already hampered, and it wasn’t until close to the final minute that he got a clean punch in on Chris Gutierrez.
Still, it was all Gutierrez in the opening round, as he mixed in combos with his kicks, and even tried a few spinning attacks. Morales, meanwhile, had his feet kicked out from under him in the final minute.
Going back to what was flat-out working, Gutierrez continued the leg-heavy attack in the second round. Two minutes in, Morales could barely stand, as Gutierrez had begun attacking the other leg of his opponent. At times, Morales was forced to grab the fence for support. Towards the end of the second, he unwisely waded out into no man’s land in the center of the cage. Gutierrez had already held back, knowing a leg kick TKO was nigh. With Morales nowhere near a fence to fall back on, Gutierrez kicked his legs out from under him once again. The ref had seen enough, and waved it off.
TKO by LEG KICK! 😳
Gutierrez puts on a striking masterclass! #UFCVegas pic.twitter.com/v7UU762Juj
— UFC_AUSNZ (@UFC_AUSNZ) May 30, 2020
The leg kick TKO will be a feather in the cap of Chris Gutierrez, given how few and far between they are. An impressive performance, and early candidate for a Performance of the Night bonus.
Official Result: Chris Gutierrez def. Vince Morales by TKO (leg kicks), Round 2, 4:27
