Nicolas Dalby opened up the UFC 255 ESPN 2 prelims with a decision win over Daniel Rodriguez.
Daniel Rodriguez and Nicolas Dalby opened the ESPN 2 prelims of UFC 255. Rodriguez entered the fight undefeated in the Octagon with three wins in as many fights, stopping two of those opponents. The Contender Series alum has made his presence known early, submitting veteran Tim Means in his promotional debut and knocking out Dwight Grant most recently.
Nicolas Dalby was 1-2-1 in his first stint with the UFC, went off and won the Cage Warriors championship, then returned to the UFC last year. Since then, he’s defeated Alex Oliveira and fell to Jesse Ronson. However, the latter was overturned due to a failed drug test.
Rodriguez put pressure on Dalby immediately, landing some hard leg kicks to the legs of Dalby. Dalby responded back with a hard left hand of his own that stunned Rodriguez for a moment, but he didn’t follow up. Rodriguez had trouble getting into Dalby’s range, as Dalby was on the back foot and was very mobile. Dalby landed a stiff leg kick and Rodriguez responded with a hard shot to the body. Rodriguez seemed to find his range near the end of the round, however, as he started landing combinations on the backing away Dalby, giving him the momentum heading into round two.
Rodriguez started off round two the way he ended round one and fired off a quick combination. Rodriguez then shot in for a takedown but was stuffed, the two separated and Rodriguez went right back to pressure. Dalby looked to attack the legs of Rodriguez, and even shot in on a takedown but was stuffed. Dalby then looked to put the pressure on Rodriguez and looked to land some more stiff leg kicks while mixing in some feints. Dalby ended the round shooting in for a takedown but was stuffed once again.
Dalby opened up the third round the aggressor, a rare change from the first two rounds. Dalby was mixing in leg kicks and jabs and was keeping Rodriguez guessing as he was moving backward. Dalby landed a hard body kick, then a stiff 1-2 before shooting in on a takedown that was stuffed. Dalby shot for another takedown but was stuffed again, Rodriguez shot for a takedown of his own in the final seconds but he was stuffed. Rodriguez ended the fight with a head kick to send the two fighters to the judge’s scorecards.
Nicolas Dalby def. Daniel Rodriguez by Unanimous Decision (29-28 x2, 30-27)
