Australia’s Jake Matthews made the trip to Salt Lake City for UFC 291, paired up in a welterweight match-up with Darrius Flowers.
The preliminary card match-up found Matthews looking to get back into the win column, while Flowers, a Contender Series product, was making his UFC debut — the lone debuting fighter on Saturday’s card.
Flowers applied heavy pressure out of the gate, as debut jitters may have played a role in his output early on while Matthews continued to land counters and various kicks to the mid-section of his opponent. Flowers managed to take Matthews down to the mat as the round came to a close, controlling his opponent on the ground for over a minute and possibly stealing the first round of his UFC career on the judges’ scorecards.
Matthews landed what seemed to be a clean teep to the lower abdomen of his opponent, sending Flowers crashing to the canvas just moments into the second frame. The ref ruled it to be a cup shot, allowing Flowers time to recover before the action ensued once again.
We got an Oscar contender (Darrius Flowers)#UFC291 pic.twitter.com/hveU9oLvPn
— Memeing MMA (@MemeingMMA) July 30, 2023
“Beast Mode” shot for a takedown halfway through the second round – stuffed by Matthews. The Australian welterweight proceeded to beat down his opponent with heavy ground and pound blows. Flowers had no choice but to give up his back, leading to an impressive rear-naked choke submission victory for Matthews.
“The Celtic Kid” is back in the win column, weathering an early storm and showcasing both his striking and grappling skills en route to his 12th victory inside the UFC octagon.
Flowers stepped up to take this fight on short notice and fought hard. It will be interesting to see whether the UFC decides to keep him around, given the weirdness of the foul, but it’s likely he gets at least another shot.
Official Result: Jake Matthews def. Darius Flowers by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 2, 2:37
