Two-time Ultimate Fighter champion Brad Katona looked to build off that unique accomplishment as he took on prospect Garrett Armfield.
Katona spent four years outside the UFC and won four fights before being coached by Michael Chandler to another Ultimate Fighter title. For his first fight on his new UFC contract, Katona got the gift of a featured prelim on a numbered card in his home country of Canada. Across from him stood Garrett Armfield, a fellow bantamweight with a 9-3 record, including 1-1 in the UFC. Despite his inexperience, Armfield looked seasoned beyond his years and rode his sharp striking to a decision victory.
Katona worked from the outside in the early going as they traded strikes, but nothing thrown all that hard landed except for an accidental groin strike, which caused the fight to be paused temporarily as Armfield recovered. Katona began to take the initiative and press forward when the fight resumed, but Garrett countered with a good body-head combo as the biggest strike through the first half of round one. Katona looked for a takedown from a body-lock but Armfield was smart to it and defended. However Katona was able to get to a good grappling position when Armfield accidentally presented his back and Brad jumped on it. Garrett avoided getting his back taken completely, but Katona did attritional damage while controlling him with a tight rear body-lock. Katona got away with a fence grab and landed a knee to the head while maintaining his control right up to the buzzer.
In the second round Katona increased his aggression and threw punches in bunches every time he engaged with Armfield. Armfield had sharp counters, but Katona’s combination work meant that he could usually land even as he ate a counter. Armfield’s defensive footwork was his most important skill as he used it to avoid Katona’s rushes, pick his own spots for offense, and stay ahead of any takedown attempts. Katona’s body work and weaponization of his own cardio seemed to begin to wear on Armfield, but Garrett still looked sharp overall and maintained a numerical striking lead as a second close round drew to an end.
After two rounds the score could have been almost anything, though Armfield had landed the more damaging shots overall. Katona stayed aggressive and found Armfield’s chin early with a good right, then took him down from the body-lock. However Garrett Armfield showed his wrestling skills as he got his base and built his way up to stand against the fence. Katona still pursued the takedown there, but to no avail, and Armfield broke away halfway through the third. Brad dug to the body with hooks and really pushed the pace, then changed levels for a double leg which caught Armfield by surprise. He passed to half-guard at first but Armfield again got to his feet with the help of the fence. Katona’s clinch work was excellent though, and he controlled Armfield while doing damage for a while. With twenty seconds left they got back to space; Armfield shot a takedown and Katona defended in time to land one final punch before the fight ended.
A tense Toronto crowd awaited a close decision which could go either way. Bruce Buffer read the official decision; the scorecards were unanimous 29-28 for Garrett Armfield, as the American went into Canada and upset the Winnipeg-based Brad Katona.
Official Result: Garrett Armfield def. Brad Katona by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
