The leg kicks of Brazil’s Thiago Moises got him back in the win column against short notice debutant Mitch Ramirez at UFC Vegas 88.
Ramirez took over after Brad Riddell pulled out of the Moises fight on short notice, earning him a UFC contract after a loss on the contender series. Moises was once ranked in the stacked lightweight division, but has lost three of five fighs since then.
The fight began with the pair trading low kicks, though Moises would take over with them throughout the fight. Not long passed before Thiago landed a double leg takedown. He dominated the round from top position, passing to back mount with around one minute left in the round. It was all that Ramirez could do to survive to the second round.
The second round began with another quick takedown, but this time Mitch was able to hit a get-up quickly. Unfortunately, that ended up being worse for him as Thiago’s calf kicks left ugly welts on Ramirez’s leg this round, clearly weakening him badly. Moises landed one more takedown in the round but again Mitch got back up and survived to round two.
The last round did not last long, as the very first calf kick of the round dropped Ramirez. When he fell to his back, Moises ran forward with a flurry of more kicks, making Mark Smith step in and stop the fight as he would not have been able to get back up with his leg so brutalized.
Earning his first KO/TKO win in the UFC, Thiago Moises will now look to get back into the rankings, using his microphone time to call out Dan Hooker, citing the pullout of Hooker’s teammate Brad Riddell as a reason that fight should happen. He also announced his support for a social project in his home country of Brazil.
Official Result: Thiago Moises def. Mitch Ramirez by TKO (calf kicks) Round 3, 0:15
