Middleweights Marc-Andre Barriault and Dustin Stoltzfus were featured on the main card of UFC Edmonton on Saturday.
Canada’s “Power Bar” Barriault was looking to shake off losses to Chris Curtis and Joe Pyfer, while Stoltzfus had lost his last outing to Brunno Ferreira. An important fight for the confidence of both men as they had both been on the wrong end of highlight reel stoppages recently.
Dustin landed a sweeping leg kick in the opening seconds of the round that spun his opponent onto his butt. Seizing the moment, Stolzfus jumped on the neck of his opponent who desperately tried to scoot away until Dustin snagged his ankle. To the displeasure of the crowd, Stolzfus gradually flattened Barriault onto the campus and moved to a modified mount position. At the midway point of the round, Barriault was able to get to a hip and desperately slide toward the cage. Dustin utilized a modified d’arce choke to control his opponent, crushing his attempt to return to his feet. With Marc-Andre now on his back, Dustin put began landing forearms, elbows and short punches-grinding on his opponent. Dustin temporarily moved to full mount before Barriault kicked off of the cage and exploded off the canvas. Both men began to swing wildly trying to catch the other in the transitional phase. Bariault initiated the clinch as he could not handle Dustin’s hand speed after a few moments. Stoltzfus landed a short right hand under an incoming punch Barriault. The strike unplugged Barriault, instantly, and he collapsed to the canvas. Dustin followed his opponent to the ground and dribbled his head off the ground raining down a couple of extracurricular strikes before the ref could jump in to stop the beating.
“Theres nothing better than a barn brawl in the corner.” Stoltzfus calmly reflected on the mic in his post-fight interview. Stoltzfus confidently spoke on how he believed in the power in his hands and knew this could be a possible outcome of the fight. Dustin also apologized to the crowd for knocking out their hometown fighter.
Official Results: Dustin Stoltzfus def. Marc-Andre Barriault KO, Round 1, 4:28
