Australian lightweight Tom Nolan got his toughest test to date at UFC 312, as he took on Viacheslav Borshchev, popularly known as “Slava Claus.”
Donning a Santa suit for weigh-ins, Borshchev played into his nickname on Friday, but it wasn’t gifts he was bringing in the cage in Sydney. Nolan, however, was happy to play The Grinch.
The first round saw Nolan jump out to an early lead in significant strikes, out-landing Borshchev by nine in the opening frame. Nolan also attempted two submissions with a minute-thirty five of control time. A strong opening round from the Australian.
In round two, both fighters looked to land at range with Nolan partially connecting with a spinning back fist. In the second half of the round, Nolan landed a takedown against the cage before Borshchev scrambled to his feet. Slava Claus threw a few damaging hooks before the round ended.
Nolan found a home for a clean lead right hook to start the third round. After attempting a takedown, Nolan landed a number of threatening upkicks on Borshchev, allowing him to get back to his feet. Moments later an unintentional groin shot paused the action as Borshchev tried to recover. Back underway, Nolan again tried for a takedown, ending up on his back after great takedown defense by Borshchev. Nolan seemed content to stay on the bottom for the remainder of the round, which was not a good look as the fight went the distance.
After a highly competitive battle Nolan was able to pull out a victory on the judges’ scorecards. All three judges scored the contest in favor of the rising Australian prospect. Two judges had the fight scored 29-28 with one judge having it 30-27. Nolan gave respect to his opponent in his post fight interview with Daniel Cormier saying of Slava Claus “that’s a scary dude” and playing up his kickboxing prowess.
Nolan has now won three in a row and picked up the biggest win of his career in this matchup.
Official Result: Tom Nolan def. Viacheslav Borshchev by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
