At least, the bantamweight fight would have been held at bantamweight, had Argueta not missed weight by two and a half pounds, necessitating a catchweight.

The fight started with both fighters going to work early. Haddon was the one landing but Argueta slowed it down with an expected takedown. Haddon did a great job of getting back to his feet though. He’d let his hands go and again Argueta would press him against the cage. Argueta would transition to the back standing but Haddon was doing all the right things and escaped. Haddon was just putting his hands on Argueta at space. Combinations to the body and head were putting Argueta in danger. Argueta tried a double leg but Haddon sprawled upping his confidence. A lot of energy was being expended by both guys. Haddon was really busy with his hands ripping the body frequently. Argueta would throw back but Haddon was the one landing all the significant strikes. The action-packed round ended with Argueta landing some nice punches along the cage.

Following round one, in round two Haddon took center cage and landed a beautiful knee to a right hand. Rapid output and combinations followed from Haddon. Unexpectedly Haddon completed a really nice scoop takedown. Argueta moved to his knees and got to his feet but with Haddon on his back. Argueta walked to the cage and fought the legs getting top position. Against the cage Haddon was able to set up and get to his feet. Not off the cage fully as Argueta still had control of the back. Argueta tried another takedown but Haddon got the proper space. When that space came Haddon landed a brutal knee as Argueta advanced. Argueta, super tough, still continued to march forward. The problem was Haddon was a level above on the feet. In the closing seconds of the round Haddon landed a big right hand. Both men had tired but it seemed like Argueta was hanging by a thread.

The final round started care of some jabs from Haddon. Haddon, although wild at points, had his boxing skills on display. His jab, one-two, and counters were there all day. Haddon was landing with both hands making if difficult for Argueta in the striking exchanges. Argueta would have success against the cage with the dirty boxing. He wanted the takedown though and when it didn’t come Haddon was letting it fly in space. When Haddon would press Argueta against the cage the combinations to the body and head were landing from Haddon. Argueta got in deep on a takedown and although he got it Haddon got right back up.

Argueta was aggressive to get it back down but the cage wrestling of Haddon continued to hold up. In the final minute, both men were tired but both showed a lot of heart. Argueta continued to work the takedowns but the defense from Haddon was perfect to end the fight. Come the scorecards, to no one’s surprise, Haddon had the unanimous decision win.

Official Result: Cody Haddon def. Dan Argueta by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

The post Cody Haddon Debuts with Decision Win Over Dan Argueta at UFC Vegas 98 appeared first on Cageside Press.

The bantamweight bout arrived early on Saturday’s preliminary card and found Matusmoto boasting a perfect 14-0 record in his promotional debut.

It wasn’t to be for Dan. Jean Matsumoto came away with an impressive finish at UFC Vegas 90, putting away Arguetta with an arm-in guillotine in the second round. The bout opened up with Dan shooting and landing an early takedown after a tense face-off, working in right hands while Matsumoto looked to post up.

Eventually, the Brazilian did just that, moving back to his feet where he was answered with a volley of right hands from Arguetta. As for Dan, he went right back to the takedown, grounding Matsumoto moments later.

This time, Arguetta made it to mount, but Matsumoto swept and wound up back on his feet! From there, Matsumoto took the back of Arguetta while standing, then began to land hammerfists. Arguetta attempted to dump his opponent, but had no luck there, instead finding himself dragged down — though Arguetta would quickly work back to his feet.

Matsumoto then began looking for a takedown of his own, and upon being denied, finished the first frame with a high kick.

Round two saw Arguetta fall back on his gameplan of takedowns and damage. Matsumoto found success with his counterstriking, and later in the round landed a takedown of his own. They would end up back on the feet, trading again when Arguetta shot in on another takedown. That opened up the opportunity for Jean Matsumoto to lock up the guillotine, and he had it! 15-0 for Jean Matsumoto.

Official Result: Jean Matsumoto def. Dan Arguetta by submission (guillotine choke), Round 2, 4:59

The post UFC Vegas 90: Jean Matsumoto Moves to 15-0 In Win Over Dan Argueta appeared first on Cageside Press.

Both men entered the fight off single wins, with Johns the more experienced of the two.

To begin the fight Johns looked to put on the forward pressure and landed himself a right hand, but Argueta soon after shot for a single leg takedown. From there, he pushed Johns to the cage and carried on looking for the takedown, but Johns’ back presented itself to Argueta who began climbing and locking in the body triangle. “The Determined” looked to then sink the arms under the chin of “Chapo” and did well to maintain the body triangle with Johns staying on his feet. The 29-year-old didn’t maintain the position on his feet for long though and Argueta got him to the ground whilst still on his back. Johns did terrifically to reverse the position though and shortly after was back on his feet. Argueta got back up and seemingly looked to be quite tired. Despite that he continued the forward pressure but found himself getting counter punched. “Chapo” soon after landed a takedown of his own but nothing culminated from it. The round finished with both having decent success throughout.

Argueta looked to have regained some composure as in round two he didn’t look to fatigued. Neither did Johns though who almost straightaway shot for a level change that landed successfully. The 30-year-old though looked to sink in a guillotine from the bottom position, but Johns’ defence held up. Johns decided it was time for him to try and score some damage and tried to reign down a flurry of strikes but nothing really came from it.

The two made it back to their feet and as they exited the clinch, Argueta landed a big knee up the middle. Johns looked wobbly but managed to land a counter right hand that seemed to wobble him back. The Jackson Wink product decided he wanted to flip the momentum of the fight by utilising his grappling advantage where he successfully landed another takedown. Again they made it to their feet but similarly it was followed by another Argueta level change attempt. For around 30 seconds he seemingly hung onto the legs of Johns as he couldn’t land the takedown. Once they made it back out to the centre of the cage, Johns seemed to land another few big shots to the chin of Argueta.

Somehow the fight made it to round three and again Argueta ate a few big punches in the early proceedings. Despite that, Argueta continued to try and move forward even though e was getting popped with counter shots throughout. The whole time, Argueta looked to make Johns uncomfortable with the pressure, but Johns continued to shine like a diamond with his counter striking. Argueta decided that just two minutes into the round he wanted to try and get it back to the ground, but he was unsuccessful and Johns continued to land huge shots.

Around three and a half minutes in Johns landed a huge uppercut which backed Argueta up. Johns then landed a takedown of his own and controlled on top for a large majority of the last minute. Argueta decided he wasn’t going out without a fight though and looked to sink in another guillotine. Nothing was doing for “The Determined,” but you can’t question his nickname after the 15 minute performance.

Official Result: Miles Johns def. Dan Argueta by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

The post UFC Vegas 79: Miles Johns Edges Dan Argueta In Exciting Decision appeared first on Cageside Press.

Argueta (9-1) had opponent Ronnie Lawrence in a guillotine choke when ref Keith Peterson checked to see if Lawrence was still conscious. Lawrence, as was clear to anyone watching at home, was still alert and attempting to fight off the choke — but Peterson got his wires crossed and waved off the fight.

Lawrence instantly protested, and Argueta could but watch as instant replay confirmed the error — resulting in a no contest. Under Nevada regulations, a fight cannot be restarted once it is stopped for review.

“I was about to get that finish,” Argueta told media outlets including Cageside Press following the fight. “I threw that shallow guillotine on him, obviously it’s one of my tricks and I held it, I held it— when I felt the ref pulling him off, I was like ‘damn, he’s already asleep. I didn’t even start the crank yet!'”

There’s two chances to tap from that submission, noted Argueta. “It’s suffocating him, and then all I have to do is kind of crank it a little bit, and usually I’m getting just about everyone to tap.”

“That was really unfortunate. That was quite a few months of work. That was about 14 months, since I was at bantamweight. That’s the weight class that all you guys wanted me to come into the UFC at. And that’s what I can do in, I don’t even know, two minutes? Two and a half minutes?”

Argueta stepped into the UFC on short notice as a featherweight, and stayed there for his last fight, a win over Nick Aguirre. Saturday marked the first fight at 135 in the company for The Ultimate Fighter 29 alum.

“I want to run it back,” Argueta said backstage, taking the high road when it came to the referee’s error. “I think it’s the same outcome, minus — okay, Keith has a hard job. I’m not even going to sh*t on him. I get it, his arm was up, I watched it, it looked like he could have been sleeping when his arm’s up, because I did have his shoulders kind of pinned up like that.”

As bad as Argueta no doubt feels for himself, he also felt for the fans watching. “I can’t really apologize. I wish I could apologize to all the fans who wanted to either see me get my hand raised, see me walk off with an L, or just wanted to just watch me fight in general. I apologize to all those fans, that’s a tough one to swallow, and I’m just grateful to the UFC that I even have an opportunity to go try something like that.”

In the fight itself, Argueta said he was “the most focused I’ve ever felt in my life. I felt amazing. It’s just tough when things don’t go your way, and I had so many plans for myself this year, and that was the first hurdle. And someone took it from me. That hurts.”

Though the option to restart the action doesn’t exist in Nevada, Dan Argueta would have been all for it. “I would have liked that,” he said. The 29-year old also has no qualms about Peterson reffing another one of his bouts.

“No. He doesn’t want to make that mistake twice. I would trust him.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 75 post-fight press conference appearance by Dan Argueta above.

The post UFC Vegas 75: Dan Argueta Stays Classy After No Contest, Wants to Run It Back appeared first on Cageside Press.

Lawrence was coming off of his first UFC loss, a decision against top prospect Saidyokub Kahkramonov, while Argueta was coming off of his first UFC win, a decision against Nick Aguirre after losing his debut on short notice and up a weight class. Both fighters on paper seemed to have well-matched and well-rounded skillsets so although the fight was only the second of the night it was one that diehard fans were looking out for.

Argueta shot a takedown in the opening seconds of the fight and managed to get Lawrence to the ground, but Ronnie gave up his back to get to the feet. Argueta dragged him back down but could not get both hooks in. The scramble was all over the place but eventually Dan got into top half. Argueta pulled guard on a guillotine as Lawrence got to his feet. Ronnie fought it off but Argueta looked to mount him. Ronnie Lawrence’s hand seemed poised to tap. The referee, Keith Peterson, checked his hand to see if he was conscious and then stopped the fight. Ronnie Lawrence immediately protested, showing he was clearly conscious. The replay also showed that he did not tap.

Bit of controversy here at the APEX! 😳

Dan Argueta gets the first-round guillotine over Ronnie Lawrence…but was it a tap?! #UFCVegas75 pic.twitter.com/T5khWCW7Ui

— UFC (@ufc) June 17, 2023

A light came on indicating that the review official was reviewing the fight. All those watching waited with baited breath to see what the result would be. The fight could not be restarted under Nevada regulations, but it could be overturned to a no contest. Jerin Valel was on the review official for this one, a position which usually has no importance but took on incredible importance for this fight.

Ref Keith Peterson appeared to be apologizing to both fighters, which gave fans an indication of what the announcement would be when cage announcer Joe Martinez grabbed the mic and stepped into the octagon to announce the result. As expected, it was a no contest (technically a No Decision). It was unfortunate end for both parties, but especially Dan Argueta who was winning the fight cleanly up until that point and may have still forced Lawrence to submit. With luck, they can run this one back soon.

Official Result: Ronnie Lawrence vs. Dan Argueta Ends in No Decision (referee error), Round 1, 2:20

The post UFC Vegas 75: Dan Argueta vs Ronnie Lawrence Ends in No Decision Due to Referee Error appeared first on Cageside Press.

“I’m still learning how to do this, man. That was only my ninth pro MMA fight. Third fight in the Apex. I still feel so new to this,” Argueta (9-1) told media outlets including Cageside Press, following a decision victory against Nick Aguirre. “I actually sent a picture to Cub [Swanson] a couple days ago, before he got out here, and it was his record when he was my age, when he was 29 years old. He beat, I’m gonna go over the list: [Charles] Oliveira, [Dustin] Poirier, and [Dennis] Siver. And who’s the Australian? And Ross Pearson. All in one year when he was my age. And I look at that and I’m like ‘holy crap, I still have a ways to go.'”

Pearson is actually English, but we’ll forgive Argueta that slip coming straight out of a fight. And point taken: Argueta is just starting his climb. We’re yet to see him at his best, and he would later admit “I haven’t even seen me at my best yet.”

Argueta believes, essentially, that he’s been fighting down to his opponents. “You fight at the level that, well me, I don’t know why I’m like that, but I fought at the level that was presented to me. I know I’m better than that, I’ve seen myself better than that, my coaches have seen me better than that. I’m just happy I got the win. I wanted the finish. I owe my dad, so I wanted that finish. I wanted to the bonus. But that’s how it crumbles, I’m just happy I got the win.”

What comes next for Dan Argueta? Will he drop back down to bantamweight, or fight at featherweight again, as he did against Aguirre? Both are possible, but a return may not be soon.

“I don’t know if everyone knows this, but I just had shoulder surgery. I am five months out from shoulder surgery,” Argueta revealed, later stating that arthritis, combined with a slam from Damon Jackson tearing a bicep and separating his shoulder, was the cause of the impairment. “Cub was about to not let me do this, but I was begging.”

Argueta later added that “There was a lot that was limiting me out there tonight. I had one arm again. We’ll see. We’ll see. We’ll talk to my team, talk to the doctors, and get everything sorted.” But despite the ongoing shoulder issues, “The Determined” is not “The Concerned” when it comes to his future. “The worse that can happen, I’ll probably have shoulder replacements when I’m Cub’s age,” he quipped.

That got a laugh from Swanson.

Watch the full UFC Vegas 67 post-fight media appearance by Dan Argueta above.

The post UFC Vegas 67: Dan Argueta Admits “I’m Still Learning How to Do This” After First UFC Win appeared first on Cageside Press.

Aguirre was undefeated through seven fights as a pro, while Argueta was looking to bounce back from the first loss of his professional career.

It what turned out to be a grueling, wrestling-heavy affair, Argueta proved determined to take home the W.

Argueta came forward quick with a leg kick and a punch to close the distance. Not even a minute into the fight Argueta got a single leg and slung Aguirre to the mat. Aguirre used a leg lock to create scrambles. Argueta was rolling well with him but eventually, Aguirre took the back. It seemed like Aguirre was going to hold on to the position but Argueta turned toward him to get on top. Argueta was staying busy on top with short elbows and used it to take the back. The round ended with Argueta on the back of Aguirre halfway.

In round two Argueta started off by coming forward with leg kicks and looping punches. He used his striking to close the distance and clinch up. Aguirre did separate and landed a few good long punches. Argueta did look winded but landed a few heavy outside leg kicks and re-clinched up. Aguirre got back to space briefly before Argueta got him to the cage and changed level to get his second takedown. Argueta took the back and went after the RNC. It looked tight for a second but Aguirre escaped. The round finished with Argueta on top dominating.

In the final round, Aguirre obviously needed a stoppage. Argueta was very sloppy with his striking but used his hands and pressure to close the distance. Aguirre continued to struggle to put anything together in the striking. Argueta crashed the pocket recklessly but still got in on the legs for the takedown. Aguirre did create a nice scramble but Argueta had heavy top control. With nothing left in the tank, Aguirre couldn’t get Argueta off him. Argueta ended the fighting dumping Agurrie on his head for a final takedown.

Official Result: Dan Argueta def. Nick Aguirre by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

The post UFC Vegas 67: Dan Argueta Overwhelms Debuting Nick Aguirre appeared first on Cageside Press.

Nick “Slick” Aguirre
Standing at Five-foot-nine
Fighting at 145 lbs (featherweight)
26-years-old
Fighting out of Oswego, Illinois, US
Training out of Valle Flow Striking
A pro record of 7-0
3 KO/TKOs, 4 Submissions

How will Aguirre fare in the UFC:

Aguirre is getting this fight on short notice, but it’s a surprise he was called up so soon. Talent-wise, just about everyone Aguirre has beaten you could find pumping gas at your local gas station. He has stood out against his competition however, finishing every opponent he’s faced in the first round.

Aguirre reminds you of a lot of fighters in the UFC in terms of style. He’ll remind you of Steven Koslow who debuted and fought on the last card of 2022. That style would be a one-dimensional fighter, who is primarily a grappler. A slick grappler but one whose wrestling is suspect. Also, his cardio is unproven just like Koslow, and it was exposed in his fight.

With all those first round finishes, that remains a question mark here.

It’s all up in the air how good Aguirre is. His grappling is definitely good but his wrestling is in doubt. It’s looked alright in the lead-up until now. I don’t expect it to look as good as he fights higher-level competition. Who knows how good his grappling is too because he’s submitting lower-tier guys. Aguirre is uncomfortable on the feet so when he can’t get those takedowns he’s in trouble.

How he matches up against Argueta:

Argueta’s constant forward pressure, his wrestling, and jiu-jitsu are going to give Aguirre problems. I think the strength of Argueta will be too much for Aguirre. Both men are grapplers first and foremost but Argutea I would think has the better striking. Argueta has the better wrestling as well. I wouldn’t be totally surprised at an upset but I like the more battle-tested Argueta in this one.

The post Welcome to the UFC: Nick Aguirre appeared first on Cageside Press.

Facing the media for just a few minutes, Swanson was silent, while Argueta joked that his teammate wanted to test him, and see if he answered the media’s questions correctly.

“Cub’s trying to relax his voice a little bit. He’s had a lot of phone calls and interviews to do,” said Argueta. “So I decided to fill in; he wanted to test me, and he wanted to see if I answered everything correctly for him.”

Swanson is making the cut to 135lbs for the first time this week, which may be the real reason behind his silence on Wednesday. Cutting weight is never fun, and can make even veteran fighters surly come media day. As for the cut, Argueta said on Swanson’s behalf that “I think overall, he felt like he needed that next challenge. We keep on talking about that. Sacrifice a little bit more for the sport, and that’s making that drop to 35.”

In terms of physical feeling, “he’s in better standing than I ever am when I’m at 135,
Argueta added. “His weight’s looking better than mine. I think we made the right decision still.”

Cub Swanson faces Jonathan Martinez in a bantamweight match-up at UFC Vegas 62 on Saturday, October 15, 2022 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The post Dropping to 135, Cub Swanson Has Dan Argueta Fill In For Him At UFC Vegas 62 Media Day appeared first on Cageside Press.

Arugeta (8-1) stepped up on short notice to take on Jackson at the UFC APEX, but came away with a decision loss.

“It was amazing. It was exactly what I thought it was going to feel like. I’ve been working really hard just to get here. I know the work here’s going to get harder, and I’m just excited,” Argueta told Cageside Press at UFC X on Friday.

Argueta moved up to featherweight, one class up from his own, in order to fight Jackson. The natural bantamweight now looks to make an impact now that he’s on the roster.

“I always knew I was going to be a part of it. I knew I was going to be a part of it. Now it’s going to be, where am I going to make the most noise? We took the short notice fight at 145 against a ranked fighter, and I made some noise. Now I get to go down to my weight class and I was to see what everyone else thinks,” Argueta said.

“It won’t be easy but there’s a reason that weight class (135) is one of the toughest, and now I’m a part of it.”

Hardcore fans that have followed Argueta throughout his pro career before the UFC are used to his long hair in and out of the cage. With growth comes change and Argueta has already made some changes coming into the UFC.

“I’m not an advocate of haircuts. I get haircuts quite frequently. I wear button-up shirts, I wear jorts,” Argueta laughed. “Not much has changed in my everyday life. I’m still training everyday. I’m still being hungry, I’m studying, I’m watching myself. I think the only thing that’s changed is my personal life. My girlfriend and I now have a little bit of relief. She’s in dental school.”

“I was trying to make it to that list to be up there with the top guys on the planet, and we’re here.”

Watch the entire interview and Dan Argueta playing a round of “Heads Up” above. UFC X continues in Las Vegas leading up to Saturday night’s UFC 276.

The post Dan Argueta Ready To Make Some Noise At 135, Relieved To Finally Make UFC appeared first on Cageside Press.