Fighting in the U.S. for the first time, Brazilian Ciro Rodrigues (21-6) made quite the impression, scoring a first-round stoppage of three-time UFC veteran David Michaud (11-4).
The welterweight affair headlined Friday’s LFA 19 event, which aired on AXS TV from Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Rodrigues opened the contest with a few strong low kicks, while Michaud countered with strong punches up top. A few early clinches proved stalemates, and the pair returned to striking, where Rodrigues absolutely devastated his opponent with a huge left hand. Michaud crashed to the floor, and Rodrigues followed up with a few punches to seal the result at the 1:57 mark of the first frame.
In the night’s co-feature, flyweight Sid Bice (7-1) improved to 2-0 under the LFA banner with a clearcut decision win over Ken Porter (10-4).
It was a quick pace to start, with both men switching stances and moving well to open the contest. Bice got the first advantage, sweeping his opponent off-balance and pushing the action to the floor, where they remained until a stand-up in the closing seconds of the round.
Bice was aggressive again in the second, opening up with a high kick and then a wild rolling escape into a successful takedown, earning his way to top position. Porter eventually escaped and looked to counter but wound up only forcing a few scrambles.
The pattern continued in the third, with Porter looking lively but simply unable to stop the takedown, allowing Bice to cruise to a decision win, 30-27 on all three cards.
LFA 19 results include:
- Ciro Rodrigues def. David Michaud via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:57
- Sid Bice def. Ken Porter via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Marcus Edwards def. Clarence Jordan via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
- Maikel Perez def. Derrick Mandell via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Maurice Greene def. Jermaine McDermott via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 3:06
- Emeka Ifekandu def. Steven Merrill via TKO (punch) – Round 3, 1:25
- J.P. Saint Louis def. Tyler Ray via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 1:44
For more on LFA 19, check out the MMA Events section of the site.