"Flyweights Lucas Rocha and Stewart Nicoll faced off on the UFC Rio preliminary card on Saturday, as the UFC returned to Brazil for the first time in over a year. The promotion's last visit had come in May of 2024, also to Rio de Janeiro, albeit for a PPV card (UFC 301). Yet with the sport in a rebuilding phase in Brazil, the country that had once seen as many as seven events in a single year (2014) was down to just one per year."
"ROUND 1: Rocha put the pressure on Nicoll right away. They were both twitching and moving a lot, making each other miss. After the opening minute, they started to find their range. Nicoll landed a nice left, but it was the striker Rocha who was doing a better job mixing his targets and making Nicoll guess. The Australian momentarily got Rocha down, but the Brazilian popped back up and landed a clean short uppercut."
"Using the crowd's energy, Rocha was starting to feel himself. He sprawled on another Nicoll takedown attempt and got right back to putting the pressure on the Australian to end the round. ROUND 2: Rocha wasn't going to change what looked like a winning recipe in the opening round. Combining non-stop forward motion with a nice variation of head and body shots, the Brazilian was starting to really take control of the fight."
The UFC returned to Brazil for the first time in over a year, following a May 2024 visit. Brazil's MMA calendar has shrunk from as many as seven events in 2014 to roughly one per year. Both Lucas Rocha and Stewart Nicoll entered the Rio prelim seeking their first UFC wins after losses in their debuts. Rocha imposed relentless forward pressure, mixed head and body strikes, and defended takedowns effectively. Nicoll showed heart but struggled to implement takedowns or keep Rocha at range. Rocha's body shots and cage control increasingly overwhelmed Nicoll through two rounds, with the third round opening similarly contested.
Read at Cageside Press
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