Alex Oliveira submits KJ Noons with first-round choke
Alex Oliveira was rocked early by a big punch from the former professional boxer KJ Noons in their welterweight clash, Saturday, at UFC Fight Night, but finished the fight himself once it hit the ground. The short-notice replacement had a hard time getting and keeping Noons down, but once he did, the Brazilian made it count, scoring a rear naked choke submission at 2:51 of the first period.
"I knew I couldn't strike with him, so I took it to the ground," he said in his post-fight interview.
Early on, Noons wobbled Oliveira with a right cross on separation from the clinch. The tough self-styled Cowboy regained his balanced and pressed Noons in the clinch, afterwards.
Noons was not easy to take down, but eventually Oliveira dragged him down, from behind. Noons popped right back up, quickly, but Oliveira didn't let go of his body lock.
After being dragged down several more times in succession, Noons finally stayed down. Oliveira then transitioned to the back of the American and locked his forearm under the chin of the striker, securing the choke.
Noons was forced to submit and Oliveira brought his home nation crowd to their feet. "I'm honored to come in last minute," he said.
"I'm a warrior, man. I fought in a different weight class."
The win improves Oliveira's record to 11-2-1. Noons' loss drops his mark to 12-7.
