UFC 203: Nik Lentz Gets Passed Michael McBride
UFC 203’s second veteran vs. debuting fighter match ended with the veteran’s hand raised again, as Nik Lentz TKOd Michael McBride.
It wasn’t pretty, like most Nik Lentz fights, but the UFC veteran got the job done, earning his first finish since 2012.
Nik Lentz last fought in December, and was set to return against the very dangerous Russian Mairbek Taisumov. Fortunately for Lentz, Taisumov fell victim to visa issues again, and was replaced by Michael McBride.
McBride is the polar opposite of Taisumov (due to his poor striking skills mainly), doing most of his work on the ground with all of his wins coming via submission, while Taisumov knocks people into other dimensions.
Lentz is the the kind of fighter that is a nightmare for debuting competitors, utilizing constant pressure on both the feet and on the mat. That pressure earned Lentz the victory.
The first round featured plenty of success for Lentz, who utilized a ducking right hand many times against the inexperience striker. Whenever McBride pushed forward too aggressively, Lentz responded with a takedown attempt.
One of those takedown attempts ended up being a great slam for Nik Lentz. McBride was desperate for a heel hook, but Lentz pulled away after a brief struggle. Lentz began to batter McBride on the feet, and McBride shot out of desperation. Lentz turned it into a takedown of his own, and gained full mount and back control before ending the round that he clearly won.
Lentz came forward aggressively to start the second round and McBride looked exhausted. However, he had enough in the tank to drop Lentz with a punch then take his back! Lentz defended perfectly though, and ended up taking the back of McBride shortly after. McBride had little left in the tank to defend, and Lentz punched away to finish his opponent late in the second round.
It was a totally expected performance by Nik Lentz, which makes a possible next opponent tough to say. The timeframes of Taisumov and Lentz are now thrown off, so we’ll see what Sean Shelby has planned.
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