UFC 214 Prelims: Ricardo Lamas Dispatches Jason Knight in Sustained Beating

TOTAL CARNAGE!

Ricardo Lamas ends Jason Knight's streak and puts on a show with brutal strikes! #UFC214 https://t.co/w92nfpTdb6

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) July 30, 2017

Ricardo Lamas showed everyone why they call him “The Bully.”

Lamas disposed of Jason Knight with first-round punches and elbows, slowing the Alan Belcher protégé’s rise on the Ultimate Fighting Championship featherweight ladder in the featured UFC 214 “Cormier vs. Jones 2” prelim on Saturday at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. A replacement for the injured Chan Sung Jung, Knight (20-3) succumbed to blows 4:34 into Round 1.

Lamas (18-5) delivered a takedown inside the first minute, extricated himself from an attempted kneebar and hit the gas when the two men returned to their feet. He attacked the body first and then went to the head. Knight stayed upright and absorbed serious damage under a barrage of rights and lefts from the Chicago native. He eventually collapsed to the mat, where Lamas met him with a volley of punches and elbows that forced referee Mike Beltran to act.

Related » UFC 214 Round-by-Round Scoring

Stellar Sterling Zips Past Barao

Onetime Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder Aljamain Sterling crossed a significant name off his list, as he captured a three-round unanimous decision from Renan Barao in a catchweight encounter at 140 pounds. Judges scored it 29-28, 29-27 and 30-26 for Sterling (14-2), a 27-year-old Serra-Longo Fight Team rep who appears to have come of age.

Barao (34-5) started strong but faded late. Sterling overwhelmed him in the second round, where he executed a takedown and advanced to the back before settling in top position and applying his ground-and-pound. Fatigue became more and more of an issue for Barao. Sterling buzzed the tower with a front kick early in the third round and then smothered him in a series of clinches, letting the punches fly along the way.

Once a pound-for-pound mainstay, Barao has lost four of his last six fights.

Ortega Guillotine Taps Carneiro

Former Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion Brian Ortega submitted Renato Carneiro with a third-round guillotine choke in a crackling undercard clash at 145 pounds. Carneiro (11-1-1) conceded defeat 2:59 into Round 3, his six-fight winning streak at an end.

Ortega (12-0) tore into the Brazilian with repeated right hands throughout much of the first round, bloodying his nose in the process. Carneiro made the necessary adjustments and connected with multi-strike combinations in the middle stanza, often punctuating them with kicks to the leg and body. He incorporated a late takedown for good measure. Round 3 was following a similar narrative, until Carneiro shot for another ill-advised takedown. Ortega clamped down on the guillotine, wrapped the Constrictor Team standout in full guard and elicited the tapout.

The 26-year-old Ortega has finished each of his past four opponents in the third round.

Newcomer Kattar Upsets Fili

Team Sityodtong’s Calvin Kattar capitalized on his opportunity as a short-notice replacement for the injured Doo Ho Choi, as he took a unanimous verdict from Andre Fili in a preliminary featherweight confrontation. All three judges scored it the same: 30-27 for Kattar (17-2), who finds himself on a nine-fight winning streak.

Fili (16-5) failed to build any meaningful momentum. Kattar operated behind a probing left jab and routinely drilled the Team Alpha Male rep with jarring right hands. The 29-year-old CES MMA veteran also mixed in takedowns at opportune times and consolidated them with effective ground-and-pound, his burst at the end of the first round turning the tide in his favor. Fili enjoyed some success with kicks to the head and body but spent the majority of his time throwing off the back foot and reaching with his punches, leaving himself open to the counter.

Returning Albu Subdues Curran

Timely takedowns and unbridled punching combinations carried the undefeated Aleksandra Albu to a unanimous decision over Kailin Curran in a three-round undercard scrap at 115 pounds. In her first appearance since April 2015, Albu (3-0) swept the scorecards with matching 29-28 marks from the judges.

Curran (4-5) struggled to gain an early foothold. Albu blasted the Hawaiian with two- and three-punch volleys on the feet and piled up points with ground-and-pound on the mat. In a two-rounds-to-none hole, Curran responded to the urging of longtime trainer Jason Parillo in Round 3. There, she pushed her aggression level beyond Albu’s bounds, had her reeling with an early head kick and stayed one step ahead of the fatigued Russian. Curran closed the round in top position but could not mount enough of an assault to author the finish she needed.

Unbeaten Brooks Edges Shelton

Jarred Brooks made a successful Octagon debut and kept his perfect professional record intact by the narrowest of margins, as he claimed a three-round split decision over Eric Shelton in a preliminary flyweight affair. All three cageside judges scored it 29-28: Brandon Saucedo and Wade Vierra for Brooks, Guilherme Bravo for Shelton.

Brooks (13-0) was at his best in the first round, where he executed multiple takedowns and threatened with two guillotine chokes. Shelton (10-4) never appeared to be in real danger and grew more effective over the final 10 minutes, as he integrated crisp right hands with a sharp jab. He buckled Brooks with a short right uppercut in the third round and connected with a glancing flying knee in the closing seconds, answering a subsequent takedown from his undefeated counterpart with a tight guillotine of his own. However, the remaining time ticked off the clock before he could coax the tap.

Surging Dober Sinks Burkman

Elevation Fight Team export Drew Dober put away “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 2 alum Joshua Burkman in the first round of their preliminary pairing at 155 pounds. Burkman (28-16) bowed out 3:04 into Round 1, as he suffered his fourth straight defeat.

Clean left hands and stinging leg kicks were Dober’s weapons of choice. The 28-year-old cut off Burkman’s bid for a takedown, trapped him in the clinch and eventually had him reaching on off-balance punches. Dober backed him toward the fence and wrapped a rolling overhand left around the Utah native’s defenses. Burkman hit the canvas in a defenseless state, and a follow-up hammerfist prompted the stoppage.

Dober (18-8) has won three of his last four fights.