Welcome to Fightful.com's live coverage & discussion for Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series Episode 7. We'll be bringing you full, round by round coverage of every bout on the card. You can also send in your feedback on our Disqus boards below!
Dana White Awards The Contracts To: Joby Sanchez & Benito Lopez
Kennedy Nzechukwu def. Anton Berzin by split decision (29-27, 28-29, 29-27)
Benito Lopez def. Steven Peterson by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Joby Sanchez def. JP Buys by TKO via strikes (2:28, R2)
Mike Santiago def. Mark Cherico by KO via strikes (2:59, R1) (Quick Result)
Jordan Espinoza def. Nick Urso by submission via d’arce choke (1:23, R1)
Round By Round Recap
Nick Urso vs. Jordan Espinoza
Round One: The round begins with Espinoza attempting a high kick against Urso, Uroso nails Espinoza with his head kick and then he puts him against the cage wall. Urso goes for the takedown and Espinoza cracks him with a right, Espinoza drops Urso with a knee strike and he locks in the d’arce choke and Urso goes out cold.
Official Result: Jordan Espinoza def. Nick Urso by submission via d’arce choke (1:23, R1)
Joby Sanchez vs. JP Buys
Round One: The round begins with Buys scoring a quick takedown on Sanchez and he gets back control, Sanchez sweeps Buys and he manages to get top control. Buys wall walks to his feet and Sanchez holds him against the cage wall, Sanchez scores a takedown on Buys and he gets the half guard. Sanchez starts attacking Buys with some ground and pound, Buys scrambles to his feet and he holds Sanchez against the cage wall. Buys scores another takedown on Sanchez and he gets back control, Sanchez stands up and Buys stays on his back. Buys causes Sanchez to fall to the ground after landing elbow strikes, Sanchez scrambles to get top position as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Buys
Round Two: The round begins with Buys cracking Sanchez with a kick to the midsection, Buys goes for the takedown and Sanchez winds up getting back control. Sanchez transitions to the half guard on Buys while landing ground and pound, Sanchez gets back control and attacks Buys with a plethora of strikes until the referee jumps in.
Official Result: Joby Sanchez def. JP Buys by TKO via strikes (2:28, R2)
Benito Lopez vs. Steven Peterson
Round One: The round begins with Lopez attempting a flying knee strike against Peterson, Lopez catches Peterson with a spinning heel kick to the midsection. Peterson grabs Lopez and he nails him with a few knee strikes, Peterson scores a takedown and Lopez gets right back up. Peterson holds Lopez against the cage wall while landing a few strikes, Lopez responds by cracking Peterson with elbow strikes and knee strikes. Lopez attacks a kicking Peterson with a series of rights, Lopez also cracks a swinging Peterson with a flying knee strike. Peterson starts attacking Lopez with some two punch combinations, Lopez also nails Peterson with a pair of head kicks. Lopez barely misses a spinning heel kick to the head of Peterson, Peterson holds Lopez against the cage wall while landing a few strikes as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Lopez
Round Two: The round begins with Peterson nailing Lopez with a kick to the midsection, Lopez cracks an incoming Peterson with a knee strike. Peterson scores a takedown and Lopez gets right back up to his feet, Peterson comes forward and just swings away at Lopez. Peterson scores a takedown on Lopez and he gets the half guard, Peterson attacks Lopez with some ground and pound. Peterson advances to the side control position against Lopez, Peterson hits Lopez with a few more strikes as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Peterson (Overall Score: 19-19 for Draw)
Round Three: The round begins with Peterson briefly holding Lopez against the cage wall, the fighters separate and Peterson jabs away at Lopez. Lopez rocks Peterson with a multiple punch combination, Peterson grabs Lopez and he holds him against the cage wall again. Lopez tries avoiding the takedown by nailing Peterson with some elbow strikes, the fighters separate and swing away at each other as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Peterson (Final Score: 29-28 for Peterson)
Official Result: Benito Lopez def. Steven Peterson by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Anton Berzin vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu
Round One: The round begins with Berzin attacking Nzechukwu with leg kicks, Berzin then pops Nzechukwu with a few punches. Nzechukwu uses his reach to keep Berzin at bay by throwing jabs, Berzin continues catching Nzechukwu with rights. Berzin starts nailing Nzechukwu with some body shots as well, Nzechukwu pops a swinging Berzin with a straight left. Berzin scores a takedown on Nzechukwu and he gets the full mount, Berzin catches Nzechukwu in the d’arce choke and Nzechukwu scrambles to his feet to escape. Berzon briefly drops a kicking Nzechukwu with a counter right hook, Berzin continues attacking Nzechukwu with counter strikes as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Berzin
Round Two: The round begins with Nzechukwu attacking Berzin with punching combinations, Berzin attacks Nzechukwu with leg kicks and a right to the midsection. Nzechukwu nails a moving Berzin with a front kick to the midsection, Nzechukwu comes forward and attacks Berzin with punching combinations. Berzin picks apart Nzechukwu with a few strikes of his own, Nzechukwu keeps Berzin at range by throwing a plethora of jabs. Berzin goes for a takedown and Nzechukwu blocks it with ease, Berzin then catches Nzechukwu with a kick to the midsection. Berzin continuously attacks Nzechukwu with some body shots, Berzin nails a swinging Nzechukwu with a counter left as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Nzechukwu (Overall Score: 19-19 for Draw)
Round Three: The round begins with Nzechukwu immediately peppering Berzin with some jabs, Berzin goes for the takedown and Nzechukwu blocks it. Berzin pops a swinging Nzechukwu with a counter left, Berzin goes for the takedown and Nzechukwu rocks him with a spinning elbow strike. Nzechukwu continues picking apart Berzin with punching combinations, Berzin continues failing with his takedown attempts against Nzechukwu, Nzechukwu backs Berzin into the cage wall while throwing more strikes. The fighters swing away at each other as the round ends.
Fightful scores the round 10-9 for Nzechukwu (Final Score: 29-28 for Nzechukwu)
Official Result: Kennedy Nzechukwu def. Anton Berzin by split decision (29-27, 28-29, 29-27)
