Yair Rodriguez got what he wanted, just not the way he expected it.
The UFC featherweight contender defeated Brian Ortega in the main event of Saturday’s UFC on ABC 3 after a shoulder injury put an end to the bout in the very first round.
In the official result, Rodriguez (14-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) defeated Ortega (15-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) by TKO (injury) at the 4:11 mark of Round 1. The featherweight bout was the UFC on ABC 3 main event at UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y.
The bout was quick, but Rodriguez clearly did the most damage while it lasted.
The Mexican star was tagging Ortega with leg kicks and shots to the head and body. Ortega did press and control Rodriguez for some time against the cage. He shortly after got a takedown. Rodriguez would attempt an armbar and as Ortega slipped out of the submission, he popped his shoulder. Ortega immediately fell back to the canvas in pain, and the fight came to an end.
With this win, Rodriguez is back in the win column after coming off a decision loss to former champion Max Holloway back in November. Rodriguez is 3-1 with one no contest in his past five UFC outings.
Meanwhile, Ortega is now on a two-fight losing streak. This is the first time in his career that he has back-to-back defeats. Ortega entered UFC on ABC 3 on the heels of a decision loss to Alexander Volkanovski in a featherweight title bout last September. This was the first time Ortega suffered a loss outside a championship fight.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ABC 3 results include:
- Yair Rodriguez def. Brian Ortega via TKO (injury) – Round 1, 4:11
- Amanda Lemos def. Michelle Waterson via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 1:48
- Li Jingliang def. Muslim Salikhov via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:38
- Matt Schnell def. Su Mudaerji via technical submission (triangle choke) – Round 2, 4:24
- Shane Burgos def. Charles Jourdain via majority decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28)
- Lauren Murphy def. Miesha Tate via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Punahele Soriano def. Dalcha Lungiambula via knockout (punches) – Round 2,
- Ricky Simon def. Jack Shore via submission (arm-triangle choke) – Round 2, 3:28
- Bill Algeo def. Herbert Burns via TKO (retirement) – Round 2, 1:50
- Dustin Jacoby def. Da-un Jung via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 3:13
- Dustin Stoltzfus def. Dwight Grant via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Emily Ducote def. Jessica Penne via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 3.
