The unheralded Carlos Diego Ferreira (7-0) was overmatched in terms of experience against longtime veteran Carlo Prater (31-14-1). But as he proved in a decision win, he was not outclassed in skill.
The bout served as the main event of Friday’s Legacy Fighting Championship 20 event, which took place at American Bank Center in Corpus Christi, Texas. The night’s main card aired on AXS TV.
The scrappy Ferreira took advantage of an early mistake by Prato and flashed a speedy transition to his opponent’s back. But choke attempt after choke attempt fell short, and attempts at moving to an armbar or leglock also failed as Prater showed ample defense.
Prater answered on the feet in the second round, but he struggled to land flush, and Ferreira did score an impressive hip toss.
In the third, Ferreira left no doubt he would claim the upset win, controlling the grappling exchanges and preventing Prater from mounting any offense. In the end, all three judges gave the underdog all three rounds, and Ferreira was awarded a unanimous decision win.
In the night’s co-feature UFC and WEC veteran Damacio Page (16-8) snapped a four-fight losing streak in impressive fashion with a first-round knockout of the previously undefeated Patrick Ybarra (5-1).
Submission ace Ybarra looked for the takedown early and often, but Page successfully defended each attempt and worked his hands as the two stood toe-to-toe. As Page seized the momentum, a heavy bodyshot tagged the body before a devastating left hand sent Ybarra to the floor and ended the fight at the 1:57 mark of the opening round.
Pecero, Ozkilic impress in stoppage wins
Featherweight Chris Pecero (9-5) picked up a second-round TKO win by showing no mercy to opponent Adam Schindler (10-6), who appeared to injure his right knee in a back-and-forth opening round. Schindler tried to fight through the pain, but Pecero picked up on the limp and viciously attacked the wounded limb with snapping low kicks and brutal knees against the fence in a clinch. Schindler doubled over in pain, and the bout was waved off 62 seconds into the second frame.
Turkish flyweight Alp Ozkilic (8-1) picked up the biggest win of his career, and he did it in stunning fashion, stopping Antonio Banuelos (20-10-1) in just 30 seconds. As Banuelos looked to attack in the opening frame, he walked into a left hand that sent him crashing to the floor. Ozkilic followed with punches to seal the deal.
Garcia outlasts Schnell in oddly scored affair
In the night’s first main-card contest, Matt Schnell (2-1) survived some difficult positioning in the early going, as Elias Garcia (4-0) looked to finish the fight with a choke. Schnell rebounded for his own back control for almost the entirety of the second round, but the action took its toll on him in the final frame, when Garcia seized the momentum with effective sprawl and brawl and work from top position.
In the end, Garcia did enough to take the decision, though it came with a rather odd majority-decisions score of 28-28, 29-28 and 30-27.
The evening’s results included:
MAIN CARD
PRELIMINARY CARD
For more on Legacy FC 20, check out the MMA Events section of the site.
(Pictured: Damacio Page)
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