LFA 7 results: Roberto Sanchez comes back to win by choke, sends message to Dana White, UFC

A shot at the LFA strawweight championship does sound nice to Roberto Sanchez and all. But after scoring an exciting submission win over Klayton Mai, “Little Fury” had bigger things on his mind.

How big? Well, first Sanchez wanted the microphone from post-fighter interviewer Ron Kruck, which didn’t go the way he hoped. But Sanchez still got his message across to the man he hopes will be his boss very soon.

“I’ve got a message for (UFC President) Dana White. Because he’s the one who told me ‘I’m interested, get a couple more’ (wins). I’ve done that,” Sanchea said. “Not only did I do that, I did it in Legacy. How many fighters have gone 6-0 only in Legacy and finished five of those with submission?

“I think I’m an exciting fighter. I always push the fight. You’re not going to see me coasting for the win. I fought a really tough guy today.”

Sanchez-Mai served as the main event for LFA 7, which took place at the Arena Theatre in Houston and aired on AXS TV.

Things looked bad early on for Sanchez, who found himself in the undesirable position of one of Mai’s signature chokes. “The Python,” through an error on the part of Sanchez, had a guillotine choke locked in deep for nearly 2 minutes that somehow didn’t end the fight.

Sanchez said he had his chin tucked in and was never in real danger, despite how bad it looked. He wanted Mai to burn out his arms and even considered slamming him as Mai maintained the lock when Sanchez got back to his feet. Sanchez just didn’t know if that was legal.

“He eventually let go, so it worked out,” Sanchez said.

Then in the second round came the impressive sequence to end the fight. Sanchez threw a kick to the body that he immediately followed up with a successful takedown attempt that led to a slick move in taking Mai’s back. From there Sanchez was determined to lock in a rear-naked choke, which he did, forcing the submission at the 2:08 mark.

Sanchez, a native of Texas, would like to fight in the UFC next, and he knows exactly when.

“I would love the opportunity to fight for my Texas fans,” he said. “If you guys want to see me (at UFC 211) in Dallas on May 13, let Dana White know. I’m ready.”

Pilarte ekes out split-decision win over Yanez in co-main event

Domingo Pilarte managed to gut out a hard-fought split-decision bantamweight bout victory over Adrian Yanez, and in Pilarte’s mind, it came down to one thing.

“The takedowns,” Pilarte said after the judges scored it 29-28 twice for him. “The wrestling.”

Indeed, Pilarte had his way taking down Yanez for three rounds. Without them, the judges easily could’ve called the fight differently, especially with the mini-flurry Yanez put on in the final round.

Likely feeling that he was down 2-0 on the scorecards, Yanez put a lot of pressure on Pilarte, who was verbally warned by the referee for stalling. It was in the final minute that Yanez landed a hard head kick that staggered Pilarte against the cage. Pilarte ate some follow-up shots but didn’t panic and took down Yanez to avoid being finished.

“I don’t think it was a split, Pilarte said. “But hey, man, Adrian, I give my hat off to the dude. He’s tough.”

Urbina proclaims himself UFC ready after first-round submission

Gilbert Urbina took his fight against Noel Ligon on one week’s notice, and after making quick work of his opponent, there was one thing on Urbina’s mind.

“I just want to cash my check already.”

Urbina (5-0) looked impressive after catching a kick by Ligon (5-1). He got the fight to the ground and immediately took Ligon’s back, signaling the end. It was quickly over once that happened as Urbina slapped in a tight rear-naked choke to force the tap at the 3:01 mark of the first round.

Urbina had more than just money on his mind after the victory.

“I don’t come from much, guys. We came from nothing, and now we’re doing something,” he said. “What’s next? If the UFC wants to make me an Ultimate Fighter, I’ll take that.”

Urbina, who remains unbeated at 5-0, feels he’s ready for the UFC. He even has opponents in mind.

“I’ll take a Mickey Gall fight, a Sage Northcut fight,” Urbina said. “I’m 20 years old … 5-0 let’s go!”

Perry showboats to narrow win, calls out McGregor, talks big

Dulani Perry said nobody will ever beat him, that he wants Conor McGregor and that the UFC has nobody for him.

All after a sloppy split-decision victory in the opening bout of the night. What else would you expect from the self-proclaimed “Fight God?”

Perry looked very human during his 30-27, 27-30, 29-28 win over Leomana Martinez, laughing, posing and showboating the entire way. It was a mostly uneventful fight. But a win is a win to Perry, and he had plenty on his mind after.

“I’ve been doing this for 26 years. I am The Fight God. I am the god of fighting,” Perry said as the crowd booed. “No fighter on this earth will ever beat me. I do this for the revolution of black people. I’m here to make a change.”

Full LFA 7 results included:

• Robert Sanchez def. Klayton Mai via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 2, 2:08
• Domingo Pilarte def. Adrian Yanez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Gilbert Urbina def. Noel Ligon via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 1, 3:01
• Jason Langellier def. Josh Davila via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Itzel Esquivel def. Brandi Narvaez via submission (armbar) — Round 1, 4:35
• Dulani Perry def. Leomana Martinez via split decision (30-27, 27-30, 29-28)

For more on LFA 7, check out the MMA Events section of the site.