Bonus Coverage | UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Costa

What a debut for Juan Diaz.

The Dana White’s Contender Series alum had the odds stacked against him against fellow DWCS standout Malcolm Wellmaker, who had finished three straight opponents before suffering his first UFC loss to Ethyn Ewing.

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After a highly competitive opening round, Diaz secured a takedown late in the second and immediately began hunting for a submission. Diaz eventually took Wellmaker’s back and locked in a rear-naked choke, forcing the tap in an impressive UFC debut.

Performance Of The Night: Alice Ardelean

The second strawweight bout of the night saw Alice Ardelean secure her third consecutive victory with a sneaky submission win over Brazil’s Polyana Viana. Ardelean came out aggressively in the opening round, repeatedly letting her hands go and landing several heavy shots, including one that dropped Viana to a knee.

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The fight hit the mat in the second round, where Ardelean found herself caught in Viana’s body triangle. She used the position to trap Viana’s foot between their bodies and apply immense pressure, eventually forcing the tap with the first Capsule Lock submission in UFC history.

Fight Of The Night: 

Less than two full rounds were needed for Dooho Choi’s matchup with Daniel Santos to earn Fight of the Night honors. Despite not competing for more than a year, Choi looked as sharp and comfortable as ever inside the Octagon while collecting his third straight victory.

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The fight was explosive and competitive on the feet from the opening bell, with Santos nearly doubling Choi’s output in the first round. In the second, however, Choi began to wear Santos down before unleashing a brutal combination capped off by a devastating body shot that folded Santos to the canvas.