C4 MMA fighter Luke Morris has added the Unarmed Combat Unleashed flyweight title to his current Nitro title, when he defeated Edwin Arana on Saturday night.
The two clashed in the main event of Unarmed Combat Unleashed 3 which was held at Hegvold Stadium in Rockhampton, Queensland.
From the opening buzzer, former Brace champion Arana quickly pressed the action and took the fight to the ground. Morris transitioned to the back where he was able to get his hooks in. Arana though remained calm and escaped, forcing Morris to regain full-guard. A bit of inactivity forced the referee to stand both fighters up. Fighters again clinched, as Morris took the back again. This time he looked to transition to an armbar before the buzzer went for the end of the round.
A large portion of round two was spent with both fighters battling for position against the cage as neither was willing to give-up too much as the pace slowed down. Arana did look for a guillotine early in the round but Morris quickly sniffed it out.
In the last round, Morris was on the front foot pushing the action against the cage and as he separated he landed a nice combination. It would be Arana who would look for the takedown next, as Morris looked to counter with a switch. Arana though got the single-leg and quickly went on the attack, landing short punches and looking to pass the guard. This allowed Morris to escape out, and with Arana on all fours, Morris landed the occasional shot as he tried to get his hooks in. When that failed, Morris landed a series of strikes as the buzzer ended the fight.
The judges decision came back unanimous with Morris taking home his third straight win via unanimous decision 30-27, 30-27 & 29-28.
An unfortunate injury while warming up forced Mick Bosworth to withdraw from his bout against Sam Kitchener which was scheduled as the semi-main event. Bosworth reportedly injured his ribs in the lead-up to the bout, however was determined to still fight before a pre-fight warm-up further injured the rib, forcing him out. Kitchener was very sportsmanlike and understanding as he addressed the crowd on the circumstances.
In the only other fight on the card, Shindo New Breed fighter Zach Hansford put on an impressive display in submitting Eddie Trewin from Mackay MMA. Trewin started off aggressively pressing the action, however as the two fighters clinched, Hansford was able to take the back standing before getting it to the ground where he locked up the rear-naked choke to get the tap. The win came only 1:49 into the contest for Hansford who was making his professional debut.
Headlining the amateur portion, New Zealand fighter Cameron Tu Kua overwhelmed Regan Hyde with strikes to get the first round stoppage at 2:05.
Main Card (Pro):
- Luke Morris def Edwin Arana via Decision (Unanimous) – UCU Flyweight Title
- Sam Kitchener vs Mick Bosworth – Fight Cancelled (Bosworth injured himself warming up)
- Zach Hansford def Eddie Trewin via Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Rd 1, 1:49
Undercard (Amateur):
- Cameron Tu Kua def Regan Hyde via TKO (Punches), Rd 1, 2:05
- Keohu Smith def Ben Simpson via KO (Punches), Rd 1, 1:21
- Nick Hayes def Simon Arentz via TKO (Strikes), Rd 1, 0:08
- Jodie Struzik def Elizabeth Warner via Decision (Unanimous)
- Matt Cooper def Will Motu via Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Rd 2, 1:07
- Chris Hay def Paul Franchy via Submission (Rear-Naked Choke), Rd 1, 1:50
- Joe Pollock def Anthony Blundel via Submission (Armbar), Rd 2, 2:23
- Justin Van Heerdan def Steve Varga via TKO (Punches), Rd 1, 1:32
- Ryan Bishop def Chris Rower via TKO (Doctor’s Stoppage), Rd 2, 3:00
- Bo George def Glen Andrews via TKO (Injury), Rd 1, 1:02
