The UFC debut of local Hamilton fighter Luke Jumeau went off without a hitch today as he managed to keep his composure and send the crowd into overdrive as he took a unanimous decision over the tough Dominique Steel.
Jumeau showed incredible takedown defences as Steele was intent on going for the takedown again and again. As the fight went on, Jumeau was able to land a series of clean boxing combinations that would’ve floored most fighters, but Steele pushed through and the fight went to an eventual decision.
Commenting after the victory Jumeau said, “My whole career has been overseas so this was an incredible moment for myself and my fans. To be fighting for the largest promotion in the world, right here in my home was special.
“When you’re a striker and you feel those connections, it almost feels like a video game and you want to keep building on your combos. That’s why the third round was so amazing… and hearing the crowd behind me made it even better”
In the final prelim fight of the event, Queensland’s Damien Brown suffered a big knockout loss as Vinc Pichel landed an incredibly well-timed counter right hand that floored Brown clean before he reigned punches down and the referee put a stop to the bout at 3:37.
Sydney fighter Ashkan Mokhtarian had a tough loss in his UFC debut as former Flyweight title contender John Moraga put on a clinic, easily dominating the Australian on his feet and on the ground. The slick ground transitions of Moraga was more than enough to control each round, running away with a unanimous points decision.
J.J Aldrich and UFC debutant Chan-Mi Jeon put on an entertaining opening fight as the fans in attendance were treated to a striking clinic from both fighters. Aldrich, however, showed her technical superiority over Jeon running away with a unanimous points decision.
The opening bout of the event, which took place at Spark Arena, between Dong Hyun Kim and Thibault Gouti was cancelled after Gouti was declared medically unfit due to illness.
Results Preliminary Card:
- Vinc Pichel def. Damien Brown (Australia) via TKO (Punches), Rd 1, 3:37
- Luke Jumeau (New Zealand) def. Dominque Steele via Decision (Unanimous: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- John Moraga def. Ashkan Mokhtarian (Australia) via Decision (Unanimous: 30-25, 30-27, 30-27)
- Zak Ottow def. Kiichi Kunimoto via Decision (Split: 29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Results Fight Pass Preliminary Card:
- JJ Aldrich def. Chan Mi Jeon via Decision (Unanimous: 30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Dong Hyun Kim vs. Thibault Gouti (Fight cancelled after Gouti was declared medically unfit to fight due to illness)
