A new lightweight contender has arrived.
Quillan Salkilld (13-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) had to eat a punch or two, but mostly tore right through Mateusz Gamrot (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) in the UFC Fight Night 284 main event at a newly refurbished Meta APEX in Las Vegas. And now that more fans can take in a show like Saturday's, they got a treat out of the gate.
A Salkilld win by submission over a credentialed wrestler and grappler like Gamrot was one of the least likely predicted outcomes in the headliner. But afterward, Salkilld said his rear-naked choke with 35 seconds left in the first is just the type of performance lightweights can expect – and he has his sights set on the top five.
"I just proved I'm the real f*cking deal now. These top five (lightweights) better (watch out)," Salkilld said on the microphone with Daniel Cormier. "I believe I can get it done within the first minute or the last minute. ... I think I deserve someone who's in the top five or close to it."
Salkilld tried to get a quick start and took the center quickly. In some tight exchanges early, Salkilld landed and forced Gamrot to look for a takedown – not at all unexpected. He got a single-leg briefly, but also appeared to be hurt.
#salkilld #first #lightweights #quillan
Quillan Salkilld (13-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) had to eat a punch or two, but mostly tore right through Mateusz Gamrot (26-5 MMA, 9-5 UFC) in the UFC Fight Night 284 main event at a newly refurbished Meta APEX in Las Vegas. And now that more fans can take in a show like Saturday's, they got a treat out of the gate.
A Salkilld win by submission over a credentialed wrestler and grappler like Gamrot was one of the least likely predicted outcomes in the headliner. But afterward, Salkilld said his rear-naked choke with 35 seconds left in the first is just the type of performance lightweights can expect – and he has his sights set on the top five.
"I just proved I'm the real f*cking deal now. These top five (lightweights) better (watch out)," Salkilld said on the microphone with Daniel Cormier. "I believe I can get it done within the first minute or the last minute. ... I think I deserve someone who's in the top five or close to it."
Salkilld tried to get a quick start and took the center quickly. In some tight exchanges early, Salkilld landed and forced Gamrot to look for a takedown – not at all unexpected. He got a single-leg briefly, but also appeared to be hurt.
#salkilld #first #lightweights #quillan
3 months ago
