Alexa Grasso took the lead once more on the newest episode of The Final Fighter 32.
The reigning UFC flyweight champion moved to 2-1 in her teaching matchup with Valentina Shevchenko, as her No. 2 featherweight decide Kaan Ofli gained a call over Workforce Bullet’s Nathan Fletcher. That is additionally Grasso’s first featherweight win of the season after her No. 1 decide at 145 kilos, Guillermo Torres, misplaced to Shevchenko’s prime decide Roedie Roets.
Ofli (11-2-1) needed to work laborious for his choice win as Fletcher (8-1) proved to be greater than an equal match on the ft and on the bottom. The primary spherical clearly went to the Australian as he used an advancing jab and a heavy proper hand to stress Fletcher earlier than finally scoring with a slam. From there, Ofli methodically handed Fletcher’s defenses till he took his again, from the place he blended in ground-and-pound with a rear-naked choke try.
Fletcher survived to make it to Spherical 2 and understanding he wanted to tie it as much as pressure an additional body, the Scouser got here out swinging. As Fletcher flurried, Ofli remained calm till he discovered a gap for an additional takedown. Fletcher shortly returned to his ft, solely to get taken down once more, however then he stunned Ofli by going for broke with a rolling scramble that resulted in him briefly taking Ofli’s again.
Although Fletcher managed loads of offense, Ofli continued to catch him with strikes as effectively and ended the combat working from prime place. Ofli’s efforts have been sufficient to earn him a call and place within the TUF 32 featherweight semifinals.
Subsequent week, we have now a rescheduled middleweight matchup between Workforce Grasso’s Omran Chaaban (6-1) and Workforce Bullet’s No. 1 decide Shamidkhan Magomedov (7-1. This bout was alleged to happen on Episode 2, however was postponed when Chaaban was recognized with an open chilly sore.)
Within the aftermath of final week’s combat, which noticed Robert Valentin rating a quick and brutal knockout of Giannis Bachar, the episode opened with a scene of Bachar struggling together with his first-ever loss to strikes. Valentin and Bachar’s teammates made certain to consolation the Greek fighter, assuring him that these sorts of losses are merely a part of being a fighter.
The Final Fighter 32 airs reside each Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
Following the season finale, Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko are anticipated to face off in a flyweight championship trilogy bout at a date nonetheless to be decided.
The finalists of the TUF 32 middleweight and featherweight tournaments may also compete for a six-figure UFC contract on the present’s reside finale. A date for that occasion can be but to be introduced.
Listed here are the TUF 32 rosters divided by crew:
Workforce Grasso
Featherweights
Guillermo Torres (Mexico) (7-1)
Kaan Ofli (Australia) (10-2-1)
Bekhzod Usmonov (Tajikistan) (11-4)
Mairon Santos (Brazil) (13-1)
Middleweights
Robert Valentin (Switzerland) (10-3)
Paddy McCorry (Eire) (4-1)
Omran Chaaban (Finland) (6-1)
Tom Theocharis (Canada) (9-5)
Workforce Shevchenko
Featherweights
Roedie Roets (South Africa) (7-1)
Zygimantas Ramaska (Lithuania) (9-2)
Nathan Fletcher (England) (8-1)
Edwin Cooper Jr. (USA) (6-1)
Middleweights
Shamidkhan Magomedov (Russia) (7-1)
Mark Hulme (South Africa) (12-3)
Ryan Loder (USA) (6-1)
Giannis Bachar (Greece) (9-2)
Listed here are the quarterfinal outcomes up to now:
Roedie Roets def. Guillermo Torres through choice
Robert Valentin def. Giannis Bachar through KO (strikes) (R1)
Kaan Ofli def. Nathan Fletcher through choice
Advancing to semifinals: Roets, Valentin, Ofli
Eradicated: Torres, Bachar, Fletcher