Davey Grant rallies after a late point deduction to score a massive reverse triangle choke over the veteran Raphael Assunção in the third round.
Round 1
The first strike thrown by both men is a leg kick. Davey Grant looks to use his kicks to keep the shorter man at bay. Rafael catches a kick to the body and uses it to score a takedown. On the mat, Grant looks to threaten with submissions, but Assunção is wise to it. When Grant attempts to find his feet Rafael finds the back and begins to chip away.
Back on his feet Grant looks to impose his striking and lands some good shots with his hands. Davey continues to switch stance as he looks for an opening. Rafael is content to circle on the outside and land on the counter.
Round 2
Corner advice tells Davey to keep striking with his hands to set up the kicks. A big swing is ducked by Assunção which sees him lock up a clinch. Grant avoids the takedown and gets back into the open. Raphael is fighting smart using all his experience to keep the action at a steady pace.
After another swing and miss for Grant, Assunção uses this to secure a takedown. He can’t do much with it but it scores well and gains him some valuable ground control. The round ends with Raphael on the back of Grant.
Round 3
More urgency from Grant sees him start round three with an all action approach. On the front foot, it’s the fight IQ of Assunção keeping him in front thus far. Grant’s throwing more and consistently landing more. A big combination lands that sends Raphael briefly to the mat. Grant is really pushing for the finish. A takedown attempt for Assunção sees him gain top control and the ability to recover.
With two minutes in the round remaining Grant, gets back to his feet and begins to swing big. The pressure has worn on Assunção who looks to be tired. A temporary fence grab sees Davey lose a point.
Now really needing a finish, Grant lands a massive spinning back fist sending Assunção back to the canvas. Grant then uses this to secure a reverse triangle choke and score the victory in the third.
What a performance from Davey Grant to defeat Raphael Assunção. The stoppage came in round three 4:43.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
