Marcus McGhee passed another test in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division but not without considerable difficulty.
The MMA Lab representative outstruck and outlasted
Jonathan Martinez to a unanimous decision in the featured
UFC 309 prelim on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York. McGhee (10-1, 4-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with matching 29-28 marks from all three members of the cageside judiciary.
Martinez (19-6, 10-5 UFC) was slow out of the gate. The muscular McGhee cracked him with stout jabs, multi-punch bursts and the occasional kick to the leg or midsection. The approach bought him a two-rounds-to-none lead, and he needed every bit of it. Martinez hobbled him with a heavy leg kick at the end of the middle stanza, then continued to attack the appendage throughout the third round. By the time it was over, McGhee had been reduced to a one-legged fighter but managed to hold on and send it to the scorecards.
Meanwhile, former Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder
Jim Miller once again kept Father Time at bay and dismissed
Damon Jackson with a guillotine choke in the first round of their lightweight tiff.
The ageless 41-year-old Miller (38-18, 27-17) drew the curtain 2:44 into Round 1.
Jackson (23-8-1, 6-6-1 UFC) zeroed in on the New Jersey native with one-twos, inside leg kicks and front kicks to the body. All his good work was erased when he ducked into range and left his neck exposed. The opportunistic Miller bit down on the guillotine, wrapped up the Fortis MMA mainstay in full guard and prompted the tapout with an unshakable squeeze.
It was the 16th first-round finish of Miller’s remarkable career.
Further down the undercard, Factory X product
David Onama rode a sharp jab and crisp combination punching to a unanimous decision over promotional newcomer
Roberto Romero in a three-round featherweight dogfight. All three cageside judges scored it 30-27 for Onama (13-2, 5-2 UFC).
A short-notice substitution for
Lucas Almeida, Romero (8-4-1, 0-1 UFC) acquitted himself well under less-than-ideal circumstances. He surprised and floored Onama with a right hand in the first round, advanced to the back and flirted with a rear-naked choke. However, Romero’s luck soon ran out. Onama waded through the initial adversity and let fly with exquisite two- and three-punch volleys, targeting the head and body with power and precision. He bullied his way into top position in the third round, capitalized on a fatiguing Romero, briefly climbed to full mount and piled up points with ground-and-pound.
Onama, 30, will head into his next assignment on the strength of a three-fight winning streak.
Marcus McGhee passed another test in the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight division but not without considerable difficulty.
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