Lima Claims MFC Welterweight Title

EDMONTON, Alberta -- Douglas Lima did not win the first 12 minutes of his MFC 27 welterweight title fight against Jesse Juarez at the River Cree Resort and Casino, but history will only show that he won the fight in the end.

Lima managed to throw up a lightning-quick triangle-choke attempt midway through the second frame and then grabbed Juarez's arm to force a tapout. The crafty Brazilian claimed the promotion’s vacant 170-pound title with the impressive submission.

Juarez used his wrestling in the first two rounds to take Lima down and pin him in the corner of the ring to safely take the first two periods. In the third and while inside Juarez' guard, Lima managed to quickly throw his legs up around the neck of Juarez. The newly-crowned champion then proceeded to grab the arm and held on as Juarez tried with all his might to escape. With no other option, Juarez submitted, giving Lima (17-4) the title.

“Honestly, my game plan was to stand and strike for a little bit,” the 22-year-old champion told Sherdog.com after the fight. “I had to be patient for, and wait for the opportunity. I love triangles though, I have been practicing them since I was a white belt and I've won many fights with the triangle. He was starting to gas out and I saw the opportunity to put it on.”

What’s next for the young fighter remains to be seen. At the post-fight news conference, the crowd was vocal to see a rematch against Ryan Ford, who Lima defeated at MFC 26.

“I don't know who's next for me. Maybe Ford, but then maybe he needs to win another fight first. I want to fight different people but it doesn't matter. Whatever happens, I will fight. I am the champion now and there are no words to describe this. I have trained my whole life to be a champion. I am just so happy.”

History repeated itself in the semi-main event as the aforementioned Ford (13-3) got back on the winning track with a rear-naked choke submission victory over journeyman Pete Spratt (21-19). In their first fight 33 months ago, Ford landed some controversial elbows after the first round ended and then finished Spratt off in the second round with a RNC.

Spratt looked good in the opening minutes this evening, surviving the bull rushes of the hometown fighter and winning the stanza before the second stage set a familiar tone. Spratt was once again felled from an illegal strike, this time a vicious knee to the groin. Shortly thereafter, Ford managed to once again get Spratt's back and secure the submission at the 3:07 mark of round two.

Dwayne Lewis did what he needed to do to send his hundreds of supporters home happy as he took a controversial split decision over UFC veteran Razak Al-Hassan.

Lewis, who admitted he gassed late in the bout and had to hold on for the decision, was worn down by the leg kicks of Al-Hassan but landed enough punches and controlled on the ground long enough in the eyes of the judges to get the decision on scores of 29-28, 29-28, and 28-29. Sherdog.com unofficially saw the bout 29-28 for Al-Hassan.

Rodney Wallace and David Heath seemed to spend as much time chatting during their bout as they did fighting. When they weren't exchanging verbal jabs, Wallace landed with enough shots to take a unanimous decision with scores of 29-28 across the board.

Kajan Johnson picked up a much-needed victory after an 11 month layoff as he dominated veteran Ryan Healy over three rounds both on the ground and on the feet on route to a 30-26, 30-26, 30-25 victory.

Opening the television broadcast, the MFC welterweight champion’s younger brother Dhiego Lima came up the middle with a straight right out of nowhere to floor Bill Fraser at 2:36 of round two. The knockout victory kept Lima's professional record flawless at 4-0.

MFC 27’s off air bouts saw Brad Cardinal submit Musa Toliver with a triangle choke at 3:56 of round two; Jordan Beecroft decisioned Nick Hrynchyshyn unanimously and Spencer Rohovie armbarred Matt Veal at the 3:41 mark of the first frame.