5 most explosive moments from UFC Fight Night: Jack Hermansson vs. Sean Strickland

#4. John Castaneda finishes Miles Johns to move to 2-1 in the UFC

John Castaneda was an underdog against Miles Johns, but proved the betting odds wrong.

John Castaneda came into his UFC bantamweight clash with Miles Johns as an underdog last night. However, it didn’t take long for ‘Sexi Mexi’ to flip the script. He picked up an impressive third-round win, taking his overall UFC record to 2-1.

The fight looked like it was going to be a close one in the early going, as Castaneda and ‘Chapo’ traded strikes throughout a fun first round. By the second round, though, not only was Castaneda the more active fighter, but it also looked like he had more power too.

A right hand had Johns hurt in the later part of the round. While ‘Sexi Mexi’ couldn’t quite put him away, it was quite clear that going into the third, he was in firm control.

Sure enough, the third round saw Castaneda open up with a nasty combination that hurt the backpedalling Johns, knocking him to the ground. From there, rather than look to finish with strikes, he locked up a tight arm-triangle choke that forced ‘Chapo’ to pass out.

This was a genuinely excellent performance from Castaneda, capped off with a pretty explosive finish. It’s likely he’ll now steal any momentum and hype that was previously around Johns. That may well earn him a main card slot next time around.

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#3. Brendan Allen makes the most of his late-notice opportunity and takes out Sam Alvey

Brendan Allen impressed on late notice in his fight with Sam Alvey.

Strangely enough, last night’s event saw just one fight that had to be changed on late notice due to injury. Phil Hawes was forced out of his middleweight clash with Sam Alvey midway through last week. Prospect Brendan Allen stepped in to replace him, with the fight becoming a light heavyweight one in the process.

Considering Allen had been stopped in his last UFC bout, this was a risky decision – particularly when he didn’t look to be in the best shape at Friday night’s weigh-ins. However, his gamble paid off handsomely, and he picked up one of the night’s more explosive finishes.

After a bit of a slow first round that saw Alvey connect with his trademark counter right hook, stunning Allen slightly, ‘All-In’ took over in the second round.

When ‘Smilin Sam’ attempted a flurry, Allen countered with a quick combination that dropped him to his knees. From there, Allen pounced on his opponent, locking up a brutal no-hooks rear naked choke that quickly forced the veteran to tap out.

Given Alvey’s awful record in recent fights – this was his seventh loss in his last eight fights, with the other being a draw – the win probably won’t shift Allen up the rankings. However, ‘All In’ still looked excellent, and he’s now in no danger of losing his spot in the roster.