They keep the UFC 330 line moving with another middleweight clash,
as the unbeaten Johnson (8-0, 2-0 UFC) takes aim at McConico
(11-4-1, 2-2 UFC) at 185 pounds. Grice climbs into the Octagon to
referee. The customary glove touch gets them starter. McConico
lands a low kick. Johnson flurries, unleashing power punches from
both hands. Jab lands for McConico and gives Johnson pause. Johnson
scores with a low kick. Pace slows. Grice warns both men for
extending the fingers.
Johnson steps into a devastating one-two from his southpaw stance
and floors McConico where he stands. He follows with more punches
before Grice can arrive to cordon off the scene
.
The Official Result
Donte Johnson def. Eric McConico—KO (Punches) 1:38 R1

It’s time to officially begin the UFC on CBS era, as this is the
first fight from this organization airing on the network. It will
also serve as the widest betting disparity on the lineup, this
middleweight slobberknocker, as undefeated finisher Johnson (7-0,
1-0 UFC) clocks in around -800 against the skidding Factory X
product Brundage (11-8-1, 1 NC; 5-7-1, 1 NC UFC). There are no sure
things in MMA, and anything is possible for as long as the fight is
on. Referee Marc Goddard will make sure everything is on the
up-and-up for its duration, and he bears witness to a sporting
glove touch to open the match. Johnson springs at Brundage after the glove touch, and this puts
himself off-balance to the point that Brundage tackles him to the
floor in response. Brundage sits on top in half guard, while
Johnson scoots himself towards the wall in hopes of escaping.
Brundage grinds rather than unleashing any offense, pressing
Johnson down with his shoulder. Fans are not amused. Brundage
briefly flirts with an arm-triangle choke, and Johnson shakes his
neck out of the brief danger. Brundage commits to the arm-triangle,
and Johnson leans his shoulder on the wall to take the leverage out
of it. Time ticks off the clock with nothing else going on besides
Brundage hanging out on top. Johnson traps his foe’s left hand between his legs to stop any
submission from coming together, and Goddard tells them to work.
Johnson explodes back to his feet, and Brundage welcomes him back
up with a knee to the head. The underdog sticks out a nab, and he
catches Johnson flush with a right hand as Johnson’s chin is up in
the air as if he were asking to get hit. Brundage blocks and
counters with a left, and he knocks Johnson back a few steps.
Brundage chips at the front leg, and Johnson splits his guard with
a jab. Brundage comes up short with a looping right hand, and he
parries and replies with an overhand right. Johnson gets Brundage’s
attention with two punches, but Brundage fires back. Brundage
shoots for a takedown at the bell, and fans in the building boo him
heartily. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Brundage Ben Duffy scores the round: 10-9 Johnson Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Brundage

Johnson offers up a glove touch to start off the second round, and
does not leap into attack this time. He measures out with a head
kick, and Brundage lets go with a right hand. Johnson gets in the
pocket to trade, and Brundage is ready and willing to bang it out.
Johnson rips a kick to the side and swings for the fences, and he
is prepared to defend against a tackling takedown by grabbing hold
of Brundage’s neck and pushing him flat to the ground. Brundage
remains on his knees and chills out, not concerned about a
submission or looking to push any further. Johnson hooks his left
arm under the chin but does not go for a guillotine, instead
standing back up so he can bust Brundage in the face. Brundage
pushes through to take the fight down on his own terms, and he
scrambles to get hold of the undefeated fighter’s back. Johnson looks to shimmy Brundage off of him, as Brundage is high on
the back, and this results in Brundage hitting the floor in search
of an armlock. Johnson defends the kimura to armbar setup and
wrenches his arm out, and he unleashes a flurry of punches to
either side of the head. Johnson holds Brundage down with a head
lock, smacking him in the side of the head with short but
ultimately ineffectual right hands on the inside. Brundage turns to
sit himself down with his back to the fencing, and Johnson pops him
in the chops with right hand after unanswered right hand. Brundage
clings to Johnson, who is flirting with a choke but not committing
to it. Johnson pushes off Brundage’s forehead and stands back up,
and he slaps Brundage as a finger jams firmly into his eye. Goddard
calls time, and Brundage takes a few seconds but wants to get back
to business. On the restart, Johnson comes out swinging, and both
men land one or two before the awkward round concludes. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Johnson Ben Duffy scores the round: 10-9 Johnson Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Johnson

Johnson meanders out of his corner recklessly and unafraid of what
comes at him, and Brundage sits back on his heels looking for a
counter so that he can set up a double. Johnson pushes him down
face-first to the floor and stands back up, and Brundage follows
him. Johnson tees off with jabs and the occasional left hand, and
Brundage’s body language is poor as he does not look to have much
fight left in him. Brundage loops a right hand behind the head, and
he kicks the front leg but gets nailed with a counter. Brundage
flicks out a few jabs, and one connects while Johnson is marching
forward, resulting in him taking a funny step. Johnson tosses out a
high kick and offers out a right hand, walking down the offensively
muted Brundage. Johnson splits the guard with a jab, and he is
answered with one back. Brundage’s jab does manage to stop Johnson’s biggest of swings, and
he suddenly spurs into action with two hooks. Johnson backs off
before re-engaging, and the two land single strikes one another.
Brundage damages the calf with a few kicks, and he opens a mouse
under Johnson’s right eye with his jab. Johnson clubs his man with
a right hook, and Brundage answers with a body lock and failed
takedown attempt. Johnson frames off and is met with jabs, as
Brundage takes a long look at the clock that reads one minute.
Brundage loads up on two hooks and looks to the time again. Both
lunge with jabs, and Brundage shoots for a double that is stopped
in its tracks. Brundage hooks his fingers in the glove to get a
takedown, but Johnson rips his hand away and they stand back up.
When the 10-second clapper sounds, both men swing it out, with
neither landing flush and both struggling until time mercifully
expires. Welcome to the UFC on CBS era, indeed. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Brundage (29-28 Brundage) Ben Duffy scores the round: 10-9 Brundage (29-28 Johnson) Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Brundage (29-28 Brundage)

When it comes to bout order, we’ve stopped asking at this point.
It’s anyone’s guess why the promotion’s own No. 3 and 4 athletes
collide and they are buried so low on the card that Dumas (10-3, 1
NC; 3-3, 1 NC UFC) fights after them. This is a fighter who had to
pull out of a recent match because he could not get his ankle
monitor removed in time so he could compete while awaiting hearings
for charges of felony robbery, felony possession of a weapon and
other not-so-great crimes. He will greet ex-heavyweight Johnson
(6-0, 0-0 UFC), a man with six first-round knockouts to his credit,
and it’s not hard to imagine fans that hope it will be seven before
the night is out. Referee Herb Dean handles this middleweight
striking match, standing back as the fighters choose not to touch
gloves. Johnson goes right after Dumas, chasing him around the cage. Dumas
turns and intercepts the advancing Johnson with a well-timed
double, lifting the newcomer up and putting him down on the mat.
Dumas lifts up his knee and aims it correctly so he does not blast
Johnson in the jaw with it illegally, instead striking the
shoulder. Dumas drops down to go after a single when Johnson sits
against the fence, and Johnson tells his corner to take it easy
because he is fine. Dumas leans on him and knees him in the side of
the leg, hanging on until Johnson explodes back upright. Dumas
drops down for a single, and Johnson bashes him in the side of the
dome with elbows until Dumas thinks twice about his level change.
This allows Johnson to spin around and go for a double while Dumas
is leaned against the cage, and he lifts Dumas up and slams him
down on the mat with pure firepower. Dumas’ hands go over the top of the cage to take some of the
amplitude out of the slam, but he still hits the ground as one of
his hair ties snaps and goes flying. Dumas methodically works to
his feet with the fence at his back, and the neophyte leans on his
opponent with his body weight until Dumas separates at the
90-second mark. Dumas fakes several level changes and goes over the
top with a kick, and Johnson swats it away and responds with a left
hand. Dumas spins with a back fist, and Johnson perfectly times a
takedown to scoop Dumas off his feet. Dumas once more stands up,
and he is under fire from the newcomer and is shaken up. Dumas
spins with an elbow, and he goes to the well with another. Johnson
drills Dumas on the temple with a right hand, putting “The Reaper”
on notice. The round wraps with Johnson landing ground-and-pound,
and he helps Dumas back to his feet. Meanwhile, Johnson has reached
the second round in what is a rarity early into his young
career. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Johnson Chris Laporte scores the round: 10-9 Johnson Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Johnson

Seeing that Dumas wants to spam spinning, flying or other
high-risk, medium-reward strikes, Johnson goes to the path of least
resistance. The neophyte takes Dumas to the floor, keeping him on
his knees for a minute. Dumas drills Johnson with a somersault
kick, and somehow has the wherewithal to not only throw another,
but actually land it. Dumas uses the second effort to springboard
himself into a double-leg entry. Johnson counters that by pressing
his chest down on the back of Dumas’ neck and setting up an
anaconda choke. He laces his left arm beneath the chin and fastens it with his
right arm to turn it into a ninja choke, and Dumas is raising his
right arm anticipatorily to tap out. Johnson imposes his weight and
finishes the choke, and Dumas is already surrendering. The 100% knockout rate for “Lockjaw” now becomes a 100% finish
rate, as Johnson has just notched the first submission victory of
his career.

It’s time to officially begin the UFC on CBS era, as this is the
first fight from this organization airing on the network. It will
also serve as the widest betting disparity on the lineup, this
middleweight slobberknocker, as undefeated finisher Johnson (7-0,
1-0 UFC) clocks in around -800 against the skidding Factory X
product Brundage (11-8-1, 1 NC; 5-7-1, 1 NC UFC). There are no sure
things in MMA, and anything is possible for as long as the fight is
on. Referee Marc Goddard will make sure everything is on the
up-and-up for its duration, and he bears witness to a sporting
glove touch to open the match.
Johnson springs at Brundage after the glove touch, and this puts
himself off-balance to the point that Brundage tackles him to the
floor in response. Brundage sits on top in half guard, while
Johnson scoots himself towards the wall in hopes of escaping.
Brundage grinds rather than unleashing any offense, pressing
Johnson down with his shoulder. Fans are not amused. Brundage
briefly flirts with an arm-triangle choke, and Johnson shakes his
neck out of the brief danger. Brundage commits to the arm-triangle,
and Johnson leans his shoulder on the wall to take the leverage out
of it. Time ticks off the clock with nothing else going on besides
Brundage hanging out on top.
Johnson traps his foe’s left hand between his legs to stop any
submission from coming together, and Goddard tells them to work.
Johnson explodes back to his feet, and Brundage welcomes him back
up with a knee to the head. The underdog sticks out a nab, and he
catches Johnson flush with a right hand as Johnson’s chin is up in
the air as if he were asking to get hit. Brundage blocks and
counters with a left, and he knocks Johnson back a few steps.
Brundage chips at the front leg, and Johnson splits his guard with
a jab. Brundage comes up short with a looping right hand, and he
parries and replies with an overhand right. Johnson gets Brundage’s
attention with two punches, but Brundage fires back. Brundage
shoots for a takedown at the bell, and fans in the building boo him
heartily. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Brundage
Ben Duffy scores the round: 10-9 Johnson
Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Brundage

Johnson offers up a glove touch to start off the second round, and
does not leap into attack this time. He measures out with a head
kick, and Brundage lets go with a right hand. Johnson gets in the
pocket to trade, and Brundage is ready and willing to bang it out.
Johnson rips a kick to the side and swings for the fences, and he
is prepared to defend against a tackling takedown by grabbing hold
of Brundage’s neck and pushing him flat to the ground. Brundage
remains on his knees and chills out, not concerned about a
submission or looking to push any further. Johnson hooks his left
arm under the chin but does not go for a guillotine, instead
standing back up so he can bust Brundage in the face. Brundage
pushes through to take the fight down on his own terms, and he
scrambles to get hold of the undefeated fighter’s back.
Johnson looks to shimmy Brundage off of him, as Brundage is high on
the back, and this results in Brundage hitting the floor in search
of an armlock. Johnson defends the kimura to armbar setup and
wrenches his arm out, and he unleashes a flurry of punches to
either side of the head. Johnson holds Brundage down with a head
lock, smacking him in the side of the head with short but
ultimately ineffectual right hands on the inside. Brundage turns to
sit himself down with his back to the fencing, and Johnson pops him
in the chops with right hand after unanswered right hand. Brundage
clings to Johnson, who is flirting with a choke but not committing
to it. Johnson pushes off Brundage’s forehead and stands back up,
and he slaps Brundage as a finger jams firmly into his eye. Goddard
calls time, and Brundage takes a few seconds but wants to get back
to business. On the restart, Johnson comes out swinging, and both
men land one or two before the awkward round concludes. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Johnson
Ben Duffy scores the round: 10-9 Johnson
Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Johnson

Johnson meanders out of his corner recklessly and unafraid of what
comes at him, and Brundage sits back on his heels looking for a
counter so that he can set up a double. Johnson pushes him down
face-first to the floor and stands back up, and Brundage follows
him. Johnson tees off with jabs and the occasional left hand, and
Brundage’s body language is poor as he does not look to have much
fight left in him. Brundage loops a right hand behind the head, and
he kicks the front leg but gets nailed with a counter. Brundage
flicks out a few jabs, and one connects while Johnson is marching
forward, resulting in him taking a funny step. Johnson tosses out a
high kick and offers out a right hand, walking down the offensively
muted Brundage. Johnson splits the guard with a jab, and he is
answered with one back.
Brundage’s jab does manage to stop Johnson’s biggest of swings, and
he suddenly spurs into action with two hooks. Johnson backs off
before re-engaging, and the two land single strikes one another.
Brundage damages the calf with a few kicks, and he opens a mouse
under Johnson’s right eye with his jab. Johnson clubs his man with
a right hook, and Brundage answers with a body lock and failed
takedown attempt. Johnson frames off and is met with jabs, as
Brundage takes a long look at the clock that reads one minute.
Brundage loads up on two hooks and looks to the time again. Both
lunge with jabs, and Brundage shoots for a double that is stopped
in its tracks. Brundage hooks his fingers in the glove to get a
takedown, but Johnson rips his hand away and they stand back up.
When the 10-second clapper sounds, both men swing it out, with
neither landing flush and both struggling until time mercifully
expires. Welcome to the UFC on CBS era, indeed. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Brundage (29-28 Brundage)
Ben Duffy scores the round: 10-9 Brundage (29-28 Johnson)
Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Brundage (29-28 Brundage)
The Official Result
Donte Johnson def. Cody Brundage via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29,
29-28)

Donte Johnson

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