UFC Mexico ‘Moreno vs. Kavanagh’ Play-by-Play, Results & Round Scoring

Brandon Moreno
(125.5) vs. Lone’er Kavanagh (125)David Martinez (135) vs.
Marlon Vera (136)Bobby Green (155) vs.
Daniel Zellhuber (155)Felipe Bunes (125) vs.
Edgar Chairez (125)Kevin Borjas (126) vs.
Imanol Rodriguez (125)Santiago Luna (136) vs.
Angel Pacheco (135)Ryan Gandra (185) vs. Jose
Medina (186)Macy Chiasson (135) vs.
Ailin Perez (136)Kris Moutinho (136)
vs. Cristian Quinonez (136)Live NOW!
Douglas Silva de Andrade (146) vs. Javier Reyes (145)Ernesta Kareckaite
(129.5) vs. Regina Tarin (130)Francis Marshall (145)
vs. Erik Silva (146)Damian Pinas (186) vs.
Wesley Schultz (186) Sherdog’s live
UFC Mexico coverage will begin Saturday at 5 p.m. ET. The event
is also known as
UFC Fight Night 268.

Damian
Pinas (186) vs. Wesley
Schultz (186)

BETTING
PREVIEW | SCOUTING
REPORT | ODDS: Pinas (-270); Schultz (+220)

Round 1

The UFC chose well by matching this Mexico City card the way it did
in one regard, in that there are only two bouts on the 13-fight
billing taking place above 155 pounds. Bettors and prognosticators
may disagree with some matchmaking choices, given that favored
fighters today will close with an average line a little beneath
-450. This curtain jerker is one of the two larger matches and one
of five where the favorite does not eclipse -250, as debuting
middleweights from DWCS crash into one another with hopes of
separating wheat from chaff. Repping both Aruba and Suriname while
likely the butt of jokes much of his life, Pinas (8-1, 0-0 UFC)
will be squaring off against brother longhair Schultz (8-2, 0-0
UFC). Referee Horacio Lopez Villanueva takes charge of the fight,
and the two 185ers bump fists.

Pinas moves right to the center of the cage, letting loose a low
kick to stop Schultz from jabbing. Schultz tries to fire back with
a left hook, but all he can land is a leg kick of his own. Pinas
hits him back far harder in the lead leg, turning his hips into
those strikes and forcing a level change on the third land. Pinas
shuts down the double-leg takedown attempt and rails Schultz with a
fierce right hand at the end of a one-two, putting “Party Time”
down. Pinas looks to finish the job, but Schultz somehow weathers
the storm and powers his way back to his feet, where he looks for a
takedown. Wrapping his arms around Pinas’ waist, he drags them both
down to the floor, but this is not a good strategy. Pinas is pulled
on top of his foe, where he unleashes elbows that punish Schultz
for the ground effort. Pinas hunts for an anaconda choke, and when
he hits the gator roll, he is too loose and they separate and stand
back up.
Pinas drills his man in the chin with an uppercut, and Schultz
crumbles and tries for an ankle pick. “Baba Yaga” shuts it down,
forces Schultz to stand up and thrusts through the guard with a
piston-like one-two. Schultz collapses to the floor, and this time,
he is not getting back up. Villanueva sees that Schultz’ goose
is cooked, and he waves the fight off right around the midpoint of
the round. There are far worse ways to make your promotional debut,
with Pinas calmly walking off after putting in work.

The Official Result

Damian Pinas def. Wesley Schultz R1 2:30 via TKO (Punches)

Francis
Marshall (145) vs. Erik Silva
(146)

BETTING
PREVIEW | SCOUTING
REPORT | ODDS: Marshall (-700); Silva (+500)

Round 1

With three hours to plug through seven prelims, the promotion
wastes no time in moving to the next matchup. This one comes at 145
pounds between a pair of gents that could sorely use a victory.
Silva (9-3, 0-2 UFC) is winless after two walks to the Octagon,
appearing roughly every other year and not building any momentum in
the overstuffed division. He meets Marshall (8-3, 2-3 UFC), who was
on the wrong end of some of the worst scorecards offered last year.
Referee Fernando Salas Navarro receives the assignment, standing
back as the athletes touch ‘em up.

Silva says hello with a spinning wheel kick, and Marshall barely
gets his guard up in time so as to not get leveled. Marshall has to
back off, and Silva spins with a back kick that connects to the
body. Marshall pushes off when trying to engage, and his finger
jams into Silva’s eye socket. Salas calls time when he recognizes
the foul, and he goes to Marshall to tell him to be careful. The
Venezuelan takes less than 30 seconds to clear his vision before
restarting. Marshall attacks him with looping hooks, using them to
close the distance and drop down for a slick double-leg takedown.
Silva stands up by wrapping his arm around Marshall’s neck with a
guillotine choke, and Marshall mat returns him and even briefly
threatens with a Von Preux shoulder choke. Silva turns to his side
to try to buck off, but Marshall in half guard keeps him stuck.
Marshall settles for smacking Silva around with a few strikes
before lowering himself down to pursue an arm-triangle choke, and
Silva’s bucking and wriggling keeps him safe for the time being.

Marshall is able to pass to mount, and when Silva turns his back,
Marshall immediately snatches up a rear-naked choke. Switching his
grip to one of a more brute-force variety, “Fire” Marshall does not
even go palm-to-palm as he crushes Silva’s larynx and carotid
artery. Silva posts off his left arm and does not fight the grip,
instead just biding time before he inevitably taps out. This
speedy finish justifies the massive odds in Marshall’s favor, with
this leg in most of your parlays hitting with style points.

The Official Result

Francis Marshall def. Erik Silva R1 2:29 via Submission (Rear-Naked
Choke)

Ernesta
Kareckaite (129.5) vs. Regina
Tarin (130)

BETTING
PREVIEW | SCOUTING
REPORT | ODDS: Kareckaite (-188); Tarin (+152)

Round 1

Due to the short-notice nature of the match, late replacement and
well-named “Kill Bill” Tarin (7-0, 0-0 UFC) puts her 0 on the line
on just a few days’ notice. She steps up against heavy-handed
Lithuanian Kareckaite (6-1-1, 1-1 UFC), who just so happens to call
herself “Heavy-Handed.” Bit on the nose, just like what she wants
her punches to be. The referee for this 130-pound catchweight
contest will be Raul Porrata. The ladies clap hands together, with
fans clearly picking a side.

That side is Tarin, who springs from side to side and walks
directly into a Kareckaite left hand. Kareckaite throws heavy
punches at her, swinging with wide-arcing lobs and mixing in a knee
when Tarin closes in. Tarin pushes out a front kick, and Kareckaite
catches it and swats it away. Tarin hammers the front leg with a
kick, and she sits in the pocket to bang it out with Kareckaite.
Tarin’s offense wobbles Kareckaite’s legs, and these women are
trading viciously with no regard to defense. They have both cracked
one another, and Kareckaite’s nose is turning red 90 seconds in.
Tarin tries for a low-to-high kick combo, and Kareckaite grabs it
and pushes her back, drilling Tarin with a subsequent right hand.
Tarin clips Kareckaite with another right, and Kareckaite has to
shake it off and gets right back to trading leather. Both women
connect in an exchange, and Kareckaite ends her own combination
with a pair of chopping kicks.

Tarin threatens with kicks that open up her hands, but she cannot
back off the advancing Lithuanian for long. Kareckaite walks
through a body kick to score an overhand right, and she connects
with a second that is met with a fierce counter. Flurries from both
sides go flying, and Kareckaite smacks Tarin upside the head with a
hard right. Kareckaite leans forward to clinch up, and Tarin thanks
her for this by slashing at her with standing elbows until they
separate. Kareckaite puts a one-two down the pipe, and she chases
after a strafing Tarin with a looping right. Fans start booing the
moment the two clinch up, and then stop when the women return to
kickboxing range. Tarin stays on the outside popping her jab, and
she leans back to avoid a swinging right hand. Kareckaite goes to
the lead leg and body with kicks, and she uses her kicks to close
in and mash Tarin against the cage wall. The horn sounds.

Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Tarin
Christian Stein scores the round: 10-9 Tarin
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Tarin

Round 2

Kareckaite takes right to the center of the cage, slowly advancing
as Tarin circles to her left. Kareckaite allows her to do this so
she can rip a body kick, prompting Tarin to bullrush her with big
swings. Kareckaite keeps her foe on her back foot, and Tarin
peppers her with kicks to any target she can find. Kareckaite has a
right hand score on the end of it, and Tarin backpedals in a hurry.
Kareckaite mixes in a takedown attempt, and the Mexican woman
stonewalls her and pushes her to the fence, where she delivers a
stern knee to the body. Kareckaite jacks her in the jaw with an
elbow to break apart, and she chases after the younger woman with
long swings. Tarin stays busy on the outside, keeping just out of
range of the worst Kareckaite throws at her while offering up kicks
to the body and lead leg. They crash together and unload short
combinations, and their accuracy is fairly high because their
guards are not very attentive.

Their sheer momentum results in clinching, and Kareckaite is
leaking from a bloody nose and goes after a single-leg takedown
attempt. Tarin frames off with knees to the side, breaking them
apart, and she scores several more when Kareckaite tries to walk
her down. The Mexican woman takes advantage of the clinch with
knees to the body, and she shoves her foe back. Kareckaite answers
with a crisp body kick and follows with a right hook. Tarin meets
her with a one-two and head kick, and she dances away from what
Kareckaite tosses back at her. Kareckaite takes a push kick to load
up with a right hand, and she hurls the punch again and again.
Tarin watches Kareckaite dart at her for a single, and when
Kareckaite transitions to a double, she manages to get the local
woman down as the round ends.

Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Tarin
Christian Stein scores the round: 10-9 Tarin
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Tarin

Round 3

It does not take long for the two women to engage in fisticuffs as
the last round begins, nailing one another with big swings back and
forth. Tarin offers up short but effective combinations, putting
two hands on the face and kicking the front leg, etc. When
Kareckaite hurls back, Tarin ducks under and grabs her from behind,
where she sweeps the leg and briefly drags the Lithuanian to the
floor. Kareckaite fights her way back to her feet but Tarin is
still clutching her from the side, until Kareckaite muscles her way
around to push Tarin to the cage wall. Porrata immediately calls
for them to work, leading to them separating and duking it out some
more. The exchanges are fairly even in terms of numbers, and
Kareckaite appears to be swinging harder. Tarin uses more kicks,
digging them to the body and getting Kareckaite’s attention with
her fast hands.

Tarin turns on the jets, cracking Kareckaite with a lengthy flurry
of fists until Kareckaite has no choice but to tie her up. Tarin
pushes her to the wall and knees her in the guts, and Kareckaite
frames off and does the same before they split up. Tarin has
inflicted additional damage on Kareckaite’s right eye, and no one
registers it as they proceed to lay into one another recklessly and
ferociously. Tarin’s face begins to swell around her eyes, and
Kareckaite targets those areas with her heavy hurls. Kareckaite
tries to slow her down with a trip effort, and Tarin slips away and
lashes out with uppercuts and knees up close. The 10-second clapper
leads to an even more ridiculous brawl, and the two women smash and
bash one another in the face repeatedly until time expires. What a
scrap, one that ends in the hands of the judges in close rounds
where a 30-27 on one end and 29-28 the other would not be out of
line.

Sherdog Scores Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Tarin (30-27
Tarin)
Christian Stein scores the round: 10-9 Tarin (30-27 Tarin)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Tarin (30-27 Tarin)

The Official Result

Regina Tarin def. Ernesta Kareckaite via Unanimous Decision (30-27,
30-27, 29-28)

Douglas
Silva de Andrade (146) vs. Javier
Reyes (145)

BETTING
PREVIEW | SCOUTING
REPORT | ODDS: Reyes (-240); Silva de Andrade (+190)

Round 1

A longtime talent at the loaded bantamweight division relocates to
145 pounds as Silva de Andrade (29-6, 1 NC; 7-6 UFC) eclipses the
age of 40, on the roster since 2014 but this just his 14th fight.
He meets well-traveled newcomer Reyes (22-5, 0-0 UFC), who may have
already won the battle for “Entrance of the Year” by dancing his
way to the cage with his team to “YMCA.” It was majestic. Referee
Herb Dean will stoically serve as the third man in the Octagon, who
receives loud cheers from the crowd himself. The two touch do not
gloves before throwing down.

The shorter Silva de Andrade stands in the center of the cage like
a snake coiled to strike, and Reyes fires off strikes from the
outer edge. The Brazilian kicks him from a safe distance, and
allows Silva de Andrade to fly past him with a big swing. Reyes
leaves his chin up and hands down, and Silva de Andrade just misses
with a huge right hook. Reyes calms himself and fires back a left
that stuns Silva de Andrade, but he stands in the pocket too long
and gets dropped with a bomb of a right hand. Reyes climbs back up,
and Silva de Andrade does not recklessly chase him down and instead
sets up another bomb. He clips an advancing Reyes with a cheeky
left hook, and he marches down the hurt fighter with a barrage.
Reyes puts his back to the wall and gets nailed a few more times,
and he tries for a spin but misses. Silva de Andrade whiffs with a
haymaker so fierce, the wind nearly blows Marc Ratner’s cap off in
the first row.

Reyes’ hands remain low so he can strike from odd angles, but Silva
de Andrade is headhunting him and connects flush. Reyes runs
forward and loads up with a right hand that knocks “D’Silva” off
his feet, but it is a flash knockdown as Silva de Andrade defends
from the subsequent assault. Reyes pounces to try to pound out his
opponent, and he thwarts a roll attempt from Silva de Andrade and
mat returns him on his face when Silva de Andrade stands. Reyes
steps over to the back to lay into Silva de Andrade, who holds his
hand up to wag his finger as if to say he is fine. This opens up an
opportunity for Reyes, who very nearly snatches up a submission as
OG fight fans think back to the infamous “Hello Japan” moment in
our lovely sport. Reyes goes from back mount to full mount to
getting pushed off, as he keeps beating on Silva de Andrade like a
rented mule.
“Blair” flattens Silva de Andrade out on his stomach and slams his
fists into the side of his head, and Silva de Andrade keeps wagging
his finger to say he is ok. This is not nearly enough defense, as
he should instead be guarding his dome rather than signaling to the
ref. Dean tells him to fight back, and Silva de Andrade keeps
shaking his finger. Reyes does not relent in his onslaught of
punches to either side of the head, and Dean calls a halt to the
match with a second or two left in the round. When Silva de
Andrade stands after the stoppage, he protests to Dean, who likely
suggests that he gave the Brazilian every chance to defend himself
but threw it away. As he raises a fuss, Silva de Andrade’s face
begins to swell horizontally, having taken some serious damage the
last two minutes of that round.

The Official Result

Javier Reyes def. Douglas Silva de Andrade R1 4:59 via TKO
(Punches)