Mateusz Gamrot did what no one has done in more than a decade.
The Polish fighter handed Jeremy Stephens his first submission loss since 2009, forcing the veteran to tap out in the first round of their lightweight clash. The bout was on the UFC on ESPN 26 main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN+.
Takedown! Kimura! Tap!
Textbook finish by @Gamer_MMA. #UFCVegas31 pic.twitter.com/NDEab0kioW
— UFC (@ufc) July 18, 2021
Gamrot (19-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) immediately went for a takedown as soon as the bout started. From there he took Stephens to the mat, got side control, locked a kimura, and powered his way through the submission until he got the tap. Gamrot is the first man to submit Stephens in his last 28 UFC fights.
Gamrot is now on a two-fight winning streak since losing his UFC debut and suffering his first professional defeat to Guram Kutateladze back in October 2020. Meanwhile, Stephens falls to five defeats and one no-contest in his past six UFC bouts.
Up-to-the-minute results of UFC on ESPN 26 include:
- Mateusz Gamrot def. Jeremy Stephens via submission (kimura) – Round 1, 1:05
- Rodolfo Vieira def. Dustin Stoltzfus via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 1:54
- Billy Quarantillo def. Gabriel Benitez via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 3:40
- Daniel Rodriguez def. Preston Parsons via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:47
- Amanda Lemos def. Montserrat Conejo via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:35
- Sergey Morozov def. Khalid Taha via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Malcolm Gordon def. Francisco Figueiredo via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Rodrigo Nascimento def. Alan Baudot via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:29