UFC Fight Night 35 results, photos: Bloodied Trevor Smith outworks Brian Houston for split

DULUTH, Ga. – Brian Houston was able to stifle Trevor Smith‘s takedown attempts, but it was Smith who remained the busier fighter and was awarded a narrow split-decision win.

The middleweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC Fight Night 35 event at Arena at Gwinnett Center in Duluth, Ga. It aired on FOX Sports 1 following additional prelims on UFC Fight Pass and ahead of a main card on FOX Sports 1.

As the contest opened, Smith scored early with a takedown and tried to attack the neck when Houston rolled through and back to his feet. However, Houston patiently worked free and returned to the striking game. On the feet, Houston was the quicker athlete and work punches to all levels. However, Houston scored again with a powerful, driving takedown with 90 seconds left in the first. He nearly finished the fight with an arm-triangle choke, but Houston pulled free and survived until the bell.

As the two started to trade on the feet to open the second, a Houston left hook opened up a huge gash on Smith’s forehead, and blood immediately began to flow down his face. Smith appeared to tire a bit as the round wore on, and he struggled to get the fight to the floor. Houston capitalized with a slight edge on the feet, but he didn’t really put an exclamation point on the frame.

The action remained on the feet in the third, with Houston controlling the center. However, Smith, with blood again trickling down his head, stood firm in the pocket and returned fire, including some heavy kicks to the leg. Smith failed on a late takedown attempt but landed a knee on the break. At the final bell, it seemed Smith had been the busier, more aggressive fighter. Two of three judges awarded him for the effort, and Smith was awarded a split-decision win.

“I thought I won unanimously, but I’ll take the win,” Smith said after the win.  “It wasn’t necessarily the performance I wanted to have, but it’s still satisfying to get that first win in the UFC. Brian has great defense and was able to stop a lot of my takedown attempts, but his striking got predictable as the fight went on, and I kept pressing.”

Houston (4-2 MMA, 0-2 UFC) is now winless in two UFC appearances. Smith (11-4 MMA, 1-1 UFC) snaps a two fight losing streak with the much-needed result.

“I gave him the first round, but I thought from there I controlled the fight,” Houston said. “I’m just mad I didn’t keep pressing forward. I put it in the hands of the judges and as a fighter, we never should do that. I cant be disappointed because I didn’t go for the finish.

“We’re all biased, and I thought I won the fight, but the judges saw it differently.”

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 35 results include:

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 35, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

Matt Erickson contributed to this report on-site in Duluth.