UFC on FOX 14 results: Viktor Pesta survives rough start to top Konstantin Erokhin

Viktor Pesta

STOCKHOLM – Konstantin Erokhin began his fight against Viktor Pesta like a man hell-bent on a first-round knockout.

When he didn’t get it, Erokhin (9-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) didn’t seem to have much in the way of a backup plan, as Pesta (10-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC) took him down and exploited Erokhin’s flagging energy and complete lack of a ground game en route to a unanimous decision victory (29-28, 30-27, 30-27).

The heavyweight bout was part of the preliminary card of today’s UFC on FOX 14 event at Tele2 Arena in Stockholm. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass ahead of additional prelims on FOX Sports 1 and a main card on FOX.

Erokhin started the fight strong, wading in against the taller Pesta with one heavy blow after another, seemingly looking to end the bout with every punch. Pesta seemed hurt early on, and soon found himself backpedaling in full survival mode.

But as Pesta proved he could take a punch, Erokhin demonstrated that he might not have the cardio to keep throwing them. A takedown from Pesta midway through the round also highlighted the holes in Erokhin’s ground game, which would prove to be a major factor in the fight.

Throughout the second and third rounds, Pesta’s game plan was clear. He needed only to get Erokhin to the mat, which proved easy enough to do, then to keep him there long enough to wear him down with ground-and-pound and top control, further diminishing the threat of Erokhin’s punching power.

Erokhin seemed only too content to make this task as easy as possible for Pesta, as he made little effort to get to his feet, and offered even less in the way of offense off his back. Instead, he remained glued to the floor as Pesta peppered his face with punches and ran out the clock en route to a clear decision win.

“I feel like I was hit by a truck,” Pesta said “He hits really hard. I expected him to be very tough in the beginning of the fight. He was very explosive, and then he got a little bit weaker and he started slowing down, and then I made it. It’s my first victory in the UFC – it feels great.”

For Pesta, the victory gets him back in the win column for the first time since the decision loss in his UFC debut last May. Erokhin loses for the first time since his pro debut in 2012.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on FOX 14 results include:

For complete coverage of UFC on FOX 14, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan and Mike Bohn contributed to this report on site in Stockholm.)