XFC 26 results: Scott Holtzman retains, Pearl Gonzalez takes vacant belt

“You’re not a true champion until you defend your title.”

That’s what XFC lightweight champion Scott Holtzman said prior to Friday’s main event against Roger Carroll at “XFC 26: Night of Champions III” in Nashville.

Fortunately for “Hot Sauce,” he can now consider himself to be the true champion as he successfully defended his 155-pound belt for the first time with a lopsided decision win over Carroll inside the Nashville Municipal Auditorium.

Holtzman outclassed Carroll in every element of the game, as the challenger had essentially nothing to offer over the course of the 25-minute affair other than a few submission attempts in the early rounds.

While the fight was somewhat competitive in the early going, a series of elbows in the clinch by the champion at the midway point of round two was the game-changer. The blows opened several cuts on Carroll’s face, and it was evident from the damage he was forced into survival mode.

Despite his best efforts, Carroll (13-10) was unable to cause any drastic change to the course of the fight and was a victim of Holtzman’s fierce assault for the remainder of the contest.

Holtzman took a clean sweep of all five rounds on the judge’s scorecards and stayed undefeated in his career and in XFC.

“It feels great,” Holtzman (6-0) said of his victory. “It was a tough fight, he’s a tough guy, hard to finish and I had to find other ways to win.”

Gonzalez rallies against Casey to win XFC gold

In the co-main event, Pearl Gonzalez displayed heart and determination to battle her way back from two dicey rounds to submit Cortney Casey in the third and win the vacant XFC flyweight championship.

The grappling-heavy battle was contested almost entirely on the mat, with transitions, reversals and submissions coming at a rapid pace each and every round.

Gonzalez found herself in serious danger multiple times throughout the first 10 minutes, as Casey (1-1) had numerous submission attempts on the brink of finishing the fight. The 27-year-old refused to give up, though, and in the third round found an opening to submit Gonzalez with an armbar and take home the XFC belt in just her third professional fight.

Even though she has a very short MMA career, Gonzalez (2-1) credited the win to a decade and a half of hard work.

“This is 15 years of hard work wrapped around my waist right now,” Gonzalez said after the fight. “It was a tough fight. Thank you Cortney Casey for the amazing work.”

Ribeiro takes advantage of sloppy Hicks

Deivison Ribeiro did not allow himself to be lulled into a wild slugfest with Jason Hicks before scoring a first-round knockout victory.

In the roughly four-minute battle, Hicks (5-2) threw numerous wild techniques that opened him up to the attacks of Ribeiro and ultimately cost him the fight. Ribeiro’s composure was his key to victory as he waited for an opportunity to pounce. When that opportunity arose late in the first round, Ribeiro (24-9) attacked until the referee mercifully stopped the fight. With the win, the Brazilian earned the opportunity to compete against Farkhad Sharipov for the vacant XFC featherweight title in December.

Santos starches Davis for quick knockout

It took just 33 seconds and one vicious headkick from Luis Santos to end Justin Davis‘ night in highlight reel fashion. Santos (58-9-1) entered the contest on a three-fight winning streak with all the victories coming by knockout in an average of 31 seconds per fight. The Brazilian extended that run to four with another quick finish of David (13-12) and is quickly establishing himself as one of the most violent fighters on the XFC roster.

Clark turns away Cifers in professional debut

Hannah Cifers made her professional debut against 10-fight veteran of the sport Heather Clark, and the difference in experience was evident from the outset. Clark had the sharper performance in all elements of the match as she picked her strikes on the feet for all 15 minutes to a decision win. “Hurricane” was particularly successful with her kicks and although Cifers (0-1) lasted all three rounds, it was clear she had no answer for her opponent’s game plan. After dropping back-to-back fights for the first time in her career, Clark (6-4) rebounded with a dominant effort that puts her back in the win column.

Sanders batters Underwood for referee stoppage

Luke Sanders kept his undefeated MMA record in tact with a sixth consecutive victory over Zach Underwood on the opening fight of the AXS TV main card. The fight was a one-sided beating for nearly two rounds with Sanders getting the better of his opponent on the feet and on the ground for a knockout victory. Despite his failure to finish Underwood (11-5) with multiple submission attempts, Sanders (6-0) backup plan of riding position and unleashing ground-and-pound was enough to convince the referee to award him with a stoppage victory.

XFC 26 results include:

MAIN CARD

• Scott Holtzman def. Roger Carroll via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) – to retain lightweight title
• Pearl Gonzalez def. Cortney Casey via submission (armbar) – Round 3, 4:43 – for vacant women’s flyweight title
• Deivison Ribeiro def. Jason Hicks via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 4:08
• Luis Santos def. Justin Davis via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 0:33
• Heather Clark def. Hannah Cifers via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Luke Sanders def. Zach Underwood via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:38

For more on XFC 26, check out the MMA Events section of the site.

(Pictured: Scott Holtzman)