Legacy FC 36 results: Damacio Page earns belt, 'KO of Year' consideration

Cody East (9-1) cruised to an easy win and strapped the Legacy FC heavyweight belt around his waist with a one-sided beatdown of Vernon Lewis (4-3).

The title fight headlined Legacy FC 36, which took place Friday at Route 66 Casino in Albuquerque, N.M. The event’s main card aired live on AXS TV.

Lewis appeared to seize up early as East went to town with combinations of front kicks and straight rights. The shots didn’t seem to hurt Lewis, but it appeared something was definitely wrong.

A brief display of life was shut down by a leg kick from East, who took the opportunity to turn up the heat and back his opponent against the cage.

A flurry of punches sent Lewis slumping to the canvas and prompted the referee intervention at the 3:26 mark of the first round. But in reality, he was out of the fight several seconds earlier as East pounded away.

East picked up his sixth straight victory and called for a shot in the UFC while Lewis saw a four-fight winning streak snapped.

Page drops the bomb on Hall

UFC and WEC vet Damacio Page (19-9) put in a strong ballot for “Knockout of the Month” (and perhaps “KO of the Year”) with a highlight-reel win over Brian Hall (7-2).

Page picked up the Legacy FC flyweight title and possibly punched a return ticket to the UFC, which released him following a 0-3 stint after his transition from the now-defunct WEC.

A bantamweight under the Zuffa banner, Page implored the UFC to bring him back so his weight cuts could be made with the potential of greater reward.

In the opening seconds, Hall landed a stiff left hook that motivated Page to clinch for a takedown. A subsequent knee and hook prompted another shot, and for a moment, it looked like Page was in trouble.

Resetting at center cage, Page got a breather from Hall’s pressure, and that’s when he turned the tide in the most violent of ways. An overhand right caught Hall flush on the jaw and dropped him stone cold to the mat.

Hall bounced off the canvas and came to rest at the edge of the cage, where he lay for several moments. The official time of stoppage was the 1:48 mark of the first round.

Sanchez a little too savvy for enthusiastic Cheeks

Featherweight veteran Donald Sanchez’s experience was simply too much for Charles Cheeks III over three rounds.

Sanchez (30-14) picked up his first win under the Legacy FC banner, earning scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 after a decision loss in April to Flavio Alvaro.

Cheeks (7-4) came out wild with punches and big kicks, and he chased Sanchez all over the cage. The brawling style kept Sanchez from slowing down the fight and working a more conservative, technical approach, which forced him to take punches as he tried to work combinations.

Cheeks’ energy waned in the second frame, however, as Sanchez began to put together his combinations and outclass his opponent. Late in the frame, a fake put Sanchez in top position and allowed him to threaten a finish as Cheeks gave up his back. Time ran out before a choke was found, but it boosted Sanchez’s confidence.

In the third, Sanchez began to cruise ahead as he got looser with his strikes and landed more significant blows, hammering Cheeks with a head kick midway through the frame. A takedown eventually put Sanchez on top, where he damaged with elbows.

Cheeks now has lost two straight after a six-fight regional winning streak.

Espinosa upsets ‘TUF’ vet de Freitas

Jordan Espinosa handed “The Ultimate Fighter 18” contestant Rafael de Freitas his first professional loss

The final scores were unanimously 29-28 for Espinosa (6-4), who picked up his second straight win while de Freitas (6-1-1), who was stopped by Cody Bollinger in the elimination round of “TUF,” suffers his first loss after a draw against WEC vet Antonio Banuelos in his previous fight.

Espinosa opened the flyweight fight with a series of leaping attacks and threw big strikes as de Freitas planted his feet and tried to counter. Espinosa’s speed gave de Freitas fits early on, which left him little time for a reply.

De Freitas pressed the action to the cage early on in the second frame, but yet again, it was Espinosa with the more decisive offense as he landed a knee that stunned his opponent. More counters followed as de Freitas compensated with aggression while swinging wide before initiating a scramble that brought him to Espinosa’s back.

A takedown was the priority for de Freitas in the third round, and it was on the mat where Espinosa seemed to fade for the first time. Taking the mount, de Freitas cinched an arm-triangle, but couldn’t coax a tap and instead settled for the decision.

Roberts hammers Lovato Jr.

Clint Roberts (6-3) now enjoys back-to-back wins after stopping welterweight vet Lenny Lovato Jr. (8-4)

Lovato started off swinging wild and wound up nearly eating a shin from a kick thrown by Roberts. It was a preview of the differential in power as Lovato dove for takedowns amid a flurry of powerful strikes.

Lovato eventually found his feet and traded with Roberts, only to catch a head kick that dropped him to the mat and forced the referee’s intervention at the 4:15 mark of the first round.

Lovato has now lost four straight while Roberts, a sparring partner of ex-interim UFC welterweight champ Carlos Condit, improves to 4-1 in his past five outings.

Center edges Nicolini with striking

In her first fight in over one year, strawweight Norma Rueda Center (3-1) rebounded from a decision loss to “TUF 20” contestant Joanne Calderwood with a workmanlike decision over Michelle Nicolini (2-1).

The final scores were 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 for Center, who handed Nicolini her first pro loss.

Nicolini wasted little time taking Center to the mat, where she managed to threaten several times with leglocks despite a lack of position. Center hung tight and got back to her feet, though she wasn’t able to do much to respond.

Center had better luck with her fists in the second round while landing several left hands that got Nicolini’s attention. Frustrated, Nicolini pulled guard and looked for a submission to no avail. Center got a reprieve when the referee stood up the action, and she landed a right hand that dropped her opponent.

A staring contest drained two minutes from the third frame, which prompted a referee warning to both fighters for timidity. Upon the restart, Nicolini dove and scrambled for a takedown, but she did little with the position. Punches snuck in for Center when the fight went back to its feet, and Nicolini was unable to defend the straight shots coming her way.

Official Legacy FC 36 results included:

MAIN CARD (AXS TV, 10 p.m. ET)

• Cody East def. Vernon Lewis via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:26 – to win heavyweight title
• Damacio Page def. Brian Hall via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 1:48 – to win flyweight title
• Donald Sanchez def. Charles Cheeks III via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Jordan Espinosa def. Rafael de Freitas via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) – Round 3, 5:00
• Clint Roberts def. Lenny Lovato Jr. via knockout (head kick) – Round 1, 4:15
• Norma Rueda Center def. Michelle Nicolini via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) – Round 3, 5:00

For more on Legacy FC 36, check out the MMA Events section of the site.