TUF 17 Finale results/photos: Luke Barnatt tops Collin Hart via decision

LAS VEGAS – For three rounds Collin Hart struggled to get inside of Luke Barnatt’s reach, and to make it worth the trouble when he finally found himself there.

In the end it wasn’t enough, as all three judges scored the fight for Luke Barnatt (29-28, 29-28, 30-27), keeping his undefeated record intact and earning him his first victory inside the octagon.

The middleweight bout was part of the preliminary card of The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. It aired on FUEL TV following additional prelims on Facebook and ahead of a main card on FX.

The taller, lankier Barnatt established his punching range early on against his fellow “TUF 17? castmate, bloodying Hart’s nose with jabs from the outside and weathering the storm when Hart did manage to close the distance. Several times it looked as though Hart may have hurt Barnatt, but the Brit held on and kept firing back, even coming close to locking up a standing guillotine in the second frame.

“I’ve been working really hard at my phenomenal gym back in England with my team,” said Barnatt. “I thought Collin was going to be a little gun shy at the beginning of the fight, so I expected him to tie me up and try to take me down. I was able to use my range and score points at distance. I’m very happy that I was able to go out there and get the win. I couldn’t ask for a better birthday present.”

Barnatt (6-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) takes home a win in his UFC debut on his 25th birthday while Hart (4-2-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) came up just short in his debut effort.

Up-to-the-minute TUF 17 Finale results include:

• Luke Barnatt def. Collin Hart via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Dylan Andrews def. Jimmy Quinlan via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 3:22
• Clint Hester def. Bristol Marunde via TKO (elbow) – Round 3, 3:53
• Cole Miller def. Bart Palaszewski via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:23
• Maximo Blanco def. Sam Sicilia via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Daniel Pineda def. Justin Lawrence via submission (kimura) – Round 1, 1:35

For complete coverage of The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.

John Morgan contributed to this report on-site in Las Vegas.