Fans tuning into the preliminary card of UFC Abu Dhabi expecting a great fight were let down in a major way by Ibo Aslan and Billy Elekana, both of whom put on a lackluster effort as Elekana scored a decision victory.
The fight started cautiously, with both men trading low kicks. Elekana was more on a front foot than his opponent, though neither man landed anything significant.
The inactivity continued into the second round, with more feints, glancing kicks, and misses on strikes. Elekana had the advantage again, if only because of his front kicks and grappling pressure — though his takedown attempts were for naught.
Aslan landed low kicks late in the third, but Elekana landed a left hand that busted Aslan open, briefly wobbling him. Still, neither man showed any sense of urgency, including Elekana failing to follow-up on the wobble.
Two judges scored the bout for Elekana 30-27, while the other scored it 29-28 in his favor.
MMA Community Blasts Billy Elekana’s Lackluster Win Over Ibo Aslan At UFC Abu Dhabi
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Elekana dropped his UFC debut at UFC 311 in January, getting submitted by Bogdan Guskov.
Aslan won his first two fights in the UFC but has now lost two straight, coming into this fight off a submission loss to Ion Cutelaba in February.
