Paul Craig survives early onslaught to submit Nikita Krylov at UFC London

The Ultimate Fighting Championship returns to us today, March 19, 2022, for UFC Fight Night 204, going down live from the O2 Arena in London, England.

Headlining the event is a heavyweight clash between former M-1 & Bellator champion Alexander Volkov (No. 6) and rising contender Tom Aspinall (No. 11).

Co-headlining the event is Dan Hooker’s return to the featherweight division, as he takes on No. 7 ranked Arnold Allen.

Our feature prelim bout came in the light-heavyweight division between another pair of ranked contenders, this one showcasing Nikita Krylov (No. 9) and Paul Craig (No. 11), both of which are devastating finishers.

Continue reading to see how this epic 205 lb contest went down:

Official Result: Paul Craig def. Nikita Krylov via submission (triangle choke) at 3:57 of round one

This fight starts with a furious pace, as Krylov storms across the cage throwing heavy strikes.

He catches Craig with a couple punches, but throws a kick, which Craig catches. Craig isn’t able to secure a takedown though, and in the scramble, he ends up on bottom.

Krylov is sitting in Craig’s half guard, and it appears Craig is having a tough time regaining his guard.

However, he’s eventually able to, but he’s being smashed with heavy punches and elbows.

There was a series of hammerfists that badly rattled Craig, and it looked like it was going to be over very soon.

Krylov passes into Craig’s half guard again, and then side control, continuing to reign down shots. When he’s not striking Craig, he’s driving his forearm into Craig’s throat.

Craig is the able to lock up his signature triangle choke on his second attempt, and soon after gets the tap.

Never count out Paul Craig! 1st round triangle choke at 3:57 #UFCLondon pic.twitter.com/HoXx7QKBst

— MMA mania (@mmamania) March 19, 2022

Paul ‘Bearjew’ Craig is now 5-0-1 in his last six outings, avenging the draw, and he now wants No. 5 ranked Anthony Smith. Who doesn’t want to see that?

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Brady Ordway

I became a fan of combat sports when I was 12 years old. I was scrolling through the channels and landed upon Versus, where WEC was televised. Urijah Faber fought Jens Pulver for the second time that night. That's the first fight I ever saw, and I was immediately hooked. So eventually, I began covering the sport in the fourth quarter of 2018, and have since started writing about animals as well. If you'd like to see those pieces, be sure to check out learnaboutnature.com!

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