LAS VEGAS – Daniel Argueta beat Nick Aguirre with a unanimous decision Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 217 in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Argueta, who bounced back from his first loss for the first win of his UFC career.
Nick Aguirre vs. Daniel Argueta
Result: Daniel Argueta def. Nick Aguirre via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Updated records: Argueta (9-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC), Aguirre (7-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Key stat: Argueta outstruck Aguirre 93-15 and landed four takedowns.
Argueta on the fight's key moment
“He had that weird 10th Planet (Jiu-jitsu) strength. I would try to separate from him and he would stick onto me and I couldn’t get separation staying in a safe spot. It was frustrating.”
Argueta on his trajectory
“I’m still learning how to do this. This was only my ninth pro MMA fight, third fight in the (UFC) Apex – I still feel so new to this. I actually sent a picture to Cub (Swanson) a couple days ago, and that was his record when he was my age – when he was 29 years old. He beat (Charles) Oliveira, (Dustin) Poirier and (Denis) Siver and Ross Pearson, all in one year when he was my age. I look at that and think, ‘Holy crap, I still have a ways to go.'”
Argueta on what he wants next
“We’ll see (if I go back to bantamweight). I’m definitely wanting to fight at bantamweight by the end of the year. I know I’m a problem at that weight class. It’s not going to always look so pretty – I’m not the prettiest guy to go out there and put on a performance like that. But I’m going to make it gritty and you’re never going to want to f*cking fight me again. At bantamweight, I know I’m a problem. But if someone needs a fight at ’45 again and my manager likes it, we’ll definitely think about it before dropping back down. I haven’t even seen me at my best yet – I’m frustrated.”
To hear more from Argueta, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 217.
