LAS VEGAS – UFC commentator and Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier was not impressed by Eli Aronov’s submission defense in his Dana White’s Contender Series 59 loss to Zach Reese.
Reese (6-0) punched his ticket to a UFC contract on Tuesday when he recovered from slipping to the ground to lock in a fight-ending armbar on Aronov (5-1) just 74 seconds into the middleweight bout at the UFC Apex.
Check out the replay of the finish below (via X):
SNATCHED HIS ARM!@Savage185Reese first round finish to close the show 😳 #DWCS pic.twitter.com/SRMw6LBTer
— UFC (@ufc) August 23, 2023
After the finish, Cormier expressed his frustration with Aronov’s defensive tactics.
“That’s the thing – you can’t do that, man,” Cormier said aftr the stoppage. “When you’re out of the submission, you can’t put yourself in a damn submission. He was out. He was actually out. That is crazy. That’s what I’m talking about. That’s the stuff that’s going to keep you out of the UFC. … You see something like that coming from a pay-per-view, that’s a mistake people don’t make coming from pay-per-views.”
While disappointed in Aronov, there was plenty of praise on Reese, who remained undefeated with six first-round finishes in six fights.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Dana White’s Contender Series 59.
