Kaue Fernandes woke up the crowd by scoring the first finish of the night at UFC on ABC 7.
Fernandes (9-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) picked up his first win in the UFC by stopping Mohammad Yahya at 4:45 of Round 1 in their lightweight bout at Etihad Arena in Yas Island, Abu Dhabi.
Fernandes started by chopping away at the legs of Yahya (12-5 MMA, 0-2 UFC), compromising his movement. Then Fernandes found an opening for a crisp 1-2, punctuated by a hard right hand that sent Yahya to the mat. The follow-up storm was enough for referee Marc Goddard to call a stop to the contest, and the celebration for the Brazilian was on.
Check out video of the finish below (via X):
FERNANDES' MASSIVE RIGHT HAND LED TO THE FIRST ROUND FINISH 👊 #UFCAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/qRx6saXFrb
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 3, 2024
Fernandes rebounds from a split decision loss to Marc Diakiese in his November UFC debut. The 29-year-old striker’s last three wins came by first-round finish and he now has six total such victories in his career.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ABC 7 results include:
- Kaue Fernandes def. Mohammad Yahya via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:45
- Shamil Gaziev def. Don’Tale Mayes via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Guram Kutateladze def. Jordan Vucenic via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Sam Hughes def. Viktoriia Dudakova via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jai Herbert def. Rolando Bedoya via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Sedriques Dumas def. Denis Tiuliulin via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 7.
