For the better part of a round, it appeared Antonio Carlos Junior was well on his way to an easy victory.
Junior took a five-fight win streak into his bout with upstart Ian Heinisch and effortlessly displayed his world-class jiu-jitsu skills at UFC on ESPN+ 10.
But if you didn’t already know, now you should: Heinisch is one gritty customer who can never be counted out. He proved this Saturday by rallying in a down-and-dirty fight to take the last two rounds and earn a unanimous decision on across-the-board scores of 29-28.
“I’m usually super explosive, but I had to be patient,” Heinisch said after his fifth straight victory. “This guy is one of the best in the world, a world champion.”
Junior (10-3 MMA; 7-3 UFC) was all over Heinisch in the opening round, using his grappling game to fluster his foe and work for submissions. But he never quite got the job done, and as the second round unfolded, it became clear Heinisch (13-1 MMA; 2-0 UFC) was turning things around.
Fouls aside (a headbutt and more than one fence grab by Heinisch; a brutal knee to the groin by Junior, none of which merited point deductions in the eyes of referee Todd Anderson), Heinisch imposed his will on Junior for the bulk of the final 10 minutes, winning wild scrambles and smothering his foe. Heinisch punctuated his performance by raining down punches from the top as time expired.
The middleweight bout served as the co-main event for UFC on ESPN+ 10 at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, N.Y.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN+ 10 results include:
- Ian Heinisch def. Antonio Carlos Junior via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Feilcia Spencer def. Megan Anderson via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:24
- Vicente Luque def. Derrick Krantz via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:52
- Charles Oliveira def. Nik Lentz via knockout (punch) – Round 2, 2:11
- Davi Ramos def. Austin Hubbard via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Aspen Ladd def. Sijara Eubanks via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-27, 29-28)
- Desmond Green def. Charles Jourdain via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Michel Pereira def. Danny Roberts via knockout (flying knee, punch) – Round 1, 1:47
- Grant Dawson def. Mike Trizano via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 2:27
- Ed Herman def. Patrick Cummins via TKO (knee, punches) – Round 1, 3:39
- Zak Cummings def. Trevin Giles via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 3, 4:01
- Julio Arce def. Julian Erosa via knockout (head kick) – Round 3, 1:49
For complete coverage of UFC on ESPN+ 10, visit the UFC Events section of the site.
