UFC on ESPN on ESPN 46 Prelims: Daniel Santos Outworks Johnny Munoz Jr.

Back and forth action through all three rounds 😤

Daniel Santos going home with a win! #UFCVegas74 pic.twitter.com/iMGVFPzlOs

— UFC (@ufc) June 4, 2023

Daniel Santos made Johnny Munoz Jr. pay for his willingness to play guard.

Top control and ground-and-pound carried Santos to a unanimous decision victory over Munoz Jr. in their UFC on ESPN 46 clash at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on Saturday. All three judges scored the contest 29-27 in favor of the Chute Boxe Diego Lima member.

Related » UFC on ESPN 46 Round-by-Round Scoring

It was a rough outing for Munoz Jr., who weathered a pair of kicks to the groin — the second which led to a point deduction — and struggled to mount significant offense from his back. The former King of the Cage champion had his best moments in Round 1, when he landed a series of upkicks against Santos before briefly trapping his Brazilian foe in a triangle choke.

For the most part, however, Santos was comfortable working from top position when Munoz Jr. pulled guard. He controlled positioning, nullified his opponent’s submission game and chipped away with punches and elbows from above. Munoz Jr. didn’t assume top position until late in Round 3, but Santos rocked him with an upkick of his own to allow him to scramble back on top before the final horn.

Mayes Clobbers Arlovski

Don'Tale Mayes secured the most significant victory of his career to date, defeating former heavyweight king Andrei Arlovski via technical knockout in a heavyweight contest. The Jackson-Wink MMA product brought the show to a close at the 3:17 mark of Round 2, giving him six career triumphs via knockout or technical knockout. Arlovski (34-22, 23-16, 1 NC UFC), who has the second most fights in promotion history, has been stopped in back-to-back bouts.

Arlovski used distance management and technical boxing to control the majority of Round 1, but the momentum shifted late in the period when Mayes landed a pair of short elbows in close quarters before staggering his foe with a left hand. The finish was a thing a beauty for Mayes, who slipped an Arlovski jab and then dropped the Belarusian with an overhand right. “Lord Kong” landed a few follow-up hammerfists on a defenseless Arlovski before Mark Smith stepped in to halt the contest.

Castaneda Holds Off Gafurov

Combate Americas veteran John Castaneda survived a hard-charging Muin Gafurov to capture a unanimous decision triumph in a bantamweight encounter. All three judges scored the fight 29-27 for “Sexy Mexy,” as Gafurov (18-5, 0-1 UFC) had a point deducted in Round 2 for leading with his head.

Castaneda (20-6, 3-2 UFC) had a shot at ending things early when he hurt Gafurov with a head kick and dropped him with an ensuing right hand. Gafurov was able to recover on the canvas, and make it to the end of the opening frame. The former One Championship competitor set a relentless pace in Round 2, marching forward while winging power punches for most of the stanza. Castaneda kept his cool and imposed his will with a pair of takedowns in the final round, ending the contest in mount and threatening with a rear-naked choke to punctuate his victory.

Newcomer Naimov Upsets Mullarkey

Elevation Fight Team export Muhammadjon Naimov scored an upset in his promotional debut, as he defeated Jamie Mullarkey via technical knockout in a lightweight scrap. Naimov (9-2, 1-0 UFC) ended the proceedings 2:59 into Round 2 for his fourth straight professional triumph.

Mullarkey (16-6, 4-4 UFC) started well, controlling the range with crisp boxing while blending in periodic takedown attempts. Naimov sent a message early in the second stanza when he connected with a spinning back kick to the body. Later, he caught Mullarkey moving forward recklessly with his hands down, and that allowed him to step back and drop his adversary with a right hook to the chin. From there, the Tajikistan native unloaded with punches and hammerfists on the canvas to force the stoppage.

Reed Outpoints Frey

Elise Reed edged former Invicta FC champ Jinh Yu Frey via unanimous decision in a strawweight affair. All three cageside judges submitted 29-28 tallies in favor of the ex-Cage Fury Fighting Championships title holder. Frey (11-9, 2-5 UFC) has lost her last three Octagon appearances.

Frey did her best work in the opening stanza, when she connected with several solid punches and grounded Reed on multiple occasions. Frey would land just one takedown the rest of the way, however, and her striking output waned down the stretch, as well. Reed (7-3, 3-3 UFC), meanwhile, got stronger as the bout progressed, keeping the fight upright while putting Frey on her heels with punching combinations and kicks to the legs and body.

Blackshear Bashes Lacerda

Jackson-Wink MMA representative Da'Mon Blackshear made Luan Lacerda pay for his insistence on hunting for leg locks, winning via technical knockout in a bantamweight clash. A salvo of ground-and-pound ended the bout at the 3:54 mark of Round 2, giving “Da Monster” his first win via KO/TKO since 2018.

Blackshear (13-5-1, 1-1-1 UFC) landed with superior volume on the feet, as he landed punching combinations while Lacerda (12-3, 0-2 UFC) marched forward. When the fight hit the canvas, Blackshear demonstrated good scrambling ability and submission defense as his Brazilian foe gambled by attacking the lower limbs. That came back to haunt the Nova Uniao product in the second stanza, when Lacerda ate a series of unanswered shots to the head while clinging to Blackshear’s leg to force referee Chris Tognoni to intervene on his behalf.

Lins Wins Third Straight

Former Professional Fighters League heavyweight champion Philipe Lins improved to 3-0 at 205 pounds, taking a unanimous verdict over ex-World Fighting Championship Akhmat title holder Maxim Grishin. All three judges scored the contest in favor of Lins: 29-28, 29-28, 30-27.

While the fight stalled out repeatedly against the cage, Lins (17-5, 3-2 UFC) had success during exchanges, rocking Grishin (33-9-2, 2-3 UFC) with overhand rights, uppercuts and his left hook. Grishin spent much of the contest with his back against the fence defending Lins takedowns, but he did connect with several solid short elbows and body kicks. Ultimately, it wasn’t enough sway the scorecards in his favor.