Beating the Books: UFC Fight Night 154

Adam MartinJun 24, 2019

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UFC Fight Night 154 on Saturday in Greenville, South Carolina, turned out to be a pleasant surprise, with action-packed fights and memorable finishes. While the event flew under the radar due to a lack of recognizable names, it did not stop those who competed at Bon Secours Wellness Arena from showing off their skills. Four of the 11 bouts resulted in upsets, and the victorious underdogs provide the material for this installment of Beating the Books.

Chan Sung Jung (+190)


In a main event between featherweight contenders, Jung needed just 58 seconds to viciously dispatch Renato Carneiro with punches. “The Korean Zombie” managed to catch Carneiro with a brutal right hook that stopped him in his tracks. He then followed him to the mat and pounded away with punches until the referee mercifully stepped in to prevent further damage. This was an important win for Jung and one that could thrust him back into title contention, as it allowed him to bounce back from his knockout loss to Yair Rodriguez some seven months ago. He cashed as a +190 underdog.

Randy Brown (+195)


In the welterweight co-main event, Brown cut down Bryan Barberena in the third round to register the most significant win of his career to date. Theirs was a competitive fight for 10 minutes -- the judges had it tied entering the third round -- but Brown stepped on the gas, hurt Barberena to the head and body and eventually finished him with knees and punches. Brown hit as a +195 underdog.

Dan Ige (+120)


Ige outlasted Kevin Aguilar to a hard-fought unanimous decision in a featherweight prelim. While it was a well-matched fight, Ige managed to pull away late and earn the nod on the scorecards. He won the first round, only to see Aguilar rebound to take the second. Round 3 started even, but Ige began to connect with powerful punches, knocked down “The Angle of Death” late in the period and walked away with a decision. Ige closed as a +120 underdog.

Molly McCann (+215)


In an undercard scrap at 125 pounds, McCann earned a unanimous decision over former KSW champion Ariane Lipski. McCann pressed the action from the outset, as she pressured Lipski, landed punches in bunches and executed key takedowns across the first two rounds. Round 3 was more competitive, but Lipski was too far behind on the scorecards for it to matter. The biggest underdog on the card to cash, McCann closed at +215 odds.

Adam Martin is a mixed martial arts journalist who has been covering the sport since 2011. He is currently the lead odds analyst for Sherdog.com, as well as the lead staff writer for MMAOddsbreaker.com. Adam is also the co-host of “The Parting Shot Podcast” on iTunes. His favorite fight of all-time is Dan Henderson-Mauricio Rua, and he wishes Pride Fighting Championships never died. Adam is based out of Toronto, and he is a graduate of the University of Toronto and Centennial College. Get in touch with him on Twitter at @MMAdamMartin.