Once a prodigy,
Gunnar
Nelson now views the sport through a veteran’s lens.
The 34-year-old
Renzo Gracie
disciple will seek his second win in as many appearances when he
confronts
Bryan
Barberena in a
UFC
286 welterweight attraction this Saturday at the O2 Arena in
London. Nelson owns a 9-5 record across his 14 assignments in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship. He last competed at UFC Fight
Night 204, where he was awarded a unanimous decision over
Takashi
Sato nearly a year ago.
As Nelson moves ever closer to his forthcoming clash with Barberena
at 170 pounds, a look at five of the many moments that have come to
define him:
1. Worth the Wait
Nelson, just 24 at the time, met the great expectations that
greeted his long-awaited Octagon debut and submitted “The Ultimate
Fighter” Season 9 finalist
DaMarques
Johnson with a first-round rear-naked choke as part of the UFC
on Fuel TV 5 undercard on Sept. 29, 2012 at the Capital FM Arena in
Nottingham, England. Johnson conceded defeat 3:34 into Round 1.
Nelson struck for a takedown inside the first minute, scrambled
into side control and eventually moved to full mount. Johnson
surrendered his back, only to find himself flattened out by a body
triangle from the Icelandic grappling ace. The situation was soon
hopeless. After a brief struggle, Nelson locked down the choke and
elicited the tapout.
2. Irresistible Force
Rick
Story utilized volume punching, leg kicks and superb defensive
wrestling in seizing a split decision from Nelson in the UFC Fight
Night 53 headliner on Oct. 4, 2014 at the Ericsson Globe Arena in
Stockholm. Judges
Mark Collett
and
Paul
Sutherland struck 49-46 and 50-44 scorecards for Story, while
Jim Bergman cast a puzzling 48-47 score for Nelson. Story
frustrated the Icelandic star with his output and tireless work
rate. For every punch Nelson delivered, Story offered two, three
and sometimes four in return. More importantly, Story diversified
his attack, mixing in leg kicks and investing in punishing punches
to the body. The Washington native floored Nelson with a left hook
on the chin in the fourth round and backed it up with
standing-to-ground punches. When it became clear a finish was not
going to materialize, Story invited the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black
belt to stand and picked up where he left off. Nelson failed to
pull the fight to the ground for any significant period of time.
Trapped on the feet, he was often reduced to throwing one right
hand at a time, and though the
SBG Ireland rep caused significant damage to Story’s right eye,
he fought a losing battle with the numbers game.
3. Respect Your Elders
Demian
Maia humbled Nelson with shocking ease when he cruised to a
unanimous decision in their UFC 194 welterweight showcase on Dec.
12, 2015 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Scores were
30-26, 30-25 and 30-25 for Maia, who breezed past his fellow
grappling whiz. Nelson never had a chance. Maia got in on his legs
at will, initiated scrambles and deftly advanced to top position
against the Gracie protégé. The 2007 Abu Dhabi Combat Club
Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist achieved
full mount twice, transitioned to the back on multiple occasions
and battered Nelson with an endless stream of ground-and-pound.
Statistical data told the tale of utter domination: Maia landed 193
total strikes to Nelson’s seven and piled up nearly 11 minutes of
control time.
4. Choke Artist
Nelson put away
Alan Jouban
with a guillotine choke in the second round of their UFC Fight
Night 107 co-main event on March 18, 2017 at the O2 Arena in
London. Jouban, who had never before been submitted, bowed out 46
seconds into Round 2. Nelson was in charge from start to finish.
The Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt delivered a first-round
takedown, slid to side control and climbed to full mount, as he
made the strongest of opening statements. Early in the second
round, he staggered Jouban with a straight right, followed it with
a head kick when the stricken
Resurrection Fighting Alliance veteran retreated to the fence
and then clamped down in the fight-ending guillotine, moving to a
mounted position to force the tapout.
5. Not Quite Elite
Leon
Edwards rode a near-finish in the second round to a split
decision over Nelson in their UFC Fight Night 147 co-headliner on
March 16, 2019 at the O2 Arena in London. Judge
Howard
Hughes saw it 29-28 for Nelson, while Anders Ohlsson and
Andy
Roberts scored it for Edwards, 29-27 and 29-28. After a closely
contested first five minutes, Edwards made his move in Round 2. He
floored Nelson with a counter elbow at close range, swooped into
top position and unleashed short punches, elbows and hammerfists.
The Icelandic grappler withstood the assault but emerged with a
massive hematoma near his right eye. Nelson showed his resilience
in the third round, where he followed a straight right hand to the
face with a takedown and climbed to full mount. Edwards managed to
stay calm while pinned beneath a world-class grappler and denied
the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt the finish he needed.