FIGHTERS meant business at LFA 86, with five of the six bouts finished within Round 1. The quickest stoppage of the lot fittingly came in the main event, as Jimmy Flick added some more hardware to his collection in the form of the flyweight belt.

Held out of the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, it was the third-straight Legacy Fighting Alliance headlined by a championship bout, with a fourth to go down next week as Bryce Logan and Jacob Rosales battle for the vacant lightweight title at LFA 87.

For now, we recap the action from an entertaining, albeit short-lived night of fights in our fight-by-fight recap.

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Jimmy Flick def. Greg Fischer | Submission (arm-triangle) 0:38 Rd 1

The quickest finish of the night belonged to Jimmy Flick, who became the first man to finish Greg Fischer en route to snapping up the vacant LFA flyweight championship. It was Flick’s third title fight in a row across three promotions, and his 12^th submission victory across a 14-5 record.

A pumped-up Flick could be heard screaming “Dana White, I’m ready”, before declaring himself the best grappler in the world at 125-pounds. He certainly has a case, with his slick turn of the corner on a double-leg takedown, and lightning-quick arm triangle snatch earning him the victory and some more hardware.

It was the perfect way to cap off what was a short-lived night, and we may well be seeing yet another LFA flyweight champ on his way to a UFC berth.

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Arthur Estrazulas def. Dominic Clark | Submission (rear-naked choke) 3:26 Rd 1

The evening’s co-main event delivered on its hype, with Arthur Estrazulas turning the early tide to submit Dominic Clark in Round 1. With the vacant LFA lightweight title on the line in a week’s time, the Brazilian has raised his hand as an early first contender for the next shot.

Clark looked strong out of the blocks as he shot in for a couple of takedown attempts, eventually landing one in the face of Estrazulas’ phenomenal balance and defence. But the now 12-4 Brazilian reversed the position with a takedown of his own, using it to take Clark’s back, sink in the hooks, flatten him out, and sink in a tight rear-naked choke.

That’s now eight submission victories for the 31-year-old out of Kings MMA, and two wins in a row.

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Fabio Cherant def. Erick Murray Jr.| Submission (anaconda choke) 0:57 Rd 1

Fabio Cherant was a man on a mission, gaining redemption after his first professional loss on the Contender Series to submit Erick Murray Jr in the first round. In his maiden LFA bout, Cherant took just under a minute to get rid of his opponent, working shots to the body before winging a quick left hand up top to stun Murray.

Sensing his moment, Cherant quickly snatched up the choke and adjusted it beautifully on the feet, with Murray dragging it to the mat to escape, but eventually tapping. The only blight on Cherant’s performance was the fact he missed weight by nine pounds, but he looks a serious prospect at light heavyweight with five submission wins on his 5-1 record.

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Mando Gutierrez def. Jeff Jepsen | Submission (rear-naked choke) 1:57 Rd 1

Mando Gutierrez ensured the train of promotional debut wins would roll on, with his slick first round submission of Jeff Jepsen. The 23-year-old grappler showed he has more tricks in the bag than just his wrestling, winging powerful kicks on the feet and heavy knees in the clinch, before wrapping up a guillotine and using it to take the fight to the mat.

From there, the brutal pace Gutierrez enforced took full toll on Jepsen, as he transitioned to the back from half guard, quickly sunk in hooks and the choke to yield a tap. He looks the real deal, and a well-rounded package with four submission victories on the trot.

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Mark Martin def. Tony Grant | TKO (punches) 3:52 Rd 1

A relentless showing from Mark Martin saw him make quick work of Tony Grant in their welterweight clash, taking just under four minutes to improve to 4-1 on his LFA debut.

The 26-year-old has now won three-straight fights and boasts three first round finishes, making him an exciting prospect. He was in on a takedown early, but fell into a successful attempt on his second dig, using it to land heavy ground-and-pound and looking to advance the position.

While Grant was able to get to his feet, Martin maintained the pressure with swarming knees to the body, before a sweet uppercut spelt the beginning of the end. With Grant out on his feet after being momentarily dropped, Martin kept him on the hook and landed heavy shots up top, with another folding knee and more ground-and-pound to his defenceless opponent closing the show.

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Jordan Heiderman def. Jacob Heavlin | Decision (split) 28-29, 29-28, 30-27

Heavyweights again kicked off the action at the bottom of the card, with Jordan Heiderman handing Jacob Heavlin his first professional loss by way of a tight split decision. In what was both fighters’ LFA debuts, Heiderman was able to thwart the wrestling advances of Heavlin, and opened up a cut over his eye early, although it didn’t stop the now 1-1 (1) prospect from moving forward.

Both men had their moments on the feet, but seemed unfazed by the others’ power, continuing to get shots off at a high pace. Heiderman’s takedown defence, long punching combinations, and knees to the body got the job done in the face of Heavlin’s volume and pressure, with a late arm triangle attempt perhaps snatching Round 3.