Duncan gets to grips with debut UFC win
It was delight for Stirling scrapper Chris Duncan after he scored a sensational debut victory in the UFC at the weekend.
The Tullibody lightweight fulfilled a lifetime dream by setting foot in the octagon on Saturday night – and he made it an occasion to remember when he had his hand raised following a hard-fought bout.
The UFC newcomer faced off against tough Venezuelan opponent Omar Morales at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday night as part of the UFC 286 event.
The cat-and-mouse contest saw the judges return their verdict, with Duncan winning a split decision, 29-28, 29-28 and 27-30.
The opening round saw both fighters land their share of strikes in a back-and-forth encounter.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for the 29-year-old – who fights out of Stirling’s Evo Gym – as he sustained a number of hard kicks to his legs which momentarily seemed to cause problems.
Duncan then mixed his game up, taking Morales down to the canvas on a number of occasions to assert his dominance.
It was Duncan’s control over the opponent in the grappling exchanges that sealed the win.
As the bout went to the judges’ scorecards, the win was uncertain, but the verdict saw Duncan have his hand raised in victory.
Following the debut win, a jubilant Duncan said: “I’m happy with it (the victory). I need to win on my debut and it was a bit scrappy – I got caught (with strikes). I had a little bit of first time nerves.
“I lost my Contender Series fight through ego, so when I went back to my corner after the first round they told me ‘go to your wrestling’ so I got my win and I can now put food on my table for the family, which is important.”