The UFC 204 main card kicked off with featherweight prospect Mirsad Bektic fighting Russell Doane, who accepted the fight only a few days ago, following two different opponents withdrawing due to injuries. Following that up was short-notice replacement Daniel Omielanczuk against Dutch veteran Stefan Struve. Here's how the first two PPV bouts in Manchester, England played out.
Mirsad Bektic def. Russell Doane via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:22 of round 1 - Featherweights
Early fast combinations by Bektic. Doane was willing to exchange with Mirsad but he was taken down by Mirsad. Doane was able to get back to his feet, but Mirsad had control of his body and tossed him down twice more. To his credit, Doane was able to avoid being held down. After another takedown, Bektic took Doane's back and had both hooks in, but Mirsad's own back was against the fence. Bektic looked for the rear-naked choke, which Doane defended well, but Bektic stuck to Doane's back like glue. He adjusted for the rear-naked choke again and this time it was locked in for the finish. It's a win for Bektic in his return to the Octagon after 17 months out due to injury. Doane has lost 4 in a row.
Stefan Struve def. Daniel Omielanczuk via submission (d'arce choke) at 1:41 of round 2 - Heavyweights
Early leg kicks where thrown by Omielanczuk, who's a foot shorter than Struve, and that's no exaggeration. Big left hand by Daniel as Struve was backing up. Hard knee to the body by Struve. Left and a right connected for Daniel, and then a right hook just whizzed by Stefan's face. Struve with the takedown but Omielanczuk got back up. Nifty trip by Struve and into half-guard. Struve got the mount with 70 seconds left in the opening round, then transitioned to the back, then back to full mount, then to back mount again. No serious submission attempts or ground-and-pound was landed, but Struve dominated on the mat.
Omielanczuk went for the takedown to kick off the 2nd round, but Struve fended it off and pushed Daniel up against the fence. Big knee in the clinch by Struve to Omielanczuk's noggin. Successful trip by Struve again and he worked his way for a d'arce choke with his stupidly long arms. Omielanczuk tapped out, marking his first ever stoppage loss. Struve gets his 2nd win of 2016.