By TXMMA Staff // Photos by Mike Calimbas and Charles Nguyen
Anthony Njokuani suffers third straight loss in shocker at LFC 38
DALLAS, TX – Legacy Fight Championship 38 took place last Friday, February 13th at the Allen Event Center. It was an eventful card for Dallas-Fort Worth area MMA fans as usual. it also featured some great wins for some rising prospects, and some surprising upsets as well.
For starters, Legacy FC 38 was meant to be the triumphant Texas return for UFC vet Anthony Njokuani. A student of Saekson Janjira, Anthony had been fighting under the Zuffa banner since 2009. After being cut from the UFC following 2 straight losses, it was thought that LFC 38 would be the beginning of his comeback trail.
It certainly looked that for the first two rounds of his fight with Arkansas native Dave Burrow. Njokuani dominated the striking and was up big headed into the third round but his opponent would not quit, and capitalized on a perhaps overconfident Anthony by armbarring him and snatching the win from the jaws of defeat.
With 4 losses in his last 5, it might be a ways before Anthony finds his way back to the UFC. At least at this point fans can look forward to some interesting fights for him in LFC. Maybe even a Legacy Kickboxing bout for the Muay Thai based striker?
Jason Sampson, Steven Peterson, Augusto Mendes, etc. score impressive victories on LFC 38 undercard
Elsewhere at LFC 38, Jason Sampson looked absolutely dominating. Going into the event with an 11-1 record, Sampson returned from injury and quickly dispatched another declining UFC vet in Joseph Sandoval to put a quick end to the night’s co-main event. Overall a clean victory for the Octagon MMA and Team Mohler trained fighter, which should bode well for his chances at a UFC call up at some point in the near future.
Likewise, Sampson’s Octagon MMA teammate Steven Peterson surprised many by making easy work of highly-regard Brazilian Caio Machado by first round submission. As is his trademark style, “Ocho” came out like a ball of fire in this one. It seemed Caio could never match his pace and was dropped momentarily en route to the submission. With this performance, it seems that Peterson is closer than ever to title contention and/or the UFC.
Also scoring a dominant victory at LFC 38 was BJJ World Champion Augusto Mendes, aka Tanquinho. With his fiancée Mackenzie Dern also in attendance, Tanquinho proved he is more than just a grappler as he stood with previously undefeated Evan Martinez for the better part of two rounds before taking things to the ground and reigning down strikes from the mount position to score the finish.
Other main card winners including Charles Byrd and Andrew Parker along with Eli “Tomahawk” Tamez who scored a narrow split decision win to stay undefeated at 9-0.
Check out complete results including the prelims from LFC 38 below:
Legacy FC 38 Results – Main Card (AXS TV)
- Dave Burrow def. Anthony Njokuani by submission (armbar) – RD3, 1:29
- Jason Sampson def. Joseph Sandoval by TKO (punches) – RD1, 1:36
- Steven Peterson def. Caio Machado by submission (guillotine) – RD1, 3:55
- Augusto Mendes def. Evan Martinez by TKO (punches) – RD2, 3:26
- Charles Byrd def. Evan Thompson by TKO (punches) – RD1, 4:51
- Eli Tamez def. Saul Elizondo by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Andrew Parker def. Bilal Williams by submission (rear-naked choke) – RD1, 4:53
Legacy FC 38 Results – Prelims (Untelevised)
- Mark De La Rosa def. Keeton Gorton by split decision
- Tristan Grimsley def. George Pacarariu by split decision
- Cameron Couch def. Kris Bickham by unanimous decision
- Colton Wright def. Jon Camero by TKO. RD1, 1:19
- Jarrod Trotter def. Federico Olivera by unanimous decision
- Dylan Ashburn def. Donis Francois by submission (twister). RD2, 1:55.
Legacy Fighting Championship 38 – Photo Highlights
Check out our complete Legacy FC 38 Photo Gallery here.
