Sam Patterson and Kieffer Crosby at the UFC 304 weigh-in. Photo by Patrick McCauley/Cageside Press
Big British lightweight boxer Sam Patterson took on SBG Ireland’s Kieffer Crosby as part of the preliminary bouts earlier in the night at UFC 304.
At 6ft 3in, Samu is one of the tallest fighters in the history of the lightweight division, four inches taller and with eight inches longer reach than Crosby, who crashed out in his UFC debut last year. In a showdown between England and Ireland, the Walford native claimed a commanding victory in front of his home crowd in Manchester.
The two started to explore the stand-up routine at a distance. Crosby pushed forward aggressively, and both men let go in the first minute. However, Patterson took a hit to the groin, which halted the momentum, but the two were soon back in the fight. Patterson landed a hard right uppercut on Crosby, and as the stand-up routine started to look pretty smooth, Kiefer tried to clinch. Unfortunately, Sam reversed it, took him down and got into full mount. He quickly began to set up an arm triangle choke that Crosby could barely defend. He stepped up to finish it off, got back into mount, locked on tighter, then stepped up again, forcing the Irishman to tap.
Sam Patterson is coming off an impressive win in his third UFC fight and looks set to be a hot prospect if he can avoid the overconfidence that cost him his first UFC fight. Now is the time for the 28-year-old to put it all together and reach his peak.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Sam Patterson defeats Kieffer Crosby via submission (arm triangle choke), 2:50, round 1
