UFC PARIS RESULTS: Parnasse and Sola Earn Empthatic Knockouts on Home Soil

The latest UFC Fight Night took place once again in Paris, France, which has proven to be a hotbed for European MMA fans. The debuting Salahdine Parnasse headlined the event against Dan Hooker, entering the organisation with immediate intent to break into the lightweight rankings.

The main event saw France's biggest MMA star, Salahdine Parnasse (23-2), challenge City Kickboxing veteran Dan Hooker (24-14). In arguably the biggest fight of his career, Parnasse rose to the opportunity in front of a home crowd, TKOing 'The Hangman' in the first round.

Parnasse signed with the UFC after a storied career with KSW, where he became a two-weight world champion with seven title defences. Entering the Hooker fight on a five-fight knockout streak, he aimed to do nothing but impress in his debut.

The fight quickly painted itself to be a kickboxing match between the two men, with Hooker adopting a leg-kick heavy approach to hopefully offset the offence of his opponent.

A deadly liver-kick from Parnasse put a stop to this approach however, sending Hooker reeling against the cage. From here, the French debutant picked his shots. Thumping Hooker with a head-kick before dropping him with a left-hook. The combination of well-placed shots proved to be too much for the UFC veteran and the fight was stopped only two minutes into the first round.

The bright lights of a UFC main event failed to phase Parnasse, who dismantled one of the most well-respected, grizzled UFC lightweights on the roster with relative ease.

An all-French affair took place in the co-main event, where Fares Ziam (18-5) clashed against Axel Sola (12-1-1). Sola, the former ARES lightweight champion, made quick work of his fellow Frenchman.

In the very first round Sola was able to land a devastating knockout blow on Ziam, slumping him with an overhand left. Ziam, who was unconscious for a considerable length of time, appeared visibly confused when coming to. The fight was under two minutes long in total and staying on the feet with Sola proved to be a fatal mistake.

Sola moves to 3-1 in his UFC career, with all three wins coming via way of finish. The Frenchman appears to be a formidable force at welterweight.

Kurtis Campbell (8-1) put on a grappling masterclass over the ever-tough Trevor Peek (9-3). 'The Pink Panther' bounced back after losing in his UFC debut, becoming the first person to ever finish Peek. After over 10 minutes of control time and 13 takedowns, Campbell was able to get a rear-naked-choke submission in the third round

Losene Keita (16-2) returned to Paris with a highlight in mind. The former Oktagon champion dominated opponent Muhammad Naimov (13-4) from the opening bell, staggering him within the initial seconds of the round and dropping him with a stiff jab.

It was a one-two that got the job done however, a combination that slept Naimov. Keita moves to 17-2 as a professional with the 12th knockout of his professional career.After dropping a decision to Nathaniel Wood in his UFC debut, 'Black Panther' pounced back in in dream fashion, putting the entire of the featherweight division on notice.

Main card:

Salahdine Parnasse def. Dan Hooker via R1 TKO, 2:35
Axel Sola def. Fares Ziam via R1 KO, 1:40
Michael Page def. Nursulton Ruziboev via unanimous decision, 29-28 x3
Daniil Donchenko def. Punahele Soriano via unanimous decision, 30-27 x2, 29-28
Kurtis Campbell def. Trevor Peek via R3 submission, (RNC), 3:07
Losene Keita def. Muhammad Naimov via R1 KO, 2:54

Prelims:

Felipe Lima def. Morgan Charriere via unanimous decision, 30-27 x2, 29-28
Mario Pinto def. Ryan Spann via R2 TKO, 0:55
Modestas Bukauskas def. Oumar Sy via R2 TKO, 3:57
Pavel Andrusca def. Nathaniel Wood via unanimous decision, 30-27 x2, 29-28
Fabia Sintes def. Michael Aljarouj via unanimous decision, 29-28 x2, 29-27
Nora Cornolle def. Klaudia Sygula via unanimous decision, 30-27 x3
Matthieu Duclos def. Luis Felipe Dias via R1 KO, 4:35
Delphine Benouaich def. Sofia Montenegro via R3 submission (RNC), 4:22