So, how was your week this past seven days? For Austin Vanderford, the week that just ended couldn’t have gone any better if he tried. First, let’s turn the clock back to this past Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 18.
At that point, Vanderford’s plans didn’t include hopping on a plane for an MMA fight. A trip to Seattle for this weekend’s UFC Fight Night wasn’t anywhere near his radar.
But sometimes, life gives you an unexpected chance to prove your worth. For Austin Vanderford, that opportunity came knocking on roughly 96 hours notice, and luckily for fans of competitive violence, he answered the door.
Austin Vanderford Accepts Offer To Fight Nikolay Vertennikov on Short Notice
In the run-up to UFC Seattle this past Saturday night, Nikolay Vertennikov wasn’t even supposed to have fought at Climate Pledge Arena. Initially, Vertennikov was slated to face off against Billy Ray Goff (9-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) on the Feb. 15 Fight Night at the UFC Apex before the fight was scrubbed upon Vertennikov withdrawing from the card.
With Vertennikov (12-6 MMA, 0-2 UFC) now available after dropping out of the Enterprise, NV card, Vanderford took the offer four days ahead of the bout, bringing the fight card to an even 12 contests on Saturday evening. Vanderford’s tilt was placed during the prelims on UFC Seattle.
As for the fight itself this past weekend, in short, it was one-way traffic viewed by the audience in the arena in Seattle and those watching on their streaming device of choice via ESPN+.
Austin Vanderford With Emphatic Performance in UFC Promotional Debut
During the second round of a scheduled three in a contracted catchweight of 175 lbs, Vanderford dropped Vertennikov and wouldn’t let him go, scoring with short elbow shots while putting the latter against the cage fence. From there, his ground game took over.
He unloaded a barrage of left-handed shots, giving Vertennikov no chance to fight back. Referee Kevin MacDonald had no other option but to call off the fight.
“That is it! Welcome to the UFC, Austin Vanderford,” exclaimed Brendan Fitzgerald, who was working UFC Seattle as the event’s blow-by-blow commentator. “What a journey it’s been, and what a show he’s put on in Seattle.”
Vertennikov Pushes Vanderford After Victory
The win for Vanderford was tempered slightly by the extracurriculars that took place after the horn blared to end the proceedings. Upon the fight getting waved off by Kevin MacDonald, Nikolay Vertennikov gave Austin Vanderford a push, forcing security to break up the fracas.
Michael Bisping, serving as the cageside analyst for ESPN on Saturday evening, was giving his post-fight comments when Vertennikov gave the push and was quick to condemn him for his actions.
“Yeah, that’s not good,” Bisping remarked. “That’s not cool at all. Austin Vanderford went out there [and] won fair and square.” Afterward, boos rained down on Vertennikov and chants of “USA!” rang out from the crowd.
Following the completion of the UFC Seattle main event, CEO Dana White met with the media and confirmed that Nikolay Vertennikov wouldn’t receive any discipline for pushing Vanderford.
“I don’t know why he went after him,” White told the assembled press backstage. “I understand why he was upset with the referee, and when you watch that fight, if you look, I get why he was upset. He was blocking a lot of the shots. He was blocking, he was still trying to get out of there.”
Vanderford Takes Victory Laps in Post-Fight Interview
After the fight, Austin Vanderford was interviewed by Bisping, and he was all smiles when “The Count” gave him the microphone.
“Man, it sounds amazing,” Vanderford began, “especially considering I took this fight on four days notice. [I] just stayed ready, man. I could have made the weight, 170, but apparently, he needed that 175. I’m here, I’m ready.”
Despite accepting the assignment of a tilt against Vertennikov on the Tuesday of fight week, Austin Vanderford completed the task with flying colors.
“I would have liked to make the fight a little more exciting,” he said “I [landed] some good shots, but, like I said, four days’ notice. I stepped up, I was ready. We came in, got the job done.”
Final Thoughts
A week ago at this time, Austin Vanderford wasn’t even so much as booked by a promotion to fight in the near future. Saturday night, the Bellator MMA alumnus proved impressive, finishing Nikolay Vertennikov inside the distance in an awesome win.
If this is what he can do on short-notice, imagine what his performance might be next time out with a full training camp under his belt. You could be looking at a future UFC Welterweight Champion should Vanderford win after a full camp next time out.