Canadian UFC fighter Charles Jourdain wins by 1st-round submission on Fight Night card

Canadian featherweight Charles Jourdain made short work of Ricardo Ramos on Saturday, submitting the Brazilian in the first round on a UFC Fight Night card in Las Vegas.

Jourdain (15-6-1) scored with some early body kicks and punches. And when Ramos tried to take him down, the Canadian grabbed hold of his neck. They went to the ground with Ramos on top but Jourdain maintained the choke. The Brazilian evaded the hold and got back in top position.

Jourdain escaped with a sweep and, landing on his back again, locked in a guillotine choke, forcing Ramos to tap at three minutes 12 seconds of the first round.

Jourdain said fighting in the UFC is a chess game, "but it's a very violent chess game."

Jourdain called out veteran American Cub Swanson after the bout, challenging him to a meeting hopefully early in 2024 in Toronto. Fellow Canadian featherweight Kyle Nelson, in the wake of his unanimous decision over Mexico's Fernando Padilla earlier this month, also called out Swanson.

Jourdain, a 27-year-old native of Beloeil, Que., who was coming off a decision win over Brazil's Kron Gracie in May, improved to 6-5-1 in the UFC with his second straight win.

The 28-year-old Ramos (16-5-0) fell to 7-4-0 in the promotion. The Brazilian is the only UFC fighter to have posted two wins by spinning back-fist TKOs.

The main event at the UFC Apex production facility pitted Kazakhstan's Rafael Fiziev, ranked sixth among lightweight contenders, against No. 7 Mateusz Gamrot of Poland.