Delos Reyes tried to finish the fight early as he went for submissions in the opening round, at one point locking Sangcha-an into a rear naked choke, and following it up with an armbar.
But the 24-year-old Sangcha-an, who fights out of Baguio City, evaded his submission attempts and even locked in an arm lock of his own towards the middle of the first round. Delos Reyes, however, showed the referee that he was in no trouble.
An accidental clash of heads opened a bloody gash on Delos Reyes' right eye in the second round, and Sangcha-an tried to go for the finish as he went on the attack. At one point, the fighters exchanged punches and then kicks, leading both to fall down to the mat.
Delos Reyes kept his wits about him despite the blood pouring profusely from the cut, and sneaked in a right hand that landed flush on Sangcha-an, sending the Team Lakay mainstay to the mat. He was able to unleash ground and pound before the referee called time for the Octagon-side doctor to check on his eye.
When action resumed, Delos Reyes made quick work of Sangcha-an, taking control and applying a rear-naked choke. Sangcha-an valiantly tried to roll out of trouble, but was forced to tap at the 3:13 mark of the second round.
"I'm disappointed, but it's part of the game," said Sangcha-an following his loss. "I accept this defeat, and learn from it, because champions who don't accept defeat will never be champions."
"It was great fighting here tonight," he added. "I am proud to represent the Philippines."
Delos Reyes, who also has Filipino roots, said he "felt great" following the victory but understood that he was in for a tough night against Sangcha-an.
"I wanted to show the fans two Filipinos fighting against each other in the UFC," he added. "I think it was a good fight for our first UFC fight in Manila."
"I was born in Guam, but I'm a full Filipino," he declared. "Fighting in the Philippines was going to be a lot of pressure. I love Filipinos. I get humbled here."
In the first fight of the night, Yao Zhikui won a split decision over Nolan Ticman in another flyweight encounter.
Judges scored the fight 29-28, 29-28, and 28-29, giving Yao only his second win in the UFC.
Ticman was not convinced, saying afterwards that he "won the fight, that's it."
Yao, for his part, admitted that he was not too confident heading into the announcement of winners.
"My opponent kept running from me," he said. "I won the fight, because I was the aggressor."
source: www.abs-cbnnews.com
