Brogan Walker survived a late charge to claim the last spot in The Ultimate Fighter 30 semifinals.
The Invicta FC vet won a majority decision over Hannah Guy (4-1) in the last quarterfinal flyweight bout of the season, earning the victory with a pair of knockdowns in each round that helped to overcome Guy — best known for handing Bellator star Valerie Loureda her first loss — threatening with back control in the latter stages of the fight.
In Round 1, Walker took the early advantage as she figured out Guy’s timing and dropped her with a right hand. Walker looked to be the busier and more composed striker through the first five minutes and that carried over into the second round.
A confident Walker marched forward and put the pressure on Guy, rocking her with another right hand before proceeding to bully her against the fence. They traded hard punches and later Guy managed to score a takedown with about two minutes to work. She quickly took Walker’s back and worked for a choke while landing short punches, which was enough to convince coach Julianna Peña that a third round was coming. However, two of the three judges decided that the damage Walker did in the two rounds was enough to avoid a “sudden victory” round.
Walker (7-2)* advances in the TUF 30 tournament alongside Team Amanda Nunes teammates Kaytlin Neil and Eduardo Perez.
Team Peña won the first set of fights by a narrow 5-3 margin as her fighters Laura Gallardo, Jordan Heiderman, Juliana Miller, Zac Pauga, and Mohammed Usman are all still alive in the competition.
After asking for Nunes and Peña’s opinions, UFC President Dana White set the following matchups for the semifinals:
Jordan Heiderman (5-0) vs. Zac Pauga (5-0)
Mohammed Usman (7-2) vs. Eduardo Perez (4-1)
Laura Gallardo (4-1) vs. Brogan Walker (7-2)
Juliana Miller (2-1) vs. Kaytlin Neil (5-4)
Here are the first-round results so far:
Zac Pauga def. Nyle Bartling via unanimous decision
Kaytlin Neil def. Helen Peralta via split decision
Mohammed Usman def. Mitchell Sipe via unanimous decision
Laura Gallardo def. Kathryn Paprocki via majority decision
Eduardo Perez def. Bobby Maximus via TKO (strikes) (R1, 3:58)
Juliana Miller def. Claire Guthrie via unanimous decision
Jordan Heiderman def. Chandler Cole via TKO (strikes) (R1, time not announced)
Brogan Walker def. Hannah Guy via majority decision
On next week’s episode, Team Peña heavyweights face off in the first semifinal as Jordan Heiderman fights Zac Pauga.
(*TUF bouts are considered exhibitions and fighters’ pro records are not affected by the results on the show)
Season 30 of The Ultimate Fighter is coached by UFC bantamweight champion Julianna Peña and UFC featherweight champion Amanda Nunes. Peña defends her title against Nunes in a rematch that serves as the main event of UFC 277 on July 30 in Dallas.
The finalists of the TUF 30 heavyweight and flyweight tournaments will compete for a six-figure UFC contract at a finale event with a date still to be announced.
New episodes premiere at midnight every Monday exclusively on ESPN+.
Here is the TUF 30 roster divided by team:
Team Nunes
Heavyweights
Nyle Bartling
Chandler Cole
Eduardo Perez
Mitchell Sipe
Flyweights
Claire Guthrie
Kaytlin Neil
Kathryn Paprocki
Brogan Walker
Team Peña
Heavyweights
Jordan Heiderman
Bobby Maximus
Zac Pauga
Mohammed Usman
Flyweights
Chantel Coates
Laura Gallardo*
Hannah Guy
Juliana Miller
Helen Peralta
*replacement for Chantel Coates
Advancing to semifinals: Pauga, Neil, Usman, Gallardo, Perez, Miller, Heiderman, Walker
Eliminated: Bartling, Peralta, Sipe, Coates, Paprocki, Maximus, Guthrie, Cole, Guy
