Gunnar Nelson

Gunnar Nelson and Bryan Barberena face off in a huge fight in the welterweight division tonight at UFC 286. How long will these two fighters last in the ...

The fans in England are going to want these fighters to put on a show, and I know for sure these two will do that. I feel Nelson is going to use his wrestling skills and possibly choke the overly aggressive Barberena out in this fight. The way Barberena fights is just fun to watch. He will empty his tank to get the finish. After he lost that fight, he got a really horrible injury during training that kept him out for a long time. [pick](https://www.oddschecker.com/us/picks-parlays/boxing-mma) for this [UFC 286](https://www.oddschecker.com/us/boxing-mma/ufc-mma) main card fight.

Nelson claimed a first-round submission victory over his 33-year-old opponent, locking in an armbar and ending the bout at 4:51 of the opening stanza. The ...

"Yeah, I wanted to take my time," Nelson said on ther broadcast following the bout. The Iceland native wasted little time getting Barberena off his feet with a takedown midway through the round, after which it was just a matter of time before Nelson went for the submission. But instead of immediately looking to end the fight, Nelson followed the single-leg takedown with a series of elbows to the head of his opponent as he looked for an opening.

Check out the best photos from Gunnar Nelson's first-round submission win over Bryan Barberena at UFC 286 in London.

MMA: UFC 286 - Nelson vs Barberena (Photos by Per Haljestam, USA TODAY Sports) gunnar nelson ufc 286

Gunnar Nelson defeats Bryan Barberena via first-round submission at UFC 286: Edwards vs Usman 3 at The O2 Arena in London, England.

[ESPN+ PPV](https://go.web.plus.espn.com/c/2557696/595608/9070) in the United States and [Main Event on Kayo](https://goto.kayosports.com.au/c/2557696/820337/8808) in Australia. The scheduled for three rounds welterweight bout was stopped at 4 minutes and 51 seconds into the opening round. In Australia, the event aired live on Sunday, March 19.

Gunnar Nelson put his grappling acumen to work at UFC 286 after he took Bryan Barberena to the ground and wrapped up a quick armbar submission.

With time ticking down in the first round, Nelson saw an opening for an armbar and he quickly spun into the submission in rapid-fire motion. There were a couple of moments where it looked like Nelson might move into mount but he opted to stay in either half-guard or side control while doing damage with his punches and elbows. A methodical attack from Nelson saw him walk down Barberena and eventually trap him against the cage before securing his first takedown. The 34-year-old fighter from Iceland ultimately only needed to secure a single takedown as he planted Barberena on his back and never let him up again. I wanted to keep that pace. I wanted to take my time.