CJJ champion and BJJ black belt Kody Steele made his MMA debut in impressive fashion, scoring a third-round knockout against Kane Lewis in the preliminary fights at Fury FC 49.
Lewis started the fight with a calf kick and came in with a few more strikes before Steele countered with a big takedown. Steele made his way to mount and then the back before Lewis was able to roll up to his knees and get back to his feet. With Lewis still up against the cage, Steels was able to bring him back down to the ground, briefly getting to mount again before Lewis was able to use the cage to bridge out of immediate danger. The fighters returned to their feet, and Steele backed Lewis against the cage and threw knees from the clinch. Steele followed up a few punches with a single-leg takedown that briefly put him in a guillotine inside Lewis’ guard. Steele was able to get past his opponent’s legs to side control, then transitioning to back control. The round ended with Lewis turtling up as Steele got a few more big strikes in.
Round two had a similar start as round one, with Lewis throwing a lower leg kick and then a big right hand before Steele went in for a takedown. This time, though, Lewis defended and countered with a back kick to the body. Steele then came back with punches and a body kick that hit its mark. Steele drove Lewis to the fence, continuing to throw kicks and punches while Lewis looked for an opening of his own. Steele clinched up and forced Lewis’ back against the cage, his knees and fists hitting their target. Lewis got a brief reprieve as Steele backed off, and the two returned to the center of the cage after Steele’s mouthguard fell out. Steele drove Lewis back to the cage with ten seconds left, and Lewis broke away just before the end of the round.
Lewis got a body kick in at the start of round three, but his second kick attempt led him to slip and fall. Steele was quickly on top of him with punches, getting to Lewis’ back and suplexing him as he stood up. Lewis turtled up and grabbed onto Steele’s leg, and although Steele let him get up, he was relentless in his efforts to keep Lewis’ back on the cage. A jab from Steele wobbled Lewis, and though Lewis tried to keep Steele in the clinch, Steele broke away with a punch. As Lewis tried to shuffle out of the way, Steele dropped him with a right hand. Steele hurried to follow up, but the referee called the fight.
Kody Steele was declared the winner by knockout.
