Josh Emmett defeated Calvin Kattar after a street fight at the event UFC on ESPN 37Saturday in Austin, Texas.

Emmett (18-2, 9-2 UFC) worked hard to earn the split decision victory. He got the assent of two judges with a score of 48-47 while Kattar got such a score from one judge.

The fight took place entirely standing. All four attempts by Emmett to bring the fight to the mat failed. Kattar made no attempt.

The winner had his left eye completely swollen at the end of the fight. The swelling seemed to rob some of his vision and he fought bloodied for much of the fight.

Emmett mixed punches to the head and body well with occasional uppercuts. Kattar seemed to get stronger as the fight progressed, but his lack of threatening power in the exchanges could very well have been the difference in the eyes of the judges.

In the third round, Kattar (23-6, 7-4 UFC) delivered a particularly spectacular elbow by rotating on himself before going to place his elbow violently on the nose of Emmett who did not flinched and remained standing.

107 of Emmett’s 332 (32%) shots hit the target. His opponent hit the target for his 35% share when 131 of his 376 punches hit Emmett.

Team Alpha Male’s product punches had more impact than Kattar’s, and several of his heavy right hands momentarily knocked his opponent back.

Emmett signs a fifth straight victory and asks Dana White for a title fight after the announcement of the verdict. Emmett’s winning streak is the fourth longest in the featherweight division.

As for Kattar, he has suffered defeat in two of his last three fights. Moreover, several observers believed his career was over after his defeat at the hands of Max Holloway in 2021.

In the semi-finals, Donald Cerrone was to face Joe Lauzon, but the latter had to withdraw due to an injury.

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