Nathaniel Wood showcased his entire mixed martial arts arsenal with a dominant performance over Charles Jourdain to kick off the UFC Paris main card on Saturday.
Over three rounds, Wood landed numerous takedowns while also battering Jourdain on the feet as he looked incredibly impressive in his second foray at featherweight after spending most of his career competing at 135 pounds. When the fight was over, the judges scored the contest 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 with Wood getting the nod by unanimous decision.
“I feel incredible at this weight class,” Wood said afterwards. “There’s a new boy in town at 145. I suffer with anxiety very, very bad. I trained for Charles like I was fighting an absolute monster, which he is. Charles is a great fighter .”
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An early striking exchange gave way to a takedown from Wood, who looked to slow the action with his grappling as Jourdain battled to get back to his feet. Jordain began to get up off the ground and put more power behind his strikes, but Wood punished him with an overhand right that was clean.
Jourdain was wobbled momentarily but Wood didn’t surge forward, which allowed the Canadian fighter enough time to recover and reset.
While Jourdain had the size and reach advantage, Wood was doing a great job closing the distance and landing punches in bunches on the inside. Not to be outdone, Jourdain was more than willing to meet him during those exchanges as he began unloading hooks to the head and then going back down to the body.
Wood stopped Jordain from gaining momentum in the second round with his combination punches with a strong shot that was clean. Jourdain launched several strikes at once, but Wood countered with a hard left hook that hit flush to the chin.
The transitions from Wood were also flawless as he snatched takedowns and then blasted Jourdain with short inside punches or elbows as soon as the featherweights stoop up again. Wood continued to snap off combinations even as time ran out. He included a perfect timed straight left and right behind it which clipped Jourdain’s jaw.
Now 2-0 at featherweight, Wood appears to have found a better home for himself in his new division while looking better than ever as he moves forward in his UFC career.
