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Piechota rides grappling to take decision over Wilson in UFC debut

Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC / UFC / Getty

Oskar Piechota didn't have to travel far for his first UFC victory.

The undefeated Polish middleweight rode some first-rate grappling to win his promotional debut over Jonathan Wilson by unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 118 in his native Gdansk on Saturday, improving to 10-0-1 as a pro.

Piechota - a former Cage Warriors middleweight champion - kept Wilson honest with his striking and imposed his will with some well-timed level changes in Rounds 1 and 3. The 27-year-old had Wilson in survival mode for the bulk of the first, expertly transitioning from a trip takedown to an upright back take and tirelessly angling for a rear-naked choke to close it out.

The middleweights staged a tentative striking affair in the middle stanza, one the hometown favorite stole in its dying seconds with a stiff overhand right that put Wilson on his hind parts.

Piechota once again had Wilson holding on for dear life in the third, as he dragged his fatally gun-shy foe to the mat and regaled his fellow locals with triangle choke and armbar attempts Wilson was staving off until the final bell.

The 30-year-old Wilson - whose reluctance to up his striking volume once again did him in - might have seen the last of the Octagon after suffering his third straight loss in Saturday's divisional debut.

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