Strickland, Bamgbose deliver brutal KOs on UFC Pittsburgh prelims

Welterweight: Sean Strickland def. Alex Garcia via 3rd-round TKO

Sean Strickland softened Alex Garcia up with a tactical game plan before taking him out in the third round.

The taller Strickland presented a huge problem for Garcia in the striking department. Over and over again, he landed kicks to the body and straight jabs down the middle. A busted-up nose made it hard for Garcia to breathe, and Strickland pulled away as the fight went on.

Garcia used his vaunted wrestling to plant Strickland on his back in every round, but Strickland remained calm and avoided any serious damage or bad positions. Back on his feet, Strickland continued to assert himself by keeping a tiring Garcia at arm's length until he found the opening he needed to put Garcia down for good.

It was the fourth win in five UFC appearances for Strickland, and he's poised for a step up in competition.

Middleweight: Oluwale Bamgbose def. Daniel Sarafian via 1st-round KO

An explosive finish of Daniel Sarafian just put Oluwale Bamgbose on the map.

Looking agile and loose, Bamgbose had Sarafian guessing from the start. A low chop was followed by a head kick out of nowhere that dropped Sarafian. Hammer fists rained down on Sarafian from there, robbing him of his consciousness at the 1:00 mark of the first round.

Bamgbose prayed over the fallen Sarafian before enjoying a hearty celebration:

Middleweight: Anthony Smith def. Leonardo Augusto Leleco via unanimous decision

Anthony Smith and Leonardo Augusto Leleco gutted it out for 15 minutes, with Smith coming out on top.

A strong opening round for Smith gave way to a sloppy scrap that saw both men eating heavy shots and being denied the opportunity to capitalize on advantageous positions.

Whatever patience Smith had in the first round went out the window in the second, which nearly cost him the fight when Leleco clipped him with a combination of punches.

Smith wisely took the fight to the mat, though the referee issued a mystifying stand-up with Smith in back control. In the third, Leleco was stood up from the same position.

In the end, Smith won a unanimous decision in his first fight in the UFC since June 2013. He extends an eight-fight winning streak that began on the regional scene.

Welterweight: Nathan Coy def. Jonavin Webb via unanimous decision

Nathan Coy made the most of top position to win a decision against Jonavin Webb.

The 37-year-old Coy stuck to his bread-and-butter to smother his younger foe. Neither man was able to find much of a rhythm, but Coy consistently got the better of the grappling exchanges. Webb slowed as the fight went on, leaving him increasingly vulnerable to Coy's strong wrestling attack.

Outside of a few spirited submission attempts from Webb, Coy stayed out of trouble and cruised to a win. Afterwards, he called out veteran UFC welterweight Rick Story, much to Story's amusement: