Nick Klein

Nick Klein vs. Andrey Pulyaev
BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Pulyaev (-160); Klein (+130)

Round 1
With both of these middleweights coming off of miserable promotional debuts, something’s gotta give in the next 15 minutes or less. Klein (6-2, 0-1 UFC) had his chin checked in February, while Pulyaev (9-3, 0-1 UFC) found himself offensively muted in March. When the dust settles, someone will likely earn their first win in the Octagon, and they will be accompanied by referee Chris Tognoni every step of the way. A clap of hands precedes the action.
Pulyaev takes to the center of the cage but has to dodge two front kicks right out of the gate. Klein crashes forward and takes him to the mat, where he starts bludgeoning the Russian with powerful punches. Pulyaev fights back to his feet, and Klein dramatically mat returns him. When they land, Klein circles around to take Pulyaev’s back, getting both hooks in while fishing for a rear-naked choke. Pulyaev fights the hands to defend the submission, and he pushes his feet off the wall to get some leverage to escape. This allows him to kick off, and Klein is on him like a dog with a bone as he goes after a double. Pulyaev posts off his hands to not go down, but Klein is still behind him trying to wrangle him to the floor. Klein transitions to a single, but the taller fighter staves it off and knees Klein in the belly. Klein responds in kind. Tognoni asks for Klein to do more.
They trade short knees and body shots on the inside, with Klein imposing his weight all the while. The knees from Klein produce a louder sound upon impact, and he tries for a single or two but is stood up each time. Pulyaev desperately escapes with a minute to go, and he lets his hands go and blasts Klein in the face with three crisp punches. Klein hurries to clinch him back up rather than getting smacked in the face repeatedly, looping his leg around Pulyaev’s for a body lock effort. Pulyaev fights it off and knees his man in the jaw, following with a left hand. Klein hits him back and races after him to bowl him over, and the round ends.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Klein
Chris Laporte scores the round: 10-9 Klein
Dayne Fox scores the round: 10-9 Klein

Round 2
Pulyaev shakes his arms out before getting going, and they bump fists. Pulyaev reintroduces himself with a head kick that shakes Klein’s mullet, and Klein responds with a single-leg entry. The attempt pushes the Russian to the wall, where Klein gladly embraces the grind as he knees his opponent a few times as he searches for a body lock. Pulyaev tries to grab the fence to stay upright, and Tognoni is paying close attention. Pulyaev reverse-somersaults to get out and stands back up, where he grabs hold of a clinch to hammer Klein with knees to the body. One stern knee from Pulyaev slashes open Klein’s right eyebrow. Klein backs off, his body language changing drastically, and
Pulyaev blasts him in the liver with his shin that makes a popping sound. Klein reels from the savage blow, backing up a bit but not fast enough to avoid a one-two down the pipe. The destructive left hand from Pulyaev sends Klein collapsing to the mat, and on the way down, Pulyaev delivers one punctuating soccer kick of questionable legality—replays show it appears to have snuck under the arms to connect to the body. To finish the job, Pulyaev smashes his foe in the face with a left hand, and Klein slumps over as Tognoni rushes in to stop the fight.
That tale of two fights could scarcely be more different, and the end result is what matters: Pulyaev records a knockout in his first UFC win, as he puts Klein on his first losing streak.

The Official Result
Andrey Pulyaev def. Nick Klein R2 1:31 via TKO (Body Kick and Punches)