Nate Landwehr
Division: Featherweight
Result: Herbert Burns def. Nate Landwehr via knockout (knee) – Round 1, 2:43
Record: 13-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC
Grade: D-
It’s tough to grade someone with a pass mark when they’ve been knocked out in the first round of their octagon debut but, despite his stoppage defeat to Herbert Burns, Landwehr showed me glimpses that suggested that he could prove to be an entertaining addition to the UFC’s 145-pound division.
In the end, he appeared to suffer from two issues on fight night. First, he seemed a little over-eager, and secondly he was up against a very, very good opponent in Burns.
However, while he was clearly second best to the Brazilian on the night, there were some reasons to be optimistic for the American, who didn’t panic when caught in a dangerous D’Arce choke early on. That composure should stand him in good stead moving forward. But his over-eagerness to make up for the lengthy spell caught in that hold proved to be his undoing in the end.
After escaping the hold and gaining separation, Landwehr engaged berserker mode and unleashed a barrage of strikes at Burns, who was backed against the fence. But that flurry left him open to a counter, and one well-placed knee was all it took to derail “The Train” and send him to the first knockout loss of his career.
His record prior to arriving in the UFC suggested he could hang tough in the octagon and, perhaps with the over-eagerness of his UFC debut now out of his system, we’ll see a better Landwehr next time out. I’m not going to write him off after that performance, especially against a guy like Burns, who I think could make some serious progress in the UFC’s 145-pound division. In fact, I suspect we’ll see a much better version of “The Train” next time out.