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Maia beats Carlos at UFC

Demian Maia backed up his calls for a welterweight title shot with an early submission win over Carlos Condit in the main event of UFC Fight Night at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Saturday.

Maia, ranked third in the division, stated earlier this week that with a victory over Condit he should be in line for a title fight. And, at 38 years of age, he may get his wish later in the year after forcing Condit to tap out at 3:08 of the opening round — a sudden conclusion to the fourth UFC stop in Vancouver in six years.

Maia made quick work of the fight, which was scheduled for five rounds in front of a crowd of 10,533 fans. He broke down in tears in the middle of the octagon when it was over. Now he will await word on when a potential title fight could take place.

Maia said during a post-fight interview that if the UFC gives Stephen Thompson, the No. 2-ranked fighter in the welterweight division, the next title shot, he wants his opportunity right after that.

"I'm very grateful for everything I've accomplished in my life and very grateful for my family," said Maia, who has won six straight fights. "My life is complete already. The title shot, that will be something else, something amazing if it happens."

Tyron Woodley currently holds the welterweight championship.

Saturday's fight may have been the last for Condit in his career.

There has been speculation about Condit's future in the UFC, and he strongly suggested following his loss to Maia that his days as a fighter could be over. He stopped just short of confirming his retirement, saying he hopes this defeat won't be his "swan song."

He said he'll talk to his management team and his wife and make a decision after that. But he said possible retirement has been "in the back of my mind for a while."

"I don't know if I have business fighting at this level anymore. I've been at this for a really long time," said Condit. "It's been awesome. I've … got to do what I love for a living for a very long time, but I don't know … if I belong here."

Saturday's fight card featured 10 events, including four on the main card.

Jeremy Kennedy of Surrey, B.C., was victorious in his UFC debut, earning the win by unanimous decision over Alessandro Ricci of Woodbridge, Ont., in a lightweight fight.

As chants of 'JBC' echoed throughout the arena, the 23-year-old Kennedy, who was moved up from the featherweight division for this event, was able to control the fight against the 34-year-old Ricci for all three rounds as he reached his dream of fighting in the UFC in the first preliminary bout of the day.

Initially, Kennedy was supposed to fight Josh Emmett in Vancouver. Emmett was removed from the card due to injury. Ricci replaced him with only a week's notice.

"Going up a weight class, I kind of expected that grind, that carrying of a heavier body around and taking those bigger shots. But it went the way I wanted it to. I got my hand raised. I feel I won every round and that's the way we planned it," said Kennedy, who admitted he was nervous before the fight.

"There was a lot more people there than I expected. It was pretty loud in there, which is cool. I built that up in my head, anyways, so I was ready for it when it came."



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