CFFC 147 results: Kevin Pease claims welterweight title with wrestling-heavy shutout of Ethan Pauley
"Sweet Peas" reveals plans to move to 155 pounds following his win at Friday's event at Tampa's Florida State Fairgrounds
TAMPA, Florida – Returning to competition after 14 months on the sidelines, Kevin Pease is finally a CFFC champion.
After a brief stop in the PFL in 2024, "Sweet Peas" returned to headline Friday's CFFC 147, dominating newcomer Ethan Pauley en route to claiming a vacant welterweight title in the evening's main event, which streamed live on UFC FIGHT PASS following prelims on OnlyFans.com/cffcmma at the Florida State Fairgrounds.
Pease's wrestling savvy was on display from the start, and he earned his first takedown just 35 seconds into the contest. Once there, Pauley simply couldn't find a way to escape back to his feet, and his vaunted jiu-jitsu never really found any true submission opportunities.
For Pease, it was rinse and repeat for the next four rounds, and at the final bell, the winner was clear, taking the fight four rounds to none on all three judges' scorecards.
Afterwards, Pease admitted he was relieved to finally be back in the cage and revealed a plan to move down to 155 pounds in the immediate future.
"I learned a lot over my layoff, but I'm here where I'm supposed to be now," Pease told Michael Chiesa after the win. "I've leveled up. I knocked the rust off, and I'm looking to do some more special things.
"I heard that lightweight strap is vacated. Me and my nutritionist talked – we want to make the move down, and I want to be a two-division champ. We think in a lot of ways my performance will improve with that, and we'll be ready to move into the UFC on this level."
Pease (7-0 MMA, 5-0 CFFC) remains undefeated with the result but will certainly want to avoid more decision wins that necessary in order to achieve his UFC dream. Meanwhile, Pauley (7-2 MMA, 0-1 CFFC) sees a four-fight win streak snapped with the result.
Full CFFC 147 results include:
MAIN CARD (UFC FIGHT PASS)
Kevin Pease def. Ethan Pauley via unanimous decision (40-36, 40-36, 40-36) – to claim vacant welterweight title
Levan Khabalaev def. Elvin Romero via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
Bill Lewis def. Lucas Cortes via TKO (spinning backfist, elbows) – Round 3, 0:31
Daniel Morrison def. Hugh Pulley via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-27)
Christian Carr def. Tommy Laipply via submission (D'Arce choke) – Round 1, 3:09
Ovidio Bojorquez def. Brandon Lopez via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD (OnlyFans.com/cffcmma)
Alessio Ksouri def. Austin Tadlock via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 2:22
Devon Dixon def. Daniel Matos via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 1:28
Michael Pino def. Christian Esquilin via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:51
Alejandro Gutierrez def. Matt Hammerstone via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:17