"You're not going anywhere," Ash said, grinning. "Might as well tap now."
Damon's eyes flickered with frustration as he tried to shift his hips. Ash laughed, seeing the effort.
"Come on, man, you're supposed to be better than this," Ash teased, slapping Damon lightly on the cheek. "What happened to all that talk?"
Damon clenched his jaw, refusing to give in, but he was trapped. Ash had him fully mounted, and each attempt to escape only made Ash's position stronger.
Ash moved higher up on Damon's chest, pinning his arms even tighter. He leaned forward, face close to Damon's. "This is too easy," he whispered.
Damon breathed heavily, focusing, knowing he had to find a way out before Ash could lock in a submission.
But Ash wasn't giving him any space. Ash lowered his hips, putting all his weight onto Damon, making it impossible for him to breathe deeply.
"Starting to feel it now, huh?" Ash asked. "That's the weight of a real grappler."
Ash leaned back, lifting one of Damon's arms and sliding his leg through, setting up an arm triangle choke.
Damon's vision started to blur as the pressure increased. Ash slowly tightened the choke, grinning as Damon's struggles grew weaker.
"Not so tough now," Ash whispered, squeezing harder.
Damon fought to stay calm, but Ash had full control, dominating him on the ground.
The smirk on Ash's face widened as he felt Damon's resistance weakening.
Damon knew Ash was overconfident. He couldn't escape the arm triangle by force, but he didn't need to. Instead, he played it smart.
With Ash pressing down, focusing on tightening the choke, Damon moved his legs, adjusting his hips slightly.
Ash didn't notice—his attention was on closing the submission. Damon's legs shifted to give Ash just enough space to think he had full control.
Ash leaned into the choke, feeling like victory was near, but Damon had other plans.
He used Ash's forward momentum to his advantage, gripping Ash's knee subtly with his hand, trapping it against his body.
Then, in a swift, calculated move, Damon bridged hard into Ash, using the angle of his body to shift the pressure off his neck just enough to disrupt the choke.
Ash felt the change too late. Damon quickly trapped Ash's leg and used the momentum to roll.
Damon moved quickly, securing Ash's other arm with a grip, setting up for an armbar.
Ash knew what was coming and tried to twist out of it, but Damon was two steps ahead.
As Ash turned, Damon spun smoothly, locking his legs around Ash's arm and extending it straight.
Ash struggled, using his free hand to try and break Damon's grip, but Damon's position was perfect.
He slowly increased the pressure, bending Ash's arm back.
"Time to tap, Ash," Damon said calmly, his eyes locked on his opponent.
Ash fought for a few more seconds, trying to roll out, but Damon's hips were locked tight.
The armbar was deep. With no other choice, Ash tapped, frustration clear on his face.
Damon let go immediately, standing up and looking down at Ash, who lay on the mat, breathing hard. Damon gave him a quick nod.
"Smart beats strong every time," Damon said as he dropped to the ground as well, sitting down.
He smirked, continuing. " Unfortunately for you, I have both"
The cage door swung open, and Svetlana and Ty entered.
Svetlana threw a towel to Damon, who caught it with a grin, wiping the sweat from his face.
Ash, still lying on the mat, looked up at them with a mock offended expression.
"Hey, what about me?" he complained, his voice humorous. "I'm the one who got beat up here."
Svetlana smiled sweetly. "I only had one towel, sorry Ash."
Ty chuckled and shook his head. "Don't worry, buddy, I got you." He pulled out another towel from behind his back and tossed it to Ash, who caught it with a laugh.
Ash stood up, wrapping the towel around his neck, and walked over to Damon. "Good fight, man," he said, with a nod of respect. "You got me good."
Damon smiled, clapping Ash on the back. "You underestimated me, that's all,"
"Now I have to get ready for my fight next week."