Tim Elliott survived an early scare from Edgar Chairez before turning the tables and grinding his way to a hard-fought unanimous decision victory at Noche UFC.

The veteran flyweights collided Saturday at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona, as part of the Noche UFC prelims. Chairez dropped Elliott with a sharp right hand almost immediately, but Elliott quickly regained his composure and answered with a clean left that badly hurt Chairez later in the opening round.

The 39-year-old American then pressed forward, forcing Chairez into increasingly difficult exchanges before taking him down and unloading elbows from top position.

Tim Elliott Turns Adversity Into A Dominant Fight-Back At Noche UFC

Edgar Chairez continued firing back in the second, but Tim Elliott’s pressure and wrestling began to take over. Despite dealing with a pair of apparent eye pokes, Elliott repeatedly dragged the fight to the canvas and punished Chairez with ground-and-pound. By the end of the round, the Mexican had absorbed significant damage and was visibly marked up around the face.

Chairez still had his moments in the third, rocking Elliott with a counter early in the round. But the former title challenger immediately answered with another takedown. After Chairez escaped, Elliott went back to work along the fence, eventually securing another takedown and controlling the final minutes to eliminate any doubt on the scorecards.

All three judges awarded Tim Elliott the fight 29-28, giving the 39-year-old his 11th UFC victory.

The win moved Elliott to 22-14-1 overall and 11-12 in the UFC. His UFC résumé includes victories over Kai Asakura, Sumudaerji and Tagir Ulanbekov, while he has now won five of his last seven fights.