Nick Galanti submits Julien Leblanc with first-round face crank

Middleweights meet in Edmonton

Nick Galanti and Julien Leblanc met in a middleweight contest at UFC Fight Night 291 on October 17, 2026. The event took place at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Their matchup occupied the sixth spot in the bout order, with Jerin Valel serving as referee. Galanti and Leblanc fought on the preliminary card, where their contest ended during the opening round.

An early takedown

Galanti began the action in the opening round with a low kick and immediately moved into a wrestling attack. He took Leblanc down within the opening 15 seconds, bringing the fight to the ground early in the first round. The opening sequence moved quickly from that initial kick to Galanti working from top position.

From there, Galanti raised his posture and threw punches. Leblanc worked his way back to his feet, interrupting Galanti’s initial spell on top. That return to standing proved brief: Galanti dragged him down again and moved behind him. The second takedown led to a different position, with Galanti now working behind Leblanc rather than punching from above.

Galanti established both hooks from behind and applied a face crank. Leblanc tapped to the submission, completing a sequence that began with the renewed takedown and continued through Galanti securing position behind him.

Finished at 1:26

The finish came at 1:26 of Round 1 on the preliminary card, giving Galanti the win over Leblanc by face-crank submission. With the contest ending inside the opening round, there were no further rounds and no judges’ decision to settle the matchup between them.