- Justin Gaethje Suprised with a TKO win over Tony Ferguson.
- Henry Cejudo defeated Dominick Cruz and revealed his retirement during the interview in the octagon.
- Francis Ngannou slammed Jairzinho Rozenstruik after just 20 seconds.
Gaethje Stops Ferguson
With 3:39 inside the last round, the judge in the ring, Herb Dean had to stop the bout between Gaethje and Ferguson. Dean saw that Ferguson couldn’t defend himself anymore, which was a consequence of the ferocious beating received throughout the fight.
Gaethje demolished the veteran who was without a defeat for eight years, handing him a bloodbath he never experienced before. Even the UFC president Dana White admitted that the contest should have been stopped much earlier, due to Ferguson’s injuries and his overall condition.
“I actually thought the fight should have been stopped sooner,” White said. “Tony took a lot of damage tonight.”
Gaethje was calm, focused, and patient during the entire match. Each time the two went into some exchange, he would get out as a winner. But unlike his previous fights, he didn’t want to chase the knockout or the stoppage but was slowly backing out and collecting points for the scoreboard. For sure, this was his most sophisticated performance ever, where he proved a fantastic mental power.
Up next he should meet Khabib Nurmagomedov and have a shot at the undisputed title of the lightweight division.
Cejudo Defends the Title and Retires
For the first time after winning the bantamweight title, Henry Cejudo went out in the octagon to defend it. And across the ring, he had the former champion in this division Dominick Cruz.
In one interesting fight, Triple C won, using one mistake of his rival, whose inaccurate punch set up a perfect angle for Cejudo’s knee, that ended on Cruz’s head.
After that, the two-weight champion jumped on the rival who was on the ground face down and hit him in the head several times before the judge in the ring interfered, and stopped the fight. Cruz couldn’t defend himself in that situation, but he protested after everything, claiming that the stoppage was too early. As for Cejudo, he shocked everyone during the post-match interview, saying that at the age of 33 he decides to retire.
“I have a girl now, watching me from back home. Since I was 11, I’ve sacrificed my life to get to where I was tonight. I’m retiring tonight,” he said.
Ngannou Gets His Chance for a Rematch Against Stipe Miocic
The Predator smashed Jairzinho Rozenstruik after just 20 seconds in the ring, knocking the Surinamese fighter with a horrific left hook.
There was no chance for Bigi Boy to recover, and Ngannou won for the fourth time in a row via first-round KO. And to make it even more impressive, all the wins during this streak came within the first 90 seconds of the fight.
He will now have a chance to challenge Stipe Miocic, the reigning heavyweight division champion, to whom he lost at the UFC 220.
