L. Rockhold celebrates victory at UFC Pittsburgh. Photo: Reproduction / Twitter / UFC_Brasil
It was more painful than expected, but Luke Rockhold managed to recover in the octagon. Former middleweight champion and considered by many to be the best athlete in the category, the fighter suffered in the first round, but managed to shake off the challenge and defeat David Branch after a series of punches on the ground. The fight was the main attraction of UFC Fight Night Pittsburgh, an event held in the early hours of this Sunday (17), in the United States. After the triumph, Rockhold was ready to face the Canadian Georges St Pierre, former welterweight champion who returns to the organization in November, against Michael Bisping for the middleweight division title.
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“St. Pierre get out of here. This fight is mine. I'll be there (disputing for the belt) sooner than you expect. I wanted to wait a little, not make the same mistake as my last fight. I'm ready to fight in November if I need to. GSP, don’t be embarrassed, this is my fight”, said Luke.
The UFC Fight Night Pittsburgh fight program also featured two Brazilians in action: on the preliminary card, Gilbert Durinho defeated Jason Saggo by knockout, while Serginho Moraes was defeated by Nigerian Kamaru Usman
Rockhold suffers, but beats Branch
Considered a clear favorite for the fight, Rockhold suffered from the initial pressure from his rival. Branch went up in the first second and pressed Luke against the bars. He didn't stop moving forward and landed a series of punches on the former champion's face, which made him wobble. Rockhold had to grab his rival and fight in the clinch to avoid being knocked out.
In the second round, Branch tried to repeat the momentum from the previous round, but he no longer had the same pressure. He closed the distance and pressed Rockhold against the bars. The former champion, however, managed to reverse the position, achieve the takedown and open the way to victory.
On the ground, Luke quickly mounted and fired several strikes from above. In an attempt to escape the attacks, Branch gave way. But even so, Rockhold continued hitting him in the head until David Branch withdrew from the dispute.
UFC PITTSBURGH RESULTS
MAIN CARD
Average weight: Luke Rockhold defeated David Branch by forfeit (punches) at 4:05 of R2
Welterweight Weight: Mike Perry derrotou Alex Reyes by knockout 1m19s of R1
Average weight: Anthony Smith derrotou Hector Lombard by technical knockout at 2m33s of R3
Lightweight: Gregor Gillespie submitted Jason Gonzalez with a hand triangle 2m11s into R2
Welterweight Weight: Kamaru Usman derrotou Serginho Moraes by knockout at 2m48s of R1
Heavyweight: Justin Ledet defeated Azunna Anyanwu via split decision (29×28, 28×29, 29×28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
Lightweight: Olivier Aubin-Mercier defeated Tony Martin via split decision (29×28, 28×29, 29×28)
Heavyweight: Daniel Spitz defeated Anthony Hamilton by knockout 24 seconds into R1
Average weight: Uriah Hall derrotou Krzysztof Jotko by knockout at 2m25s of R2
Lightweight: Gilbert Durinho defeated Jason Saggo by knockout at 4:55 of R2
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