On a shocking night at The O2 Arena in London, veteran UFC welterweight contender Jorge ‘Gamebred’ Masvidal capped off a memorable fight week in London by starching No.3-ranked Darren Till, then landed punches on co-main event winner Leon Edwards backstage.
Masvidal produced a stunning finish in the night’s main event at UFC on ESPN+5 at The O2 Arena in London, knocking former world title challenger Till out cold with a devastating pair of left hooks that left the Brit unconscious on the ground for some time.
The fight started in almost as spectacular fashion as it finished, as Masvidal came charging out of his corner and launched into a flying push kick that landed squarely in Till’s groin, sending him to the canvas and forcing an injury timeout.
LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 16: Darren Till exchanges punches with Jorge Masvidal during the Welterweight bout between Darren Till and Jorge Masvidal at The O2 Arena on March 16, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by James Chance/Getty Images)
And once Till had regathered himself (mentally and physically), the fight resumed with an instant knockdown as the Brit decked the American with a huge left hand.
The fight eventually settled into a rhythm as the pair stood toe-to-toe and traded shots. Till appeared to be looking to create openings for his powerful left hand, while Masvidal was effectively timing the Liverpudlian and clipping Till’s chin with smart counters.
Till seemed unruffled by those shots, but mid-way through the second round, all that changed in a heartbeat.
WOOOAAAHHH! 😱
"Huge statement, huge knockout!" 💥
Jorge Masvidal is a bad, bad man!
He stops Darren Till at #UFCLondon… pic.twitter.com/eybTlW8Pnl
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) March 16, 2019
A huge left hook from Masvidal landed flush on Till’s chin, knocking him out instantly. But as the Brit fell to the canvas, Masvidal connected with a second shot, then a third after Till’s head bounced off the canvas.
It was a brutal, nasty knockout that showed just how dangerous Masvidal can be, and catapulted the 46-fight veteran into serious contention at the sharp end of the ultra-competitive welterweight division.
But Masvidal’s work wasn’t done. After a respectful and passionate post-fight interview inside the cage, Masvidal was about to be interviewed backstage by the UFC when co-main event winner Leon Edwards shouted something towards the American. Masvidal immediately left the interview, walked over to the Brit and became involved in a skirmish, landing a quickfire combination of punches as security swiftly dived in to break up the scuffle.
Neither fighter appeared at the post-fight press conference as UFC officials ensured both camps left the arena separately to avoid any further confrontations.
EDWARDS ON TOP
Earlier in the night, Edwards had produced an outstanding performance to defeat Icelandic submission ace Gunnar Nelson via split decision.
Edwards not only showed he was competitive with Nelson on the ground, he even threatened with submissions of his own as he proved to the world that his ground game had indeed evolved since his last outing.
UFC mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone (L) of the US fights against Leon ‘Rocky’ Edwards (R) of Britain during the UFC Fight night in Singapore on June 23, 2018. – A sick US mixed martial arts star Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone failed in his bid to make history in Singapore on June 23 after he was beaten by his younger British opponent via unanimous decision. (Photo by Nicholas YEO / AFP) (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS YEO/AFP/Getty Images)
And after dropping Nelson with a clean close-range elbow, it seemed as if Edwards would cruise to a decision win. But when the verdicts were returned by the three judges, the result was announced as a split decision.
Edwards, who had been booed by a hugely pro-Nelson crowd in London, called on the UFC to “put some respect on my name” and called for a fight with the winner of the main event.
But nobody expected one to happen quite so quickly!
THE PROSPECT WOWS THE CROWD ON HOME SOIL
London’s own Nathaniel ‘The Prospect’ Wood produced one of the best performances of the night by a home fighter as he submitted in-form Mexican Jose Quinonez in their bantamweight main card fight.
Wood looked in outstanding form as he outstruck Quinonez, looking for the knockout. But when it eventually came, it was via submission as he locked up a second-round rear-naked choke for the win.
Three wins in a row!
Britain has another rising UFC star 🌟@TheProspectMMA submits José Quiñónez at #UFCLondon 🙌 pic.twitter.com/ycbDb4GUy8
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) March 16, 2019
BISPING LANDS HALL OF FAME SPOT
There was a nice surprise for former UFC middleweight world champion and British MMA icon Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping when it was announced between fights that he was the latest fighter to be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
A tribute montage was played to the crowd at The O2 Arena and the arena PA blared out Bisping’s iconic walkout music, Blur’s ‘Song 2’, as a clearly emotional former world champion received a huge ovation from the London crowd.