Kevin Vallejos became the first person to knock out Giga Chikadze in their co-main event fight
Kevin Vallejos just sent a message to the entire featherweight division that a new contender has arrived after he became the first person to ever knock out Giga Chikadze in their co-main event fight at UFC Vegas 112.
After struggling to deal with some of Chikadze’s kicks early, Vallejos finally closed the distance in the second round and uncorked a perfectly timed spinning back fist that clubbed his opponent and sent him falling to the canvas. Before Chikadze even knew what hit him, Vallejos was bludgeoning him with elbows to finish the fight in vicious fashion.
The end came at 1:29 in the second round as Vallejos moves to 3-0 in the UFC.
“Giga Chikadze is a legend,” Vallejos said after his win. “He’s had a seven fight winning streak. Someone I’m very honored to have fought. This is a dream come true. I’m so happy to be in this situation. This is blood, this is sweat, this is effort. I’m no one special. You just have to find the tools and use them for the right purpose. I would love to call on Cub Swanson and I would love to fight a boxer.”
A slip from Chikadze on the feet allowed Vallejos to surge forward with a flurry of punches, although the veteran featherweight weathered the storm and reset in the center of the cage. Chikadze then started unleashing some of his signature kicks, digging to the body and then going back up top to the head.
That led to Vallejos grabbing the clinch while blood began pouring down Chikadze’s left leg from a check that opened a gash on his shin. Regardless of the cut on his leg, Chikadze was still throwing kicks and trying to keep Vallejos at a distance in the exchanges.
While he wasn’t setting up much with his hands, Chikadze was still chewing up Vallejos with his kicks but it was short lived success once the Argentinean found the confidence to just step forward aggressively to deliver the knockout blow.
That finally happened in the second round when Vallejos just came after Chikadze, backing him up against the cage and then unleashing the spinning back fist. The shot landed and Chikadze was clearly stunned but Vallejos didn’t give him a second to recover as he attacked immediately to finish the fight.
Another punch on the way down followed by a barrage of elbows ended Chikadze’s night as Vallejos picks up the biggest win of his young UFC career.
It was another impressive showing from Vallejos as he moves that much closer towards a featherweight ranking, especially after dispatching a veteran like Chikadze on Saturday night.
Category: General Sports
