Be sure to add this finish to possible "Knockout of the Year" candidates as the end of 2012 draws near.
Last night (March 16, 2012), Bellator 61 took place at The Horseshow Riverdome in Bossier City, La., featuring a new season six Middleweight tournament. And apparently Brian Rogers wanted to send a message to the rest of the 185-pound field that he means business this time around after coming up short in 2011.
In the first quarterfinal fight of the tournament, Rogers rocked Vitor Vianna with a right hand and quickly (and quite literally) flew in for the finish, connecting with a flying knee that put the Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist down for an early and unexpected nap.
Our own Brian Hemminger with the call:
Rogers lands an outside leg kick and then one to the inside. Another outside kick from Rogers and he stuns Vianna with a punch. Vianna staggers backwards and Rogers leaps forward with a MASSIVE flying knee which catches Vianna square on the chin. Vianna drops to his back and he's completely OUT COLD! Holy Hell that was one of the best knockouts of the year!
At the post-fight press conference, it was announced that Rogers will advance to the next semifinal round to take on Bruno Santos in Rogers' hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. On the other side of the bracket, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) cast off Maiquel Falcao will face Vyacheslav Vasilevsky.
For complete Bellator 61 play-by-play results click here. And to check out a complete results recap of the mixed martial arts (MMA) event that aired on MTV2 click here.
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