The main event of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 21 Finale, which took place inside MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada, last night (Sunday, July 12, 2015,) featured two men headed in completely opposite directions in their combat sports careers.
On one side the rising star of Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson, a fighter with a 10-1 professional mixed martial arts (MMA) record and four fight winning streak, took on Jake Ellenberger, a 30-9 veteran who had dropped three of his last four outings.
This fight did nothing to reverse the fortunes of either man as Thompson used his vastly superior stand up to obliterate the normally durable "Juggernaut" inside of a single round (full recap here).
Thompson started the fight as he usually does, with a sideway stance, hands at his sides clenched in the karate style that saw him go 57-0 in amateur and professional kickboxing matches prior to entering UFC.
That style nearly cost him early as Ellenberger dropped him with a right hand that saw the knees go out under "Wonderboy" and force him to clinch with the wrestler against the cage.
The setback didn't hamper Thompson, however, landing a flush spinning right heel kick to the jaw of Ellenberger that dropped him but somehow didn't put out his lights. But it seemed only a matter of time before Thompson was going to land again.
And land again he did.
Late in the first round, a second spinning right heel kick to the forehead of Ellenberger put him down again and this time the referee jumped in to save what remained of the unconscious man's body.
The win gives 32-year-old Thompson his fifth straight, third by knockout during that time span, and second "performance of the night" award in his last three fights. The unranked welterweight will likely get a boost in the official UFC rankings when they are updated, as his win over No. 9-ranked Ellenberger was surely convincing.
For complete results from TUF 21 Finale: "Ellenberger vs. Thompson," including play-by-play updates, click here.
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