UFC 252 results: Patient Jairzinho Rozenstruik knocks out game Junior dos Santos in second round

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Heavyweight kingpin, Junior dos Santos, 36, was out to make one final run at a title — while at the same time rebounding from a two-fight losing skid — tonight (Sat., Aug, 15, 2020) at UFC 252, which took place inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, taking on kickboxing powerhouse, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, who recently suffered the first loss of his professional mixed martial arts (MMA) career at the violent hands of Francis Ngannou.

It was a hard-hitting match up, one that wasn’t expect to go the three-round distance. And true to form, a patient Rozenstruik waited for his opportunity then exploited it in round two, stopping dos Santos with a brutal second round knockout.

ROUND ONE:

Both fighters circled early, looking to feel each other out, with dos Santos landing an inside kick and Rozenstruik pulling back on a left hand counter. dos Santos with another low kick, which he combined with a combination upstairs that just missed. dos Santos continue his leg attacks and then fired off an overhand right, which Rozenstruik with one of his own. dos Santos missed on a huge right hand, but then connected with a softer left that had Rozenstruik on high alert. Rozenstruik painted the inside of dos Santos’ lead leg throughout the round, hoping to chip away at the hulking Brazilian. dos Santos missed on a high kick, which Rozenstruik caught and then used to force him into the cage, hitting him all the while as he attempted to escape the barrage. As the round came to a close, Rozenstruik connected with a left jab and followed it up with a hard kick to the junk.

ROUND TWO:

Rozenstruik opened up the action with another inside leg kick, while dos Santos started to circle and line up some sort of attack. Both fighters were a little tentative to start the second stanza, understanding that one shot could be a wrap. dos Santos flicked out shots that landed, with Rozenstruik peppering the inside leg and looking to unload a powerful counter shot. dos Santos landed a clean right hand while Rozenstruik looked for his opening, but missed with a barrage when he finally unloaded. Moments later, he landed a hard right hand that stunned dos Santos and Rozenstruik knew he had him in the ropes. He chased dos Santos to the corner of the cage, landed a left, then a hard right hand as dos Santos fell to his knees. He tried to get back to his feet, but Rozenstruik nailed him from behing with hard shots every inch of the way until “Cigano” crumpled in the corner. The referee eventually came in to save dos Santos, who up until that point seemed to have to fight firmly in hand.

Final result: Jairzinho Rozenstruik defeats Junior dos Santos via second round knockout

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