Before UFC 138 ever started, Mark Munoz said that he believed he was finally hitting his stride and was ready to make a statement in the middleweight division.
In what had to be one of the craziest rounds of the year, Munoz and Leben went after each other with reckless abandon during the first five minutes of their fight, throwing the fact that they had 25 minutes to battle out the window.
Leben on a couple of occasions looked to put Munoz away with guillotine chokes, as well as launching his signature sledgehammer lefts and rights. Meanwhile, Munoz played a very smart and tactical strategy putting Leben on his back and wailing away with what has become the most vicious ground and pound in the sport.
Munoz has learned so much about MMA since he started fighting that some wondered if he was going away from his wrestling too much, but he fought Leben with the best strategy available to him and he says that was the game plan all along.
“I had to get my angles, utilize my wrestling, hit my single leg and use my ground and pound. That’s what I did,” Munoz said.
A right hand came crashing down on Leben’s eye courtesy of Munoz, and a large gash was opened up as the former “Ultimate Fighter” season 1 competitor started to wear a crimson mask of blood. A brief doctor’s check allowed the fight to continue, but Munoz was unrelenting in his attack.
Seeing Leben as a wounded animal, Munoz went in for the kill and threw punches with all of his force behind him, looking for the finish. The second round horn sounded, but that was all she wrote.
As Leben’s corner checked on him, he simply said that he couldn’t see and that was all they needed to signify the fight was over and declare Munoz the winner.
“Chris Leben is a tough, tough competitor,” Munoz said about his opponent. “I knew I had to look out for his left hand, and he came with it. I had to get rid of my brawling instincts and I had to stick to my wrestling, so that’s what I did.”
While it certainly wasn’t the highlight finish he was looking for, Munoz punished Leben and definitely earned the victory. Following the fight, Leben paid Munoz credit for his evolved fight style and his ability to get the victory.
“Hard to fight when you’re choking on blood. He got me good,” Leben stated. “Munoz is a National Champion wrestler, he’s as good as they come on the ground and I definitely need to evaluate my ground game after that performance. He did a fantastic job on the ground. It takes a man to know to know when they’re beat and he beat me tonight.”
Sources: Yahoo! Sports and MMA Weekly
========================
Visit us: http://www.agentsentral.com
Email us: info@agentsentral.com
No comments:
Post a Comment