The Hit List: The Top 5 moments from UFC Fight Night: Souza vs. Mousasi
LEDYARD, Conn. -- Quick finishes, highlight-reel knockouts and masterful grappling. UFC Fight Night on FOX Sports 1: Souza vs. Mousasi had a little bit of everything.
Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza stole the show with his incredibly dominant performance against a very good Gegard Mousasi. But Joe Lauzon's impressive victory over Michael Chiesa just two months after he found out his son beat cancer was extremely emotional.
We'll try to narrow the moments down to five below:
'The Gator' rolls
Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza thinks he deserves a title shot and who's really going to argue with him at this point? After dominating Gegard Mousasi and then finishing him with a guillotine choke in the third round, Souza should absolutely be next in line for a UFC middleweight title shot. "Jacare" has won seven straight fights and made dispatching a serious threat like Mousasi look rather elementary.
For those people who think Vitor Belfort won't make it to the fight against Chris Weidman at UFC 181 on Dec. 6., Souza would probably gladly slide into the main event. After beating Mousasi, "Jacare" told Jon Anik that if anyone doubts that he's the No. 1 contender, "they're completely wrong." UFC president Dana White said Souza might have to fight again before getting an opportunity, but man, who wouldn’t want to see what he could do against Weidman?
Not your average Joe
Joe Lauzon is usually late for training, just about five minutes or so every day. That turned into 10 or 15 minutes over the last few months, simply because he didn't want to put his son down. Joey was born in January and six days later diagnosed with cancer. The Lauzon family went through a ton of strife over the first few months of the year and finally in July tests came back that little Joey was cancer free.
Somehow, Lauzon was able to get through a training camp and compete Friday night against Michael Chiesa. And then he went out and took home a victory for his courageous son, opening up a cut with a knee in the second round. When the doctor saw the gash over Chiesa's right eye, he stopped the fight immediately. There was pure joy in Lauzon's celebration and the fact that it came in New England, only about 90 minutes from his native Bridgewater, Mass., made it even more special.
'Big Ben' rings Overeem's bell
Ben Rothwell almost fought Ruslam Magomedov on Friday night in Connecticut. That was not the fight he wanted after spending nine months away from the UFC due to a suspension for elevated testosterone levels following his last fight in August 2013. Rothwell got lucky, in a way. Alistair Overeem stepped up to the plate and Rothwell embraced the chance to face someone with a big name, someone who could raise his stock in the heavyweight division with a win.
That's exactly what happened. Rothwell wasn't in the contender rankings coming in, but he almost certainly will be next week when the votes are tallied. "Big Ben" crushed Overeem with a barrage of right hands and ended the former Strikeforce champion's night in the first round via TKO. Rothwell has now won two in a row and three of four. With big-time power in his fists and a solid ground game, it might be time to start talking about Rothwell as a legitimate force at age 32. Hopefully, his arm injury isn't that serious and he can come back in relatively short order.
Don't mess with 'Meathead'
Matt Mitrione said he "got hood" during this training camp, whatever that means. Basically, the "Ultimate Fighter" alum was angry at Derrick Lewis for bringing his name up after Lewis knocked out Mitrione's training partner Guto Inocente back in July. Mitrione took it personally that Lewis called him out and worked to make the fight against "The Black Beast" happen.
To his credit, Mitrione used that anger to his benefit. He clocked Lewis in the opening sequence of the fight and finished him off on the ground in just 41 seconds. "Meathead" now has two straight first-round knockouts and, at 36, could just be coming into his own in the heavyweight division. The former NFL player said he still feels "spritely" at his age and he only has 11 career fights. There isn't much mileage on him. Maybe Mitrione can still make a run after all.
Pain in the neck
Justin Scoggins gave John Moraga his neck one too many times.
Friday night was a turning point for John Moraga. For him, the fight was win or get out of the way of the other contenders. The Arizona native had lost two of his last three, albeit to two of the best flyweights in the world. But a defeat against 22-year-old prospect Justin Scoggins, who isn't even ranked in the 125-pound contender top 15 would have been his toughest defeat in the UFC. It didn't come to that for the fifth-ranked Moraga.
Scoggins looked great throughout the first and second rounds, taking Moraga down and working from dominant position. But Moraga is nothing if not crafty and, of course, experienced. The MMA Lab product has been in the Octagon with champion Demetrious Johnson and John Dodson. He's seen the best flyweight has to offer. Scoggins is still a little green and Moraga made him pay, latching onto his neck in the second round and finishing with a guillotine. Moraga's sterling top-five ranking is preserved.
