Ultimate Fighting Championship

Thomas Almeida floors Brad Pickett with spectacular flying knee KO

Published Jul. 11, 2015 10:34 p.m. ET

foxsports

Thomas Almeida is one of the most talked-about prospects in the bantamweight division and he showed why after landing a flying knee knockout to put away Brad Pickett to kick off Saturday's UFC 189 main card in Las Vegas.

Almeida came into the fight with a 19-0 record, but he faced a serious veteran in Pickett, who moved back up to 135 pounds following a rough run in the flyweight division.

As the fight started, Pickett proved that the move back up in weight was a good decision after he cracked Almeida with a hard punch that dropped the Brazilian to the mat with a flash knockdown.

Pickett followed that up with another knee that put Almeida on his butt and it seemed like the British fighter was on his way to a potential finish. Almeida got up from the canvas with blood smeared across his face courtesy of a broken nose thanks to Pickett's hard shots.

As round two started, Pickett actually looked for a jumping knee but Almeida avoided the move easily, though he must have gotten the idea to show what he could do with the same technique.

Almeida jumped in and slammed his knee directly on Pickett's chin and the veteran fighter crashed to the canvas as the referee swooped in to stop the fight before any further damage could be inflicted.

"It was very important for my career," Almeida said after the win. "I'm forged with iron and I'm here to stay."

Almeida needed everything in his arsenal to withstand Pickett's barrage in the first round and now he'll likely get the chance to prove he belongs in the top 10 with his next fight in the Octagon later this year.

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