Joaquin Buckley vs. Mike Malott, UFC Edmonton Credit: UFC
Mike Malott gave the Canadian crowd at UFC Edmonton something to lose its damn mind over on Saturday night. Joaquin Buckley came in looking to put pressure on Malott and turn the fight into a brawl.
Unfortunately for Buckley, the Canadian had other plans. After spending the opening round setting up his kicks, Malott caught Buckley rushing forward with a devastating knee to the head. The result was a spectacular second-round knockout that sent Buckley crashing to the canvas and put the welterweight division on notice.
Round 1 – Buckley came out putting pressure on Malott, who stayed patient and waited for his opponent to make the first move.
Malott attacked the body with a kick and tried following up with a right hand. Buckley wanted no part of that and quickly got out of the way.
Buckley looked ready to throw a heavy left hand but hesitated just long enough for Malott to capitalize. The Canadian connected with a big right hand that got Buckley’s attention.
Buckley answered with a clean right hand of his own before landing another just seconds later.
Malott started keeping his distance, but Buckley continued pressing forward and landed a leg kick as the Canadian backed away.
Malott kept looking for high kicks, and while Buckley blocked most of them, they were getting dangerously close to landing clean.
The Canadian continued going upstairs, hoping Buckley would eventually make a mistake and drop his hands. Buckley wasn’t about to make life that easy, keeping his guard tight and defending well.
Every time Buckley circled around the cage, he narrowed his stance as though he was setting up a spinning attack.
Malott eventually connected with another right hand, but that seemed to wake Buckley up.
Buckley immediately fired back with a flurry of punches, forcing Malott to retreat and giving the Canadian something to think about.
Round 2 – Buckley came out aggressive, getting right in Malott’s face with a combination before looking to tie him up in the clinch.
Malott wasn’t having any of it.
The Canadian reversed the position and started firing knees to the body. Malott kept Buckley pinned against the fence, repeatedly digging knees into the midsection before Buckley finally managed to escape.
Then Malott showed everyone exactly why he’d been throwing high kicks throughout the fight.
Buckley rushed forward looking to land heavy hooks, but Malott had something nasty waiting for him.
Malott fired a kick toward the body, turning it into a devastating knee that caught Buckley flush in the head.
And just like that, the lights went out.
Buckley crashed to the canvas, and Malott had himself a spectacular knockout victory in front of his home-country fans.
Mike Malott delivered one hell of a statement at UFC Edmonton, putting himself firmly in the conversation among the welterweight division’s top contenders.
Official Result: Mike Malott def. Joaquin Buckley via R2 KO, 2:32