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Luck was kind to Jan Blachowicz when Jan Blachowicz may have found his way back to the UFC light heavyweight title by unexpected means. Blachowicz defeated Aleksandar Rakic in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas after Rakic's knee buckled and he was unable to continue.
The main event of the UFC Vegas 54 will feature a significant light heavyweight matchup, as former champion Jan Blachowicz will face emerging contender Aleksandar Rakic.
This is Blachowicz's first fight since losing the light heavyweight championship to Glover Teixeira in the UFC 267 main event in October.
Blachowicz and Rakic both kicked in the lower legs, mainly targeting the lead bull. Each of the lightweight heavyweights first won with their own strikes, but it was Blachowicz who brought the best combination of boxing to the field. A solid three-two initially landed for Blachowicz and Job Street was a reliable tool for the former champion.
Rakic leaned into his wrestling in the second round, which he failed to implement in the first round. Rock snatched Blachowicz's leg and lifted it, causing Blachowicz to fall on his back. Rakic won with short punches and an elbow from inside the guard, while the Blues managed to block Triangle Square's attempt.
Blachowicz returned to the lead leg kick early in Round 3, setting the tone for an unexpected and unfortunate ending. Rakic bounced on his hind legs and fell to the ground almost immediately. The referee immediately ended the fight and awarded Blachowicz a TKO victory. A replay shows that something popped out from under Rocky's knee as he stepped back.
Blachowicz and Rakic showed great respect after the fight, congratulated each other and thanked each other for the match.
Prior to the defeat, Blachowicz won five straight and nine out of 10, with five performance bonuses and one Fight of the Night. He claimed the UFC Light Heavyweight title with a victory over Dominick Reyes in UFC 253. Defending his only successful title, he broke the unbeaten record of UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesania in his super fight at UFC 259.
Rakic has lost just twice in his MMA career, including the current 6-1 Octagon record. After the outstanding performances of Devin Clark and Jimmy Manova, Rakic left the decision of a controversial split to Volkan Oezdemir. Since then, however, he has had decisive victories over former title challengers Anthony Smith and Thiago Santos, who were due to arrive at UFC 259 last year.
In the co-host event, light heavyweight No. 13 Ryan Spin averted Ian Catilaba's most dangerous strike for a quick first-round gluten deposit. After winning the submission, Spin said, "I had to get out of my way to do what I had to do. I'm leaving.
Let's take a look at what else happened at UFC Fight Night where fans were treated to a bevy of finishes
UFC Vegas 54 Results
Main Card
Jan Blachowicz defeated Aleksandar Rakic via TKO, Round 3 – 1:11
Ryan Spann defeated Ion Cutelaba via submission (guillotine), Round 1 – 2:22
Davey Grant defeated Louis Smolka via KO, Round 3 – 0:49
Katlyn Chookagian defeated Amanda Ribas via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Manuel Torres defeated Frank Camacho via TKO, Round 1 – 3:27
Allan Nascimento defeated Jake Hadley via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Preliminary Card
Viviane Araújo defeated Andrea Lee via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27, 29-27)
Michael Johnson defeated Alan Patrick via KO, Round 2 – 3:22
Virna Jandiroba defeated Angela Hill via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Tatsuro Taira defeated Carlos Candelario via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
Andre Petroski defeated Nick Maximov via submission (anaconda choke), Round 1 – 1:16
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