Jan Blachowicz gave Luke Rockhold a rude welcoming to the light heavyweight division, knocking out the former middleweight champion at UFC 239.
Jan Blachowicz was on a huge run of four straight wins before running into current title contender Thiago Santos, who knocked him out in the fourth round. At UFC 239, he’ll be the man to welcome former middleweight champion Luke Rockhold to 205. Rockhold was knocked out in a middleweight title fight by Yoel Romero in his last appearance.
Luke Rockhold came out with a head kick and the fighters traded leg kicks. Rockhold landed a combination of punches then pushed Jan Blachowicz against the fence. Rockhold worked for a takedown, but the Polish fighter did not go down. Blachowicz landed a strong elbow with his back against the fence, but Rockhold didn’t budge. Another huge elbow landed for Blachowicz and the fighters separated. Rockhold landed a gorgeous head kick, but then had a leg kick checked hard. Blachowicz landed a heavy combination at the end of the round and a late head kick that had Rockhold wobbling to his corner. It was determined that the kick was initiated before the final bell, so Blachowicz did not face a penalty.
Rockhold landed a beautiful two-punch combination right away, but was caught with a counter and backed away. Blachowicz landed some solid leg kicks but was pushed against the cage. Rockhold tried to throw Blachowicz off the cage, but on the separation, Blachowicz landed a short right hand followed by a picture-perfect left hook that knocked Rockhold clean out.
Jan Blachowicz def. Luke Rockhold by KO (Left Hook) in Round 2 (1:39)
Check out the rest of the results from UFC 239 here!
