Stefan Struve and Ben Rothwell’s fight had an odd ending at UFC DC, with Struve getting knocked out after suffering from two hard shots to the groin.
Stefan Struve is coming out of retirement at UFC DC after winning earlier this year to stop a three-fight losing streak. Ben Rothwell is 0-2 since returning from a USADA suspension that kept him out of action in 2017 and 18.
Stefan Struve started the fight with some leg kicks, but Ben Rothwell was pressing forward. Struve landed a head kick and Rothwell pushed through it and clinched Struve against the cage. He went for a takedown but Struve used his height to stay standing. When they separated, Struve landed a very clean head kick that wobbled Rothwell momentarily. Rothwell then inadvertently kicked Struve in the groin and he went down hard. Struve needed nearly all five minutes to recover, but was able to keep going. While the action was paused, the crowd exploded whenever Struve stood up, and booed whenever he crouched down. When action resumed, Rothwell came out swinging. Struve survived and landed a few huge leg kicks. Rothwell clinched up then separated shortly after. Struve was getting the better of Rothwell on the feet.
In the second round, Struve went back to the leg kicks. The fighters began trading heavy blows, with Rothwell going over the top and Struve throwing uppercuts. Rothwell answered Struve’s range with clinchwork, but wasn’t able to do much with it. Again, Struve was nailed with a kick below the belt and went down hard. Again, he used the full five minutes but chose to continue. Rothwell was docked a point, and came out with heat, overwhelming Struve with punches before getting a buzzer-beating stoppage.
Neither Rothwell nor Struve was happy after the fight.
Ben Rothwell def. Stefan Struve by TKO (Punches) in Round 2 (4:57)
