A quick head kick had Journey Newson dazed early in his bout with Domingo Pilarte at UFC 247 — but he responded the best way possible.
Portland, Oregon’s Journey Newson entered the UFC last summer, taking a short-notice fight against Ricardo Ramos. His octagon debut didn’t go his way, however, and at UFC 247 in Houston on Saturday, he was looking to flip the script against a Contender Series winner who had also dropped his debut bout in the promotion: The ‘Son of Fire’ otherwise known as Domingo Pilarte.
The bantamweight bout served as the featured preliminary fight on UFC Fight Pass. And it certainly delivered.
Pilarte connected with a high kick early, which while partially blocked still seemed to rattle Journey Newson. Not enough however. Newson returned fire moments later, dropping Pilarte with a perfectly placed right hand that had a ton of power behind it. Pilarte made it to his knees, trying to cover up, but Newson poured on the ground n’ pound from the back, forcing the ref to wave off the fight.
LIGHTS. OUT. 😤@NewsonJourney with the KO out of NOWHERE! WOW! #UFC247
Get the E+ PPV ➡️ https://t.co/AjIbEju0ee #UFC247 pic.twitter.com/tC2EvhOq1y
— UFC (@ufc) February 9, 2020
“We were looking for that right hand. He’s southpaw, so we were definitely looking for that right hand, and it paid off,” Newson told Joe Rogan post-fight. He also admitted to being dazed by the early head kick — but what a recovery
Official Result: Journey Newson def. Domingo Pilarte by TKO, Round 1, 0:38
