Joaquin Buckley cemented himself in highlight reels for years to come with an unreal spinning back kick KO at UFC Fight Island 5.
Young middleweights Impa Kasanganay and Joaquin Buckley squared off at UFC Fight Island 5. Kasanganay is a promising fighter who needed two wins on the Contender Series to get a UFC contract. Heading into the bout, he was 8-0 with a pair of submissions.
Buckley went from Shamrock FC, to Bellator, to LFA, where he earned two knockouts to get a UFC contract. It was a short-notice contest against the talented Kevin Holland, who knocked him out in the second round. Buckley was originally supposed to fight Abu Azaitar, but Azaitar pulled out.
The fight got off to a quick start with a wild exchange, then Buckley rocked Kasanganay with a heavy hook. He bullrushed Kasanganay to the fence, landed another big shot, but ate one coming the other way. Big leg kicks were exchanged and Buckley went on the attack again. He landed heavy hooks and drove Kasanganay to the ground. Ground-and-pound came in from Buckley, but Kasanganay squirmed out of it. On the way up, Kasanganay landed a big knee that knocked Buckley’s mouthpiece out. Buckley went to the body with a heavy kick then landed a huge left hand. Kasanganay connected with a two-punch combination, but ate several kicks to the body then one to the head.
The heavy hands continued in the second round and Buckley went right back to his body kicks. Kasanganay stunned Buckley with a left during an exchange, but Buckley got right back to it. He went for a body kick, Kasanganay caught it, then with his foot still in Kasanganay’s grasp, Buckley jumped and landed a spinning kick that knocked Kasanganay out cold. An unbelievable finish for Joaquin Buckley.
THE MOST UNBELIEVABLE KO IN UFC HISTORY 🤯 #UFCFightIsland5 pic.twitter.com/O7BOJg8h9c
— UFC (@ufc) October 10, 2020
Joaquin Buckley def. Impa Kasanganay by KO (Spinning Back Kick) in Round 2 (2:03)
