UFC lightweights Michael Johnson and Alan Patrick entered the octagon at UFC Vegas 54 on Saturday night badly needing a win.
Johnson (19-17) seems to have losing streaks pretty often, but this time he came in having lost his last 4. With this seemingly a do-or-die bout for Johnson as far as his spot in the UFC is concerned he needed a win over Patrick.
Patrick (15-3) has lost 2 of his last 3 with his latest fight being ruled a no contest due to the Brazilian suffering an accidental eye poke that he was unable to recover from.
With both men possibly needing a win to remain on the roster the fight took on a more important tone coming into Saturday.
The first round seemed like both men tried to end the fight. Johnson clearly had the quickness and straight shots while Patrick was obviously the longer, bigger fighter. Both landed by left hand shots that stunned the other, but the round ended with Johnson on top working on a can opener that Patrick tried to expose for an arm bar. In a scramble Johnson remained on top as the round ended.
The second round found Patrick blitzing in on Johnson which the latter took advantage of and landed on him. The two repeated the same dance over and over until Johnson landed a powerful left hand at the end of the combo that dropped Patrick and ended his night.
Johnson snaps a four-fight losing streak with a big time finish at UFC Vegas 54.
Official Result: Michael Johnson def. Alan Patrick via KO R2 3:22
