Lightweight veteran King Green was in enemy territory at UFC Mexico City on Saturday, where he was tasked with facing off against a local star in Daniel Zellhuber.
With over twice the experience of his opponent, the 39-year old Green was the old dog in the fight both in terms of action and cage time. He entered off a split decision win against Bellator alum Lance Gibson Jr., while Zellhuber looked to rebound from back-to-back losses opposite Michael “The Menace” Johnson and Esteban Ribovics.
King Green opened on the back foot landing a good range of kicks before landing a flash takedown that Daniel Zellhuber was quickly able to scramble out of. Back of the feet, Green began jawing at the home fighter in Zellhuber while landing an assortment of jabs and straight punches. The 39-Year Old Green was uber-confident, showing all his feints with his hands at his knees, wiping the dust off his shoulders when a Zellhuber missed. Again, Green was able to land a takedown, similar to his first, with Daniel Zellhuber quickly returning to the feet. It wasn’t long before the Mexican striker started connecting, getting a read on King’s head movement, forcing a slight reaction out of Green with a body strike as the round came to a close with Green returning to strikes to the head of Zellhuber.
The second round started with an explosive exchange between both strikers before Green went back to his wrestling, landing a takedown into top side control. Zellhuber quickly responded throwing up a buggy choke from his back, though wasn’t deep enough to threaten the veteran, as King Green gave a series of thumbs up to veteran referee Herb Dean.
Out of the choke and back to the center octagon, Zellhuber began pushing the pace but again ate punishment from the American, picking apart the younger Zellhuber from the outside with low kicks and straight punches. With around a minute left in round two, King Green landed a hook to wobble Zellhuber, recovering quickly, the Mexican striker continued to come forward. Compromised but not deterred, Zellhuber advanced, with King Green quickly catching Zellhuber with a left straight, followed by a right hook dropping Daniel Zellhuber into a ground and pound knockout for the American.
With a stellar showing, UFC veteran King Green moves to 34-17-1 and is on his first win streak since 2023, while the 26 year old Zellhuber is defeated for the third fight in a row, dropping to 15-4.
Official Result: King Green def. Daniel Zellhuber by TKO, Round 2, 4:55
