EDMONTON, Alberta — Mike Malott gave a home crowd at Rogers Place a finish it will replay for months, flattening Joaquin Buckley with a knee to the chin in the second round of Saturday's UFC Fight Night main event.
The opening round of the welterweight bout was cautious, with neither fighter landing much of consequence. Midway through the second, Buckley ducked in to throw and Malott met him with a rising knee that sent Buckley's mouthpiece flying and dropped him face-first to the canvas. Buckley struggled to stand even after he came to.
The Canadian has now won five fights in a row, every one of them in Canada, and this was his second straight main event that ended inside the distance. He is expected to move into the division's top 10 when the rankings are updated, likely taking the No. 10 spot Buckley held. Malott said afterward he wants a ranked opponent from the top 10, ideally the top five, for his next fight.
Buckley is headed the other way. Losses to Kamaru Usman and Sean Brady had already pushed him toward the edge of the rankings, and Saturday leaves him without a win in his last three outings.
In the co-main event, Canadian flyweight Jasmine Jasudavicius controlled Erin Blanchfield on the mat and took a unanimous decision, 29-28 on all three cards, strengthening her case for a rematch with new champion Natalia Silva.
The card as a whole was historic for finishes. The first 11 bouts all ended before the judges were needed, tying a UFC record for consecutive stoppages to open an event, and 12 of the 13 fights ended early, matching the record for stoppages on a single card.
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