UFC Fight Night Melbourne, headlined by middleweights Robert Whittaker and Derek Brunson, was a success by all accounts, especially considering that it was a card that lacked any real star power.
With fight fans still buzzing about Conor McGregor’s history breaking effort against former Lightweight Champion Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205, the Melbourne event flew pretty much under the radar throughout.
The fight that was supposed to headline the card, featuring Middleweight title hopefuls Jacare Souza and Rockhold, was pulled in the lead up to the event as the former Champion Rockhold had injured himself in training camp.
What was then a co-main event between hometown fighter Robert Whittaker and the hard hitting Brunson, was then moved up to headline the card. The fight itself did not disappoint, and in some senses, was akin to the 1 round war between Travis Browne and Andrei Arlovski in 2015.
Both fighters had the other hurt and reeling at some point, although Whittaker had the last laugh when he caught Brunson with a check hook coming forward and finished the job with a head kick, before pouncing on him for a first round TKO stoppage.
Shockingly, before the fight could even start, the result was reflected accurately on a feed on Fox Sports. Whether this was a genuine error by the TV channel or the picture was taken during a repeat telecast of the fight is still unknown.
Of course, conspiracy theory buffs would float the idea that the UFC fixes fights but that is utter nonsense for anyone that knows anything about MMA and the way it works. However, it is truly beguiling that the feed not only reflected the winner, but also the manner of victory accurately.
