Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Promising bantamweight Jonathan Martinez looked as good as ever earlier tonight (Sat., Aug. 1, 2020) at UFC Vegas 5 live on ESPN+ from inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, when he battered veteran Frankie Saenz en route to a third-round TKO (knee and punches).
Saenz looked good in the first few minutes of the fight but ultimately fell apart. Every time he tried to move inside Martinez met him with a left knee down the middle. Every time Saenz went to line up his right hand Martinez countered with a power left kick. Saenz held on as long as he could, even coming back from a few knockdowns, but Martinez’s pressure early into the third was the final barrage of offense.
Check out the finish above and the rest of the highlights below, courtesy of UFC/ESPN.
SAT DOWN! @JonathanMyda‘s shots keep getting heavier in RD 2. #UFCVegas5 pic.twitter.com/UIypBLW2oh
— UFC (@ufc) August 2, 2020
SOUND ON #UFCVegas5 pic.twitter.com/7WnDrV64aB
— UFC (@ufc) August 2, 2020
With this performance, Martinez gets back into the bantamweight win column after dropping a split decision to Andre Ewell back in February. “Dragon” did miss weight by four pounds for this affair and paid out of pocket for it, but this was a great performance against a well-rounded veteran at 135 pounds. Martinez should get his shot at the top 15 somewhere down the line, but he has to start coming in on weight.
For complete UFC Vegas 5 results and coverage click here.