Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
Promising bantamweight prospect Journey Newson gave fight fans their first finish earlier tonight (Sat., Feb. 8, 2020) at UFC 247 from inside Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, as the 30-year-old dismantled Domingo Pilarte with a beautiful TKO (punches) just 38 seconds into the first round.
Newson had to eat a huge head kick from Pilarte in the early going of the fight, but shook it off and kept moving. Pilarte went to push the action along the cage and launched some combinations only to have Newson counter with a perfectly-timed right hand. Pilarte fell to the canvas and Newson jumped on top for a few insurance shots before the referee stepped in.
Check out the knockout finish above courtesy of UFC/ESPN.
With this performance, Newson shakes off a debut loss to Ricardo Ramos back in June to capture his third knockout win in the past 17 months. The talented bantamweight looked to be in trouble early into this fight, but ultimately showed his resolve and landed one of the best shots you’ll see all night.
For complete UFC 247 results and coverage click here.