Santiago Ponzinibbio saw his long-awaited Octagon return spoiled at the hands of Li Jingliang earlier today (Sat., Jan. 16, 2021) at UFC Fight Island 7 live on ABC/ESPN+ from inside Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, U.A.E., as “Leech” steamrolled the Argentinian fighter via first-round knockout (punch).
Ponzinibbio was making his first UFC appearance since November of 2018 so cage rust was to be expected. Unfortunately for the welterweight contender, Jingliang wasted little time pushing the pace and throwing offense. He ended up catching Ponzinibbio with a beautiful left hook towards the end of the first round that sent “Gente Boa” crashing to the canvas.
Check out the highlights above courtesy of UFC/ESPN.
With this performance, Jingliang gets back into the welterweight win column after losing a decision to Neil Magny last March. This is a massive victory for “Leech” as he now pushes his UFC welterweight record to 10-4, finishing seven of those bouts via knockout.
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