UFC Vegas 9 video recap: Overeem rallies to finish Sakai in fifth

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC

Alistair Overeem made it two wins out of two in 2020 against Augusto Sakai at UFC Vegas 9.

Alistair Overeem rallied through an early onslaught from Augusto Sakai to win by fifth-round TKO in the main event of UFC Vegas 9.

What was the high point of the fight?

Overseen came firing out the blocks rushing towards Sakai with an early blitz. The Brazilian went on to have the better first-round backing up Overeem against the fence and landing some good flurries. Sakai continued to be the more active and fresher fight in the second round, but Overeem finished strong in the third by landing some heavy ground and pound.

Overeem came close to finishing Sakai in the fourth round, landing some huge elbows on the ground that went unanswered by Sakai. At the start of the fifth round, Overeem took Sakai to the ground and landed a few short elbows that were enough for referee Herb Dean to stop the fight.

Where do both men go from here?

It’s a similar win to Overeem’s TKO against Walt Harris in May, as he survived some early pressure from Sakai to get the late finish. Already ranked sixth at heavyweight before this win, Overeem deserves a fight against a top-five ranked opponent such as a rematch with Jairzinho Rozenstruik.

The loss to Overeem is Sakai’s first in the UFC, although it was a big step-up in competition the Brazilian still had his moments in the fight. A fight with Aleksei Oleinik, who is just a few spots under Sakai in the rankings, is a good fight to make next.

Watch it now, later or never?

Overeem landed some relentless elbows in the lead-up to the finish, watch it now.