The UFC is back in Brazil tonight, and one of the country’s legendary fighters makes a big move up.
Former Strikeforce middleweight champion Ronaldo Souza (26-7 MMA, 9-4 UFC) is heading to light heavyweight after years at 185 pounds. He’ll take on Jan Blachowicz (24-8 MMA, 7-5 UFC) in the main event at UFC on ESPN+ 22 in front of his home fans.
It’s been an up-and-down run of late for “Jacare,” who has alternated wins and losses his past six fights. He’ll be looking to get back on track after a unanimous decision setback against Jack Hermansson in April. That loss snapped a run of three straight fight-night bonuses that started with a knockout of Derek Brunson in the UFC on FOX 27 main event nearly two years ago.
In that fight, Souza blasted Brunson with a head kick, then finished him with a few punches to get back in the win column. The irony was that he needed to rebound from a TKO loss to Robert Whittaker nine months prior – a loss that stemmed from a head kick.
So the question is, despite Souza’s standout skills on the canvas, does he have a head kick in him Saturday night against Blachowicz? Blachowicz has won five of his past six fights, including a July knockout of former UFC middleweight champ Luke Rockhold that put him squarely back in contention in the division.
Ahead of UFC on ESPN+ 22, check out Dan Tom’s top five head kick finishes in the video above. Then don’t miss UFC on ESPN+ 22, which takes place at Ginásio do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo and streams on ESPN+, to see if Souza – or Blachowicz – brings a head kick to the table in the headliner.
