Ricky Simon made a statement at the UFC Apex on Saturday evening.
The bantamweight division has never been hotter and Simon (19-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) hoped to make his way into the top 15 by taking out No. 12 in the official promotional rankings on the main card of UFC Fight Night 199. With his incredible finish of Assuncao (27-9 MMA, 11-6 UFC) at the UFC Apex, he certainly turned a few heads.
The fight began with a rocky start as a low blow landed on Assuncao paused the action just nine seconds into the fight. After resuming, Simon went to work landing clean strikes before securing a takedown and working from top position on the mat. He would maintain the position and land strikes until the round concluded.
Simon continued to have the upper hand in the second round. The finishing moment came after a clean right hook from Simon slumped Assuncao against the fence, prompting referee Chris Tognoni to rush in to prevent any further damage.
Check out video of the finish below (via Twitter):
STATEMENT: MADE ✅
[ @RickySimonUFC | #UFCVegas45 ] pic.twitter.com/7WIZPsLTOg
— UFC (@ufc) December 19, 2021
Simon makes it four straight wins with Saturday’s result, which was his third victory of 2021. During his current run, Simon defeated Ray Borg, Gaetano Pirrello, and Brian Kelleher before taking care of Assuncao.
On the other end, Assuncao drops his fourth straight UFC bout, although his three previous losses were to premier competition in Marlon Moraes, Cory Sandhagen, and former champion Cody Garbrandt.
Up-to-the-minute results of UFC Fight Night 199 include:
- Ricky Simon def. Raphael Assuncao via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 2:14
- Mateusz Gamrot def. Diego Ferreira via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 3:26
- Cub Swanson def. Darren Elkins via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:12
- Gerald Meerschaert def. Dustin Stoltzfus via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 2:58
- Justin Tafa def. Harry Hunsucker via TKO (head kick) – Round 1, 1:53
- Melissa Gatto def. Sijara Eubanks via TKO (body kick) – Round 3, 0:45
- Charles Jourdain def. Andre Ewell via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 29-27)
- Raquel Pennington def. Macy Chiasson via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 3:07
- Don’Tale Mayes def. Josh Parisian via TKO (elbows) – Round 3, 3:26
- Jordan Leavitt def. Matt Sayles via submission (inverted triangle) – Round 2, 2:05
