Tonight’s UFC Vegas 5 event was headlined by a middleweight bout featuring rising star Edmen Shahbazyan taking on seasoned veteran Derek Brunson.
Shahbazyan (11-1 MMA) was looking to keep his perfect record in check when he squared off with the veteran in Brunson this evening. Edmen was most previously seen in action at November’s UFC 244 event where he scored a sensational first round knockout victory over Brad Tavares. That victory marked Shahbazyan’s third stoppage win in a row, as he had previously scored finishes over opponents Charles Byrd and Jack Marshman.
Meanwhile, Derek Brunson (21-7 MMA) had entered tonight’s UFC Vegas 5 headliner on a two-fight win streak, his latest being a unanimous decision victory over Ian Heinisch at UFC 241. Despite his two recent wins, the 36-year-old has gone just 4-4 over his past eight Octagon appearances overall.
Tonight’s UFC Vegas 5 event proved to be a hard fought battle. The first round was fairly close but Brunson turned things in his favor in a big way in round two. After nearly putting Edmen Shahbayzan to sleep in the final seconds of the second round, Derek Brunson was quick to finish off the young fighter in round three with some nasty ground and pound.
Official UFC Vegas 5 Result: Derek Brunson def. Edmen Shahbazyan via TKO at :46 of Round 3
Check out how the pros reacted to Brunson defeating Shahbazyan below:
Brunson taking his time, which is great to see as his all out first round style would cost him the fight sometimes, but it’s also what brought him a lot of his success. Gotta find that happy medium.
— michael (@bisping) August 2, 2020
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Edmen sits on those punches! #UFCVegas5
— Tatiana Suarez (@tatianaufc) August 2, 2020
Derek Brunson is the troll at the bridge saying, “You shall not pass!”#DrunkTweets #ItsMyBirthdayBish #UFCVegas5
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) August 2, 2020
Huge second round for Brunson. Mixing things up nicely. Almost ko’d shabazyan at the end.
— michael (@bisping) August 2, 2020
https://twitter.com/RdosAnjosMMA/status/1289761472310984704
That man is OUT!! WTF!!!!
— Kevin MTP Lee (@MoTownPhenom) August 2, 2020
Thank you Herb! That man is young and has a promising career ahead of him. Thank you for stopping any further damage. #DrunkTweets #ItsMyBirthdayBish #UFCVegas5
— Aljamain Sterling (@funkmasterMMA) August 2, 2020
Early but sound call from herb dean. Brunson was just gonna punish him big time. No need for a young prospect to take unnecessary damage.
— michael (@bisping) August 2, 2020
That was a educated stoppage by Herb. Edmond was likely done after round 2. Nothing changed early in 3 and he waved it at the first sign of trouble. Live to fight another day. #UFCVegas5
— Alan Jouban (@AlanJouban) August 2, 2020
Who would you like to see Derek Brunson fight next following his TKO victory over Edmen Shahbayzan this evening in Las Vegas? Share your thoughts in the comments section PENN Nation!
This article first appeared on BJPENN.com on August 1, 2020