In the UFC St. Louis main event, two featherweight knockout artists collided. In one corner, we had the stone-fisted veteran Jeremy Stephens. In the other, we had the unassuming South Korean prospect Doo Ho Choi.

Here we go!#UFCSTL pic.twitter.com/nfhVfIPnfT

— UFC (@ufc) January 15, 2018

Round one began as expected, with Stephens winging his patented bombs, and Choi favoring a more measured approach. The action continued in this way, as Stephens landed big with a few overhands, but Choi fired back with a steady diet of leg kicks. As the final minute of the first wore down, both men turned up the offense, with Choi landing a blistering two-punch combo, and Stephens landing with a head-kick.

They’re exchanging in round 2!! Here we go again!! #UFCSTL pic.twitter.com/j9qYMSc7Ja

— UFC (@ufc) January 15, 2018

The close nature of the first round continued into the second, as both fighters immediately began landing heavy leather. As the round progressed, however, Stephens began to find his groove, treating his Korean foe’s head like speed bag, and ultimately dropping him with a huge right hand. A few followup ground strikes later, and the referee had seen enough.

They’re exchanging in round 2!! Here we go again!! #UFCSTL pic.twitter.com/j9qYMSc7Ja

— UFC (@ufc) January 15, 2018

Stephens ROCKS Choi, then finishes him off!!! @LilHeathenMMA gets the 2nd round finish!! #UFCSTL pic.twitter.com/Ds0Dm34aI6

— UFC (@ufc) January 15, 2018

With this second-round TKO victory, Stephens builds on the momentum of a decision defeat of Gilbert Melendez. He’s now 27-14 overall. Post-fight, he called for a bout with Brian Ortega.

Choi, meanwhile, falls onto the first two-fight skid of his career, having lost his last bout to Cub Swanson. He’s now 14-2 in sum.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 1/14/2018.