Cody Brundage knew the opening minutes of his UFC Vegas 50 fight against Dalcha Lungiambula would be hectic.
Entering his second UFC fight, Brundage knew Lungiambula’s path to victory was an early stoppage. With that, his coaches told him he needed to survive the early few minutes but in the opening exchanges, he got rocked which forced him to focus on surviving.
“I knew the first four minutes of the fight would be the hardest as he’s very explosive and wild. It was going to be chaos and is very powerful,” Brundage said to BJPENN.com. “I knew his only way to win was to get me out of there early. Once he buzzed me it was about surviving that first couple of minutes which I felt a good job about.
“I felt like my head movement was pretty good. The only time that buzzed me was when I was on the ground and he threw an uppercut from his knees and that was the only one that hurt me,” Brundage continued. “Against the fence, I was moving my head and covering up and he was missing or hitting my shoulder. He did land a few but I was totally aware and when the ref told me to do something I told him I was all good. When you watch it, it looks terrible but I was totally fine.”
After surviving the first few minutes, Brundage’s confidence grew and then Lungiambula shot for a bad takedown so he jumped for a guillotine. Once he got ahold of the neck, Cody Brundage knew the fight was over.
“When I jumped it and the way the fell I knew it was done,” Brundage said. “People don’t usually shoot on me because I have good takedown defense and they have to put their head there to drive me down I noticed his head was there so I jumped the guillotine. It was worth the risk because if I didn’t get it, we ride the round out and he’s gassed for the second and I finish him there. But, happy to get the win.”
Once Dalcha Lungiambula tapped, Brundage was filled with excitement as he picked up his first UFC win. The emotions only grew when he got the $50k bonus which Brundage says will go a long way in helping him and his families life.
“I felt like the fight card was really good and a lot of finishes and I wasn’t sure to get one. But, it was extra icing on the cake but hopefully, the next time I get it it’s because of dominant performance and not a comeback,” Brundage said.
With Brundage picking up his first UFC win, he says he wants to return in the summer against whoever the promotion gives him. For now, the plan is to start a winning streak before he calls anyone out.
“There are a lot of good matchups. To me, there are easier fights than the one I just had so it will be interesting to see who the UFC gives me but at this point, it’s all about starting a winning streak,” Brundage concluded.
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