https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_Or9ZJ–oU
This weekend, the UFC will touch down in beautiful London, England with an exciting looking night of fights. This event, which will air entirely on UFC Fight Pass, will be headlined by a light heavyweight showdown between England’s own Jimi Manuwa, who currently holds the number four spot in the light heavyweight rankings, and American wrestler Corey Anderson, who sits at number seven in the divisional rankings.
Manuwa’s elevated station in the light heavyweight rankings can be largely attributed to his last fight. This fight, which occurred in Manchester back in October and pitted him against recent interim light heavyweight title challenger Ovince St. Preux, saw him produce an incredible second-round knockout. Manuwa’s highlight reel finish began with a crushing body shot, which was followed by a mean right hand, a series of clever feints, and ultimately, a blistering left hand that sent St. Preux crumbling to the mat in an unconscious heap. Watch this fight in full at the top of this post, and see it from another angle below.
I really think this is one of my favourite KOs ever. Amazing stuff from @POSTERBOYJM pic.twitter.com/NGsJKhpbXl
— Tom Taylor (@TomTayMMA) November 2, 2016
With this crushing knockout of St. Preux, Manuwa rebounded from a knockout loss to upcoming light heavyweight title challenger Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. This loss was preceded by a decision defeat of Poland’s Jan Blachowicz. Manuwa has recently stated that if he defeats Anderson in London, he expects a shot at the light heavyweight title, whether that comes against champ Daniel Cormier, Rumble, or Jon Jones. The British striker currently 16-2 overall.
Anderson will enter the UFC London main event having recently TKO’d the ever-entertaining Sean O’Connell. In his most recent bout before that, he was narrowly outpointed by dangerous veteran Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. He is 9-2 in sum.
How do you think Jimi Manuwa will perform in the UFC London main event? Can he defeat Corey Anderson and earn himself a shot at light heavyweight gold? Sound off, PENN Nation!
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 3/14/2017.