Lerone Murphy carried out at a tempo that was merely an excessive amount of for Edson Barboza to deal with at UFC Battle Evening 241.
The featherweight foremost occasion on the UFC Apex in Las Vegas noticed “The Miracle” from Manchester, England, not often give Barboza (24-12 MMA, 18-12 UFC) area to unleash his offense. Consequently, Murphy (14-0-1 MMA, 6-0-1 UFC) remained undefeated, profitable a unanimous resolution (49-46, 50-45, 50-45).
The struggle started with each fighters darting out and in with feints earlier than they started sitting down on exhausting leg kicks and straight punches upstairs. A kick from Barboza strayed low, pausing the struggle for a couple of seconds, however when the struggle resumed, the strikes started to fly extra steadily with Barboza controlling the middle of the cage. The back-and-forth spherical concluded with a giant second for Barboza, who landed a flush upkick simply earlier than the horn.
THIS UPKICK LANDED FOR BARBOZA 😲 #UFCVegas92 pic.twitter.com/HtNoq5oP0y
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) Could 19, 2024
Murphy recovered throughout the break and returned to the placing battle with Barboza. After receiving a few exhausting leg kicks, Murphy switched issues up with a clear takedown entry, however Barboza denied the struggle from hitting the mat.
Murphy instantly turned up the offensive strain with exhausting punches, placing Barboza on wobbly legs as he circled exterior. In search of a determined change of momentum, Barboza slipped as he tried a spinning assault, leaving a gap for Murphy to take standing again management till Spherical 2 got here to an in depth.
Barboza started Spherical 3 controlling the middle of the cage and landed a giant kick to the physique, however Murphy rapidly turned the tide and responded with heavy ahead strain. With about 90 seconds to go in Spherical 3, Murphy had Barboza on wobbly legs once more, sensing a end, though it might not come.
In Spherical 4, Murphy continued to choose and pop on Barboza, seemingly at will. Nonetheless, in typical style, Barboza nonetheless discovered room to sneak in a few highly effective kicks because the body wore on.
Barboza wanted to attach with a house run shot, however Murphy did effectively to not depart him that opening. As an alternative, Murphy noticed his dominant efficiency by way of to the ultimate horn, touchdown 182 important strikes on Barboza.
The Miracle stays UNDEFEATED 😤@LeroneMurphy comes out on high of this 5 spherical battle with a UD! #UFCVegas92 pic.twitter.com/Ff9UuqKIfM
— UFC (@ufc) Could 19, 2024
Murphy’s first struggle of 2024 was a dominant show in opposition to one of the harmful strikers within the division. He’s at the moment tied for the second-longest energetic profitable streak within the featherweight division alongside the champ, Ilia Topuria.
Throughout his post-fight interview with Paul Felder, Murphy referred to as for anybody within the high 10 after relaying a simple message about his future within the division:
“I’m going to alter my title again to ‘The Iceman,’ as a result of there’s nothing miraculous about this. I’m meant to be right here. Future. I’m meant to be right here, and I’m going to be champion. Easy.”
Up-to-the-minute UFC Battle Evening 241 outcomes embrace:
- Lerone Murphy def. Edson Barboza through unanimous resolution (49-46, 50-45, 50-45)
- Khaos Williams def. Carlston Harris through knockout (punch) – Spherical 1, 1:30
- Themba Gorimbo def. Ramiz Brahimaj through unanimous resolution (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Adrian Yanez def. Vinicius Salvador through TKO (punches) – Spherical 1, 2:47
- Angela Hill def. Luana Pinheiro through submission (guillotine choke) – Spherical 2, 4:12
- Tom Nolan def. Victor Martinez through TKO (knee, punches) – Spherical 1, 3:50
- Oumar Sy def. Tuco Tokkos through submission (rear-naked choke) – Spherical 1, 3:43
- Melissa Gatto def. Tamires Vidal through TKO (punches) – Spherical 3, 0:37
- Abus Magomedov def. Warlley Alves through unanimous resolution (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
- Ariane Carnelossi def. Piera Rodriguez through disqualification (intentional head butt) – Spherical 2, 3:16
- Heili Alateng def. Kleydson Rodrigues through unanimous resolution (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Vanessa Demopoulos def. Emily Ducote through break up resolution (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
For extra on the cardboard, go to MMA Junkie’s occasion hub for UFC Battle Evening 241.
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