Derek Brunson (16-3) defeated Uriah Hall (12-7) on Saturday night at UFC Fight Night on FS1, but the referee stoppage was contested immediately by Hall. While Hall was knocked down with a punch, the subsequent punches thrown by Brunson on the ground all missed or merely grazed Hall, doing no substantial damage. Hall was avoiding getting punches and, once the referee stepped in and called off the fight, Hall popped up and asked why the fight was stopped.
Brunson, of course, will accept the win, but he realizes is has an asterisk next to it for those aware of how the fight was clearly stopped early. He added that Hall shouldn’t be happy, either. “Nobody’s really thrilled when they go out there and get caught with a shot,” he said.
Brunson feels good about the win in part because of the trash-talking from Hall before the fight. “Right when we squared off in the cage, I looked in his eyes and saw he was regretting everything he said and I just smiled at him right before.”
Brunson has now competed in UFC eight times, and had a five fight win streak going into Saturday night. He’s starting to get used to the circumstance. He said he wasn’t nervous before the fight, even with a lot at stake in the nationally televised fight. “I guess I’m starting to be a veteran in this sport and I was nervous that I wasn’t nervous,” he said. “It’s just business for me now… I’m starting to find my way and I keep getting better every fight.”
Cervantes Analysis: Derek Brunson was heavily favored to win this match and we saw why in his performance Saturday night. Other than adding another KO to his highlight reel of finishes, I don’t think this fight does much for his standing in the division as Uriah Hall has never really lived up to the expectations of him and came in having lost two fights back-to-back. Still, Brunson is adding to a list of wins over solid competitors and, with a few more wins against top ten fighters, he could set up a title shot later down the road.
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