“Showtime” lived up to his nickname at UFC 144.
Anthony Pettis made short work of Joe Lauzon, landing a dramatic high kick that KO’d “J-Lau” at 1:21 of the opening round.
Lauzon took a big kick to the body to start the bout, and then began the task of tracking Pettis down looking to press the action and initiate exchanges. He was successful to start, getting inside and landing multiple punch combinations before stepping away and resetting.
Pettis remained calm and showed good patience as he used his footwork to circle out as Lauzon continued to advance. After taking the center of the cage, Pettis uncorked the high kick that Lauzon never saw coming. The left kick landed flush, crumpling Lauzon to the canvas unconscious, and giving Pettis a dramatic KO victory.
The win moves Pettis to 15-2 (2-1) in the UFC, and more importantly, puts him right back into top contender status. With the loss, Lauzon drops to 21-7 (8-4 UFC).