The last time Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza faced Derek Brunson in 2012, it only took him less than a minute — 41 seconds to be exact — to knock his opponent out.
Their second match on "UFC on FOX 27" ended in almost the exact same note, the only difference was Brunson being able to last a bit longer this time around against Souza before reliving his fate nearly six years ago.
Brunson fought with caution during their rematch. He was able to scout Souza's kicks well, making sure he was already out of range before they connected. He then managed to string a few punches together that backed away his opponent. He couldn't press on the action, however, as he seemed to be fighting too cautiously, as seen when he stumbled flailing backwards after getting back to his feet during a successful takedown defense.
It was near the end of the first round that history repeated itself. Souza landed a powerful head kick that hurt Brunson and sent him hurtling towards the cage. The American was clearly dazed that Souza did not even bother jumping on his opponent. He simply waited for him to get back to his feet and then proceeded to land heavy shots, prompting the referee to stop the fight at one minute and ten seconds in the opening round.
The knockout was so impressive that Souza received $50,000 for performance of the night honors.
Brunson was hoping to avenge a first round knockout loss to Souza during their Strikeforce days. He was on a roll at nine wins and one decision loss until he faced the Brazilian, who dropped him with a counter right hand very early in the first round then proceeded to pound him with ground strikes to end the match. It was his first knockout loss in his career.
Souza has now won three of his last four fights and his most recent win will open doors for another title opportunity.
