Alistair Overeem lost by TKO in round 2 to Alexander Volkov in a heavyweight duel at UFC Vegas 18 in Las Vegas, United States, Sunday (7/2).
Volkov took over the attack early in the 1st round. The Russian fighter attacked Overeem with either a low kick or a kick to the stomach.
Volkov also did a combination of kicks when he attacked, but Overeem was able to block them. Volkov continued to shoot to open the defense on Overeem’s face.
Occasionally Overeem responded to Volkov’s attack with a kick. Overeem’s single left landed hard on Volkov’s forehead, but did not falter.
In round 1 Overeem kept more of his distance, while Volkov continued to make moves that seemed to press Volkov and try to push his opponent over the fence.
On several occasions, Overeem also tried to overthrow Volkov and take takedowns. However, the taller stature made Volkov quite difficult to bring down.
Overeem then launched punches and kicks to block Volkov. The two fighters then got involved in a hit before Overeem fell, possibly due to a slip, when round 1 had less than 2 minutes remaining.
When Overeem hit the canvas, Volkov took the opportunity by throwing a beating punch. However, in the end Overeem was able to get up and get out of that pressure.
With round 1 remaining, Volkov continued to attack Overeem when his opponent was cornered on the fence. Volkov’s attack was enough to make Overeem’s face suffer several injuries.
In round 2, Volkov starts the attack with a hard straight. In fact, Volkov’s jab attack made the wound on Overeem’s face worse, especially on the nose.
Overeem looks overwhelmed in this duel. Overeem tried to defend himself with a right shot, but Volkov kept pushing with punches. Volkov’s combination of right and left strokes made Overeem unstable, even retreating to the fence.
One straight right plus Volkov’s left hook sent Overeem crashing to the canvas. The referee immediately prevented Volkov from making further attacks and stopped the fight. This condition made Alexander Volkov declared a TKO win over Alistair Overeem.
The defeat made Overeem fail to continue the winning trend at UFC. In the previous two matches Overeem won TKO over Augusto Sakai and Walt Harris.
Meanwhile, the victory over Overeem made Alexander Volkov win two consecutive times after overthrowing Walt Harris.
