UFC 295 results: Diego Lopes demolishes Pat Sabatini with brutal knockout in just 90 seconds

12/11/2023 04:35

Diego Lopes looks like a future contender in the featherweight division after scoring his second straight win while kicking off the UFC 295 main card in emphatic fashion.

It was a rapid-fire finish for Lopes after he emerged from a scramble with Pat Sabatini by throwing a punch that immediately rocked his opponent. Lopes followed up with another huge shot that rocked Sabatini before he desperately tried to grab into a leg to survive.

Lopes never gave him the chance to escape as he continued dropping bombs until Sabatini just fell unconscious with the referee rushing in to stop the contest with the end coming at just 1:30 in the first round.

"I feel incredible," Lopes said after the win. "It's been a dream of my life to be here at Madison Square Garden. When I felt that first strike got in, I knew I really had to go at him.."

Prior to the knockout, Sabatini appeared ready to match Lopes strike for strike after the clipped the Mexican born fighter with a shot of his own that landed flush. Perhaps that gave him a little too much confidence heading back into those exchanges, especially with Lopes having the height and reach advantage over him.

It was the exit from that brief scramble on the canvas that led to Lopes' finish as he caught Sabatini off guard with his initial punch but then he recognized just how much damage was done. Another punche followed and Sabatini was soon down on the ground.

He never got up again.

Lopes continued dishing out the punishment until the got the stoppage before climbing the cage to celebrate his latest victory.

The win moves Lopes to 23-6 in his career with a 2-1 mark in the UFC after making a short notice debut back in May and taking fast rising contender Movsar Evloev to a hard-fought decision.