Santiago Ponzinibbio beat Alex Morono in their catchweight bout at UFC 282 on Saturday in Las Vegas. The Argentinian welterweight secured a third-round TKO over his short-notice opponent.
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Ponzinibbio went into the fight a -185 favorite while Morono was a +155 underdog. Morono won the last two times he took a short-notice fight. Both of them were in 2021. One was against Donald Cerrone while the other was against David Zawada.
Fans react to Ponzinibbio vs. Morono at UFC 282
Ponzinibbio fought Morono at UFC 282 at 180 lbs after Robbie Lawler had to pull out of the bout. “The Argentine Dagger” had lost 3 out of his last 5. Meanwhile, “The Great White” was on a 4-fight win streak, losing only one out of his last 5.
Morono had the upper hand in the first two rounds. The Fortis MMA representative showed no signs of disadvantages of a short notice fight. However, the 36-year-old Argentinian made a comeback of the year contender in the third round.
Fans on social media expressed their excitement at Ponzinibbio after grabbing the win despite losing the first two rounds.
That was going very very bad for Ponz. What a comeback
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) December 11, 2022
What a comeback knockout from Ponzi!!!
That power is just different, and it looked like he was about to lose too #UFC282
— Weasle (@ThaWeasle) December 11, 2022
10 fights. 10 finishes. Good lord! Violence galore tonight. #UFC282
— Shaheen Al-Shatti (@shaunalshatti) December 11, 2022
SANTIAGO PONZINIBBIO WITH ONE OF THE COMEBACKS OF THE YEAR #UFC282
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) December 11, 2022
STREAK STILL ALIVE MOTHER FUCKERS!!! GOOD FOR PONZ!!!
— Tommy Toe Hold (@TommyToeHold) December 11, 2022
WHAT A COMEBACK! #UFC282pic.twitter.com/9H3VUCX8hO
— Dovy🔌 (@DovySimuMMA) December 11, 2022
With the win, Ponzinibbio put an end to his two-fight losing streak. After the win, he said, “Too many ups and downs, too many crazy things in my life. “So many problems but my last two fights, two split decisions. I thought I won both.”
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He continued, “I said I don’t care who, I don’t care what weight… I’m a real fighter. I have a killer instinct.”
During the post-fight press conference, Ponzinibbio detailed how his corner pushed him to find the finish. He added Morono brought more momentum than Lawler at the moment..
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He also said he hoped to get a top 10 fighter for the next outing.
What did you make of Ponzinibbio’s comeback win? Let us know in the comments below.
