Sam Patterson proved he’s not just a submission specialist after he surprised Danny Barlow with a vicious knockout to end their fight at UFC Vegas 103 on Saturday.
With an aggressive opponent coming after him from the start, Patterson did a good job avoiding damage until he finally made Barlow pay with a perfectly timed counter punch that set up his finish. Once he rocked Barlow with a slick right hook, Patterson surged ahead with a barrage of punches including another powerful right hand followed by a few more rapid fire shots that ended the fight.
The stoppage came at 3:10 in the opening round as Patterson moved to 3-1 in the UFC with the victory.
“I feel amazing,” Patterson said about the win. “That was incredible. I said from the get go that I’m not just a grappler. I’m a mixed martial artist. I can do it all. He caught me with some good shots, I just caught him with better ones at the end.”
As soon as the action got started, Barlow clearly believed he had the superior striking as he kept looking to unload a big left hand with Patterson circling to his power side as they moved around the octagon. With Patterson keeping his chin high, Barlow was constantly looking for the knockout but he forgot to pay as much attention to his defense during those exchanges.
That’s when Patterson lined him up for a nasty right hook that immediately rocked Barlow and put him on wobbly legs. Patterson stayed on the attack until he dropped Barlow and delivered the fight finishing shots until the referee intervened.
Afterwards, Patterson revealed that his appearance on Saturday was the final bout on his current UFC contract, although it’s likely he earned himself a new deal with his latest performance.
