UFC president Dana White believes Edmen Shahbazyan ran out of steam by round two against Derek Brunson.
Shahbazyan had his toughest test yet on Aug. 1 when he took on Brunson in the main event of UFC Vegas 5. Shahbazyan ended up being stopped in the third round via TKO. This is Shahbazyan’s first loss.
White Believes Shahbazyan Gassed Before Second Stanza
Speaking to media members after the event, White expressed his belief that Shahabazyan’s cardio failed him early in the fight (via MMAJunkie).
“Yeah, I think the kid is good,” White told reporters, including MMA Junkie. “I’m not taking anything away from Brunson, but he looked gassed out in the second round. But you’ve got to credit Brunson for that, too. I think that Brunson mixed up his striking and his wrestling tonight like he used to. He also came in in great shape. He definitely came in better shape than Shahbazyan.”
Shahbazyan’s record has now fallen to 11-1. There was a lot of hype surrounding him going into his bout with Brunson. Shahbazyan’s manager is UFC Hall of Famer Ronda Rousey and he’s trained with “Rowdy” in the past.
The win for Brunson is significant and he’s now riding a three-fight winning streak. It’s been a much-needed stretch for Brunson as he had suffered back-to-back TKO finishes to Jacare Souza and current UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.
Going into the bout, Brunson was the number eight-ranked UFC middleweight. Shahbazyan was behind him at number nine. When the rankings update, Brunson will at least maintain his spot and could even move up.
