Gabriel Bonfim is more than a grappler. Heading into Saturday’s UFC Fight Night, many thought Bonfim’s submission skills would carry him to victory. Instead, he chewed up Randy Brown’s leg before knocking him out with a brutal knee in the second round from Las Vegas.
Bonfim systematically disassembled Brown, who was the more reputable striker. Bonfim immediately got to work, targeting Brown’s lead leg with calf strikes. The damage added up quickly as Brown started switching stances and preemptively picking his leg up off the mat. What happened early in Round 2, however, sparked more dialogue than the good work preceding it.
Bonfim landed a clinch knee that took him off his feet and dropped Brown. Bonfim quickly stood up and ran over to deal additional blows to his grounded opponent. Before he could, referee Mark Smith intervened and waved it off. Brown protested the stoppage, but it’s unlikely he would’ve fared better had the fight continued.
Upon closer inspection, it appeared that Brown was knocked out and awoke once he hit the mat. After Bonim landed the knee, Brown slowly fell backwards, his head smacking against the mat. He looked dazed as he slowly raised his hands to block Bonfim’s inevitable incoming barrage.
Post-fight, Bonfim reflected on his performance before calling out former UFC welterweight title challenger Colby Covington.
“We knew the calf was something. We knew to punish that, and that the knee would show up,” Bonfim said, according to Portuguese interpreter Fabiano Buskei. “Colby, stop running. Stop running away. We are the Bonfim brothers. Give me the chance to knock you out of the rankings… I’m going to retire him.”
It was a bittersweet evening for the Bonfim brothers. While Gabriel scored one of his biggest wins to date, Ismael wasn’t so lucky.
Chris Padilla knocked out the elder Bonfim brother after wearing him out. Gabriel Bonfim improved to 18-1 with a three-fight winning streak. Ismael Bonfim dropped to 20-5 and has lost three of his last four.
