The 11th ranked light heavyweight Johnny Walker came into this big fight at UFC Vegas 11 against Ryan Spann needing a win. He had dropped his last two and it was his first time fighting since leaving TriStarMMA and moved to SBG Ireland. He had 14 first-round finishes and 14 KO's coming into this fight as well.
The fight started out with a lightning-fast pace. Johnny Walker landed a low kick that was answered by a Ryan Spann hook. The action went down to the mat for a second as the duo popped right back up. With the two connecting on each other, they clinched along the fence to slow the pace down. There Spann landed some knees that didn't seem to bother Walker too much.
Johnny Walker got clipped by a left hook as Ryan looked to fire away on him. Both fighters pulled a Rocky Balboa-Apollo Creed moment, landing on each other again. Spann's right hand sent Johnny Walker down, but Walker reversed his position and teed off on the Texan with a flurry of hammer fists. He continued the assault with elbows as then referee Dan Miragliotta jumped in at 2:43 of the opening round to stop the action.
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The win adds another KO and 1st round finish to Johnny Walker's stats. Instead of his usual crazy celebration after a win, he sat on the mat and crossed his legs, Indian style. The fight also ended Ryan's impressive eight-fight win streak, dating back to his LFA days.
Most likely next week Johnny Walker will see his name in the top 10. The 28-year-old Brazilian didn't name any names to Jon Anik post-fight either but doesn't care when he gets back into the cage next, as long as it's soon. Ryan Spann's corner seemed to put up a small argument that the elbows that reigned down on him were illegal 12 to 6 elbows.