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In a moment of innovation, unranked light heavyweight Khalil Rountree Jr. used an oblique leg kick to beat Modestas Bukauskas at UFC Vegas 36 on Saturday.
After dominating the first round, Rountree secured the TKO win halfway through the second. The 31-year-old American improved his MMA win-loss record to 9-5 in the process.
Watch Khalil Rountree Jr.'s fight-winning oblique kick below:
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Rountree connected with powerful hooks right from the word go. Bukauskas' nose was broken early on as he struggled to counter the onslaught of punches he was being struck with.
After executing a string of low kicks and body shots, Rountree took it easy to close out the opener. He began the second round much like the first and kept chopping away at Bukauskas' legs.
Eventually, his strategy paid off. An oblique kick that landed on his opponent's left knee secured the win for Rountree. Despite being highly touted heading into the fight, Bukauskas got very little offense off throughout the fight.
Khalil Rountree Jr. completes the second TKO victory of UFC Vegas 36
Earlier in the main card, Paddy Pimblett made a stunning UFC debut with a first-round win over Luigi Vendramini. The Liverpool-based fighter recorded the victory in just four minutes and 25 seconds after landing some heavy blows.
Vendramini had initially looked on top and rocked the Englishman early on. However, Pimblett came back strong to make a statement to the rest of the lightweight division with a finish on debut.
Both Pimblett and Khalil Rountree will be hoping for a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus come the end of today's event.
Later, Derek Brunson will take on Darren Till in the UFC Vegas 36 main event inside the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Both middleweight contenders are possibly one win away from being considered for a shot at champion Israel Adesanya.
