Best and Worst from UFC Fight Night 142: Dos Santos vs. Tuivasa

#2 Best: Martin vs. Matthews shows the power of patience

Jake Matthews put on a hell of a fight with Anthony Rocco Martin

Going into Fight Night 142 I felt the card was being somewhat underrated by online fans, and one of the fights flying under the radar was the Welterweight tilt between youngsters Jake Matthews and Anthony Rocco Martin.

Sure enough, the fighters delivered when it came to throwing down inside the cage, and personally – although they didn’t win the $50k bonus – I would’ve awarded the duo the Fight of the Night bonus.

Early on it looked like Matthews’ fight, as he clubbed Martin with some impressive power hooks and had him badly hurt towards the end of the first round. The second saw ‘The Celtic Kid’ continue to get the better of his foe standing, although it did appear that he’d slowed down somewhat – probably due to throwing with so much power.

In the third round though, Martin snatched away the victory, catching Matthews in a beautiful anaconda choke that left him unconscious following a blocked takedown attempt.

In all honesty, it was the kind of fight that both men will gain from despite Matthews’ loss, as it was a high-quality scrap that showed the best of both. While I suspect Martin’s post-fight call for a 165lbs division will fall on deaf ears, such a great fight was also a testament to the UFC’s patience with the two.

Matthews was just 19 when he signed with the UFC, and when he lost 2 fights in a row in 2016 it wouldn’t have been a surprise to see him cut. But instead, he’s moved to 170lbs and now looks like a genuine top-level prospect.

Martin meanwhile was 23 when he debuted and lost 3 of his first 4 UFC bouts. Like Matthews, he could easily have been cut – but the UFC persisted with him and he’s now won 6 of his last 7 and he’s unbeaten at 170lbs. Hopefully, the UFC learns from this and continues to keep talented young fighters around – even when they lose.