Johnny Walker Stops Waldo Cortes-Acosta at UFC Vegas 124

Johnny Walker defeated Waldo Cortes-Acosta by third-round technical knockout in the UFC Vegas 124 main event, finishing the heavyweight bout at 2:27 of the round. The result gave Walker a win over a ranked opponent after he moved into the division, while Cortes-Acosta suffered a third consecutive defeat, according to the fight record described in coverage of the event.

Walker opened with low kicks, while Cortes-Acosta initially had difficulty finding range. The Dominican fighter later landed punches that hurt Walker and scored a knockdown in the first round, one account of the fight said. Walker recovered and continued into the second round.

In the second, Walker mixed low kicks with attacks toward the head and landed a spinning back elbow. Cortes-Acosta answered with punches and took Walker down, spending the closing moments of the round on top. The fight account characterized the round as favoring Cortes-Acosta.

Both fighters appeared fatigued in the third round, according to that account. Cortes-Acosta worked from a clinch, but referee Jason Herzog separated the fighters. Walker resumed attacking the legs, then landed a head kick that stunned Cortes-Acosta. Walker followed...