Issue 125
February 2015
Gilbert Melendez had never been stopped in his 12-year, 25-fight MMA career… then he spent seven minutes in the cage with Anthony Pettis.
There was a ton of pressure riding on Anthony Pettis prior to his UFC 181 title fight. The lightweight champ hadn’t fought in 15 months and returned off the back of a serious knee injury. That’s all before you consider the opponent on the opposite side of the cage – former Strikeforce champion, number-one contender and bona-fide killer Gilbert Melendez.
The challenger certainly made a statement in the first frame by piling on the pressure. Takedown attempts followed flashes of heavy leather and Melendez won the round, but ‘Showtime’ survived and still managed to put his opposing TUF 20 coach on notice by returning fire.
“You see my takedown defense is getting good, I’m only getting better,” Pettis said after. “I had 15 months off, but I’m working every day in the gym. Gilbert’s tough man, he was throwing heat. I felt when he missed. I was like, ‘Woo! I’d better not get hit with that!’”
‘El Niño’ came out in the second frame with the same bad intentions. By getting all up in Pettis’ grill he could steer clear of his exemplary striking game and avoid the type of flashy, highlight-reel KO finish suffered by fellow leading contenders, Donald Cerrone and Joe Lauzon.
The plan looked to be working well again, but the champion only needed the smallest of windows to wrap things up. A left hand stung Melendez, prompting him to drop for another takedown, but Pettis was prepared to continue his offense. In an instant, he wrapped his arms around his ailing challenger’s exposed neck and pulled guard to lock up a vice-like guillotine. There was a split-second struggle, but as soon as the champ rolled to mount he forced the tap.
“You know, the first round was a tough round,” Pettis added. “I tried to avoid the takedown as best as possible, but I think once I got to striking range I delivered. I hit him with some good shots, some nice jabs, but I think I did enough to prove that I deserve this belt.”
It was the first time Melendez had been stopped in his entire career. A total of 25 men had tried and failed before, but the UFC’s latest poster boy outdid them all. With that, he made a statement to the long list of potential 155lb title challengers.
“I just showed them my message right there, he said. “Number one in the world – two rounds.”
