SACRAMENTO – For four rounds, Joe Soto just wouldn’t go away.
But in the fifth, T.J. Dillashaw finally got him. Dillashaw (11-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) defended his bantamweight title with a head kick knockout against Soto (15-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC), who took the fight on a day’s notice after former champ Renan Barao had to be hospitalized while cutting weight on Friday.
Dillashaw outlanded Soto in the striking department by a longshot. But that’s not to say Soto didn’t keep himself in the fight. Soto landed arguably some of the heavier punches, and defended nicely against Dillashaw’s near constant boxing. But the punches continued to pile up, right until Dillashaw finished Soto in the fifth – his second straight fifth-round title fight win.
Check out the video highlights above of the fight, which took place at UFC 177 at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento. The main card aired on pay-per-view.
Also see:
- UFC 177: Tony Ferguson vs. Danny Castillo fight video highlights
- UFC 177: Bethe Correia vs. Shayna Baszler fight video highlights
- UFC 177: Carlos Diego Ferreira vs. Ramsey Nijem fight video highlights
- UFC 177: Yancy Medeiros vs. Damon Jackson fight video highlights
For complete coverage of UFC 177, stay tuned to the UFC Events section of the site.