UFC 104: Cain Velasquez Destroys Ben Rothwell, Stays Undefeated

Posted Oct 24, 2009 11:51PM By Michael David Smith (RSS feed)

Filed Under: UFC

One of the future stars of the UFC's heavyweight division stayed undefeated Saturday night at UFC 104, as Cain Velasquez dominated Ben Rothwell with a second-round TKO.

Velasquez started the fight with a couple of body kicks, while Rothwell went for some punches. Velasquez then went inside for a single-leg takedown, getting Rothwell to the ground, and as a former NCAA All-American wrestler, that's where he wanted the fight to be.

Rothwell got the fight back to his feet for a while, but Velasquez landed another takedown and got Rothwell into side control, where he started landing elbows. Rothwell managed to get back up to his feet, but Velasquez took him down once again and badly damaged him with punch after punch and elbow after elbow. It was amazing that Rothwell made it out of the first round.

The second round started with Rothwell trying a high kick that missed, and Velasquez landing a punch and then another takedown. Velasquez got Rothwell's back and landed a series of strikes, and when Rothwell tried to get up, Velasquez punched him several more times, leading referee Steve Mazzagatti to stop the fight less than a minute into the round.

Both Rothwell and UFC announcer Joe Rogan thought the stoppage was premature, but I think it was justified: Velasquez was dominating the fight, and letting it go any longer could have exposed Rothwell to serious injury. Even Velasquez, who's usually highly critical of his own performances, acknowledged afterward that he was pleased with how he had fought.

Velasquez improves to 7-0. Rothwell falls to 30-7.

For more on the UFC 104 fight card, follow our UFC Twitter updates and UFC 104 results.

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Shocking Finish to UFC 104

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida (R) battles with UFC Light Heavyweight challenger Mauricio Rua (L) during their title fight at UFC 104 at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lyoto Machida;Mauricio Rua

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UFC 104 Photos

LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida (top) battles with UFC Light Heavyweight challenger Mauricio Rua (bottom) during their title fight at UFC 104 at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Machida retained his title by way of unanimous decision. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lyoto Machida;Mauricio Rua

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LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida (R) battles with UFC Light Heavyweight challenger Mauricio Rua (L) during their title fight at UFC 104 at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. Machida retained his title by way of unanimous decision. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lyoto Machida;Mauricio Rua

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LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida rests between rounds against UFC Light Heavyweight challenger Mauricio Rua (L) during their title fight at UFC 104 at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lyoto Machida

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LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida (L) battles with UFC Light Heavyweight challenger Mauricio Rua (R) during their title fight at UFC 104 at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lyoto Machida;Mauricio Rua

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LOS ANGELES, CA - OCTOBER 24: UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida (top) battles with UFC Light Heavyweight challenger Mauricio Rua (bottom) during their title fight at UFC 104 at Staples Center on October 24, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Lyoto Machida;Mauricio Rua

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

10-25-2009 @ 8:27AM

chriswisco said...

The captions on this Machida fight are SO bad, every other photo has the two fighters' names switched back and forth.

10-25-2009 @ 1:36PM

nankerphelge6 said...

How much punishment must a fighter have to endure before a fight is stopped? Sometimes these drunken bloodthirsty fans demand that a man get beaten to a pulp before a referee can stop a bout. What's the point of letting a man take a vicious beating when its obvious he can't win and will only end up a punch drunk fighter?

11-04-2009 @ 10:21PM

mespinosa55 said...

Ben got robbed I have seen this guy fight since his early days in Milwaukee. before IFL days anyway he could of won that fight if the ref would of not stopped it. Ben was jsut getting started it takes him to get some beating forawhile before he pours it on. I know people think Im nuts but even thought Ben was getting pounded I believe he stil had a chance to Win.

MMA

UFC 104: Cain Velasquez Destroys Ben Rothwell, Stays Undefeated

UFC 104 Photos